The Vampire Diaries bites back!

I know we have 24 and Heroes tonight, but I thought I'd comment on another show that is back after a long hiatus -- The Vampire Diaries (which I awarded as the best new show of 2009). In case you haven't seen the episode yet (and really, what are you waiting for?), I won't put all of the details on the main page. So click the "Read More" link for the full column.

I'm a real sucker for when TV shows focus on uncommon couples, and this episode was chock full of that! In fact, the three pairs that we followed -- Elena and Damon, Stefan and Bonnie, and Jeremy and Anna -- were ones that we had never seen before, at least for an extended one-on-one basis. And each of these interactions gave us a deeper glimpse into each character, and helped lead the way for some pretty interesting revelations.

Lets start with Damon and Elena. You know that expression, "Honor amongst thieves"? I sort of get that impression from Damon. Sure, Elena isn't a thief, but their relationship works on that basis. Damon clearly wants something from Elena (or, at the very least, she serves a purpose to him), so in his own twisted way he's honest and relatively truthful with her. When he promises her that he won't use his abilities against her, he doesn't. This even goes back to when he used his mind control to erase Jeremy's memory. He didn't really have to do that. And from what we've seen since, it doesn't appear that he was particularly conniving in the way he handled the task.

And for her part, Elena showed a striking amount of trust while with Damon. Yes, a lot of it was aimed at her anger towards Stefan (not to mention the fact that she's in the middle of a legitimately dangerous place without knowing anybody else), but even so, she really let her guard down and let loose while around him. And I understood why she saved him. Like I said, she truly needs him for her own protection. But I was pretty surprised by how forgiving and concerned she was, considering that she just found out that he killed Lexi. Not a criticism, just an observation.

In a lot of ways, my favorite duo of the episode was Stefan and Bonnie. Truth be told, it was a lot of talk and inaction, but it really helped develop a close bond between two central characters. Remember that episode of Seinfeld where George and Elaine realize they've never hung out without Jerry acting as their middle man? Bonnie and Stefan have a similar relationship. Even if Elena isn't physically there with them, their relationship has always revolved around her. That wasn't the case here. When Stefan initially went to check on her, it was out of concern over the ordeal she had just experienced. And the rest of their time together revolved around Stefan helping her come to terms with what she had gone through. Further, it was nice seeing Stefan around people other than Elena, as it helps the skeptical viewer realize that he's a legitimately nice guy, and that he isn't just putting on an act to impress a girl.

While it wasn't as highlighted as the other two stories, I also enjoyed the budding relationship with Jeremy and Anna. For one, it gave us an explanation about how Jeremy can be reading all about vampires and not be saying, "Wait....what?" As far as he's concerned, vampires are an allegory for the political nonsense going on at the time. This also eased the way into Jeremy learning the truth about what's going on around him.

And of course we got some juicy revelations! We learned that Stefan and Bonnie's grandmother are old pals -- a tidbit I quite liked (come to think of it, their interaction, while brief, was awfully enjoyable as well). We also discovered that Stefan witnessed the accident that killed Elena's parents, and that he was the one who rescued her (an almost Lost-esque reveal). And, finally, we found out that Elena is adopted, and likely a descendant of Katherine. This led to a nasty little showdown between Elena and Jenna, and could actually result in a fun little role reversal, with Elena being the rebellious and bleak problem child, and Jeremy being the bright and responsible one.

If you're not watching this show -- you should be!