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© 2009 CW
Ian Somerhalder as Damon, Nina Dobrev as Elena in THE VAMPIRE DIARIES "162 Candles"
Television:
TV Review: THE VAMPIRE DIARIES - SEASON ONE - '162 Candles'
A boring, uneventful episode. Boring is bad
Grade: CStars: Nina Dobrev, Paul Wesley, Ian Somerhalder
Writer(s): Barbie Kligman, Julie Plec
Director: Rick Bota
Release Date: November 6, 2009
Rating: NR
By CARLOS DELGADO, Associate Editor
Published 11/6/2009
Damon (Ian Somerhalder) should have died on VAMPIRE DIARIES. Stefan (Paul Wesley) should have killed him. That would have made the episode at least somewhat interesting. Instead we get Lexi (Arielle Kebbel) getting staked by Damon, Stefan huffing and puffing about how Damon needs to die because he does nothing but bring death and destruction everywhere he goes, followed by… nothing.
Which kind of sums up this episode. Nothing really happened. No one was blamed for Vicki’s (Kayla Ewell) death. Damon didn’t get his pendant back. We already knew Bonnie (Katerina Graham) was a witch. Caroline (Candice Accola) remains as dumb as ever. The only semblance of drama is the death of a throwaway character, Lexi, who the audience doesn’t have an attachment to in the first place, being that she was onscreen, oh, 10 minutes max. Yes, Damon is working with the police to find the vampires terrorizing
After last week’s mess, I suppose we needed a break with a filler episode. It’s Stefan’s birthday, his 162. An old friend Lexi comes to visit and, of course, to celebrate. But things turn sour when Damon attacks a young couple, killing the boy and planting into the girl’s head that Lexi was the murderer. The police capture Lexi, but as she is being drug out, she attacks the officers, forcing Damon to kill her. Stefan is devastated, but gives his brother what amounts to a slap on the wrist.
Let’s get past the cardboard acting (I’m looking at you Graham and Accola) and the suspect writing and get to the good stuff. For those of you who weren’t paying attention, the music during the party was “Escape Me” from
But aside from those pop culture references, “162 Candles” didn’t have much to it. It wasn’t terrible, especially by VAMPIRE DIARIES standards, but it wasn’t great either. It’s hard to connect with audience by using fleeting characters and then having your leads end up being pushovers. And was it me, or did it seem silly when Bonnie confessed to Elena (Nina Dobrev) that she was a witch. That’s not exactly news you share, even if it is your best friend.
At least when there is a just bloody awful episode, I have something to rant and rave about. But “162 Candles” doesn’t evoke anger, impatience, disbelief, etc. In fact, it doesn’t evoke anything from me. I’m taking that as a bad sign. In a show that is trying to hold the attention of a bunch of ADD 14 year olds, THE VAMPIRE DIARIES may have just dropped the ball. Again. Good job guys.
Reader Comments
lol from michigan sez....
wtf shut up, if u hate the show so much then quit wasting ur time writing reviews about it. The majority of people love lexi and hate Damon. And Accola and Graham are really good actresses. Damon can't die because there wouldnt be any point for the show to comtinue. "162 Candles" has been the best episode so far. And by the way, i think you missed the whole thing of Damon not dieing. Stefan is a GOOD vampire. HE DOESN'T KILL no matter what! Didn't you hear what Elena said to stop him!??????
11/7/2009 1:23:11 PM
lalala from DC sez....
I didn't think tonight's episode was that great either. Lexi didn't have an emotional attachment, but I did really like her. But I admit I was surprised by her death as I thought she would be a recurring character. Well, maybe in the flashbacks. I thought her death was kind of lame too.
I actually think the Bonnie & Elena scene was quite cute with the feathers. And I really liked Matt & Caroline scenes--they were two broken kids. I did like the ending of this episode after Lexi's death. Loved the battle between Damon & Stefan though it was short and see it delve in Stefan's darker side. And I thought the Bonnie-dream sequence was quite chilling. Looks like in the preview that it's going to be pretty intense.
11/6/2009 11:33:04 PM
Zoey from California. sez....
What the hell is your deal? If you think the show is such crap, then stop reviewing it! I'm sure the other intelligent folks who read this website's reviews will appreciate it, and you can stop watching what you think is a show for ADD 14 year olds.
11/6/2009 10:59:30 PM
WTF from New york sez....
Wow, I don even know what to say to this review. The majority opinion is that people really liked Lexi and hates that she died. Damon is an evil genious and the show would be over if he died. Accola is far from the worst actress on the show (I'm looking at you debrov), seemed to give a genuine and heart breaking performance, and the character of caroline has shown a lot of depth, is growing, and is far from a dumb character. Perhaps you're just completely apathetic. And not every episode can be action packed and reveal huge plot points. It needs to be drawn out to create a series obviously. One thing I like about this show is the pace, and the ability to make less action packed episodes interesting. And Vickie...wasn't the most popular character, probably the most hated actually. So who cares. Damon was smart and made sure no one would get blamed. I'm sure it will come up late to bite him in the ass later. I give your ability to review logically and unbiased an F. The episode I give a B.
11/6/2009 8:00:19 PM
kelsey from Wisconsin sez....
you know what you need to have a fucking meomory check. this show is awsome and so are the books. so either get your facts straight and get a fucking attitude adjustment or stop commenting
11/6/2009 4:38:32 PM
cheese from piss off sez....
u suck. i love this show and the books.
11/6/2009 3:22:42 PM
