US Television: Vampire Diaries, Episode 2.1 "The Return"

Vampire Diaries
Season Two, Episode 2.1, The Return
Original Air Date:  September 9, 2010

Katherine has returned to town.  She introduces herself to all the main characters.  Caroline, who was injured in the car accident, is still in the hospital in poor condition until Damon steps in.  Mason Lockwood arrives in town after the death of his brother.

I've been eagerly waiting for this show to return and it most certainly didn't disappoint!  From the events of the first season finale I knew there would be some great fireworks when the new season started up and there most certainly were.

Katherine proves to the viewers just what a cruel and heartless woman she really is.  Course, she's a vampire.  She can't be all warm and fuzzy, can she?  Her first act in Mystic Falls is to try and murder John Gilbert.  She cuts off the fingers of his right hand where his ring is so it cannot save him then plunges a knife into him.  Thankfully, Elena is arriving home at about that time.  She calls the paramedics and they arrive in time to save John.
Terrified that something might have happened to Jeremy, Elena rushes upstairs to find him on his bed.  At the end of last season, Jeremy drank the vial of Anna's blood then took pills to kill himself so he could become a vampire.  Sorry, Jeremy, it didn't work.  Stefan looks him over and pronounces him still human.

Caroline's life is touch and go but Damon offers to give her a little of his blood to save her.  Elena doesn't want him to do it but Bonnie, of all people, encourages him to.  Caroline makes a stunning recovery and she's back to her old self again in no time.

Katherine lets the Salvatore brothers know she's in town.  Both want to know why she's there and she tells Stefan that she came back for him.  But, Stefan doesn't love her.  He has never loved her. 

Tyler Lockwood and his family are grieving the loss of Mayor Lockwood.  Mason Lockwood, Tyler's uncle, arrives in town.  Tyler expresses concern to his uncle that he doesn't like the anger that he feels.  Mason explains that it's the curse of the Lockwoods.  All of them have it but he has learned how to control it.  I was hoping we'd get to see the "Lockwood curse" in this first episode but it can't be too far down the road.  In the next episode or two I believe we'll be seeing all the furry details of it.

Bonnie is coming into her own as a witch even more but she's not strong enough to fend off Katherine.  Bonnie makes sure that Damon knows she could kill him whenever she wants.  I'm not sure I like the whole "Bonnie is super bi-otchy with Damon" thing. 

Damon receives a double blow when Katherine tells him she never loved him, that it was always Stefan she's loved.  Later, Elena, when questioned by Damon as to why she would have never kissed him back, informs Damon that she couldn't ever love him because she will always love Stefan.  It's more than Damon can really take and he breaks Jeremy's neck.  Luckily, John Gilbert gave Jeremy his ring before he left town.  The ring saves Jeremy's life but Damon's actions cause Elena to tell Stefan she truly hates his brother. 

Katherine, refusing to back down, goes to the hospital and tells Catherine to give the Salvatore brothers a message for her.  The message:  "game on".  She then suffocates Caroline with a pillow.  Since Caroline had Damon's blood in her system I can only imagine that we've now got a brand new ditzy blonde vampire in Mystic Falls!   

Damon is still the King of the One Liners as he was in the first season.  I truly felt sorry for him.  He was told not once but twice that he's never been and never will be loved by the two women he has truly cared about.  What's a poor guy to do?  Breaking Jeremy's neck might not have been the right choice but I imagine Damon feels that if he's hated by everyone then he doesn't have to risk the pain of falling for anyone.

The strong writing of the first season continues in the second.  The characters are still strong and vivid.  When you're working with vampires and werewolves and all things supernatural like that it would be easy to take a detour down Stupid Boulevard.  Right now, the writers aren't taking that path and I'm quite pleased about that.  Vampire Diaries is one of my favorite shows and I truly hope it stays a strong show for a long, long time.

For more information:
Official Site:  http://www.cwtv.com/shows/the-vampire-diaries
The Internet Movie Database:  http://www.imdb.com/title/tt1405406/
TV Rage:  http://www.tvrage.com/The_Vampire_Diaries