The Vampire Diaries season 4 hasn’t always been a highlight of my Thursday night TV viewing, but one aspect that is a great improvement over the previous three seasons is with Jeremy Gilbert. Remember when he was shipped off to Colorado for his protection or as I remember it, because there was nothing for his character to do. Boy have times changed! 

Jeremy (Nice job, Steven R. McQueen) bulked up his muscles and at the same time his presence in Mystic Falls. Now, if he could just get together with Bonnie and temper the evil witch inside of her. For now, he has more urgent matters to contend with like staying alive and finding the cure.

The Teams

The race for the cure is on. It’s a battle between Team Klaus with Damon,Team Shane with Bonnie, and Team Rebekah with Stefan. They each have their own plan to find the cure, reason for wanting it and item to help them find it.

But, is there a fourth team out there? Someone compelled the guy to steal the headstone. Could that have been Kol? He tortured Shane and he is adamant that the cure not be found. It would make sense for him to block the other teams whenever he can. Rebekah really should have daggered him.

As it stands right now, Team Klaus still has Jeremy and is working the angle to get his hunter’s mark complete. Team Shane has magic, had the headstone (which was stolen), and have a head’s up on Silas. And, lastly, there’s Team Rebekah. They were trailing behind, but now have the precious headstone. Well, Rebekah does at least. 

It’s going to be a race to the finish to see which team finds the cure … if it even exists at all!

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The Hunter

Poor Jeremy. He is being used by so many people, it’s hard to know what he should do. At least he can’t be compelled. There’s enough of that going on with other people. While Klaus’s plan to turn a bunch of people for Jeremy to kill was sad from a humanity standpoint, it made sense. A few quick kills and the mark would be complete.

Just as Jeremy decided to go through with the kills, Kol’s actions interfered. The Original slaughtered the vampires to prevent Jeremy from doing it. Damon was right when he said it was a waste of lives.

Jeremy is now stuck between brothers. Klaus wants him to complete his mark and Kol will stop at nothing to prevent that from happening with Jeremy right in the middle.Why did Kol even promise Klaus that he wouldn’t kill Jeremy? 

Oh, right, so he could compel Damon to do it and add a wrinkle to the story. The compelling and sire bonds devices are being overused this season. Why don’t the Originals just compel everyone to do what they want, when they want and be done with it? (I’m kidding!)

The Damon-Jeremy chase was just weird anyway. How did Damon know he was compelled and if he was wouldn’t he just attack without thinking? Though, it did have a surprising and intriguing twist with Stefan taking Damon out of the picture to protect Jeremy.

Magic’s Dangerous

I’m not sure what game Shane is playing, but he shouldn’t be trusted. Bonnie’s decision to embrace the magic within her is because of him. She had issues before, but it has only gotten worse since she met Shane.

Bonnie’s father should be concerned for her, but pushing her towards Shane is probably not the best option. She’s becoming more and more isolated from her friends, which has left her vulnerable.

As I mentioned before, I’d love to see her spend more time with Jeremy. They both have issues they need to work out and the support they could give to each other could save them both.

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Love Sucks

The Elena-Salvatore brothers love triangle took a turn for the better. Stefan decided to move on! Yay! No more wallowing for him. At one point, Rebekah was his true love, could she be again? I doubt it, but it’s going to be fun seeing them work and play together. They had more chemistry and heat in one minute than Stefan and Elena ever had.

When Stefan told Elena he didn’t love her any more the pain was evident on her face. It’s as if she thought that she could be with Damon, but also enjoy watching Stefan pine away for her. In that moment, I didn’t like Elena very much. Her selfishness came through loud and clear.

Now that Damon is locked up, how will Elena survive without him? I wouldn’t mind if he was kept locked away for a few episodes. Perhaps, it would give Elena some time to be independent and shift her focus entirely to Jeremy.

I always thought that Elena and Stefan were destined to be together, but these last few episodes have me questioning that. Elena truly seems happier with Damon. And, even more important, Stefan is more himself when he isn’t bound by some obligation to Elena. Let the real Stefan out!

Kill Kol

Elena’s new plan involves Jeremy killing Kol. If killing the Original and all his sires would complete the mark, it’s a solid plan, except for the whole killing an Original thing. It’s not like Jeremy can walk up to Kol and shoot him with a gun. Bang, he’s dead.

Killing Kol would be a dangerous proposition. Also, do they know for sure that no one they care about was siredd from his bloodline? Despite the challenges and risks, it will be fun to watch them try.

Did you enjoy the episode? How hot were Stefan and Rebekah together? Which team do you want to see get the cure and why?

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(Image and videos courtesy of The CW.)

Carla Day

Contributing Writer, BuddyTV

Contributing Editor and Writer for Collider, BuddyTV, TV Fanatic, CliqueClack, and other publications. TV criticism, reviews, interviews with actors and producers, and other related content. Founder of TV Diehard.