Episode Report Card Cindy McLennan: C | 2 USERS: A+ YOU GRADE IT The Night Of the First Kiss
By Cindy McLennan | Season 1 | Episode 2 | Aired on 09.17.2009
Once Elena leaves, Damon taunts Stefan by praising her "spunk." It must be stealth-spunk. He then decides Stefan looks worn-out and soon figures out it's because Stefan tried to put the whammy on Vicki. "Remember, if you don't feed properly, none of those little tricks work right." Stefan ignores this and asks how long Elena was there. Damon says, "Are you worried Stefan -- scared we may be doomed to repeat the past?" He asks if that isn't why Stefan is going through the whole high school student charade. He then brings close talking to a whole new level. "We both know the closest you'll ever get to humanity is when you rip it open and feed on it." Oh, my. It looks like those brother-slashers who are tired of team Winchester have just found a whole new sandbox. Why did it have to be on my show? I'm sorry, back to the episode. Stefan wants to know what kind of game Damon is playing, but Damon enjoys maintaining the suspense.
Gilbert house: Elena tells Jenna that Stefan is on the rebound and has raging family issues. Jenna gives her the more grown-up alternative of mommy, cheating or amphetamine issues. Just then a hooded Jeremy enters, but he's not in the mood to talk. Jenna demands to know where he was, but Jeremy is too stoned to get into it with her, gives her some smartass talk, and starts up the stairs. Jenna throws her apple at him (actual spunk!) and tells him to quit skipping class or he's grounded. Jeremy slurs, "Parental authority -- I like it." He gives her the thumbs up, tells her to sleep tight and heads on his merry highway to bed.
Hospital: Vicki's sleep is restless. She gets out of bed and looks at her brother Matt, sleeping in the chair. Walking to the bathroom, she turns on the faucet and looks up to see Damon's reflection in the mirror. When she turns, he's gone. Returning to her room, she tries to wake Matt, who then turns into a vamp-faced Damon. Vicki wakes with a gasp. COMMERCIAL!
Mystic Falls Town Square: Banners announce the "Night of the Comet." Kids play and get their faces painted. People mingle. And Elena and Bonnie hand out "programs" for the night's event. How they've come by these programs and why they're handing them out is not explained. Look, we need the girls downtown and we've already shot a scene of them at the Grill. Quick, call the contrivance fairy. Elena confesses to Bonnie that Stefan has neither called nor texted her, but they never even got to the point where they could exchange that sort of information, so... look, the point is, she's doing the sort of mental gymnastics teenaged girls are sometimes known to do when they are hurt by a boy but want to believe that his lack of attention is just an accident. I mean come on, Elena -- the boy found your house quickly enough and had no problem just showing up, whenever he wanted to talk to you. Anyhow, Elena says their timing was wrong. Bonnie, the wise single, says, "When is it ever right?" Cut to Caroline wandering across the common. She spies Damon staring intently and assumes she's the target. Hair and other parts bouncing, she struts toward him with a knowing look on her face. He disappears, as does Caroline's smile.