The Vampire Diaries: The End Of An Era

On September 10th in 2009, the pilot episode of The Vampire Diaries, based on the book series by, L.J Smith, premiered on The CW. The show is internationally beloved by millions of fans. The show has grown so big that they have conventions for the show all over the world. Now after 8 seasons and 171 episodes, the show is coming to an end. Teens who watched this show as freshmen in high school in 2009 when it started, are now seniors in college this year. They have grown up with the show. The Vampire Diaries has a solid and dedicated fanbase. 

The love triangle between Damon, Stefan, and Elena is epic. This love saga between the three main characters has captured the hearts of viewers from all over the world. From the beginning, fans of the show picked sides between Team Damon and Team Stefan. Jo Morrison, a fan of the show, rooted for Stefan and Elena from the beginning. 

“Elena and Stefan are my favorite,” said Morrison. “Because even though Stefan has his flaws he always did the right thing for the people he cared about. He is such a romantic at heart, is so soft and sweet, he’s the good guy. So I love them together.”

Alexis Pruitt, University of Alabama senior, has been watching the show since she was a freshman in high school.

“Well I always thought there was more to Damon’s character,” said Pruitt. “I thought his character was interesting. He plays off the bad boy persona so well but I loved watching his character development, which Elena played a huge part in that. I like how they make each other better.”

Pruitt’s favorite moment from the show, out of all the seasons, is the first Miss Mystic Falls Pageant. 

“Season one just has my heart,” said Pruitt. “My favorite scene is the Miss Mystic Falls pageant  when Elena is walking down the staircase. Elena looks so pretty, Stefan was supposed to be there and he wasn’t. Damon steps in Stefan’s place. I think this was a pivotable moment in Damon and Elena’s love story. I don’t think Elena truly saw Damon as someone she could love until that moment when they were dancing.”

The Vampire Diaries has had so many iconic scenes within it’s amazing storylines. Director and cameraman, Geoff Shotz, said his favorite storyline was the heretics. Aside from being a cameraman since the first season, Shotz has directed three episodes for The Vampire Diaries. His first being episode nineteen in season six, but Shotz does not have a favorite episode.

“All three of them have been different,” Shotz said. “As the storyline evolves each season, you get a whole different set of characters, drama, and intrigue. My first episode, it was my first time directing so it was great.” 

Fans of the show were left in shock at the end of season 6 when Nina Dobrev left the show. In the show, Elena’s life was tied to Bonnie’s, Elena cannot wake up unless Bonnie, her best friend, dies. Fans were heartbroken that Dobrev would not be on the show anymore. Brazilian fan, May Baciquetto, felt like the show as a whole was not the same without Elena.

“I think that it is not the same without her,”  Baciquetto said. “But I think the eighth season is really great but it’s not The Vampire Diaries for me.” 

The show has been progressing and changing since it’s first season. One of the perks to The Vampire Diaries being a supernatural show is that anything is possible. Nobody is completely dead on the show and nothing is impossible. 

“You have to have a continuing storyline,” Shotz said. “It escalades, it’s defiantly going to escalade. All of it, the jeopardy and the drama, the heartbreak. Once you go to one then you’re going to go to two then turns into four. It always gets a little bit bigger.”

Over the last few weeks, as we have seen on the cast’s social media, they have been filming the final episodes of The Vampire Diaries. The final episode will air on March 10th, 2017. The show’s makeup department head, Amber Crowe, said it’s been like the end of high school.

“Everyone is pretty tired so it’s hard gauge,” said Crowe. “But it feels a lot like being a senior in high school. You’re so excited to graduate and move on to exciting things but it’s a little scary and bittersweet all at the same time.”

Crowe has been working on the show since the middle of season five. Crowe has been the person behind some of the coolest makeup effects of the show.

“This is a vampire show so there’s a lot of blood and trauma,” Crowe said. “However, the nature of our show still has to have a raw and romantic element, not gruesome, there’s an art to that.” 

One of Crowe’s favorite memories from working on the show is the rave scene from season six. 

“One of the most enjoyable scenes to film was in season 6 when we had the rave episode,” Crowe said. “Ian was directing and it was absolutely so much fun to turn one of our stages into an all night dance party.” 

Now it is time to say goodbye to a show that has been apart of fans hearts for so many years. Though we still have The Vampire Diaries’s spinoff show, The Originals, to look forward to with the final episode The Vampire Diaries is an end to an era. 

“The show was planned out perfect,” Jo Morrison said. “Each episode left you hanging and wanting more. It took turns we never saw coming and squeezed our hearts to love each and every character a different way.” 

Though The Vampire Diaries will be gone, it will most certainly not be forgotten. 

“Every Thursday night and now Friday night, from 2009 to now,” said Alexis Pruitt. “I looked forward to watching The Vampire Diaries. I will miss seeing what’s going on in Mystic Falls every week. Thank you so much to the cast for making the show what it is and for bringing their characters to life. If it wasn’t for them, the show would not be what it is today.”

The first seven season are available on Netflix for your binge watching pleasure. Are you heartbroken about the end of The Vampire Diaries? Let us know at @HCUAlabama on Twitter!

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