The Vampire Diaries: My Brother's Keeper

Posted by: Kyle Tetarenko  •  November 29, 2012 @ 8:54pm

Filed under: Recaps & Reviews

In order to cure Elena, Stefan must force Jeremy to kill in order to become a hunter. Little does he know, becoming a hunter will give Jeremy a few more surprises than just a new tattoo.

Still reeling from his breakup with Elena, Stefan gets advice from Caroline that he shouldn't be so quick to give up on Elena and needs to keep fighting for her. Klaus on the other hand isn't very happy that Stefan told almost everyone in Mystic Falls about a cure for vampirism and leaves him with no choice but to help Jeremy complete his "hunter's mark". Meanwhile at the Lockwood estate, Caroline is organizing a pageant and has to live up to her deal and have her date with Klaus and after Elena confesses her feelings for Damon, she realizes Jeremy is missing and sends Damon to find him. Noticing that Professor Shane is in town to judge the pageant, Damon takes the opportunity to confront him about his true motives and what is needed for the cure. It's only after Jeremy he kills another vampire that Stefan begins to lose control of the situation which only pushes Elena further away and closer to Damon.

My Brother's Keeper wasn't just bad, it was painful. I'm not sure if there was any part of the story that came together at one point and although most plots are connected the vampire cure, they felt completely separate. Stefan is occupied with growing Jeremy's tattoo while Caroline is running a pageant and trying to convince Elena she is making a mistake and Damon is trying to get answers from Professor Shane. The only thing connecting any of them together is Elena and that over reliance on her feels exhausted.

Though Connor Jordan was an interesting character and brought the hunter mystique with him, the same thing can't be said for Jeremy. Though his material may be more exciting than it usually is, Steven R. McQueen doesn't have the ability to give this storyline the excitement it needs. His bland delivery and lack of emotion behind his eyes gives it away every time. Unfortunately for McQueen, the writing failed him at every turn. Connor had depth and history and made his hatred of vampires and brutal methods almost sympathetic. Instead, the hunter in Jeremy is taking control with each kill like a virus. Suddenly Jeremy is losing control and is now in the same situation as Elena: he doesn't know who he is and how to control his newfound power. It's just the latest way to emphasize that Jeremy and Elena are kids, perpetually confused about who they are given the years of time they have lived with the Supernatural.

Besides the two instance of dancing (the group dance and then Elena and Damon) the worst part of My Brother's Keeper were the scenes between Elena and Damon. It's not like I am pro Stelena or Dalena but Elena's constant state of confusion this season and then sudden clarity to be with Damon is too much of a fan service than anything else. Factor in that this is only the seventh episode of the season and there is a great deal of time for everything to change back to the status quo and Elena's feelings for Damon will almost certainly be her regret closer to the finale. The Vampire Diaries always finds a way to keep things the same by never having big game changers (significant characters die) and leaves plenty of time left in the season for the minor ones to get smoothed out. Season two's The Masquerade illustrates that point quite well when Katherine is locked in the tomb only to be freed closer to the end when they needed her help (if only she was here now!).

My Brother's Keeper is an episode of The Vampire Diaries that is best forgotten. Marred by disjointed, inconsistent writing and weak performances, hopefully next week's We'll Always Have Bourbon Street can steer the show back to the right path.

Tags: The Vampire Diaries, Stefan Salvatore, Damon Salvatore, Elena Gilbert, Paul Wesley, Ian Somerhalder, Nina Dobrev, Stelena , Dalena

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