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News, Reviews & Commentary on Lesbian and Bisexual women in Entertainment and the Media

Sink your teeth into these unexpectedly juicy "Diaries"

What I am about to tell you is confidential and deeply personal. It will take a lot of will power and a good deal of humility. I may never get over the shame. Here goes: I totally love a show on the CW. No, not Gossip Girl. No, not 90210. No, not Melrose Tree Place or whatever the heck the other shows are called. No, I love The Vampire Diaries.

Hey, stop snickering. Now I realize I am on the outer limits of the show’s demographics. I am neither in high school nor a member of the undead. But I haven’t been able to resist a good vampire story since my parents got me a Dracula graphic novel back way before they were even called graphic novels. What? I wasn’t much into princess stories.

For us fangs, er I mean, fans of the show, this weeks starts a long dry spell until fresh episodes begin flowing again Jan. 14. To stem our cravings (too much with the vampire puns? Never!) the show will marathon all 10 current episodes back-to-back from Dec. 14 to 18.

The series has been a break-out hit for the CW this season and I can tell you why. It’s just good fun. Not like puppies and rainbows and lollipops fun, but serious melodrama, ridiculously attractive people and zippy storylines fun. It’s like Dawson’s Creek with less angst and more biting. That comparison might sound silly unless you know that its creator, Kevin Williamson, also helmed the Creek.

Now, some may accuse me of just jumping on the vampire bandwagon. But I’ve studiously avoided everything to do with Twilight and haven’t had the time to watch True Blood. Plus, the source material for The Vampire Diaries precedes both those by at least a decade as it was first published in 1991. No, my affection started back with Bram Stoker and more recently was stoked by Buffy the Vampire Slayer.

So what does The Vampire Diaries have that makes it good TV? Vampires. Witches. Seances. Flashbacks. Love triangles. Feuding brothers. The best bad boy vamp since Spike in Damon (played with wicked charisma by Ian Somerhalder). A fresh-faced leading lady in Elena (played by Nina Dobrev). Brooding. Biting. Staking.

My one complaint? It needs more female vamps. Or, more precisely, female vamps who don’t get staked the minute we meet them. Oh, and one last complaint. What whipper-snapper decided to make Jasmine Guy play a grandmother? A grandmother!? She was Whitley! Well, like I said, I am on the outer limit of the show’s demographic, clinging by a fingernail.

So, are you with me? Have you sunk your teen (last one, I promise) into this delectable morsel of sudsy TV fun? And, if so, who the hell did Elena hit in the middle of the road last week? I can’t believe I have to wait until Jan. 14 to find out.

ProudGoldStar's picture

I've sunk my teeth in it from the very first episode!

I despise the Twilight Universe and I'm very picky when it comes to vampire shows..but The Vampire Diares really did the trick for me. I love it! So, you're not the only one and I bet there are plenty of other people who would agree on the fact that it is a damn good show!

Ps: Yes, please - more female vamps, thank you very much!

Come out, come out..wherever you are!

drbootymd's picture

i haven't watched yet

a friend of mine is into it, but she has notoroius bad taste.  I'm intruged by kevin williamson creating it.  If i get unvamped out anytime soon, i'll watch.  Plus i like mia from degrassi lol

 

"stop, you don't get to break my heart and comfort me too."

Luna's picture

I love all things Creaters

I love all things Creatures of The Night. Vampires, Werewolfs, um.. etc. hehe

 

I love Twilight the book series and the film series mostly because I'm not a snob and I love a great work of fiction and Twilight is a great work of fiction.

 

The Vampire Diaries is great! It is one of my favorite shows in TV and I'm so happy that it's a hit and that it is on the CW a network that never cancels anything. Smallville is on what season 9, 10?  

 

If only Eastwick was on the CW. :(

Joyous's picture

Nope

I am a huge fan of LJ Smith! I have read all of her books excluding the Forbidden Game trilogy. When I was in 8th grade I lapped up all of the Vampire Diaries and searched for more by this talented author. I always wanted the books to be turned into a movie. Then the Twilight movie came out and I wished Vampire Diaries had made it to the screen and got totally stoked for the show. I was so skeptical because I do not like shows on the CW but I was a Creek fan. From the first episode I was disappointed. Everything that happened in the show I unfortunately compared to the books and they are waaaaaaaay off. I like twilight because the movies stay true to the books. True Blood is different from the book series but does take storyline from the books so far. Vampire Diaries the TV Show dropped the strongest female character, Meredith, and according to some source meshed her with the Bonnie character. I'm glad they used a female of color for Bonnie but I was looking forward to see a bouncy red head of Celtic descent. I'd rather have 5 year old Margaret than her idiotic brother Jeremy. The only thing the show got right was Damon. He is spot on. My wife loves this show but I couldn’t watch it past episode 3. I wonder if other book series lovers feel the same.

LJ should consider making The Secret Circle into movies that would make people say "What is the Craft?"

sweetiedarlinmia's picture

Wait, What!

Whitley Gilbert is playing someone's grandmother!?! That is wrong on so many levels! Augh, how I miss A Different World. Dwayne Wayne, Freddie, Ron, Kim, Diahann Carroll playing Whitley's Mother, while Patti LaBelle played Dwayne's. Oh, I need that series on dvd.

 Sorry that was completely off topic.

McGirl-ver's picture

a tangent

i was thinking the same thing when i saw that photo. does that mean we are all getting old. oh my. such a good series!
Thais's picture

hmm

since we're all confessing..

me too. i love it!

but i think i'm just waiting for the witch to be gay. HAHAHA

that wouldnt be very creative, but i don't mind.

thatswatshesaid's picture

i kind of wish...

that they wouldnt have killed Vicki.
Erica. 's picture

^

totally agree. she was hot. 
thatswatshesaid's picture

indeed...

she was
Faith-Kanzaki's picture

keep meaning to watch it

They filmed in the town I go to school in and on my campus (library was given restricted access a few weeks ago for it too :/) so I keep meaning to actually watch it, so this should be a good time to catch up I think :X

"Well, at least you don't have leprosy."

melaniedd's picture

definitely yes

I love the show. I wasn't sure about it, but I watched most of this fall's new shows at least once, and this one is by far one of the most enjoyable. I like the way the vampires are defined, and I'm curious to see the future interactions among the brothers and the witch.

And I'm glad the vampires don't sparkle. 

Suzzie's picture

Jasmine Guy....

was awsome in 'Dead Like Me' and majorly hot! I can't believe shes playing a grandma...she surely can't be near enough that age! This sounds right up my street (although, I'm not a Twillight fan) and I pride myself on saying that I loved vampire novels ect waaaay before it was cool, thanks to my awsome cousin!! I will have to watch this when/if it comes out over here on tv/dvd
Zane's picture

I never admit it to everyone

I never admit it to everyone but i secretely watch this show. even though i dislike the essessence of twilight.

i only started watching it because Ian somerhalder was in Young Americans with Kate Moennig

KiwiGirl1974's picture

More female vamps?

Kate's free now ...
Amaya's picture

No I..

I love vampires but when I saw the commerciasl for it on CTV with the cheesy "LOOOOVE SUCKS, LOOOOOOOVE SUCKS" audio band I kinda backed off. Not to mention I saw two guys and one girl... And my hopes of lesbian vampiresses blew up in smoke haha.
Also I was thinking "oh gosh not an OTHER vampire show/movie/thing" and I was afraid it was just someone trying to jump on the bandwagon to make a quick buck. Maybe I will give it a chance since you seem to appreciate. I am skeptical though.

I despise Twilight with all of my being and bare my teeth at the mere mention of it.

I love that lavender blonde... The way she moves the way she walks, I touch myself can't get enough...

~* Sunt îngeraşul tau, dar tu eşti îngerul meu *~

Proudtobeme's picture

Totally

Totally with you on Twilight. 

 

 

To see a World in a Grain of Sand
And Heaven in a Wild Flower,
Hold Infinity in the palm of your hand
And Eternity in an hour

          William Blake

BrittneyLeigh's picture

How hot can you get?!

Everyone on this show is soooooo ridiculously good looking. Delicious!

 

- Brittney

-amykins-'s picture

I've never heard of this

And it looks ridiculous! I hate Twilight, love True Blood, and thought maaaaybe I could tolerate it despite the overly perky looking cast until I read on The Guardian that there are two brothers who fight for the sould of a girl? Surely her soul is her own, not for others to argue over? Not for me!

http://amykins-writefromthebeginning.blogspot.com/

Melvarath's picture

I definitely prefer True Blood

I've sat through half of the first episode of "The Vampire Diaries", and I must admit that I was rather bored already - maybe it gets better after a while but I'm afraid I just can't seem to try and watch more of it. Not the show that could make my longing for the new True Blood season go away! I'm shocked that you haven't seen it yet, it truly is a delight for fans of well-written, dark vampire shows (and Evan Rachel Wood is great as a vampire queen!).
Lauren's picture

i almost dropped dead cause

i almost dropped dead cause i thought this was news on a lesbian/bisexual storyline! thank god you aren't a stefan fan or at least prefer damon. he is the most interesting character and the best actor on the show. i think the one who plays elena her acting skills aren't excellent but she still isn't too awful.

 

for those who don't like the show i do think the episodes get much better a few episodes in when damon gets more into the plots.

Lauren