The Originals 1.10 Review: Who Has the Power

This is a friendly reminder for all those that have yet to watch last night’s episode of The Originals, titled ‘The Casket Girls’, this is where I suggest you do that before venturing ahead. For this is not a spoiler free blog. THIS REVIEW MAY CONTAIN SPOILERS! Proceed at your own discretion.

Well, I have to say I’m becoming thoroughly disappointed in this series. I really thought I’d give it a chance, and it wasn’t bad for the first – say – five episodes, but now it’s really hitting a slump. Honestly, I’m really feeling like by splitting The Vampire Diaries into two series it hasn’t added anything to it, it’s merely carved out something integral to the original series.

There are a couple good things to this series, but they both have downsides to them. The first is that Leah Pipes is a phenomenal actress, her character is extremely well acted, but the problem is Cami is a TERRIBLE character. The girl adds next to nothing to the overall story, other than to give one more antagonist for Klaus to defeat. I mean, does she not think Klaus will kill her to keep her from spilling the vampire beans? I know she’s basically a placeholder for Caroline, but she isn’t Caroline, so I doubt he’ll have any qualms with killing her. At least the original Klaus wouldn’t.

The other good part this series has to it is the raw intensity it brings. There’s a definite overall draw to watch because there’s just so much power behind any individual scene, but then it goes and has the scene terribly written. Honestly, it makes no sense {insert me squeezing my head in frustration here}. Maybe I’m spending too much time on tumblr and am beginning to see just how much of a story-sucking vampire Julie Plec is, but this series is becoming terrible. About the only reason I’m sticking around is because I love Klaus, but even he is managing not to have enough of the story focused on him. I barely see Joseph Morgan on screen nowadays, and it was pitched as more of his show. That’d be like not seeing David Boreanaz on Angel, or Buffy on Buffy the Vampire Slayer. There are other characters, but they are just convoluting the entire story and it’s making me angry.

All in all, this show just grows to frustrate me. I did like Rebekah this week, but all the other characters were moronic and head scratching. I don’t understand why they thought this could manage to be a good series. They should’ve just left the Originals on The Vampire Diaries, because they’ve merely taken that goodness away. This show hasn’t added ANYTHING other than make me strongly want to go to New Orleans. And I thought at least by getting to see more Elijah it would be a good thing.

My rating: 6.5 out of 10.

Best Lines:

“Yeah. Or I got mystically cold-cocked by four witches.” – Cami provides an alternative explanation.

“Well isn’t this monumentally awkward?” – Elijah states.

I’m off to review Supernatural, then I think I’m going to go back to watching Gilmore Girls for an episode or two. Check back later.

The Originals 1.09 Review: We Rule Together

All those that have yet to watch tonight’s episode of The Originals, entitled ‘Reigning Pain in New Orleans’, I suggest you go do that now before proceeding ahead. For this is not a spoiler free blog. THIS REVIEW MAY CONTAIN SPOILERS! You’ve been warned.

Despite my belief that Klaus managed to usurp Marcel’s power structure so quickly, this was a decent episode nonetheless. I’m absolutely loving Hayley in this series versus the series she was introduced to us in. She seems to be the most grounded, real character this series has, most likely due to the fact she’s the only one Klaus won’t kill/dagger, as long as she’s – to quote her character in this episode – in the family way.

There was a really nice, tender moment between Klaus and Marcel in this episode, where Klaus explains to Marcel the reasons he took the kingdom from him, and why he wants the body now. This was a surprisingly tender moment for this character, particularly being that he’s not one to let anyone in. Being that this character is supposed to be psychotic though, I’m not sure how integral this was to the story so early on in the series. I am kind of missing the loveable bad ass that Klaus was on The Vampire Diaries.

A few other things to note regarding this week’s installment of the series. I loved the use of a musical beat as Marcel smiles and accepts the equal status Klaus has asked of him. Also, the absolutely wonderful use of language that both Klaus and Elijah exhibit. What is it with the British and their beautiful use of their native tongue? First Sleepy Hollow’s Ichabod speaks so eloquently, and also Klaus and Elijah now. Another thing, I loved the way Davina said to Cami, “Oh, you’ve been compelled.” Just like it’s another walk in the park, as simple as that. And, finally, I have to address the fact that this series somehow has tried to substitute Klaus’s feelings for Caroline by throwing in the similarly blonde Cami. While the scene between them was beautifully acted, it just did not fit with this character, and the fact that Caroline is honestly still it for him. Oh, and I did enjoy the little exchange between Klaus and Hayley where she addresses what will happen to her after the baby is born, and he’s basically stumped in what to tell her.

Basically, this was a decent episode in a series that had a stronger six or seven episode opening. Unfortunately the last two or three episodes have not quite lived up to the earlier episodes, and this series is seeming to become less than a guilty pleasure and more of just something watched out of intrigue. I do believe the showrunners need to get this series back on a track that is suited for these characters and the beautiful city of New Orleans. Sadly, they seem to be managing to run these characters into the ground more than they’re providing well-developed progress.

My rating: 6.5 out of 10.

Best Lines:

“You’re Hayley? Klaus’s wife.” – Davina asks. “Ew. No. Never.” – Hayley replies.

“Darling, we have to stop meeting like this, this is how rumours begin.” – Elijah tells the vampire whose throat he clutches.

“You’re choosing him over me, aren’t you? Again.” – Rebekah says to Marcel.

“You don’t make it easy to love you, brother.” – Elijah explains to Klaus.

Okay, I’m off to watch Supernatural now, and afterwards it’s Trophy Wife. Stay tuned.

The Originals 1.08 Review: Fear is Not the Same Thing as Loyalty

For all those that have yet to watch tonight’s episode of The Originals, entitled ‘The River in Reverse’, here is where I suggest you go do that before proceeding ahead. This is not a spoiler free blog. THIS REVIEW MAY CONTAIN SPOILERS! You’ve been warned.

I’m not sure how to dictate my feelings towards this episode. It seems like all of this was culminating, but almost like we got to the end of the chapter far too quickly. Klaus gained control of the kingdom by having Marcel swear allegiance to him, but it seems like this has happened way too early in this series. I thought for sure that this would at least play out until the end of the season, but I suppose this and The Vampire Diaries are ones to have half-season arcs, rather than full season arcs that made Buffy the Vampire Slayer work so well. Yes, this episode had its moments, but it didn’t work quite as well as it could have, had it done a season long arc.

For the first five minutes of this episode, I blissfully forgot that Tyler had hopped over to this series. And then we came around to the scene of planning an attack against Klaus, and there he was, in all his terrible glory. At least Rebekah snapped his neck and he now appears to be in the garden for some time, at least I hope. They really didn’t need to keep Tyler around on this series passed that one episode he did two weeks ago; he doesn’t fit in this world, and he always manages to ruin Hayley’s character whenever they’re around one another. Plus he’s gone so far off the deep end that it would really be nice if he would go away, permanently.

Marcel and Bekah working together and being together is another little issue I had. It was easy to see their attraction towards each other, even with the obstacle of him having affection for Cami – which was terribly written out – but they got together far too quickly. While this series has managed to have its good moments, it seems to be wanting to progress things far too quickly than it should, and Marcel and Rebekah was one of those things.

There were a couple things I did like about this episode. One was definitely when Klaus wiped the floor with all those vampires, especially when he gave them his hybrid face. Another was when Rebekah told Marcel to take the coin. And the third was Hayley’s hair. That girl has some gorgeously maintained locks that I would desperately like to get my hands on.

Overall, I’m becoming more iffy on this series. I expected more from Elijah’s fever dreams, as well as more about Hayley’s lineage that we did get. The girl’s supposed to descend from some royal werewolf line, but her family lives in a bayou? I get that they were driven out by Marcel, but why stay near there? They’re not the witches; they don’t depend on ancestral magic to stay werewolves. But still, I am enjoying parts of this series, I just desperately wish that Caroline was here already. I don’t like the way their writing Cami, at all, even if the actress does the part well, I just want Caroline.

My rating: 7 out of 10.

Best Lines:

“Remind me to annihilate your brother when you get healthy.” – Hayley says. “Yes, remind me to remind you to get in line.” – Elijah replies.

“I doubt you’d trust your own reflection.” – Cami tells Klaus, hitting it right on the nail.

“It’s an ancient mystical plot I’m using to destroy you.” – Cami informs Klaus, dryly, before revealing it to be doodles for a tattoo idea.

“Yes, it is ironic discussing freewill with a mind-controlling vampire.” – Father Kieran mutters.

Okay, I’m off to watch Supernatural now, and Agents of S.H.I.E.L.D. afterwards. Stay tuned.

The Originals 1.07 Review: We Fight For What We Believe In

Anyone that has yet to watch last night’s episode of The Originals, entitled ‘Bloodletting’, now would be a good time to go and do that. For this is not a spoiler free blog. THIS REVIEW MAY CONTAIN SPOILERS! You’ve been warned.

Well, this week’s episode wasn’t a bad episode; I just don’t think it was anywhere near as good as the last two. First of all, they crossed Tyler over to this series, which, while it did illuminate the fact that the blood of Hayley and Klaus’s baby can create more hybrids, was a big mistake in my opinion. I lost interest in him over on The Originals a good season ago, why would they think crossing him over to this series would benefit it in any way? The people want Caroline on this series, not Tyler.

Another thing that bugged was more of the same with Klaus and his insecurities about nobody loving and wanting him around, so he basically has to go around threatening and seeking out vengeance. He wants people to fear him, and yet that tends to end in revolts. I was happy to have him and Elijah being on good terms, and for Rebekah and him to be on, more or less, decent terms as she left. Then they went and screwed that around this week by having Elijah lose faith in his brother’s actions so Klaus bit him, and to have Rebekah and Marcel start to work against Klaus. They’re screwing around with this story too much, when it was working with the Original family of vampires actually working together, with some slight jealousy on Klaus’s part seeing Elijah fawning over Hayley. So basically, this episode worked for about half of it, until they found Hayley, and Marcel and Rebekah got to talking in the garden.

One thing I did enjoy about this episode was Hayley’s willingness to fight. She did her best and actually managed to escape, right before Elijah and Klaus came in to save her. The fact that this girl wants to fight is something I can really find myself rooting for, definitely more so than I was on The Vampire Diaries. And also, I really enjoyed the scenes between Davina and the newbie vamp. They actually seemed like they could be friends. Although I was confused about the guy saying he liked boys. Wasn’t he the vampire that was changed when his girlfriend betrayed him? I’m a wee bit confused about that. Mind you, I prefer his friendship with Davina more being that he’s gay, because that means they’re definitely not going to push a romantic relationship between the two of them. For once a guy and girl can be actual friends without it leading to more.

There were a couple other things I was confused by in this episode. Did anyone else feel like Tyler’s character was completely different on this series than on the mothership? I just couldn’t understand a guy that had been somewhat happy with Caroline for a moment in last week’s TVD episode, could make a complete one-eighty into this character. Am I alone on this? Also, what was that whole business where Klaus bit Elijah and said he would soon have hallucinations? Will he still have hallucinations because of the bite and just not die? Because he said it wouldn’t kill him, and I didn’t think it could because he’s an Original, but then what was the point of Klaus biting him then?

Anyways, like I said, not as strong as the last couple of episodes this season, but it still had its moments. This series is still definitely a guilty pleasure in that I like it so much, much more than I expected to last season on TVD when this concept was introduced. I used to think the Originals needed to stay on The Vampire Diaries, particularly as such a gung ho Klaroline shipper, but they mostly seemed to be more actualized and ripe with story opportunities on their own series, and not distracted by the Delena/Stelena love triangle.

My rating: 6.5 out of 10.

Best Lines:

“If I’m moving too fast for you Nicklaus, you’re welcome to wait in the car. Do be certain to leave the windows down.” – Elijah explains to Klaus.

“I’m a witch, I’m not Amish.” – Davina says.

“So did I, the last time I was in Cabo.” – Hayley tells Elijah, regarding the fact that everyone does unspeakable things.

Okay, I’m off to review Supernatural now. Stick around for more.

The Originals 1.06 Review: No One Hurts Family and Lives to Talk About It

Anyone that has yet to watch Tuesday night’s episode of The Originals, entitled ‘Fruit of the Poisoned Tree’, now is your last chance to do so without the threat of spoilers before reading ahead. As always, this is not a spoiler free blog. THIS REVIEW MAY CONTAIN SPOILERS! You’ve been warned.

This series is such a guilty pleasure for me because I absolutely love it. It doesn’t always end up moving the way I expect, or want, it to go, but I keep tuning in every week and enjoying this series to no end. Perhaps it’s partly due to my deep love for all things New Orleans, or even my masterful crush on series lead Joseph Morgan, but either way I just love this series. It’s not the best, nor most intellectual of series I’ve ever had the pleasure of viewing, but it is a good, enjoyable watch.

One thing I absolutely love about this series is its strange, but strong family values. The Mikaelson’s are such a screwed up family unit, but the bond they have to each other is amazing. Being a person that has a strong family value myself, I quite admire their family unit. They won’t think twice about murder, but at least they have each other, even if they sometimes screw up.

My two favourite elements to this series are definitely Klaus and Elijah, and while it is Klaus’s series to an extent, Elijah is beginning to steal the focus of this show. I love Joseph Morgan and Klaus, but Elijah’s honour and dependability in his word just makes him such a class act that I both yearn for and enjoy watching. He definitely has that older brother vibe, always having to take care of his younger siblings, although I still swear Finn was the oldest, and while I, myself, only have one sibling I understand the desire to protect and almost take care of the younger siblings – although I don’t hold as steadfast to my word and am closer to Klaus in my selfish, stubbornness.

Two subtle moments to this episode that I absolutely adored were when Hayley smiled after Elijah corrected himself in saying they may need to kill everyone, and when Klaus smiled after Elijah ripped out the hearts of the witches in the church. Such brilliance in something so subtle, which makes me undoubtedly believe the cinematography in this series, is absolutely well done. It may not have the most original ideas when it comes to writing, but the acting and the way it is shot is especially well done.

Even a day after having watched the episode, I have this excited feeling in my chest that I get when I watch or read an especially moving piece of work. A feeling that tells me I am in love with an idea or a string of scenes, and this series is definitely beginning to get that. As I lose interest in The Vampire Diaries, this series gains my interest. It could be that these people are gorgeous and that it has yet to especially let me down due to it not having aired very long, but I have hope that it will continue to grow into something exciting and fresh. Back when I heard that this idea of a spinoff was in the works, I desperately hoped it wouldn’t come to fruition, but after having watched it these last six episodes, I find that instinct quite wrong. Still, the one thing that is missing is Caroline.

When it was first introduced, I thought the idea of Hayley pregnant, a character I couldn’t stand on The Vampire Diaries but have grown to love on this series, was just an idea stolen from Angel. Now I’ve grown to actually find this tantalizing storytelling, something The Vampire Diaries has mostly lost. Maybe all the good (and I say that very lightly) writers have left that series for this one, because this one is easily better than its predecessor. I’m just really not looking forward to having Tyler on this series, we finally just got rid of him on The Vampire Diaries, why does he have to come and probably ruin Hayley’s character on here?

The one thing I have real issue with on this series is the character of Cami. I just find her useless, and just something in the way of Klaroline, and to distract all of those shippers (of which I will honestly say that I am apart of) from that having been written into the mothership series. I could care less about her character now that Klaus has ruined her character by bringing her into things, but only when he’s near her. It’s just too much fluff for my taste. Yeah, sure, the actress is very good in the part, the emotion of her character’s woes comes across quite easily, but I just don’t find she’s necessary to the story.

All in all, I adore this series. This week’s episode fit quite well coming out of last week’s episode that told the story behind Davina and her extreme amount of witchy power. There was a definite race against the clock type feel to it that came from Elijah and Klaus trying to unlink Hayley from Sophie, to save Hayley’s baby. And I can hardly wait for the next episode to find out what happened to Hayley and where she went. It was probably necessary to get Rebekah to stick around, but I’m curious nonetheless. This series has a lot more going for it than it’s predecessor.

My rating: 7.5 out of 10.

Best Lines:

“Probably no one. (Pause) Alright, potentially everyone.” – Elijah utters, about who they’ll have to kill.

“I feel like I’ve been microwaved.” – Hayley states about the curse that was put on Sophie to get to Hayley’s baby.

Yay, only one more review to catch up on and it should be pretty easy. Stick around for my review of Supernatural. Then I’m going to watch Revolution and American Horror Story: Coven and review those. Happy watching!