‘The Vampire Diaries’ Episode Recap 4.19: “Pictures of You”

It’s prom night in Mystic Falls and Caroline has arranged a perfect evening for the seniors. The night is filled with memories of their previous years, some sweet moments of friendship, and a few tears, but after all, this is Mystic Falls, so prom night turns out to be anything but perfect.

“So what are we gonna do? Pull a Lexi? Bombard her with emotions until one of them sticks?” ~ Damon

The Salvatore brothers are on a mission to make Elena want to regain her humanity. A little football tossing and they come up with a plan. Stefan admits that he’s ready to move on with his life and forget about Elena. Right.

“Your personal discomfort might not be sufficient reason for putting the entire world in jeopardy, Klaus. I think our sister deserves a shot at happiness.” ~ Elijah

Klaus and Rebekah are both vying for the cure and trying to convince Elijah why they should each have it. Elijah’s no fool and snubs Klaus’s reasons, offering to give the cure to Rebekah providing she’s able to act like a human for one whole day. Seems simple enough. She pairs up with Elena – an odd team of misfits – but as no one else wants to room with Elena, it appears that Bex will have to do for the time being. For a change, Rebekah’s trying to be a “good human”, and it’s Elena who is the bad influence. Felt sorry for Rebekah in this episode – the usually bad-assed vamp showed a vulnerability and loneliness we don’t often see.

“Let go of me or I will bite you.” ~ Elena

The Salvatore boys are determined to stir some emotion within Elena. Damon gives it a go by reminding her that he’s her boyfriend. She buffs him off, informs him that her feelings were a result of the sire bond, and walks away. Ouch. It’s Stefan’s turn next. He hauls her onto the dance floor (Stefan dancing?) and attempts to remind her of what they once felt for each other. A beautiful scene with a gorgeous song choice, and a brief reminder of how hot they used to be together. Just as Elena seems moved by the whole moment, she runs off. This scene might have failed to jar the expected emotions for Elena, but it serves as a firm reminder to Stefan and Damon that Stefan isn’t quite over her yet.

“I know you said to kill her with kindness but can’t I just kill her?” ~ Caroline

Poor Caroline. Thanks to the “dress thief” Elena, Caroline turns to Klaus for help in finding her a replacement dress fit for “royal caliber”. (Got to give it to Klaus – he really came through for Caroline. She looked gorgeous. Loved her hair!) But Caroline’s not in the mood for the prom night of her dreams. After a quick dance with Stefan where they discuss his feelings for Elena, she leaves to set up the prom after party at the Lockwood mansion. Best moment of the night? Tyler’s surprise appearance to Caroline. They share a quiet dance and a beautiful moment before Tyler leaves town again. Sad that it was so short-lived.

“You and me. My senior prom.” ~ Bonnie

Needing some air, Bonnie takes a breather outside. Jeremy appears, gorgeous as ever, until he starts spewing Silas talk. Silas is still switching bodies, determined to convince Bonnie to help him. She bolts, leaving Jeremy/Silas alone to continue his body-switch games.

“Don’t eat the prom queen.” ~ Damon

Elena’s rude, bitchy, cold, and uncaring. Not the Elena we know. Careful, Elena. Everyone seems to have had their fill of the ice queen’s behavior. Elena steals Caroline’s prom dress, snubs the Salvatore boys, snaps a few hurtful remarks to Bonnie, and attacks and bites poor unsuspecting April. (Why is April still around?) Elena takes her emotionless crusade one step too far when she attacks Bonnie – more than once. Her reasoning? The only way to defeat Silas is to kill his witch. Kill Bonnie? Bonnie’s had enough and uses her kick-ass magic to dish out a fair dose of punishment. Elena endures some bone crunching, a bloody nose, severe pain, and a lot of screaming, ending with a dose of vervain from the Salvatore brothers. It’s time-out in the Salvatore basement vamp prison for Elena.

“Let me guess. An extremely handsome man came up to you claiming to be me.” ~ Damon

Silas is on a roll, playing games with Stefan and Damon by posing as the other brother. He stabs them both, orders them to stay away from Bonnie. Yeah right. It appears that Klaus and Silas team up for Silas to get the cure from Elijah. Rebekah senses that Klaus is up to something and calls Elijah, warning him not to part with the cure but the call comes moments too late as Silas, posing as Rebekah, has just disappeared with it. Using a locator spell, Bonnie tracks down the real Silas. He’s disfigured and suicidal and finally shows his face to Bonnie. Is she softening towards him? Will she do the spell he so desperately wants from her?

“It’s been a fun five centuries, Klaus, but I’ve worn down too many good heels running from you.” ~ Katherine

Klaus receives a letter from Katherine that warns him about a witch in New Orleans that is planning something dark and devious against him and encourages him to seek her out. (Loved her comment about wearing out her heels – so Katherine!)

So, Klaus is off to New Orleans (setting the scene for The Originals pilot), Silas has the cure and possibly a witch on his side, and Elena’s in the Salvatore basement.

Tune into ‘The Vampire Diaries’ Thursday 8.7c.