'The Vampire Diaries: The Complete First Season' DVD Review

A fresh, fun TV take on the vampire legend.

When tall, pale and handsome stranger Stefan enrolls in high school in the small town of Mystic Falls, he's immediately drawn to Elena, and with good reason: she's the spitting image of Katherine, his long-lost love from 150 years prior. You see, Stefan is a vampire, a brooding type whose tragic past involves dark family secrets, regrettable decisions and a century-old sibling rivalry.

Soon enough, Stefan's older brother Damon -- also a vampire -- shows up with a chip on his shoulder. He too loved Katherine, and he blames Stefan for her death. Needless to say, he's also intrigued by Elena, but he has bigger plans, ones that threaten the entire town and particularly the descendents of those who sentenced Katherine to death a century and a half ago.

It's easy for horror fans to dismiss The Vampire Diaries, with its high school setting, well-coifed stars and residency on the CW network, as 90210 with vampires. Frankly, it initially comes off as a transparent, melodramatic love triangle, but as the episodes go along, it becomes an engrossing, emotional expansion on vampire lore that remains true to its genre roots.

The natural comparison for The Vampire Diaries is the two other major vampire franchises right now: Twilight and True Blood. It's fair to say that Diaries lands somewhere in between, lacking the extreme edge of True Blood (sometimes to its benefit) but darker and less melodramatic than Twilight.

Arguably, the plotting on The Vampire Diaries is superior to both, better paced than the sometimes erratic True Blood and less saccharine than Twilight. Its narrative is well constructed, well planned and delivers an undulating storyline with a steady stream of villains plotting to throw a wrench in the lives of the innocent townspeople.

A lot of credit has to go to series co-creator Kevin Williamson, who showcases the dark wit and teen social dynamics with a horror context that he first displayed when writing Scream and I Know What You Did Last Summer. He and the rest of the writers have, from what I've read about the books, expanded the focus of the story from the love triangle to a more complex series of pulpy plot twists centered on the town as a whole. There are intriguing storylines aplenty, even down to the secondary characters.

The show finds a unique spot for itself within Hollywood vampire lore, featuring the powerful presence of witchcraft to balance out the vampire element. Other original plot points include artifacts (other than crosses) that ward off vampires and use of the plant vervain as both protection and as a weapon. The character Damon, played by Ian Somerhalder, meanwhile lends a charisma lacking from most of the other do-good characters. Given a try, you might find that The Vampire Diaries is great entertainment -- at least, for the first season.

The DVD

Special features include deleted scenes, commentary, featurettes, gag reel and downloadable audiobook.

Show: B
DVD: B+

Disclosure: A review copy was provided by the studio. For more information, please see our Ethics Policy.