Don't throw me in that briar patch, Brer Rabbit!

*****warning, VD spoilers*********

So, in last night's episode of Vampire Diaries, we have Damon and Rick plotting Elijah's demise using the dagger and tree ash so kindly supplied by John Gilbert for that purpose. Wait a minute there - supplied by John Gilbert? That alone should have been a warning, but apparently the desire to rid themselves of Elijah overshadowed any common sense in that respect, and caused them to forget that JOHN GILBERT HATES VAMPIRES!  He's had no reason to grow any fonder of them since Katherine killed him, and now his biological daughter Elena (who really hates him) is dating one.  But let's move on from there.

So then we get Damon taking blood to Katherine, who is still entombed. Or was, at that point. She knows what he's going to do, and she pleads with him not to. She says that if he does that, she'll be contained there forever, never being able to break the spell. Damon sees no problem with that, and in theory I didn't either. Except that every alarm bell in my head went off, and all I could think of was Brer Rabbit.

Anyone remember that story? Do kids even read that any more?  I dunno, but I've never forgotten it. Brer Fox is clever and he catches Brer Rabbit with the help of a little something he created in the form of a Tar Baby. Brer Rabbit is held fast, as Brer Fox gloats over him, and talks about the ways he is considering bringing about his demise. To which Brer Rabbit pleads - do whatever you want, roast me, hang me, whatever but just don't throw me in the briar patch, please. Brer Fox, being not as foxy as he appears, thinks he'll make the rabbit suffer even more by doing what he doesn't want, and tosses him into the briar patch, thinking he'll be all cut up and suffering and stuff. But surprise! Brer Rabbit gets clean away, and from a safe distance tells Brer Fox, "I was bred and born in the briar patch, Brer Fox, bred and born in the briar patch."

So it was no surprise after Damon and Rick (well, Elena, but that's another story) managed to dispatch Elijah (again), that Damon finds Katherine in his shower.  Duh, Damon.  You did just what she wanted you to, despite how I  yelled at you not to. Sheesh. As soon as she started her spiel, I kept thinking the lady doth protest too much. Doesn't it stand to reason that if the vampire is dead the curse is lifted?  That goes for those who have been bitten by the vampire and haven't died yet - they're safe now too. So what was Damon thinking with?  Or was he? Was he simply playing white knight for Elena in order to save her from her proscribed path of martyrdom (which he excoriated her for in the episode before).

So now we have Katherine on the loose again. She says she only wants to help, but you can't believe a word that woman says. I did love how, once he discovered John's perfidy (if Damon had done the deed, using the blade, as John tried to get him to do, he would have been destroyed), he gave Elijah the nod to off him, because he is certainly not on Elena's list of people I love and don't hurt them. John Gilbert is, I fear, too much of a one dimensional villain for me. Elijah was a better foil. Is he gone?  Seriously, who knows. At some point, Klaus has to enter the scene for any of this to make sense. Are they saving it for the last episode in the season, a cliffhanger that will keep tongues  hanging out in anticipation of season 3?  I wouldn't doubt it.

Last night featured some flashbacks to the original Jonathan Gilbert, ie Civil War times. I'm sorry, my mind wandered during those, they bored me so much. Also, I heard a faux pas. I know I've complained about the differences between the series and the books before, one of them being why did they change the name of the town from Fell's Church to Mystic Falls? I still don't know. But last night as Elena was reading an excerpt from one of the Jonathan Gilbert journals, she said Fell's Church. Is that a major continuity error or what?

It was interesting to see Lexi again, and to see the development of her and Stefan's relationship, and to watch Stefan as the wild child while Damon was the good one. Damon looks cute in his Civil War long hair, by the way.  Makes you wonder how he got to be so cynical.  I guess we'll find out.

I'm still perplexed about Jenna and Alaric's relationship, what purpose it serves. Jenna is such a throw away character, why is she even there? Not sure about Bonnie and Jeremy, mostly because recently Bonnie has turned into a one-dimensional holier-than-thou witch with a stick up her ass, and Jeremy has just gotten past being the emo boy with the weight of the world on his shoulders who thinks he should just die and end it all. That's as annoying as Elena's martyrdom kick.

I presume that at some point, Tyler will figure in the plot again, as well as werewolves, but for now I guess they're focusing on the Originals, and leading up to Klaus. I have to believe that by the end of the season, Katherine will be dead. At least I hope so, she annoys the bejesus out of me.

Does anyone else watch this show? Who do you like, and who do you dislike? What do you think of this season versus last? Do you like the direction it's taking, or do you have ideas as to how the show should go? Tell me what you think, I'd like to hear it!