Melinda Hsu Taylor

Stefan, Elena, and Damon find themselves staring down a threat from an unexpected side as the Travelers’ plans get clearer in an exciting episode.

The Mystic Falls group deals with the revelation that Katherine isn’t dead, while Katherine works to try and save Nadia from her werewolf bite in a thrilling episode.

Damon’s time with the Augustine society is further explored, revealing both sympathetic and unsympathetic shades to his character.

Last season, as the show revealed the legend of Silas, one name kept popping up; that of Qetsiyah, the witch who had built the supernatural purgatory, created a cure for immortality, and neutralised the first immortal. With Silas now back and stronger than ever, it was a foregone conclusion that the group would try to reach out to Qetsiyah at some point, a task made much more difficult by the death of Mystic Falls’ last remaining witch, Bonnie. That issue solves itself this week as Silas’ old nemesis pops up, re-aligning the show’s stakes once again in a strong episode that doesn’t suffer from a smaller cast.