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The Birthday is the forty-fifth episode of The Vampire Diaries and the Season Three premiere. It will air on September 15, 2011.
Synopsis
On the morning of Elena’s 18th birthday, Caroline is busy planning a party, but Elena is focused on searching for any clues that might help her discover where Stefan is. Damon is also searching for Stefan, while trying to protect Elena and keep her from doing anything that would draw Klaus’ attention.
Meanwhile, Klaus and Stefan are busy trailing a werewolf named Ray Sutton (guest star David Gallagher). Now working at the Mystic Grill along with Matt, Jeremy is struggling to understand why he keeps seeing the ghosts of Vicki (guest star Kayla Ewell) and Anna (guest star Malese Jow) since he was brought back to life by Bonnie’s magic. Meanwhile, Alaric does his best to watch over Elena and Jeremy, while dealing with his grief over Jenna’s death. Finally, Caroline and Tyler face a new and unexpected challenge.
Summary
In Tennessee, an attractive young blonde is calling for her dog. Klaus shows up - with a fun Southern accent - to claim that his car broke down. The woman is understandably suspicious, but Klaus compels her invites him in. The two meet her housemate and ask for information about a "Ray Sutton." They claim he doesn't live there, but Klaus suggests that he must visit once a month - suggesting Ray is a werewolf. The blonde's housemate tries to run, but she is stopped at the door by Stefan. The girls give up Ray's location, but Klaus tells Stefan to kill the blonde quickly and make the runner suffer, before walking out. Stefan obliges, making Klaus smile at the screams as he walks away from the house.
Back in Mystic Falls, we find out that Jeremy's working at the Mystic Grill now and it's also clear that some time has passed since the last season - Caroline calls Elena to chat about her 18th birthday party and it seems that Sheriff Forbes is helping them look for Stefan as she's passing on information about an animal attack in Memphis. We also discover that Alaric's been sleeping on Elena's couch for a while - I guess he's attempting to be a father figure.Over at the Salvatore house, Damon's drinking champagne in a bubble bath, Andie's hanging around too. Anyway, Damon hears Elena arrive and gets out all naked. Of course Elena is not too pleased to see Damon in the altogether and throws him a towel (after he fabulously drawls: "You should learn to knock. What if I was indecent?") Anyway, Elena passes on the news about Memphis but Damon is dismissive, claiming it's just a dead end. He also bans Elena from checking it out, pointing out that Klaus still thinks she's dead. However, when Elena's gone we find out that Damon is looking for Stefan after all and what's more, he's using Andie's news skills to help out. She thinks she can help with Memphis and promises to get him an address.
Over in Mystic Falls, Elena's annoyed with Damon for not looking for Stefan. Tyler is supremely unhelpful by suggesting that Damon doesn't want to find Stefan because he has a thing for Elena, but Elena deals with it rather well. When she's gone, Tyler reveals that he's bringing a date to Elena's party - "slutty Sophie", according to Caroline. Caroline's naturally a bit hurt by this but she pretends that she's cool - after all, they both admit that they are very "horny" because of their supernatural states. Again, the sexual tension is almost too much to bear, but they go their separate ways. Later, when it's time for the party, Damon goes to see Elena - and returns her necklace as a birthday gift. Elena is thrilled, and when Damon helps her put it on the atmosphere is wonderfully charged. Then they go downstairs to join the gathering, only to discover that it's a full-blown rave. So much for Elena's idea of a quiet night. In fact, Matt and Jeremy are already smoking weed together. Jeremy reveals that he has been seeing things, but doesn't quite tell Matt that his dead sister is one of those things. Meanwhile, Elena is not too happy to discover that Jeremy's getting high and tells Alaric to deal with it. And Caroline thinks Matt's "hatred" of her has driven him to drugs. Elsewhere, Andie's still at work - the last person in the studio. In a truly creepy and edge-of-the-seat sequence, someone shines one of the big studio lights right at Andie. She moves out of its beam, but it follows her. And then it turns off. In the dark, Andie runs for the exit but she trips and the light snaps back on again. There's someone standing in front of it this time - a silhouette. She turns, and Stefan's there. Andie's actually a little relieved and admonishes Stefan for being gone for so long. But Stefan's not feeling talkative - instead, his vampire face appears. Later, Damon gets a message that Andie wants him to pick her up, so he heads over to the studio. He meets Stefan, who tells him to stop causing problems. Damon, of course, claims that he doesn't care about Klaus, but Stefan tells him again to let him go. Damon warns that if Stefan carries on there'll be no saving him, but Stefan says he doesn't need that - though Damon points out that Elena thinks differently. This is the point when Stefan really, truly shows us just how awful he's become. He calls out to Andie, who is up high on a beam in the studio roof. Terrified, she sobs that Stefan has compelled her and she can't move. Damon tells Stefan that it's "not cool" but Stefan chillingly replies: "Oh, come on. A little bit cool." And then he tells Andie that she can move, and in a heart in the mouth moment she falls and breaks her neck. Back at the party, Caroline is downing alcohol at an alarming rate as she watches Tyler dance with Sophie. Matt appears, but it soon descends into a row and Tyler comes over to check everything's OK. Sophie compliments Caroline on the party, but you don't want to mess with a drunk, p*ssed off vampire and she sweetly replies: "Thanks! Now leave it", compelling Sophie to go home. Later, we also get to see a furious Caroline lifting up a party goer who's in her way and dumping him at the side. It's not long before Elena finds Caroline hiding out in a room. Elena admits she's not really feeling up for cake, but Caroline tells her she has to make a wish and get on with her life. Elena doesn't take too kindly to this - she doesn't want to give up on finding Stefan - but Caroline points out that her life is passing her by. Elena announces that her only wish is to know that Stefan is alive. She's soon distracted, though, when she spots Damon's cupboard full of maps and newspaper cuttings - why is he looking for Stefan without her?When Damon gets back, she asks him exactly that and accuses him of making her feel like an idiot for having hope. Heartbreakingly, Damon tells her that they were both idiots. He announces that the victims they were both trying to track were not Klaus', but Stefan's. Elena refuses to believe it, but Damon confirms that Stefan has flipped a switch and is back to being a full-blown ripper. He tells Elena that Stefan's gone, and is not coming back in her lifetime. Then he leaves, and Elena is alone in her little white dress, crying and vulnerable. Meanwhile, Jeremy offers to give a drunk and high Matt a ride home, but he suddenly sees Vicki in the car, asking him for help. And he says: "Vicki", which of course confuses Matt. Jeremy tries to shake it off and turns on the headlights, but Anna is standing right there. Eventually, he decides it would be best to walk. When they get back, Matt asks Jeremy why he said Vicki's name - and realises that earlier Jeremy had been seeing things. Jeremy admits that he keeps seeing Vicki, but Matt shrugs it off, saying that he always sees Vicki because he misses her so much. Stefan returns to Klaus, who has extracted the wolf pack information from Ray. Ray's not in a great state - spluttering on a pool table - but Klaus announces that he now has to go through a three-stage process. First, he feeds Ray his blood, and then he swiftly breaks his neck. Anyway, Klaus says he knew Stefan would come back, and Stefan, for his part, claims that he doesn't care about anything anymore. Interestingly, Klaus accuses him of putting on a "good show". He says Stefan will never stop caring about his family, but the blood makes it easier to let go. Back in Mystic Falls, Damon's on a rampage, smashing up his room in anger and sadness. Meanwhile, Elena returns home and finds Alaric moving out. It seems that spending the evening at a party where a lot of underage kids were drinking and doing drugs made Alaric realise he's not a great role model, and Elena would be better off looking after herself. Elena goes to get ready for bed just as Stefan leaves the bar in Tennessee looking, well, a bit sick. He's definitely in need of fresh air. He calls Elena, but when she picks up he remains silent. In a truly devastating scene, Elena realises who is on the phone. She tells him he will be alright and tells him to hold on to the fact that she loves him. Stefan nods and begins to cry. Back at the party, Tyler and Caroline argue about Tyler bringing a date. Tyler says he won't date anyone else if Caroline just tells him not to - he's been there before and he's not going to get rejected again. Happily, Caroline makes it easy by giving him a big kiss. They rush out of the party and are soon doing some rather naked kissing things. The episode ends with Caroline sneaking out. Unfortunately, she doesn't get past Carol Lockwood. But if you're a vampire dating a werewolf, it just gets even more tricky. When Caroline touches her purse, her hand suddenly burns. And then, like any protective mother, Carol shoots her with what appears to be vervain until she passes out on the floor. |
Cast
Main Cast
Guest Cast
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Co-Cast
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Soundtrack
- Ingrid Michaelson “Are We There Yet”
- Two Door Cinema Club “What You Know”
- The Civil Wars “Barton Hollow”
- Trent Dabbs “Means To An End”
- Andrew Belle “Make It Without You”
- Martin Solveig and Dragonette “Hello”
- Mona “Shooting The Moon”
- The Kicks “Hawk Eyes”
- Walk The Moon “Anna Sun”
- Location Location “Starpusher”
- Cobra Starship “You Make Me Feel”
- Ron Pope “A Drop In The Ocean”
Notes
General
- There is a time jump from As I Lay Dying to this episode, with 2 months having passed, as confirmed by Damon in the episode.
- Antagonists: Klaus and Stefan
- Template:Jeremy works at the Mystic Grill from this episode onwards.
- Stefan hasn't been seen by any of the Mystic Falls residents since As I Lay Dying.
- A photograph of Jenna and Alaric can be seen in the Gilbert House.
- Andie Dies in this episode
- The end of the episode ends with Carol Lockwood shooting Caroline Forbes with vervain darts. This is the second season premiere in a row to end the cliffhanger with something bad happening to Caroline.
Production Notes
- First episode since in which Sara Canning is not credited.
- Although not the character's first absence , this is the first season premiere not to feature Jenna Sommers
- First season premiere to feature Alaric, Anna and Klaus.
- In behind the scenes photos for this episode, Stefan's appearance in clothing is similar to that of Damon in the start of season one as that he is wearing all black clothing.
- There have been talks that the episode would be named "Bloody," but Zap2It revealed on August 11, 2011 that the episode would be called "The Birthday".
- It was also revealed by Julie Plec and Kevin Williamson that Template:Jeremy hasn't told anyone about seeing Anna and Vicki.
- It is still currently unknown where Katherine is, or if Klaus and Stefan have caught her yet.
- From this episode onwards Joseph Morgan (Klaus) is a series regular.
Quotes
Alaric: Hey Elena happy bithday.
Damon: Morning.
Elena: Hey, I was gonna-
Elena: OH! (sees Damon naked and she turns around)
Damon: Hey, you should learn to knock, what if I was... indecent.
Caroline: (to Elena) You have to admit you're letting your life pass you by.
Elena: Is that what you all want me to do? Get on with my life?
Elena: I'm not going to give up on finding Stefan.
Stefan: (to Damon) Let. Me. Go.
Gallery
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Video:The Vampire Diaries ~ Whet Your Appetite.|Whet Your Appetite+stills Video:Season 3 Episode 1 - Damon & Elena Clip| Damon & Elena clip Video:The Vampire Diaries - Teen Choice Awards| TCA Promo Video:The Vampire Diaries Webclip 3x01 - The Birthday|The Vampire Diaries Webclip 3x01 - The Birthday Video:The Vampire Diaries - 3x01 The Birthday - Preview with EP Julie Plec| Julie Plec Preview Video:The Vampire Diaries Webclip (2) 3x01|Damon and Stefan Webclip </videogallery>
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