The Vampire Diaries 5.01 “I Know What You Did Last Summer” Review!

The CW hit series returned for its highly-anticipated fifth season last night, with Elena (Nina Dobrev) and Caroline (Candice Accola) heading off to college, while Damon (Ian Somerhalder), Jeremy (Steven R. McQueen) ghost Bonnie (Kat Graham) and Matt (Zach Roerig) get ready for another crazy supernatural year in Mystic Falls. There's an immortal warlock, Silas, who was revealed as the doppelgänger of Stefan (Paul Wesley), in last season's finale. He's out for vengeance after losing the human cure that would reunite him with his true love.

This season starts of with something the fans, myself included, have been dying for - after seasons of waiting, Elena and Damon are a couple. They're like a couple of newlyweds in this episode, they could barely keep their hands off one another in the beginning of this episode. I think it's great that they can finally show the love that each of them felt. Before, Elena would hide her feelings, now she flat out tells Damon, "I love you". I'm looking forward to see their love story unfold more this season. 

While I know people are always nervous when a teen drama transitions to the college years, I'm please by how this show is handling it. Elena and Caroline head off to Whitmore college. Caroline wants Tyler (Michael Trevino) to join her on her college adventure, but he's otherwise engaged helping a pack of werewolves in the mountains. Everything seems to be going perfectly for Elena and Caroline - they even get to be roommates - until an unexpected third roommate, Megan, shows up. Megan brings along a water bottle laced with vervaine... add murder, and this definitely has them both on high alert regarding what's going on at the college. Especially Elena, who's eager to learn more after finding out her deceased father has a connection to both Whitmore and Megan.

Bonnie is still around as a ghost, and hiding that fact that she's dead from everyone. Luckily, she has Jeremy, a medium who still sees her and is able to communicate with her. It was really sad, last season, when Bonnie conjured the spell that took her life. I realize she thought it had to be done, but it even broke the spell that was keeping Silas trapped in stone. Her friends no longer have a witch to help them and now he's out and hungry for revenge. 

Last season, Elena shoved the cure down Katherine's throat, making our queen bitch a human. After a summer on the run as a human, she is now taking up residence at the Salvatore house and hiding from the enemies that want her dead. It's not long before Silas tracks her down and nearly drowns her. As it turns out, Katherine is still good for the cure and it's her human blood he needs. Looks like dear old Kat will be on the run for a bit longer. I'm happy they made Katherine a major character this season with her own arc. I've always thought she was a great sassy vamp and wanted more story lines with her. 

Silas is not messing around this year, he's proving to be a villain you don't want to tangle with. I think Wesley is having a good time portraying the villain and is doing a pretty good job at it. Silas has his own agenda and mission this season. He still has Stefan trapped underwater as he plots his wrath. His plan is to take the cure and die so he can pass on and be reunited with his true love. But with the cure gone, he will have to rely on his plan B. I think we've been teased at what that is.. mess with everyone's lives until he gets what he wants, which is Katherine's Dobrev blood.

Matt is still around; he's been traveling around the world with Rebekah (Claire Holt) before returning to Mystic Falls. They share a steamy farewell kiss or should I say fifty, as Rebekah heads off to New Orleans. However, the traveling wasn't all joyful for him as he and Rebekah shared their European bed with Nadia (guest star, Olga Fonda), who stole his Gilbert ring. Later in the episode, Nadia appears in Mystic Falls under the pretense of giving Matt's ring back. However, Matt is surprised with an unexpected knock on the back of his head by her friend, "lights out Matt". Makes me wonder what Matt got himself into this time. Guess we will have to wait and see.

It’s not a big surprise The Vampire Diaries is a show that tends to kill off characters whenever it wants. An example of that is when Bonnie Bennett sacrificed herself for her love, Jeremy, in the Season 4 finale. I don't think Bonnie was thinking clearly when she committed suicide. She didn't realize the implications to her family - at the end of this episode the residents of Mystic Falls were gathered in the town square for a community event. As Mayor Rudy Hopkins (Bonnie’s dad) was giving a speech, Silas jumped on stage and spilled his intention of possessing Katherine to everyone. Silas then grabbed Rudy and slit his throat in front of the entire crowd, as Bonnie watched in horror! Because she killed herself, she couldn't do anything to save her father. I think it's safe to say that Silas will stop at nothing to capture Katherine and will kill anyone who gets in his way. 

This season premiere was a fast paced thrill ride, providing some answers, yet even more questions have arisen to be (hopefully) solved this year. I'm really looking forward to the rest of season 5, this show never fails to impress me. I'm a loyal fan and I think the writing, actors and stories just keep getting better with time. 

Season 5 airs Thursdays at 8/7c on The CW.

“I Know What You Did Last Summer” was written by Caroline Dries and directed by Lance Anderson. 

Photo Credit: The CW

Once Upon A Time In Wonderland 1.01: "Down the Rabbit Hole" Advance Review!

This season I’m covering ABC’s new fantasy drama, Once Upon A Time in Wonderland, for voiceoftv.com. I was given the opportunity to see an advance copy of the pilot and I was thrilled, as I am fan of the original parent series, Once Upon A Time. 

The new fairy tale, from Edward Kitsis & Adam Horowitz, creators of Lost, Tron Legacy and Zack Estrin, creator of The River, is a love story full of mystery, action, passion and romance all wrapped up in a place called Wonderland following the adventures of Alice (Australian film/television actress) Sophie Lowe.

Once Upon A Time in Wonderland is a show that was first developed as a limited series run. It was to air during the winter season when its parent show Once Upon A Time was on hiatus. It has since gotten a lot of buzz circling around about it. The producers have decided to air Wonderland now during the fall. It will have 13 episodes but if successful could return in the spring with more episodes to look forward to.

They have cast some notable stars, in a few roles, such as John Lithgow (3rd Rock from the Sun, Dexter) as The White Rabbit; Naveen Andrews (Lost) as Jafar; Emma Rigby (British Soap Hollyoaks) as The Red Queen; Michael Socha (Being Human U.K) as The Knave of Hearts; Keith David (film/television, voice actor) as Cheshire Cat and (film/television) actor Peter Gadiot as a genie named Cyrus.

I think it will be exciting to see a new version of Wonderland, we've seen parts of it through Once Upon A Time when we saw Jefferson's story aka The Mad Hatter. It has already been noted actor Sebastian Stan won't be part of the series but could possibly make a cameo later when his acting schedule cools down. But fans have been promised he won't be recast and we will see his character again.

The pilot has a connection to Storybrooke, Maine, which is nice for fans of the parents series. That connection, will only open this world of fairy tales more. I can't give any details away about how it ties into the Storybrooke world but hint, hint, it was from an episode in season 2 of Once Upon A Time. 

I think the romance and journey aspect of this Wonderland re-imaging will be interesting and exciting to see. I love the fact that Alice falls in love with a genie. Yet, it is a doomed love that we can compare to Snow and Price Charming's story-line in season one of Once Upon A Time. But with true love they overcame everything and never doubted for a second they could find a way back to one another. I think Alice and Cyrus' love story will be similar in that way.

The series will have a new and younger Queen of Hearts, known this time as The Red Queen, who's out to stop Alice and Cyrus's love affair. She'll have her own agenda in the series. My guess for the recast/character change is that Barbra Hershey and Rose McGowan who both played the older and younger versions of Cora aka The Queen of Hearts on Once Upon A Time were too expensive to cast. However, its something I can over look and not be bothered about.

Another thing I love about this pilot is that its parent series known for having kick-ass women on TV. At first you think Alice is just a scared young lady and doesn't have much going for her. That’s not the case at all. This isn't your normal Alice in Wonderland; she can handle herself in fights and pretty much does more damage than several of the male characters I've seen so far. So I’m looking forward to more of that as the series progresses through the season.

For comedic relief, I'll be watching The Knave of Hearts and The White Rabbit who both have some funny lines in the pilot. I think it's great to add humor in a show that already has action and romance because why not have a little bit of everything. I think the cast will play nicely off one another and I'm excited to see what else is in store for us.   

With it airing on ABC, I have a lot of hope for Once Upon A Time In Wonderland. It’s on a network that houses the parent show, in addition, it has already gathered a following before it has even aired. I think everyone enjoys a good fairy tale, it makes them feel like a kid again. Another good thing is with the same creators and producers, we will have some great twists in the fairy tale land of Wonderland that we might not see coming. One example as stated above Alice falls in love with a genie.

Lastly, I will say I look forward to seeing Once Upon A Time In Wonderland on my television screen and the excitement that is waiting for us when it premieres on October 10th.




"Down the Rabbit Hole" was written by Edward Kitsis & Adam Horowitz, Zack Estrin, Jane Espenson and directed by Ralph Hemecker.

Photo Credit: ABC

Agents of S.H.I.E.L.D. #1.01 “Pilot” Review!

Here's my (almost) spoiler-free review of ABC's Agents of S.H.I.E.L.D. 

Last night was the premiere of ABC's new drama, Agents of S.H.I.E.L.D. Created by Joss Whedon, the creator of Buffy the Vampire Slayer, Firefly. This picks up from where his big-screen The Avengers left off, following the battle of New York, with surprise agent Phil Coulson (Clark Gregg) back from the dead. A new threat called The Rising Tide looms. His new team: agents Melinda May (Ming-Na Wen), Leo Fitz (Iain De Caestecker) and Jemma Simmons (Elizabeth Henstridge), and computer hacker Skye (Chloe Bennet). Cobie Smulders, makes a guest appearance, as Agent Maria Hill from The Avengers film.

I, myself, was excited for this series to begin, since I am a fan of all the Marvel movies. I think it is a great idea to give fans something to watch while we have long waits between each new Marvel movie. Next up will be Thor 2: The Dark World, but before then we get  Agents of S.H.I.E.L.D on our television screens.   

The idea of having a team of just S.H.I.E.L.D agents who don't have super-powers, like The Avengers, do is a great approach to incorporate some fresh ideas. For example, we will see the parts of the agency we haven't before. I like seeing more of the inside of S.H.I.E.L.D, as well as the normally unseen counterparts that help with The Avengers. The characters are funny and bring with them all the humor we've known and loved about the Marvel Universe. 

The action is great with our human characters, the agents who know how to kick some major ass. For example, Agent May is awesome, I'm really looking forward to see her character fight more and participate in the missions. I was wondering how good the action would be compared to a feature film, but for a TV show Agents of S.H.I.E.L.D, does a great job at adding just the right amount of heart, humor and action that anyone who loves Marvel can relate to and enjoy.

Another thing I love is how it connects with all the Marvel movies it's based on, as it should. You hear some talk about what happened in New York and The Avengers referenced throughout the episode. Spoiler Alert: the main villain of the episode is afflicted with the Extremis virus, the same virus that affected the villain, Aldrich Killian, in Iron Man 3. For those who don't remember, the Extremis virus was a super soldier project developed by Killian, in Iron Man 3, that even affected Iron Man's love Pepper Potts.


The other thing I'm excited to see in the show is the new S.H.I.E.L.D tech. We get a glimpse of some tech but, I'm sure we will see a lot more along with Agents Leo Fitz and Jemma Simmons, who are the S.H.I.E.L.D tech operatives. I really like the bantering brother-sister dynamic they have going for them. I think they will make a great duo on the team and I'm excited to see their characters develop.. 

Lastly, I will say the "Pilot" had a bunch of great moments for the fans of Marvel movies. I really look forward to seeing this show taking advantage of all the great opportunities it has to work with the Marvel Universe. I think this was a great move on Marvel Studios' part: a new direction for our favorite super-hero franchise. Who wouldn't want a little bit of that on their TV every week. 

Watch Agents of S.H.I.E.L.D every Tuesday night at 8/7c on ABC. 


“Pilot” was written by Joss Whedon & Jed Whedon, Maurissa Tancharoen, and directed by Joss Whedon.

Photo Credit: ABC & Marvel Studios.