Annette Brown/The CWPack your bags, we're off to college!
Well, at least some of us are anyway. And by us, we mean the gang on The Vampire Diaries, which we just like to pretend we're a part of. (Come on, their hair always looks so pretty!) The CW hit series returns for its fifth season tonight and picking up three months after the epic finale, with Elena (Nina Dobrev) and Caroline (Candice Accola) heading off to college, while Damon (Ian Somerhalder), Jeremy (Steven R. McQueen) and Matt (Zach Roerig) hold down the fort in Mystic Falls. As for Stefan (Paul Wesley)? Well, he's had the worst summer. Ever.
On a show like The Vampire Diaries, with so many twists and reveals, it's hard to keep track of all the drama, so we're helping you out by giving you a quick recap of what went down at the end of season four. Plus, we're giving you scoop on what you can expect this season...
WHAT WE LEARNED
Doppelgänger Drama: In the finale's closing scene, season four's big bad Silas finally revealed his true face: It's Stefan's! Turns out, Elena isn't the only doppelgänger in town as Stefan is Silas' shadow self. Of course, Silas decided to lock Stefan in a box and toss him at sea to make him suffer, so no warm and fuzzy reunion went down.
The Walking Dead: Yay for Jeremy officially coming back from the dead! Boo to Bonnie dying to save him in the process. Fortunately for the young lovers, he can still see her as a ghost, but no one else can. (Elena and Caroline had yet to find out that Bonnie won't be joining them in a triple dorm.)
The Beginning of a Beautiful Relationship: After seasons of waiting, Damon and Elena fans finally got what they wanted: The duo became a bona fide couple, with Elena telling Damon she loves him.
The Cure Is Gone: After desperately searching for the cure all season, Elena finally gets her hands on it…only to shove it down Katherine's throat. "Have a nice human life," she tells her. Yeah, we don't see that happening…
WHAT LIES AHEAD
Delena Delirium: Fans of the couple will not want to miss the first five minutes of tonight's premiere, which feature a whole lot of kissing. Of course, it'll soon become a long-distance romance as Elena is off to Whitmore College. "We get to see them happy, believe it or not, for a little while before of course circumstances and other supernatural influence comes in to drive an obstacle in their path," executive producer Julie Plec teased. Of course, Shaun Sipos' new character Aaron could potentially rock this 'ship.
Feels So Good to Be Bad: Silas is not messing around in season five, proving to be one of the series' best villains. And Wesley is clearly having a good time breaking bad. But what is Silas after? "Silas is going to come roaring into season five with an agenda. His mission has been singular from the beginning, which is he wants to take the cure and die and get rid of the other side so he can pass on and be reunited with his one true love," Plec explained. "However, the cure's off the table, the other side's off the table, so he's going to have a pretty enormous plan B for how to deal with that."
Katherine, the Human Edition: Fret not, Katherine is still as sassy as ever, just a lot more fragile. "She's going to need protection, and who better to seek out for protection than the brothers Salvatore, who have been so good at caring on and off for her over the centuries?" Plec said.
College Fun: While we're always nervous when a teen drama transitions to the college years, we're pleased to report that TVD is handling it really well. In the premiere, Caroline and Elena will stumble upon a Veronica Mars-style vampire mystery that has ties to the Gilbert family.
The Vampire Diaries returns tonight at 8 p.m. on the CW.