CSI 15.1 "The CSI Effect" Review

                                                     
This title seemed catchy enough especially considering the subject matter, the so-called copy cat killer, but that he was copying the CSIs and was processing the CS and mapping out areas for the CSIs already, thus the 'CSI Effect.'  If you recall when CSI first started there were many articles about how the show affected the number of people wanting to become CSIs and study forensics and criminalistics.  I even mentioned a part about it in my CSI:NY book, yes cos the introduction and early part was about all three CSI shows.

Finn (Elisabeth Shue) is locked in her car and a bomb is about to go off, a distorted voice asks DB (Ted Danson) "Who am I?" and he doesn't reply.  Though it should have been him asking, "Who are you?"  Ha. The timer on the bomb changes from one hour to a minute and we get to:
3 Days Earlier
which finds Finn in the car with a former detective Daniel Shaw (Mark Valley) who is now a PI. He's here investigating the disappearance of a college student named Emily and he doesn't tell Finn yet that his partner, Kerri also a PI now is missing whilst working the same case.  Though he didn't expect to stumble on the Gig Harbour Killer.  Now you should have recalled that name going back all the way to S12.1 73 Seconds and with the arrival of DB as head of the lab.  As Sara (Jorja Fox) congratulates him on catching the Gig Harbour Killer

DB, Finn, Daniel and Kerri all worked on the serial killer case back in Seattle and he even stalked DB's daughter, Maya, to the point where she had to have protection for herself and her family.  The Gig Harbour Killer actually tuned out to be Jared Briscoe (Mark-Paul Gosselaar).  He murdered five college students, All blondes and DB found him when the evidence pointed to a boat where he found more evidence relating to the killer.  Jared even turns up and fights with DB.  Here he also found photos of himself, Finn, Maya.

Jared was sentenced to death row after being convicted but after four years and five failed appeal attempts later he is still there.  He wouldn't give up any of the whereabouts of three of his Vics.  Nick (George Eads) and Sara (Jorga Fox) process the current CS where Emily was supposedly meant to have been found and Nick thinks that DB processed the scene already, as well as stringing the blood spatter.  Even if Nick was late, DB didn't do it, it was already done and there was no DB either, but a fish gaff was found at the CS.  Being the murder weapon.

DB also tells Nick that this appears to be the work of a copycat killer since Jared is still in prison. DB wants to interview Jared in person and has a requested a transfer to Vegas.  Ecklie (Marc Vann) is furious about this cos DB has pull, he went behind his back and asked for this.  Since it's also a reflection on the department.  DB needs to do this even if it looks like he has a personal motive behind it.

As Nick processes the CS for a second time, for their own evidence, Sara does remark that everything was done as if a real CS had been over the scene, as well as there being green and orange CS stringing done.  That looked good, always liked that in the show, though they don't use that much anymore, it's mostly laser stringing if they do that.  It was cool, until we find out that Hodges (Wallace Langham) finds the string was made from human tissue.  What was even more cool was Nick wanting to use the lab's 3D mapping system which Ecklie invested in to take 3D photos of the CS, basically like a helicopter and giving a 360 degree picture of the entire CS.

The DNA also belongs to Emily who went missing five weeks ago from Seattle, as said that was why Daniel was here.  Though Finn doesn't want to share much with him especially since she tells him he wasn't that good in the back of the car.  Finn's signature trademark she leaves behind wherever she's been, no really, is there anyone she hasn't been with or chased after.  Daniel and Kerri were hired by Emily's parents to find her, he couldn't get hold of her, so he took a trip to Vegas for himself.  Her last known address was at a coffeshop and looking at the photo from the footage, she's seen with a man wearing a hat.  Finn notices that he runs his hand under the table which means there should be some DNA left behind.  Greg (Eric Szmanda) has the task of doing the honours and finds there is DNA from a middle finger.  As Morgan (Elisabeth Harnois) comments, as have so many before them, he's giving them the finger.

The print belongs to Jared Briscoe.  When DB talks with him, he tells him he lost his finger in prison, someone bit it off and he swallowed it, he didn't get it back, so maybe someone sold it.  Obviously you know where this is going from the start since DNA evidence from twins is the only viable way in which this DNA could've turned up there.  DB also tells him Emily and Kerri are both missing.   DB has to question whether Jared is the real killer, but Jared confessed he was.  Or that he was probably a psycho.

Kerri's car has been found and Sara tells Finn and Daniel that it was cleaned.  There was however, some dots on the window which look like spatter, but weren't as it's an unusual pattern.  Obviously it was a constellation of some sort, which is what I said, it wouldn't be a random pattern.  Files relating to the Gig Harbour Killer and Kerri's diary are also found.  Where she was pinpointing things to the killer.  Kerri had a meeting with Mark Turner(Rob Nagle) and when Finn and Daniel question him, he states he's the counsel for Jared and was hired by his brother Paul Winthrop.  Then we get the age old story about twins being set to separate homes, one comes good and the other doesn't.  Finn shows him the photo from the coffeeshop and he used his middle finger to position it on the table.  Giving Finn an easy feeling that something isn't right here.

She tells this to DB but is given the same word of warning from Ecklie.  That they're making this too personal.  In the flashback from 2009 in Seattle, we see that Finn is the one who shot Jared, and he says he should finish it off.  Finn telling him she's got his back.  She tells them now she should've finished him off and Ecklie warns her about telling that to anyone else.  Finn also thinks Jared had an accomplice.  DB doubts whether Jared even masterminded the killings.

The DNA results on the human string belongs to the three Vics who were never found.  Greg finds the blood spatter on the ceiling of the car belongs to the constellation Gemini, Pollux and Castor and Nick says he found the same thing in the blood spatter.  There were two other signatures in the blood that looked strange.  They too were of Gemini.  Also the green strings from the CS also formed the same Gemini constellation.  This leads to the location of where Emily's DB was meant to be and the same company also owned a chemical plant.  Here the killer has already dug up three mass graves and exhumed the DBs.  Belonging to the Vics.  One of them wears a college ring and David (David Berman) finds some evidence in the mouth of one of the Vics where she bit the killer.  As well as hair.

Nick runs the DNA and we don't find out who it's a match to, until we return to Finn in the car.  DB is called again and this time he answers the killer's question, saying he knows he's the Gig Harbour Killer.  Finn is released and Ecklie once again admonishes DB for saying that, since he's opened up a can of worms now.  If he's right, he may have sent an innocent man to Death Row and he needs to solve this case.  DB says he knows that and he'll have to deal with it, but we know he's not wrong and that both of them were involved.  With Paul looking that bit more of a psychopath and actually fitting the picture of this criminal mastermind.

Cue to the end of the ep with the song playing and Paul and Jared walking together to be interviewed. As well as the CSIs putting together the puzzle.  Also why didn't they analyze the fingerprint when Paul touched the photo, that was an obvious clue, especially since they may have identical DNA, but they wouldn't have the same prints.  That was overlooked by Finn, who always drops the ball whenever she has some flirtation with some man or another.  Why does she always have to be the one in trouble and she wasn't utilized for her blood spatter expertise here either.  Hasn't done much of that lately as I said in my previous reviews, that after all is her forte.

So the show goes back to another serial killer storyline this season, but I have yet to see if they will actually match the brilliance of the Miniature Serial Killer storyline, as this opens up a new arc of the season.  Also it harks back to the early season of CSI when Grissom was dealing with Paul Millander and he left similar clues for him, such as the obviously 'faked' hand/print.

The end song was Come With Me Now by Kongos.  Also funny did you see when Greg pulled up the results of Jared's DNA, someone made a booboo and listed his Hair as Caucasian and his race as Brown. Oh please! ha.  Mark Valley was also in 1.13 Boom ep of CSI.

So as George is leaving the show at the end of the season, make the most of him now!

Revenge 4.3 "Ashes" Review

                                                
Emily (Emily VanCamp) gets rescued by Jack (Nick Wechsler) just in the nick as he goes inside to see if he can salvage anything and finds her lying there. Charlotte (Christa B Allen) watches in horror as she sees her rescued but once gain drippy Charlotte (or Harlot as I'd call her) gets away with another attempted murder.  It's the never ending Grayson circle, they all have killer blood in them and I don't mean that in a nice way.  Victoria's (Madeleine Stowe) still scheming to ensure David (James Tupper) gets revenge on Emily for everything she's done to her and her children and Louise (Elena Satine) accidentally on purpose bumps into her after she speaks with Daniel (Josh Bowman) who's still under the impression that Victoria was living it up for six months . Victoria is in dire need of funds and thinks that Daniel begin the head of the family now, would have some stashed away for a rainy day. But he's skint of course.

Louise needs to speak with Victoria but she's too busy trying to help her own children specifically Charlotte who she takes to meet with David.  He can't believe he's actually seeing her and she can't believe he's alive, but Victoria makes her out to be good saying she brought Conrad down with that confession and how she's all goodness and light, blah!  Daniel and Margaux (Karinne Vanasse) have their night of passion but he can't find work cos he's name's mud and so Louise cunningly encounters him in the hotel bar after he's thrown out for not paying his bill for over three months.  She pretends her financial advisor is selling off her investments when she doesn't want him to and Daniel says that if she doesn't pay him then he can't be her advisor anymore.

Emily finds out where Charlotte is cos Nolan (Gabriel Mann) tracks her GPS and he's glad she's alive and sets to work on fixing her alarm system, cos she's gonna need it.  She'll take care of Charlotte since she's the only one who knows what she did and she still has this stupid sense of loyalty as if she owes her. Charlotte was a lost cause even before Emily came here, so really she owes her nothing. Jack finds out from the man Charlotte told the bar was empty that he saw her run out.  So he knows now too but obviously Emily talks him round.  He doesn't want the Stowaway anymore and he manages to salvage a photo of her and Jack together when little.

Emily pays Charlotte a visit to the cabin when David conveniently happens to be away and Victoria threatens her with a shotgun, but shooting's too good for her, she wants her to suffer little by little. Charlotte listens to what she has to say and Emily tells Victoria to end it now, she keeps looking to make sure David doesn't turn up.  Later Victoria goes grovelling for a handout to Margaux as she's family now, but wont accept anything unless it was a loan.  How could Margaux say she doesn't know of Victoria's predicament considering she knows Daniel is broke.

Victoria tells David how Emily was here and he goes to knife her in bed!  He recognizes her, of course he does but it doesn't click in that instance since Nolan gets the cameras up and running, well some of them and stops him.  Of course she's got that photo now as well, but he didn't have time to look at it.  It's just dragging out the inevitable longer bit by bit, that he will find out Emily is Amanda, he's her father, how can he not know or recognize her.

Ben (Brian Hallisay) finds Emily's car in the woods and it's like he's stalking her, I mean he turns up everywhere she goes, but she tells him she's not looking for company anytime soon.  No, it's Emily and Jack isn't it, always has been.  The only way any of this revenge plot can be salvaged is if David is playing Victoria for betraying him and will ultimately get payback for his time in prison and losing his daughter.  So how come the Fire Department missed that big can of accelerant and put it down to an accident!  Amateurs or what. Ha.

As for the title well it's more like it's referring to Emily rising from the ashes once again like a phoenix and that, let's face it Victoria et al, she's invincible! Where'd Victoria salvage that dress from? Ha.

Revenge 4.2 "Disclosure" Review

                                             
Victoria (Madeleine Stowe) tells David (James Tupper) that she cares for him, he wraps his hands around her neck and strangles, which was too good for her.  She awakes in the van cos she was only dreaming. He takes her to where he was hiding out all those years, which resembles a converted jail cell.  She tells him she loves him and he her, but she's got something up her sleeve and it's called revenge. You know, hell hath no fury and all that.  Claiming she never stopped loving him and Conrad threatened her when she wanted to go to the DA and tell the truth.  He also threatened their children.  He finally admits he killed Conrad  after he heard his confession cos he would've dragged her down with him. Victoria trying to hide a steak knife from him, as the waitress points out she's dropped her knife. David knows she's worried and is afraid of him.

He assures her he's not here to hurt her but he wants to see Charlotte (Christa B Allen) and he read about what happened to the boat and to Amanda. Of course when Victoria was referring to boat, it could've taken to mean what happened to Emily (Emily VanCamp) on the boat on her honeymoon with Daniel (Josh Bowman) when he shot her, but alas she was not.   David wants to meet Charlotte but the question remains of how Charlotte will accept that revelation, since she's on the edge.  She hasn't really accepted much of anything.  Also Victoria must be deluding herself thinking that Emily and David will never meet and she does know what he looks like, even if he doesn't know she's still alive, then he also knows Nolan (Gabriel Mann) and vice versa and of course their paths too will cross.  How can Victoria get away with making David take revenge on Emily.  Didn't realize David was so gullible as to believe anything she has to say.  He wasn't the love of her life, not two minutes ago she was pining for Pascal.

Daniel and Margaux (Karine Vanasse) set up Gideon (Daniel Zovatto) first Charlotte catches him with another woman and she naively believes that he actually was interested in her, Charlotte needs to grow up and grow a brain too.  She tells Daniel she cashed the cheque without paying the rent.  But he sees Emily there and hangs up on her.  Daniel says there no longer are any Grayson's after what Emily's done.  She's here to see a friend and that person was Charlotte but she can't find her.  Nolan also realizes Emily hasn't given up the revenge business and comments on how he thought he had a "revenge-free Summer."

Nolan locates Charlotte using GPS and tells Emily she should be right on top of her with her Manolo's.  She looks up to see Charlotte about to jump.  But doesn't succeed in talking her out of it saying she's been trying to be there for her.  Instead Jack's (Nick Wechsler) partner, Ben (Brian Hallisay) tackles her off the edge, hurting his shoulder in the process.  He's set his sights on Emily and asks Jack about her past.  OH look, fun being a policeman, as they sat there in an earlier scene with the speed gun! Ha.  Jack tells him she and Amanda were in juvvie together, now did he need to do that since it got his interest peeked.  He also asks Emily what she was doing at the hotel, but she fobs him off saying she nearly lost her friend.  Jack also warns him off Emily cos she's not looking for anyone right now.

Jack brings Charlotte to the beachhouse since she was released by the doctor and says she can only be helped by family.  Emily admits she's Amanda and she wanted to tell her but couldn't.  Charlotte saying all she could think of was revenge and not her.  Emily shows Charlotte the wooden box with the journals but she just breaks it before storming off.  Cos you know, it's always about Charlotte isn't it!  Nolan tells Emily she won't forgive her overnight and just then she gets a call from her.  Emily arrives at the Stowaway with Charlotte telling her to read from the pad cos if she talks to her she'll get angry, as she clobbers her from behind.  That was very Victoria of her.  See she is nothing but Victoria's daughter.  Then sets fire to the Stowaway.  Yeah immature Charlotte, that's really yours to burn as you please!  Now we have mother and daughter out for revenge.  Oh should also add, Daniel is also like them too. So now now all of Victoria's children have had murder in mind and have gone through with it, including Patrick.

Daniel sets Gideon up at the meeting with a magazine owner and calls a reporter too, a woman walks in and takes drugs from Gideon's pocket saying he owes her.  Of course that makes the papers but Margaux goes one better when Gideon realizes she knows about the redhead.  He threatens her and she tells him she'll arrange a meeting with the man in London but he wants to fly tonight.  At the airport he's arrested with more drugs as Daniel and Margaux celebrate by going full speed ahead on the office desk! Ha.  Well she got over Jack quickly! She's also very trusting of Daniel all of a sudden.

That all seemed too convenient and quite frankly that entire Margaux/Daniel storyline is as boring as Charlotte running around playing up! Missing that whole Emily narration part now, as I said the tables are turned and she's in the firing line now.  didn't think this was the right moment for Emily to admit who she was and that she kidnapped her, I mean she just tried to end it all, as well as being on drugs.  Cos this sent her over the edge even more, though sadly not literally!

John Terlesky is now supervising producer on the show, as well as directing some eps too. He was David Taylor in shortlived show, Legmen, alongside Bruce Greenwood.

Revenge 4.1 "Renaissance" Review

                                              
Victoria: "In my lifetime, I've come to understand that there are three ways for a person to disappear.  The first is to die.  The second is to lie.  And the last is to be reborn."  Clearly Victoria's on her second bout of this, as she lies to her therapy group, "it was after my former husband's death six months ago that my transformation began.  I made my peace with those who have wronged me and with those who I've wronged.  No one more so than Emily Thorne."

This time round the revenge tables and stakes are reversed as we get Victoria (Madeleine Stowe) becoming Emily (Emily VanCamp) as Emily lives it up in the Grayson mansion she bought.  As we know the Grayson name is now dirt and Victoria plans on colluding with her fellow 'inmates' to get out of the psych hospital.  Making friends inside she manages to get hold of a phone, courtesy of Phyllis (Yeardley Smith) but calls the house where Emily is the one who answers it.  Notifying the doc of Victoria's call.  But Victoria also gets a new ally to use in terms of planning her getaway.  This time round it's a girl, Louise (Elena Satine) whose mother has committed her so she can get over her father's death, or as she puts it, to make her insane.  Victoria uses her trunk to get Phyllis locked inside so she can leave.  As a diversion the sprinklers are put on and she manages to get away, but leaving her 'poppet' Louise behind.

Emily crashes Nolan's (Gabriel Mann) car into another woman's, Nancy (Alicia Lagano) and we know Emily can't quite leave the revenge behind, but more importantly, she can't leave the addiction behind of helping others, hence a reason why she can't reveal herself as Amanda Clark.  Even Nolan calls her out on this at the lavish party she throws, she invites Nancy over to pay her the cheque for the damage to the car and also reveals the man who killed her fiance, by substituting the name of his mistress, 'Valerie' on the boat to be launched, instead of his wife's, Jennifer.   Nancy telling Emily she was angry but she got over it, cos he'll get out anyway and what good will it do her now to see 'justice' done.  Something Emily realizes is that she can't help people who don't want to be helped, or who are not her, those vying for revenge.

No matter though since Victoria pays her a visit and tells her the revenge will all be hers now, which is why I said she's going to be Emily now.  She says she wants to end this and she wants Pascal back, Emily adding she wants Aiden back.  Also saying Emily should've admitted she was Amanda when she got here and things would've been different.  Also that she feels she's like Emily now when she came out of juvvie.  But then Victoria gets taken by David (James Tupper) who chloroforms her.  After deciding it's time to return home.  A shame Emily didn't see him hiding out in the dark in her beach house, but her first thought was of Aiden whom she found lying there after he was killed.  Thinking that Nancy was the only one who could sympathize with her cos she went through the same thing.  But it wasn't the same thing, she did lose him, only she moved on instead of careering off the tracks.

Jack (Nick Wechsler) has become a policeman now. albeit a rookie and is teased that it's cos of the kidnapping by Ben (Brian Hallisay) when Charlotte (Christa B Allen) was kidnapped, but he wanted to do some good when he saw people get away with murder for so long (meaning the Grayson's). Charlotte takes Carl from nursery just to make Jack worry and to get him to admit he kidnapped her, which he denies.  He later brings Ben to Emily's party where he finds Charlotte taking drugs along with Gideon (Daniel Zovatto) who's no doubt being encouraging her.  Then again Charlotte always was a waste of space and as Emily tells Nolan that's one reason why she's still here, cos of her.  Little good that does.  Ben arrests her, but Jack has to talk him out of it cos she's family.  Charlotte also scams $7,000 for rent from Daniel (Josh Bowman) which isn't for rent of course and it's obvious Daniel doesn't have any money.  Selling his car at a loss, but also having resigned from his position at the magazine.

Nolan tells Margaux (Karine Vanasse) about Gideon and tells her to ask Daniel about the 'redhead.' The redhead being the woman Gideon took compromising photos of with Daniel after she ODed, with a little help from him.  I couldn't help think of, "oh how the mighty have fallen" when I was writing this! Ha.  Then Daniel is no saint, he did shoot Emily after all and got away with it.

I didn't find this episode as interesting as the other season openers, no longer done is the 'x number' of months earlier ploy and then coming back to the present day, I missed that.  Wonder if Emily's narration will return or if it'll be Victoria doing all of them from now on.  Lots of questions, here's hoping the season will improve over time.  Oh and did I mention Nolan brings in a throne for Emily, "long live the new queen", now if that isn't a reversal of fortune or taking over from Victoria, then I don't know what is.  But I still miss Victoria's first throne, er chair!  David, Victoria and Emily playing happy families, I think not!

Doctor Who "Last Christmas" Christmas Special Review

                                                 
Clara (Jenna Coleman) wakes to the commotion of finding Santa (Nick Frost) on her roof, Santa with his sleigh which has crashed and his two elves, ordering them to pick up the tangerines.  Big clue were the tangerines, as everyone says, nobody wants them, but they find their way into stockings and the like. Which nobody likes.  Moments later the Doctor (Peter Capaldi) arrives telling Clara to go into the TRADIS cos she's not safe.

On a base in the North Pole, a woman, Shona (Faye Marsay) prepares to enter the infirmary after being told what to do, but she's reluctant to do so.  She's also forgotten what she was trained to do. So they play music for her, the music being Slade's Merry Christmas Everybody, of course!  She's to get past the other four on the bed, but we don't know what's happening, or why she was even in the infirmary to begin with.  The Doctor and Clara arrive and find the things on the bed are waking up as they're honing in on their thoughts.  She has to get distracted or they will find them.  He asks Clara to think of maths problems and then to think of Danny (Sam Anderson).  He's probably texting some other woman, which she hates cos he's dead.  This reminded me of guess what, the weeping angels, don't blink, or you'll miss 'em, which I added.  Then again there was, "listen" as well.  Now we had don't think of them, or they'll get you.  Take over you mind and your thoughts.

There's an explosion and who saves the day, you've guessed it, or dreamed it more like, Santa.  But Santa isn't real and doesn't exist.  Why the Doctor asked Clara if she believed in  Santa cos lives were at stake.  This Christmas the invasion involved dream crabs, well if you like that sort of thing, personally I hate crabs!  So the crabs fall from the skies and we're to believe Santa saves the day, as he asks, "who you gonna call?"  In the North Pole.  In march the armed robots and the tangerine and that's the end, short Christmas ep I've ever seen.  Of course it's not the end, it's just the beginning.

The dreamcrab is caught and jarred in a specimen bottle, as the Doctor asks Ashley (Natalie Gumede) and the others why they're here?  Each one responding, 'it's a long story'.  Yeah it is, cos they're answers were identical and that's where you should have got your guard up, since when is Christmas complete without a good horror story.  Clara is angry at the Doctor for saying those things about Danny cos he's dead and she lied.  She wanted him to get home to Gallifrey and he admits he lied too since he wanted her to be happy with Danny.  It seems they were both at cross purposes with each other, as we saw from the last Doctor Who ep  Death In Heaven.  Clara admitting that she lied (lies) as we know the Doctor does too.

Prof Bellows (Maureen Beattie) shows them surveillance footage of the crabs and how they took over the others.  As Shona talks with Santa making notes about the North Pole having a candy cane striped pole running through the centre and how he's not the Easter Bunny but he can call him.  He doesn't get to deliver so many millions of presents himself, thus he has two sleighs.  Perhaps the one scene many would have enjoyed is when the Doctor asks Santa how he gets to fit all the presents into the sleigh, "bigger on the inside."  Naturally! Ho, ho, ho!

The Doctor needs to examine the crab and asks Clara to retrieve it for him, as well as a cup of tea too and slap in the face, cos he deserves it, leaving her alone like that.  But the crab has escaped and is on the prowl, getting Clara as she can't stop thinking about it, even maths problems don't help and neither does Danny, as she finds herself back home, with Danny as Santa.  He tells her to come down and as she walks through the hall, a blackboard appears with her name written on it.  As she tries to rub it out, it changes to 'dying', Clara is dying, you are dying' and many other boards appear.  She runs through and thinks she's past them, but there's one that appears behind her on the stairs.  As she tells Danny she knows he's wearing pyjamas under his Santa suit cos he's too shy and needs a second layer of clothing.

The Doctor tries to awaken Clara but she doesn't get up.  He asks Santa if he can help cos he ordered the others in the infirmary to obey him and get back into bed.  He can help of course but this involves the Doctor getting a crab on his face too.  He knocks on the door and Danny says that'll be her dad then. He tells her Danny's not real but she's not listening.  Danny tells him he is real, cos he knows she's dreaming.  He wants her to get on with her life, be sad for him or five minutes cos that's what he wants, but then get on with her life.  They come out of the dream, as both the crabs fall from their faces.

The Doctor asks if they're still awake or are they dreaming, why do they still have that ice cream pain at the side of their heads.  They're still dreaming.  Explaining it with why they would think of Santa coming to their rescue.  Their battle is still going on and they're still being attacked, so it's not too late for them yet.  He gives them the manuals to read and Clara chooses three random page numbers where the words should have been identical, but they're not.  Finally reading, "we are all dead."   As well as mentioning again why they would all say their story is too long for them to tell it.  They need to wake up.  I was going to ask where Santa had disappeared to?  And his elves.

They find the others are waking up and he tells them there are only four manuals for eight of them, why?  Well obviously cos they are the others in the infirmary and as they come for them through the monitors, Prof Smithe (Michael Troughton) is pulled through.  Their only hope is to get out, but they manage to come out behind them.  The Doctor asking who they would call for help, cue Santa once again on his sleigh.  He can get them back to their homes and he eventually does this.  When the Doctor gets to see Clara and manages to remove the dreamcrab from her face, she's aged.  It's been 62 years and she tells him about her life, how she travelled.  How their were other men but none of them were Danny he asks.  She replies, there was one, but he "was impossible."  Which has more than one meaning.  They should celebrate this Christmas like last Christmas.  Of course there's many a meaning to that too isn't there.  Last Christmas as in Christmases gone, or last as in THE last one they will celebrate.  He wishes he hadn't left it too late and Santa asks him if that's what he really wants. As Clara finally returns to normal.  Clara said she always believed in Santa, so she had to come back.

As a Christmas ep it wasn't really ranked there with all the others, at least for me it wasn't.  It could turn out to be confusing in places since he comes for Clara but she asks if it was a dream why was Santa already on her roof and why or how was the Doctor affected by the dreamcrabs too and managed to get hold of him.  Though they were trying to clear up the question of why the Doctor and Clara took so long in admitting the truth to each other.  SO if they had been honest this one time, they wouldn't have been alone.  Than again, life isn't that straightforward.  Not in this show.

Not much can be said about this ep, so just watch it and enjoy it, if you do.  Cos Santa is real and yes, Santa did save the day.  So how do we know that they were still awake and we weren't still dreaming when Santa made Clara young again?  Ha.  However rest assured as it said at the end of the ep, the Doctor and Clara will return in 'The Magician's Apprentice.'  How do we know that wasn't written in dreamlike induced state?  Ha.  Best line maybe, when he finds out there's a film called Aliens and replies, "no wonder everyone keeps invading you."  That's not nice. Had to be mentioned though, once the facehugging mask from Alien was brought into the picture.

Clara was staying and I'm just glad it's been put out there now for everyone to see, cos she's a big part of the show now and a great companion to have around.  Especially now she's over her 'love' for him in the romantic sense.  We need more of their fights and arguments.  Could have had a good one there when the Doctor was about to get into his TARDIS and leave, problem solved, when nothing was quite over yet.

As for Clara getting a cup of tea for him, that was reminiscent of Jo Grant and how Doctor Three (Jon Pertwee) would always ask her to do this, look she's a companion, not the tealady! Ha.  Commander Strax (Dan Starkey) was also visible this time as he played the elf, Ian.  We've blinked, or not, breathed, or not, and now we're not meant to think, what's next, "don't watch!"  That'll never happen.   Guess this ep follows hot on the heels of Doctor Eleven (Matt Smith) mentioning in A Christmas Carol, that "Father Christmas is real, I've met him."  Also his name was Geoff.  So he had to appear.  Mind you we also get a reference to his portrayal of the Doctor when Santa mentions, "dreamy weamy."  As Steven Moffat revealed, all but the last seen was a dream, well that much was apparent, cos the clue that gave it away, the tangerine in the window at the end, which is why he asked the Doctor if he really wants things to change and want Clara back!  But also it's what Clara said, why was Santa already on her roof, setting things into motion!  Plus she wasn't in her PJ's for nothing.

The Doctor it was said was dressed as a magician, well that pre-empted the next ep! Ha.

Downton Abbey Christmas Special 2014

                                             
This special was really to tie up the loose ends and call it a day on the old stories which were left lingering from Series 5.  Which sees the Crawley's heading over to Brancaster Castle, rented by the Sinderby's for a grouse shoot.  Though it appears that Robert (Hugh Bonneville) is reluctant to go as he doesn't seem to be in good spirits, also picked up on by Cora (Elizabeth McGovern).  Bates (Brendan Coyle) doesn't accompany them as he must stay for Anna(Joanne Froggatt) who has been arrested and put into prison.  It's a wonder she didn't get bail, not like it was proved yet she's guilty and she hasn't even had a trail, sure the crawley's would've gladly put up bail.  Mary (Michelle Dockery) visits her and Anna asks if she used an assumed name since the press won't be too happy when they find out she's here.  Even with all this going on, she's still concerned about her reputation.  Mary stands by her since she doesn't care and she'd be happy to say the Crawley's stand by her.  Seems she can think of Anna which is more than she does for Edith (Laura Carmichael).

As Edith worries leaving behind Marigold and once again Mary comes up with the phrase of how she's the only mother here and she's not worried.  Robert wants to tell Edith he knows, but Cora tells him it's not their secret, seeing as Edith wanted to call herself mother when she said goodbye. Doesn't appear that anyone was looking forward to the hoot and the only reason they went was cos they were Rose's in-laws.  Lord Sinderby (James Faulkner) certainly didn't want them here and this was also shown by his snooty butler, Stollen, which is how they kept saying his name, which was actually, Stowell (Alun Armstrong) by name and nature, ha!  Or that would be sullen, never mind.  Well he has the final say on most things and seems to be running the house and having a holier than thou attitude, high and mighty also.  Which Mary dislikes and so does Thomas (Rob James-Collier).

Stowell doesn't like Branson (Allan Leech) cos he's just the chauffeur who made good and tells Thomas he's the footman here as they're short staffed.  This later leads Thomas to come up with a plan to embarrass him, hailed on by Mary, infact it was Mary's suggestion that Thomas do something to put him in his place.  Surprised no one got fired over it!  Which Thomas does by writing a note to the cook saying that Sinderby wants a simple meal.  So at dinner he embarrasses Stowell when he says he sent the note to the cook from his valet, Daunt informing her of this.  He says he did no such thing and gives him a dressing down in front of everyone, also calling Thomas, "a stupid fool."  Of course Thomas won't let this pass and is determined to get his own back on Sinderby as well.

Thus he befriends Stowell who asks him to write and checks his writing against the other note.  As if he'd use his own handwriting to do so.  Thomas must have been a dab hand at forgeries at some point in his life.  So he worms Sinderby's secrets out of him.  At the grouse shoot, the agent, Bertie Pelham (Harry Hadden-Paton) has also been invited, as has a friend of Attius' (Matt Barber) who gets partnered with Mary.  What was the purposes of the women accompanying the men, I mean it's not as if they'd get any shooting in, though I wouldn't have been surprised if Mary had wanted to get into it! If only to give Edith a scare. Ha.

Robert confesses to Cora he may be suffering from angina but he's not sure yet and she makes him miss the rest of the shoot.  Seems like Mary gets another love interest in Henry Talbot Matthew Goode). At the house, a woman arrives, Diane (Alice Patten) with a young boy, who happens to be Sinderby's son and mistress, but Rose (Lily James) saves him by introducing her as her friend and gets Mary and Robert to do the same.  Seems Sinderby is human like the rest of them and yet doesn't act that way.  Later he apologizes to them and knows Rose is an asset and very clever too.  As well as Mary getting Stowell to be kind to Branson.  Since he's the one who knew the secret.  But Lady Sinderby (Penny Downie) and Atticus are oblivious to this, seems Rose is keeping a secret from him now.  But no matter as he's been offered a job in New York and Rose will be leaving with him.

Robert tells Cora he isn't certain of what's happening tomorrow, so he wants to tell Edith he knows about Marigold and she asks for his forgiveness.  He should be asking her and he knows Michael was a good man.  Branson has guessed that Marigold is hers, cos he's seen a number of such cases in his own family, leaving Mary the one in the dark as it should be.  Can you imagine the repercussions for Edith from her.  Though I wonder if she'll find out next series.  Talbot has also found out and he asks Mary what's happening, but she's in no position to tell him, although he's astute.  He's into cars and owns the one that Mary comments on.  Isn't it a bit like Matthew and he was driving a fast car when he met his end!  Yet it seems Mary doesn't recall that, but she seems to be going after him now.

Bates knows Anna is innocent and has no doubts, when she asks him the same thing she did when he was in prison, about not having doubts and he knows that for certain.  He gets the idea to go on the run and confesses he pushed Green.  (Imagine if that were true, they'd have gotten away with it, just a thought).  Leaving Molesley (Kevin Doyle) to find out his alibi when he said he was in York, taking Baxter (Raquel Cassidy) with him and a photograph from Bates's cottage.  Hey Molesley went snooping in his things.

The Dowager (Maggie Smith) brings Princess Irina (Jane Lapotaire) back and gives her some clothes and allows her to stay before Kuragin (Rade Sherbedgia) takes her away.  The Princess, rather standoffish of course, as she knows what the two of them had planned, as the Dowager later confesses to Isobel (Penelope Wilton).  She and the prince ran away to his yacht, but the Dowager's maid betrayed her and  the Princess dragged her out of the carriage and sent her home in her cab. Thus she stayed with Lord Crawley and her children.  Isobel looked like she wanted to laugh!  Also Lord Merton (Douglas Reith) declared his continuing undying love for Isobel, convinced if he could get his sons to change their minds about accepting her, Isobel would marry him.  Especially as she doesn't want to end up like the Dowager in her old age.  The Dowager adding there were other men, well implying it, but not really saying anything to elaborate.  The Dowager sends the Prince and Princess on their way and calls it quits with him, being the right thing to do.

Mrs Hughes (Phyllis Logan) admits to Carson (Jim Carter) she doesn't have a penny to her name as everything she earns goes into looking after her mentally challenged sister, so she can't go ahead and invest in the property with him, but this doesn't deter him, as he goes ahead with it as planned and finally proposes to her.  She accepts and plus she's been waiting a long time for it, as were we, cos it's been brewing for ages.

As Branson and Edith hang up the stockings for the children on their bed, Branson has regrets about leaving and Edith doesn't want him to go either.  They share a thought for Sybil with Mary, as Robert overhears them and asks if Branson will leave Sibby behind until he settles in.  Robert being tipsy and verging on being drunk since he found out he has an ulcer and needs to change his diet but only agrees to stay off booze until Christmas Eve, so he makes up for it now.  Branson gives the speech on his behalf and then he gives one for Branson in return, pretending to be sober.

Anna is brought back and released on bail and Robert gets word to Bates to come home since they found out his alibi was proved.  The police case won't stand up as the witness has his doubts now.  So this was a Christmas to remember for the family, but not as much for us, cos really, there's not much that happened this ep.  With Denka (Sue Johnston) and Spratt (Jeremy Swift) having a sprat between each other and challenging her to make the Dowager broth.  So she gets Mrs Patmore (Lesley Nichol) and Daisy (Sophie McShera) to help, but Daisy just makes it for her and is caught by Spratt after she delivers it.  Then he throws it out and the Dowager samples the one Denka made, stating it's good when in actual fact it's not, just to stop the squabbling.

I seriously thought Molesley would find that hidden package belonging to Mary in Anna's house, but alas she must have disposed of it when she no longer needed it.  Imagine the look on Molesley's face if he did.  Matthew Goode more recently seen alongside Benedict Cumberbatch (now imagine if he made an appearance in this desperately need for new stories show, ratings would plummet to new heights!! Ha.) in The Imitation Game and with Allen leech too, and as Wicked Wickham in Death Comes to Pemberly, last year's seasonal offering.  Alas no Bene!!  Also I didn't think the murder of valet Green could be dragged out for so long and yes it has, by golly!  It'll be ongoing for two years when Downton returns and let's see if this is actually concluded.  Like I said, imagine if they were both in on it and get away with it! Ha.  There's something about Bates that is a bit creepy in terms of his 'secrets'.  Sure he's keeping some.  I mean we get the revelation that Anna's step father had designs on her and she threatened him with a knife.  She's a dark one too.

Time Called on The Mentalist

                                           
Dismayed to hear that The Mentalist will be leaving us after seven seasons, especially since it's become such a staple diet for us fans and Simon Baker fans too.  Okay, not just him but the rest of the cast too.  It's a shame it has come to this and though I am loathed to say it, something tells me it's a lot to do with the fact the villain of the piece and the great Red John reveal was such a letdown in 6.8 Red John.  It was either you liked who it turned out to be Sheriff McAllister (Xander Berkeley) or you didn't.  My thoughts have been made clear in the review for this episode.  Yeah, it could've been better, but I guess we got what we didn't really expect when the Pilot first aired.

Seven years of Biblical proportions, just mentioned that cos seven is usually considered a Biblical number, yet I didn't really think this would be farewell and so soon, with so very few episodes, my all time horrible number of 13!.  Not enough to say a proper goodbye in this way.  Are we hoping for happy endings?  The years were a blast.

Season 1 building up on Red John and Patrick, losing his family and knowing that he contributed to that.  What else will we remember, the cat and mouse games, working people, he's not a psychic, the brown shoes, the three piece suits when first we saw our beloved Patrick Jane and that white shirt, boy that white shirt worked wonders on him, as did that waistcoat.  A shame he 'lost' it in season 6.  Let's not forget Patty's/Simon's hair to die for.  The smiley faces, Patrick's genius

Saying goodbye will be hard, maybe we can just bid the show and cast a bon voyage instead or more likely an au revoir, we'll still them around, but not as we will no doubt remember them for months and years to come.  Think I'm going to cry...

At least we'll get to see Van Pelt (Amanda Righetti) and Rigsby (Owain Yeoman) make an appearance in the finale ever ep of the show, hate using that 'ever' word for something like this, cos it's like losing something that you've had around for years and have gotten so used to and so close to your heart!
However I will return with a final piece on The Mentalist when it airs here. Ha. Not that you'll want to know that!

The Vampire Diaries 6.6 "The More You Ignore Me, The Closer I Get" Review

                                           
Damon (Ian Somerhalder) can't wait to see Elena (Nina Dobrev) and rekindle the passion, but alas he isn't aware she doesn't feel the same way, until Stefan (Paul Wesley) breaks the news to him.  So he didn't have time for the story of how he got back, it was just Elena on the brain, understandable, but he could've mentioned Bonnie, that way Stefan could've warned him about the new hunter in town, or out of town.  Elena hiding behind a closed, locked door, as if that would really keep him out.  She's compelled to forget him but why did she still act and look like she's still in lust with him, er, love with him.  If she was so determined to forget him and her feelings; that the compulsion worked and she wanted to keep her bad feelings about Damon, why the hesitation.  Why isn't it that Alaric's (Matt Davis) compulsion didn't come undone when he was saved at the end and the 'magic' wore off and he became human? Maybe that's not what happens, but it would've made for a better plotline.  Then Elena could've had no choice in whether she wanted to be uncompelled or not and would have to face her feelings, instead of hiding, not to mention, then it wouldn't be all about her again!

Damon telling Jeremy (Steven r McQueen) that Bonnie is at peace was harsh, especially since he really doesn't know where Bonnie is or whether she survived or not.  It's not like she will give up without a fight and it didn't help Jeremy any, as he practically broke the pool table and smashed the phone, so he can't listen to the message Damon left on the phone.  He was trying to be kind to Jeremy and save him the pain of the truth, that she's gone for a second time and worst of all for him, after saving Damon.  But he should've understood that lying is not the way to go.  Especially when he feels similar to what he's going through cos Elena doesn't want him.  Maybe that's the entire reason why he didn't tell him, as he later told Stefan, he didn't want Elena to be happy, but miserable like him, this applied to Jeremy too.

Enzo (Michael Mularkey) wanted Matt (Zach Roerig) to break him out or else he'll tell Tripp (Colin Ferguson) about Stefan, Caroline (Candace Accola) and who else are vampires, but if Tripp is a hunter, how come he can't already tell.  Just cos Ivy (Emily Chang) had Caroline on speed dial, that doesn't mean she's a vampire too.  A bit silly if you ask me, oh okay, you didn't but...  Matt has to tell the others about Enzo and so Caroline wants to kick his butt for getting caught, but Stefan admits he turned him in to Tripp, thinking he'd kill him.  Again why would he just kill him?  Caroline saying the same thing to Stefan when rescuing him, only to discover he's gone.  Yeah Stefan, which brain were you thinking with when you turned him in, 'upstairs or downstairs brain', as Dean would say!! Supernatural Dean that is! Ha.

Alaric tells Elena about Jo (Jodi Lyn O'Keefe) not being compelled and tastes her coffee to find it doesn't contain vervain, so how did she resist his compulsion.  She knows about the girl Elena saved last ep and her 'miraculous' recovery and Elena works out she's a witch and she already knows they're both vampires.  So they leave it at that.  Matt finds Caroline's phone in Tripp's locked drawer, after Sarah (Gabrielle Walsh) opens it and he tells her that Damon and Stefan are her relatives, but they're not good and so they're not her family.

Damon hangs out at Elena's dorm, drawing a silly matchstick men on her photo frame and she calls him telling him she wants to talk.  But Tripp gets there first whilst Damon's prettying himself in the mirror and gives away the game plan, or rather his gameface when he tries to attack him.  Thus he ends up with Enzo in that van and Caroline and Elena and Stefan and Alaric set up roadblocks for the van.  Excuse me, but if you're going to set up a roadblock, why so close to Mystic Falls border? Alaric tells Stefan he's not the only one who gave up on finding Damon, cos he was all consumed with himself, well, thoughts of consuming blood, so he wasn't alone in that.  Elena tells Caroline she wants to be uncompelled, which was news to her.  Didn't look like she took it as good news though since she didn't really react to it.

As Damon and Enzo have a reunion, he tells him he killed Ivy and Stefan turned him in.  The roadblock proves useless as Tripp overpowers Alaric and drives the van across the boundary, overturning it in the process and escaping too.  Enzo and Damon have consumption, as Enzo puts it and Alaric is wounded.  Jo happens to arrive cos she's stalking him and saves him as Stefan rescues Damon and Enzo.  Jo saves Alaric's life and in the process he becomes human.  Did she use magic on him to make him human as she saved his life?  I think she did cos I don't think she's a good witch, if she is a witch, she was very schtum about it all.  Elena not pursuing it further.  What's with all the, 'don't ask about me' and vice versa comment anyway.  It appears Jo knows more about Elena and Alaric than she does about Jo!  Which means her witchy magic may have worked there in Mystic Falls.  Is she a Gemini witch?  Oh I give up making any sense of this! Ha.

Caroline tells Stefan she doesn't want to be friends with him, no, she wants more than just friendship, only Stefan can't see it.  Elena agrees to finally talk with Damon and thinks it's better this way, so maybe she can make her own memories of him, as they meet up at the dorm again.  Nice song, Unbreakable by Jamie Scott, shame it had to be used on Elena, ha!  So that's it, we get our Christmas break, which wasn't fair, we only got 6 eps, we usually get 8 at least!!  Stingy much ITV2?!!

Enzo saying Stefan was jealous of his accent when he turned him over to Tripp.  Damon wanting Alaric to uncompel Elena, he knew he wouldn't get anywhere with that.  Did it seem as though he was going for Alaric's neck, but reached for the bottle instead.  Damon telling Jeremy he's not stalking Elena but lying in wait!!  So was the ep title also a reference to Alaric and Jo.  I honestly don't know why the eps have to be Elena-focused so much.  So boring.  How come Damon has gone back to being so cruel again, messing with Jeremy's emotions and everyone else's too.  What, he can't have Elena so he's not going to tell everyone Bonnie is alive and could get back?

The Vampire Diaries 6.5 "The World Has Turned and Left Me Here" Review

                                                
Looks like there's nothing much happening on campus, wait it's another homecoming party, this one's about how Lady Whitman haunts the cornfield in her white, blood stained dress, as Alaric (Matt Davis) tells the students of the tale of falling for your brother's girlfriend, getting caught out and then getting murdered for it, like that wasn't a direct reference to Stefan (Paul Wesley) and Damon (Ian Somerhalder).  A party that Caroline (Candace Accola) misses once again, as Stefan wants her to look after Ivy (Emily Chang) for him while he gets her a daylight ring.  But wait, he blames Caroline for turning her along with Enzo, cos if she hadn't turned up, then he wouldn't have turned her.  Also getting a call from Tripp (Colin Ferguson) who tells him how helpful Enzo's been with providing him info.  Well you didn't see that coming did you Stefan, as I said before.  But he's hellbent on sending everyone on a guilt trip for being the ones who interfered in his life, whilst he wanted a new start and get away from everyone cos he still cant get over Damon.

Bonnie (Kat Graham) and Damon try to get back home and Kai (Chris Wood) makes them dig a hole so they can use the spell underground and be magically transported home.  Bonnie asks to see the spell which he doesn't do.  He goes for supplies and comes back with stuff from 1994 so he doesn't feel homesick.  Bonnie tells him to take her magic cos she's not taking him with her.  He tries to but then she realizes he needs her cos she doesn't know what the spell, is, he needs a Bennett.  Thus Bonnie uses her magic to kill him with the pick axe, or so she thinks.  Damon getting a taste for fizzy, fruity water!

Ivy snaps Caroline's neck cos she turns her back on her and the moral of this story, well would a newly turned vampire really want to play a boardgame (yeah, a bored game, as was this ep!)  Really seems like there's not much left to do here, except keep going round in circles.  Caroline still ruing how Stefan left her and then still doesn't answer his phone.  Or listen to his messages either.  As she tries to tell him Ivy's done a runner.  Ivy runs into a boy and drinks his blood but her compelling skills are zero and so she tells him to run.  Which he does, right into Tyler's (Michael Trevino) truck, who just happens to drive into the cornfield where the party is in full swing and drags the boy with him, as well as injuring some of the students there.

Elena (Nina Dobrev) invites Liam (Marco James) there too, as well as Jo (Jodi Lyn O'Keefe) to matchmake her with Alaric and she conveniently had to be there cos otherwise if anyone dies then Tyler will become a werewolf again.  Elena feeds the girl dressed as Lady Whitmore her blood and so saves her life when the new guy in her life, Liam, says she's practically dead.  Alaric pretending to be squeamish at the sight of blood has to help and Jo tells Liv (Penelope Mitchell) and Tyler over the phone, that the boy is dead, practically.  So Live kills him to stop Tyler from being the one who killed him.   Moral of that story don't get distracted by your phone on the road!

Liam notices the girl is still alive and Elena tells him she got better and mysterious things happen, before she tells him he's her type cos he was a "jaw dropping hero" tonight, especially when she sees him save another girl's life by using the old pen in throat ploy to help her breathe.  Jo wants Alaric to kiss her cos she's been waiting for him for a long time, so what's her story, as he tries to compel her to forget him and basically saying he's a drunken loser.  However she kisses him anyway.

Caroline tells Stefan to leave cos she's had enough of him and not reaching Ivy in time she sees her being taken by Tripp.  Oh no, does this mean we're going to get some recriminations and bonding time with Enzo and Ivy!  Stefan feeling sorry for himself again heads to the crypt, Bourbon in tow and talks to his family, barring Damon.  Kai shows up to put a spanner in the woks, or rather an arrow into Bonnie, foiling her attempts to get home and also manages to get one into Damon too. They fight, come on Damon, you weren't seriously getting beaten by a powerless witch!! And Bonnie gets to send Damon home, getting stuck with Kai, as the gadget falls down in pieces.  Just as Stefan thought things couldn't get any bleaker for him and how much he misses his brother, Damon catches the Bourbon bottle as he throws it.  He's here and he's alive, as they hug.  Aww, rude awakening for Elena next ep, but hey let's hope they don't get together (unlikely) and she doesn't make Alaric uncompel her.

Tyler is grateful to Ivy for saving him cos the other boy was already dead and so she saved him.  He will do everything he can to make sure he's worthy of his life being saved.  The title being the same from a song by Wheezer.  More likely it should be, Ivy got turned and now she's left to her own devices with Caroline babysitting! Ha.  Or left Bonnie there, where they can send all the big bads, or Stefan really wants to leave this world.  Let's not hope they spend too long trying to get Bonnie back, but it appears after Bonnie said she didn't really mind being stuck with him here, he'll be instrumental in doing just that.  After he gets the news that Elena couldn't live with him being dead, got compelled, then found a new guy, just like nothing's changed.  You know, you can always get compelled and move on as Alaric said, don't fall in love, the moral of that story being, it applies to him too! Ha.  Though it didn't quite work out that way for him with Jo.  SO it's hugs and kisses all round then, well sort of!

The Vampire Diaries 6.4 "Black Hole Sun" Review

                                                    
Not much in terms of moving the plot or story forward in this ep, another chance for Elena (Nina Dobrev) to feature again and Stefan (Paul Wesley) showing her how to reinvent herself every 30 years.  He doesn't want to face up to losing Damon (Ian Somerhalder) so what's new, but he can't go back home to Mystic Falls cos of the spell and doesn't seem like he wants to even if he could.  Thus he takes Elena back to Savannah showing her what he does at the garage, as well as the meagre pittance of a pay cheque he gets.  It's now time for another booze up, as they feign a wedding proposal and Elena being pregnant.  With Stefan being watched by the man at the bar cos he beat up his brother, but he doesn't recall who that is, so he wants him to beat him up anyway, his way of moving on from Damon.  Also reminding Elena that she wanted to forget him too, that he's not a monster but she remembers him like that cos she had Alaric (Matt Davis) compel her to make her forget him.  She loves him and couldn't cope with losing her soul mate.  But it's not the same for him.

Back in 1994, Kai (Chris Wood) wants to hear what Damon did back then cos unless he does, he's not telling them how to get out of here.  Cue Damon arriving back in Mystic Falls in 1994, wanting to see Stefan and to get back his brother.  Zach (Chris William Martin) their nephew/uncle having set up their house as a boarding house and is also with a woman, Gail (Tadasay Young) who's pregnant. Bonnie (Kat Graham) guesses he killed the pregnant woman, she can't believe he did that, but she doesn't seem too shocked.  Kai acting all innocent and keeping the gadget they need to use when the eclipse is going on to get back home.  Stefan reminds Damon of how he changed him in 1912, then again in 1942, how he killed his best friend in 1977, even though she was trying to help him.  But Damon can't quite give up on the blood lust.

Here he also meets the sheriff (Marguerite MacIntyre) who tells him about her husband and how she wasn't the sheriff yet, but she mentions Caroline.  Damon feeds off Gail and Stefan takes his ring for doing that, being unaware that it's the eclipse and Damon makes it to the house, kills all the guest there and that includes the woman.

Everyone is still searching for Sarah (Gabrielle Walsh) and Matt (Zach Roerig) thinks he can befriend Tripp (Colin Ferguson) and get some info out  of him.  He needs to talk to the sheriff about Jay and Matt tells Tripp that Jay said he was looking for a vampire when he last saw him.  Leading Tripp to take him to Enzo (Michael Malarkey) who's going to tell him the names of everyone else.  You see his wife, Chris was killed by a vampire and he came back to town, thought he'd forgotten everything but his compulsion wore off and he recalled everything.

Jeremy (Steven R McQueen) is taken to hospital for his drunkeness and Alaric can't help seeing the doc, Jo (Jodi Lyn O'Keefe) as blood fodder.  But he makes Jeremy see sense and a wake up call by telling him how his wife ran off cos he'd rather be a vampire, how Jenna died, then he died and how he can't stop looking at everyone without thinking about feeding.  Jeremy heads home and finds Sarah, who's found a pic of her mother, said pregnant woman, Gail, and her father.  She was six months premature but she survived and Jeremy tells her that father is Zach Salvatore.

Bonnie finds the paper on the ground which Damon was  making paper planes out of, yeah just wishing he could fly out of there, no doubt, so she was thoroughly bored, along with me, ha.  In which she reads Kai killing his family, a coven of witches and the Gemini coven thought of him as an abomination!  Surprise, surprise, here they find exactly who everyone else was looking for to rescue them.  He tells Damon this isn't his hell, it's Kai's.  He can take Bonnie's magic and get home himself, so they have no choice but to take him with them.  Bonnie realizes that Damon making pancakes everyday is his remorse for killing the woman.  Yet Kai is just a cold blooded killer.

Alaric shows Elena her diary in which she writes about Damon and how she loves him but needs to move on.  He can compel her to remember him but right now, she doesn't want that.  Elena making Stefan realize he needs to face up to losing Damon, which makes him get his car out and start fixing it.  When up pops Ivy (Emily C Chang) who's been attacked by a vampire.

Well Enzo's still around, so Stefan didn't think that Tripp would use him to get info on all of them, which was pretty silly, cos if he really wanted to finish him off, he should've done it himself.  Damon saying he wanted to see Stefan after 50 years cos he felt his humanity.  Then wanting to go on a road trip with him and devour some more people was a bit too hilarious!  Seeing as he killed everyone at the house, was that out of spite now?!  Seems Kai of the Gemini coven everyone was looking for was a bit too convenient being 'planted' right where Bonnie and Damon need him to get back home.