The Originals spin-off series Legacies may follow the story of The Vampire Diaries for a new generation, but the show is falling into a narrative trap that the CW series managed to avoid. Debuting in 2018, Legacies is a spin-off that follows on from the action of The Originals, which was itself a spin-off from the phenomenally popular supernatural soap The Vampire Diaries.
Beginning in 2007 when the Twilight saga and the soon-to-be-rebooted True Blood ensured bloodsuckers were at the forefront of the collective cultural consciousness, The Vampire Diaries balanced romance, scares, and intrigue for eight successful seasons. As proven by the existence of the show’s two subsequent spin-offs, The Originals and now Legacies, The Vampire Diaries has maintained a sizeable fanbase and remains popular.
However, as it enters its third season, Legacies runs a real risk of stumbling into an issue that The Vampire Diaries managed to avoid during its run. As heroine Hope Mikaelson and dude-in-distress love interest Landon Kirby respectively, Danielle Rose Russell and Aria Shahghasem have proven charming protagonists for the first two seasons of Legacies. However, although the show is finally making an effort to focus on other characters and relationships in season 3, Legacies has unfortunately opted to rely on the pair’s chemistry far too much, and the show has made the mistake of centering its overarching series plot almost entirely around Hope & Landon to the detriment of the supporting characters.
The first two seasons of Legacies may have revolved exclusively around the duo and their relationship, but illustrating the “monster of the week” scrapes and relationship troubles that Hope and Landon faced during their time in the Salvatore School for the Young and Gifted did see the series stage some fun, engaging paranormal stories. However, the singular focus the show has on them has effectively turned Legacies into The Hope and Landon Show and made the series boring for the audience. This is something that The Vampire Diaries endeavored to avoid, aware that even an engaging central couple would become boring without solid support.
Frustratingly for fans of Legacies, the likes of Cleo, likable Lizzie, and the mysterious Finch prove that the on-again, off-again relationship between Landon and Hope does not need to be the sole focus of the show. The ongoing love triangle between Elena/Damon/Stefan may have been what drove most of the central drama in The Vampire Diaries, but there were plenty of other relationships and other character storylines for the audience to care about which ensured audience engagement wasn't focused on one plot in a long-running series. Legacies, in contrast, needs to branch out quickly and do the same as its predecessor, lest it become unwatchable for fans who feel that Landon and Hope’s relationship drama is played out after two seasons as the show’s primary focus. One of the qualities that distinguished The Vampire Diaries from its famous rival Twilight was having an engaging story beyond the central Edward/Bella/Jacob love triangle, whereas Legacies, despite having interesting characters, is currently limiting its appeal by narrowing the show’s focus onto one romance.