The Vampire Diaries came around at the perfect time. Vampires were the hot new thing in the world of pop culture thanks to films like Twilight and shows like True Blood. This series focused on the love triangle between a human girl named Elena and two vampire brothers named Damon and Stefan.
The show seemed aimed towards the young female audience that was at the core of the Twilight popularity. However, after just a few episodes, The Vampire Diaries proved to have everything viewers could want: Action, gore, drama, comedy, a good looking cast, great music, and more. To celebrate the show's eight seasons, we're listing the best and worst episodes according to IMDb.
Worst: Pilot (8.0)
Even with some of the best television shows in history, the pilot can be a struggle. The Vampire Diaries didn't get off to a bad start, putting on a good episode to kick things off. It just wasn't up to par with the high quality the show would become known for.
This episode is historic because it started a run that lasted a whopping 171 episodes. It successfully introduced the core characters and planting the earliest of seeds for the Damon/Stefan/Elena love triangle. But the episode felt like it was trying too hard to be spooky and dark, which isn't the show's forte.
Best: You Made A Choice To Be Good (9.1)
As The Vampire Diaries raced to their series finale, storylines were wrapping up. You Made a Choice to be Good, episode 11 of season 8, was a perfect example of this. The villainous Cade put Stefan and Damon Salvatore in a terrible position and it set the stage for one of the most shocking endings in history.
The storyline culminated with a vicious Stefan arriving as Bonnie extracted the cure from Elena's body. She refused to give it to Stefan, so he responded by brutally ripping out Enzo's heart. A fan favorite murdered another fan favorite in cold blood. And then Bonnie gave Stefan the cure, causing a huge change for the final few episodes.
Worst: Dead Man On Campus (7.9)
You'll probably notice that a lot of the lower-ranked episodes come either right at the start of the series or after the fourth season. This season five episode encapsulates some of the problems the show had. It centered around Elena and Caroline looking to throw a party for Bonnie, and that's not what we'd consider a compelling concept.
Stefan continued to struggle with regaining his memories. There was an altercation between Damon and Matt. None of this was new territory for the show. That made this forgettable episode seem like a retread of past storylines that were done better the first time around.
Best: Graduation (9.2)
Season four could not have ended on a higher note. Most of these 22 episodes struggled to live up to the high expectations following the two incredible seasons that preceded it. They at least got everything right to send the story into season five with Graduation.
It finally saw the main cast move on from high school, with the veil that separates the living and the "other side" coming down. That allowed deceased fan favorites to return and some others to haunt the living. The highlight was Klaus' return to save Caroline in a sweet moment. And then that twist ending! Stefan finding out that he was a doppelganger of Silas hooked us for another season.
Worst: I'll Remember (7.9)
Season five ended with an episode titled, Home. It didn't make this list but still ranks in the top ten highest-rated episodes on IMDb. That episode saw the shocking deaths of Damon and Bonnie, leaving audiences wondering how the show would deal with the fallout. I'll Remember kicked off season six with those answers. Unfortunately, none of what we got really hit the mark.
It worked as a character study, where we saw that Stefan gave up on trying to bring them back and Elena went into a deep state of depression. However, with too much focus on that aspect, the plot took a backseat. Nothing really happened, the story didn't move forward, and nothing was set up for the rest of the season.
Best: Founder's Day (9.2)
Nearly every episode during season one featured at least one character talking about the "Founder's Day" festivities. We finally got to see it during the season finale named after it. There was so much to like here from new character interactions to tense scenes and more.
Fans were given their first look at the Alaric and Damon team they grew to love. Jeremy attempted to turn into a vampire. Tyler showed his first true signs of being a supernatural creature. To top it all off, the episode ended with the first appearance of Katherine in the present day. She impersonated Elena, cut off John's fingers, and set the stage for a new twist on the show's setup.
Worst: What Lies Beneath (7.8)
Usually, this show was at its best when a season was winding down. Storylines came together and prepared an epic finale. Unfortunately, this was a rare bump in the road. Just two episodes before season five ended, What Lies Beneath never felt like an important part of the story.
Once Klaus and the rest of the Mikaelsons were done as the main antagonists, The Vampire Diaries struggled to find a suitable bad guy. Season five saw the introduction of The Travelers. This episode dealt with them and secrets being held by various characters. This ultimately came across like a filler hour when the show needed to be ramping up.
Best: I Was Feeling Epic (9.3)
By the time the final season of The Vampire Diaries rolled around, a lot of fans had left. Ratings declined and many agree that there was something of a dip in quality in the later seasons. But it is universally agreed that the show ended on a high note with its finale, I Was Feeling Epic.
This episode wrapped up the storylines for each character and gave us a glimpse into the happiness they found. Caroline opening a school for supernatural children with funding from Klaus hit us right in the feels. Elena finding peace in the afterlife alongside her family and the Salvatores was the emotional beat that sent things over the edge, though. This was a perfect sendoff for a great show.
Worst: The Night Of The Comet (7.7)
The second episode to ever air is the one with the lowest IMDb rating. Like the pilot of a series, the second entry can struggle because fans aren't invested in the characters or drama yet. Shows typically haven't found their footing by this point. The Vampire Diaries was one of those shows.
Watch The Night of the Comet and you'll see a series that doesn't know what it wants to be. It tried too hard with jump scares, some of the characters' powers didn't make sense, and the teen melodrama was heavy-handed. You got the sense that you were watching something trying to be both Twilight and 30 Days of Night at the same time. Thankfully, the show righted the ship in the coming episodes.
Best: The Departed (9.5)
The show's excellent third season ended with The Departed. This was an episode that was not only filled with every element that made the series great, but it changed the course of its history. A storyline where Alaric had Original vampire powers and was on the hunt for a vulnerable Klaus was high drama by itself. When Alaric staked him and it seemed like every vampire Klaus ever sired would die with him, including Stefan, Damon, Katherine, and Caroline, we were blown away.
Of course, Klaus was fine thanks to one of Bonnie's spell, but it was still exhilarating. Elena was also killed in this episode and that was permanent... except for the fact that she died with Damon's blood in her system, thus ending the season by waking up as a vampire. It remains the best and most stunning end to a season of The Vampire Diaries. It plays a major part in this being the highest-rated episode.