When do rescue plans ever go according to plan on The Vampire Diaries? We’re always waiting for something to go wrong and it usually does.

********Spoilers Below*********

It’s not like Enzo and Damon didn’t go into the rescue mission without the possibility of one or both of them dying. That was always a possibility, but what happened to them was so much worse and we don’t even know the extent of it. Damon wouldn’t let Enzo fill him in on what was in the vault, so we don’t even know what evil this is.

Damon sacrificed himself to save his best friend and now all is forgiven, but Bonnie is left all alone with no magic to save them.

I’ve never seen Stefan, Caroline, and Bonnie so helpless. They just sat outside the vault waiting and waiting. Then it was Alaric to the rescue, but they were too late. How did Damon and Enzo get out? Was there more than one evil thing in there or did it just take host to both of them? We have no idea what we are dealing with or if Damon and Enzo can even be saved.

There was a lot of realizations during this episode. Stefan realized what ruled Damon wasn’t love it was fear, he was so terrified it drove him to do desperate acts. Stefan did that once and he said never again. To be fair, I think Stefan was right to kidnap Caroline to get her away from Bonnie. He saved her life, even if it was against her will. Some acts of fear, like going to sleep until Elena wakes up are not the right thing to do, but saving Caroline was.

It must have been the hardest thing for Stefan to let Damon go. Just let him walk into that vault and make up for the last three years. Stefan will never forgive himself for just letting Damon walk away. He will do whatever it takes to save his brother. Can Stefan live his life without fear knowing he may never be able to bring Damon back from this?

This is TVD, so there’s got to be a way to save him. This group of friends always finds a way.

Damon had to be the one to save Bonnie because he had to pay penance for not saying goodbye to her and leaving her. He is more than forgiven after this, but Bonnie is still left hurt.

Caroline finally gave in to her feelings. I think she needed Alaric to give her that push. She didn’t want to just leave him, even though she was still in love with Stefan. As mad as she was at Stefan, life and death situations can put things into perspective. I held on hope for Steroline and in the end they found their way back to each other.

What’s next for Matt? Is he finally leaving Mystic Falls behind him? He’s been so wrapped up in this world, but Penny is right, he’s never really tried to get out. He should have left Mystic Falls a long time ago. Sure it’s his home and he can think that’s not fair, but his home has also been the home of the supernatural, long before he was even a thought. Walking away is probably the best things for him. Does this mean Matt is gone? If he keeps coming back, he may not survive and we know Julie Plec has already said she won’t kill him off. This may have been his swan song and it was a nice way for him to say goodbye.

What kind of evil do you think has taken over Damon and Enzo? Can they be saved? Do you think Stefan will ever forgive himself? Let me know in the comments below.