The Originals Review 3×15: “An Old Friend Calls”

A storm gathers on the horizon for the Mikaelson family in this week’s episode of The Originals. A battle for survival is close at hand for our favorite vampire anti-hero.

Last week on The Originals, our breath was taken away by the culmination of the plot by The Strix to end the sire links and be rid of the Original family for good. Davina (Danielle Campbell) managed to pull everything together, despite the interference of Marcel (Charles Michael Davis) and Elijah (Daniel Gilles) along with a visiting friend Stefan Salvatore (Paul Wesley) and was able to successfully remove the link from Klaus (Joseph Morgan) and use the excess energy to bring back her long lost love, Kol (Nathaniel Buzolic) as an added bonus.

This week, the consequence of those actions are leaving their mark. As expected, Klaus is flying off the handle in worry over his own life and the prophecy seems to have come to minute rest. With the fear of past disgruntled sired vampires eager to end his life and his families, there is little to be done in order to make New Orleans or the rest of the world a safe haven for him once again. Romance and relationships come to forefront of this episode as well, be it old flames rekindled or questioned, or just attempts in reclaiming something that was lost. There is a lot of emotion jam packed in this one and we went along for the ride, expecting to have our hearts yanked on. We were not disappointed.

Faces from the past.

As expected, or at least as Klaus expected, the enemies come calling to New Orleans. The first being in the form of Cortez (Matt Cedeño), an acquaintance from a previous favorite haunt of Klaus’s. Turns out, when the sire link was broken, Cortez felt it was an appropriate time to come pay a visit and confirm just how broken the sire link was and the rumored existence of the bit of white oak. Paying his respects and finding the answers he seeks by way of mass compelling, he enforces the help of Vincent (Yusuf Gatewood) in finding the truth about the existence of only remaining weapon that would destroy Klaus for good. Things get nasty, however Cortez receives the answer he seeks, paving the way for others to join in on the fun, even though his life is put to an untimely end at the hands of the extremely angry and disgruntled Klaus.

” Your sired are coming, Niklaus. They will destroy everything you love. And then they will use the white oak to kill you and at last you will get the retribution you deserve. ” - Cortez

It looks as if there is no stopping the raining down of past ‘friends’ of Klaus and his family. The constant moving all over the globe to escape their constant ways has certainly left a wake of those that would see them gone for good or who have felt wronged due to their shenanigans in immortality. The gang or let’s call it the “The Klaus Anti-Fanclub” has decided to hold a convention, right in the heart of the French Quarter. This is not good for Klaus nor is it a fuzzy happy time for Elijah and the rest of the siblings, being as the unfriendly feelings are generated not only to towards Klaus but to their entire family in kind. Perhaps Klaus should have heeded the retrospective advice of Kol and had been nicer to people in the past. Then again, you can’t please everyone and Klaus was in no way in the mood to entertain the niceties and feelings of others in his youth, not that he has much patience for it now.

Bones to pick and feelings to settle.

Camille (Leah Pipes) still loves Klaus even though she flat out lied to his face. She does have a point about Klaus not being able to kill Aurora (Rebecca Breeds). He’s killed for far less and the fact that he kept her alive is sending the wrong message to his ex-therapist about his intensity of emotion towards her. Until Aurora is finally gone for good, Camille will never feel safe and being that Klaus will not step up and do that without her begging, which is something she would never do, she feels she has to take matters into her own hands. I don’t blame her for worrying about her own safety as well as maintaining her new outlook on life on never being a victim again. It goes to follow that she would include her own feelings in relationships, and if she has to worry about what Klaus would do in the future should Aurora escape, it is a good indication that she would again become a victim at the weakness of her own heart. That being said, I wanted to scream at the screen at Cami to tell her to just drop it already and trust Klaus to take care of her. Bitter feelings and worrying be damned! He loves you Cami. He bricked up crazy ex-girlfriend just for you and it’s still not enough? Let’s hope in the future there is some settlement in this or at least we get to see Camille personally take out the red-headed loon on her own time.

” That part of me that loved you. Part of me that hoped for your redemption. That part was human. And it’s gone. I’m sorry. ” - Camille

Another heart breaking end of things it seems involves Hayley (Phoebe Tonkin) and her own admission of love for Elijah. This is a relationship that I was hoping would reignite with the death of Jackson (Nathan Parsons). While it is sweet and more than worthy in a gesture to the old pack leader’s memory, it is also somewhat foolish. However, with Hayley keeping herself away from Elijah out of respect, it may have the exact opposite effect in Hayley’s intentions. We all know Elijah is a sucker for loyalty and acts of valor, be it physical or mental. By barring herself from Elijah, the emotions behind this ended affair may only brew from afar while they are both trying to forget one another and ‘do the right thing’ out of respect. These two need to compromise already and figure out some way to have the best of both of worlds.

You’re my medicine.

The relationship between Kol and Davina, though somewhat odd, is also a powerful one. She never gave up on her displaced boyfriend, even when she never knew him with his original face and temperament. It’s nice to have Kol back again and spreading his unique sense of humor amongst the otherwise all too serious clan of plotting family members. It was touching to see Kol accepted back into the fold without question, making the family motto of ‘Always and Forever’ more genuine. Though Kol caused his share of trouble amongst the group, he also provided his aid and loyalty when needed. His involvement with Davina is no doubt a thorn in Klaus’ side as she was the one that broke the sire link and is solely responsible for the imminent danger of his past scorned sired brethren to push for his immediate demise.

” But it wasn’t the magic that made me better, Davina. It was you. ” - Kol

Davina is very trusting as she was when she first met and fell for Kol. He has a way of being with her that charms her completely and causes her to do anything to please him. That’s not entirely a bad thing. However, when you’re a witch and your boyfriend is psychotic unhinged vampire with a penchant for chaos, it’s not the greatest position to be in. Who knows how long he’ll be able to maintain this front with her that he can control his darker urges just by having a relationship with her. He’s lying to himself and the one he claims to love above all others. This deceit and fragile alliance will not end up well. Someone is bound to get hurt or even end up dead as a result. At this point, it’s not looking good for Davina in that respect. We all know what fate has had in store for the loves of the Mikaelson siblings. It’s a darker version of cake or death. Basically, you love a Mikaelson, it’s death or vampirism for you.

Conclusion: Nothing ends up as it should be.

Surprise! The energy brought forth by Davina must have not only summoned Kol but Finn (Casper Zafer) as well. All sorts of magical mayhem are occurring the in the streets of New Orleans. Not only did Davina restore the Mikaelson family by one brother, she accidentally restored their entire brood. Does this mean Esther or Michael are not far behind? Vincent is experiencing his fair share of side effects. The vision he receives after the demise of Cortez, leads him straight to the one remaining bullet made of white oak. It’s probably a good thing that Klaus and Hayley decided to do what they did, fleeing from the city that burned a hole in both of their hearts to protect themselves and the life of their young daughter Hope.

The building suspense of this episode was amazing. We not only deeply feel the sense of urgency and danger presented by the fall of Klaus blood line, we see the consequence of it and are left reeling with the sense of a rising storm not yet revealed to the naked eye. Vengeance, jealousy, and raw feelings of scorned love add to the mix, making this episode powerful and hard hitting on an emotional level. You have to hand it to the writers, Michael Russo and Carina Adly Mackenzie on bringing this one together.

Another added bonus for this one was the sense of on and off screen chemistry between all of the Mikaelson siblings. Actors Joseph Morgan, Daniel Gillies, and Nathaniel Buzolic have a long standing camaraderie that plays up to the nature of the family and shows just how much all of them enjoy working together. The jests and knowing looks passed between Gillies and Buzolic alone were golden. The best line of the entire episode had to be Kol’s: “Maybe you should have been nicer to people.” I was in stitches, even when the situation was not meant to be a laughing one. I’m sure it was difficult for Joseph Morgan to remain in character and not crack a smile at their antics while delivering his lines and rants on being in danger. Also, It was awesome to see just how well Riley Voelkel fits into the mix as well. She may not have been with them from the beginning, but her chemistry on the family ties in sibling-hood in the Mikaelson clan just works.

Seeing as there is a brief hiatus coming up for the show. We will be looking forward to the next episode scheduled to air on March 25, 2016.

Questions, Comments & Concerns

• Klaus has been conveniently hidden by a faked locator spell thanks to the efforts of Kol and Freya, but just how long will that spell fool the group of scorned sires form finding his real location?
• Would Jackson really want Hayley to honor his memory by Hayley living in a lonely existence determined to deny her feelings for Elijah? I would like to think not.
• Camille has become a bitter and jealous person in her vampirism. While she does have a great point about Klaus not killing Aurora, she also has a will of iron to lie directly to Klaus about not having a shred of feeling for him anymore.
• Elijah gets his heart broken way too many times for this to be okay.
• Freya and Kol are officially the cutest sibling pals ever.
• Will Davina be able to still love Kol once she discovers his vampiric bloodlust is on full blast?
• How will Marcel be able to handle being the leader of The Strix for an eternity, as he has no plans on leaving it from what he explained to Josh.
• Is Finn really back for good, or is this just another vision of Kol’s?
• Will Vincent be able to keep the last remaining piece of white oak safe or will he hand the piece over to Elijah and the remaining clan for safe keeping?