Vampire Diaries - Season 4 Episode 23 - Finale Recap - Graduation

The Vampire Diaries season 4 closes out with an explosive finale, the return of one character (for good!), a killer cliffhanger, and someone (FINALLY!) ingests the cure. Check out the full recap for Vampire Diaries season 4 episode 23 “Graduation” season finale.

A ton of stuff goes down in an eventful episode with a cliffhanger just as bonkers as the season 3 finale. Picking up where last episode ended, Kol is plotting with a bunch of ghosts to make graduation a living hell while Lexi parties with Stefan. I know Lexi is dead, but she would make a great series regular and sidekick for Stefan. We can dream, right? In case anyone forgot, Bonnie is still dead, but for the whole episode she is a solid ghost thanks to the veil that was lifted in the previous episode. She plays everything off all hunky-dory in a phone call with Caroline, not even hinting that she is no longer of this world. Alaric, Jeremy, and Elena are actually having fun chilling together now that Elena’s emotions are fully back on. Matt and Rebekah face a not-so-threatening foe in Rebekah’s ex, who has Matt situated on some explosives. I don’t know how or when he got himself into that exact situation (was it me, or was the editing off quite a bit with this particular episode?) but I wasn’t feeling any actual sense of danger.

That annoying vampire hunter who has returned from the dead calls Elena threatening to blow up a bunch of people, but Alaric swoops to the rescue and puts a stop to it. Vaughn shows up at Damon’s doorstep and shoots him with a bullet containing werewolf venom, which spells trouble unless they can get ahold of Klaus in time for a cure. Stefan rips out Vaughn’s heart, temporarily subduing him, but it’s not clear how long a live ghost will remain dead before coming back to life (it doesn’t make much sense, but I’ll go with it.) Rebekah steps into her romantic shoes, promising Matt trips to China and Paris if they make it through this. They share a pretty amazing kiss after which Rebekah trades spots with Matt and he runs away: the bomb device detonates and all is right again.

Elena formally apologizes to Damon, who is still trying to convince her to take the cure. The tables turn when Elena realizes that he has been shot with werewolf venom and now SHE is trying to convince Damon to take the cure. Sigh. He leaves pretty quickly with both the cure and newly-revived Vaughn in the false promise that they are going to retrieve Silas. Stefan and Lexi have a pretty deep conversation about Elena, and he admits that she is the love of his life and “I’d go back to her in a heartbeat.”

Everyone shows up to graduation safe and sound (Jeremy convinces Elena to attend while he and Stefan sort things out with Klaus to get him to cure Damon) and they all look as stunning as possible in their cap and gown! Bonnie still makes no mention of the fact that she’s dead, which is even more depressing when Caroline suggests they get a triple room together (Elena, Caroline, and Bonnie.) Bonnie has a moment with her dad receiving her diploma before Kol drops in to be annoying… and hot. Just when you think there is going to be some carnage at graduation, Bonnie leads Kol to where Grams has hidden her body and traps him there so he can’t hurt anyone.

Vaughn shoots up Damon with some more werewolf venom when he won’t reveal the location of Silas. He promptly gets thrown off a cliff to his death for the second time in the episode, this time via Alaric, who happens to also snatch the cure from Vaughn. Back at graduation, just when it looks like things are going to get bed with a group of vengeful witches, Klaus shows up. Heads roll… literally. Quick transition: Damon is healed and Elena apologizes to Stefan and thanks him for never giving up on her. She gives him the cure, insisting that “he deserves it.” A human Stefan? I couldn’t see that in a million years.

Klaus meets up with Caroline and grants her something selfless: he will allow Tyler to come back to Mystic Falls despite the beef the two of them have with each other. He also says that though Tyler is her first love, Klaus will be her last. Shippers everywhere fall to the floor. Delena finally happens too: Damon doesn’t think he’s good for Elena but she convinces him of the complete opposite. She doesn’t want him to change and she loves him… the kiss was one of the best moments of the whole season. (“In death, you’re the one who’s made me feel most alive.”) Meanwhile, Stefan is super bummed watching from the sidelines, but later tells Damon that he is not happy about Elena, but is happy for Damon.

A heartfelt goodbye takes a surprising twist when it comes time for Bonnie to close the veil again. Jeremy thinks Bonnie will be saying bye to him, but since she’s dead it’s the other way around. Her spell worked, and Jeremy is back in the world of the living. The moment when Bonnie and Jeremy share the kiss and he realizes that he cannot feel her touch anymore literally killed me. Alaric disappears after some final words with Damon, Lexi goes to the hereafter as soon as she convinces Stefan that he will find another epic love, and Kol vanishes mid-attack on Elena. I guess Elena didn’t notice Bonnie’s corpse on the ground? Katherine attacks Elena as soon as Kol vanishes, leading to a catfight ending with the cure shoved down Katherine’s throat. A human Katherine next season? Now that’s something I’ll be interested in seeing.

Rebekah pays a visit to Matt and just when it looks like he’s going to shoot her down, he agrees to take a nice long trip with her. Maybe Matt can migrate over to The Originals as well? I wouldn’t mind seeing him in a new setting. I like the pairing with Rebekah because the two play off each other so well. In the craziest part of the episode, Stefan has pulled over and realizes that Silas is no longer encased in stone. Silas shows himself in the form of Elena, claiming that the witch who cast the spell is now dead. A doppelganger was created as nature’s balance for Silas creating the immortality spell, and in a big shocker it’s revealed that Silas’s true face is actually Stefan! The real Stefan ends up in a safe at the bottom of the lake as Silas dumps his body. Crazy crazy crazy! Angel reference perhaps?

What did you think of the season finale? Who’s excited to see Paul Wesley stretch his acting chops even further next season? Let’s get more Delena, STAT. Kudos to Julie Plec for a solid finale. I think I’m most excited about Jeremy’s return and how it will effect the rest of the group. The fall can’t come soon enough!