In this episode, we saw the return of Alaric as he joined Damon, Elena, and Stefan at the Salvatore home to discuss Isobel’s research and whether she might have anything on the Lockwood family’s secret.   Alaric mentions some research on lycanthropes and Damon is incredulous and commenting on how they do not exist, seeing how he’s never run across one in his 160+ years of existence.   As they talk about this, the scene cuts to Mason Lockwood going for a jog in the woods while Tyler sneaks behind him, spying.  They venture into the cellar of the ruins of a house.  Tyler takes note of the cells and large chains lying about.  He snaps a picture with his phone and then notices scratch marks in the stone walls.   Meanwhile, Damon and Stefan tell Alaric why they have suspicions about the Lockwoods and he tells them that Isobel’s research is still at Duke.  Damon makes a comment about the Lockwoods being Lon Cheney to his Bela Lugosi.

Matt shows up at Caroline’s house and she can’t get to the door to let him in because of the sunlight streaming through the windows.  Dejected, Matt tries to call her, getting her voicemail and leaving a message.

Stefan and Elena go to her house for her to pack for the trip to Duke with Alaric and Damon.  Stefan is staying behind to help Caroline.   As she packs, Alaric and Jenna talk and mention Elena’s connection to Isobel.  Alaric tries to apologize to Jenna and she cuts him off.  Elena gets in the car to leave and Damon taunts Stefan, telling him that he’ll take care of Elena.

Tyler asks his mom about the ruins in the woods.  She tells him that they are the remains of the original Lockwood plantation.  When he asks about the cellar she tells him that they “don’t talk about those kind of roots”, alluding to the family’s history of being slave owners.

Bonnie and Stefan talk about making  a ring for Caroline so that she can go out in the daytime.  Bonnie has doubts about her powers and reservations about giving Caroline more opportunities to hurt someone.  She tells Stefan that she doesn’t trust Caroline.  Stefan urges her to trust him.

In the car, Damon tells Elena that he knew that Jeremy was wearing the ring when he snapped his neck.  He jokes about how the ring is so big and it would be impossible not to notice it. 

Bonnie and Stefan go to Caroline’s house to make her a ring.  Bonnie tells her that she has the power to de-spell the ring if Caroline gets out of hand.  She puts the ring on the bed and opens the curtain to put the ring in sunlight.  She then sucessfully casts the spell. 

Damon, Alaric, and Elena arrive at Duke and meet Isobel’s research assistant.  She leads them to Isobel’s office and tells them to take a look around.  She returns with a crossbow and fires a wooden arrow into Damon’s back.  Elena helps him by removing the stake.  Damon resolves to kill “that bitch” and Elena refuses to let him do that.  She tells him that she’ll never speak to him again.   Alaric goes after the assistant who thought that Elena was Katherine and knew that Damon Salvatore died in 1864.  Elena introduces herself as Isobel’s daughter and a descendant of Katherine Pierece and then introduces Damon.  Elena asks her for her help and Isobel’s research on Mystic Falls.

Stefan takes Caroline hunting.  She’s upset because she wants to go to the swimming hole to spend time with Matt.  Stefan tells her about how vampirism magnifies human personality traits.  She asks him if she’s now “an insecure, neurotic, control freak on crack”.  He pacifies her by telling her that they can go to the swimming hole after they hunt.

Isobel’s assistant gives Elena a box with all of the research on Katherine and her arrival in Mystic Falls in April 1864.  Elena pulls some vervain from the box and gives it to the assistant to protect her from Damon.

At the swimming hole, kids are on rope swings and drinking from a keg.  Matt and Tyler talk and Matt talks about Caroline acting weird.  Mason shows up and tells Tyler that everyone has to be out by dark, giving Stefan the eye as he leaves.  A girl named Amy walks up to Matt and starts flirting.  Caroline shows up and compels Amy to “go find someone single to stalk.”  Matt calls her out for being rude and tells her he’s mad about her dodging his calls.  Stefan chastises her for compelling someone.

 Alaric finds something about a werewolf myth.  The assistant tells them that it’s an Aztec myth from about 600 years ago about vampires and werewolves were wreaking havoc and a shaman cursed them, making vampires slaves to the sun and werewolves servants of the moon. Damon asks if the werewolves can control their transformation.  She tells him that if they had a choice, it wouldn’t be called a curse.  As she tells them about the werewolves, Mason heads to the cellar and begins to chain himself up.  The assistant continues by telling them the werewolves’ prey of choice is vampires.  A few hundred years ago, the vampires hunted the werewolves nearly to extinction because the werewolf bite is fatal to vampires.

Sunset and dark skies with a full moon roll around and the keg party at the swimming hole disbands.  As Matt works to pack up the keg, Caroline goes to apologize.  He tells her that he’s not going to put up with the drama and insecurity.  They kiss and then head off, hand in hand, further into the woods.  Meanwhile, Elena calls Stefan to tell him what they found out about the werewolves.  Stefan notices that Caroline is gone and goes to look for her. 

Tyler and Amy also head off into the woods toward the ruins.  They head down into the cellar. 

Mason runs through the woods with the chains and chains himself to a tree.  He falls to the ground in agony and then gets into his SUV.

Back at Duke, Elena continues going through the Katherine research and asks the research assistant about any research on doppelgangers.  She tells her that doppelgangers usually torment the person they look like and try to undo their lives.  Elena wants to know why they look so much alike.  Damon acts as if he knows something.  Elena tells him that friends don’t manipulate friends – they help each other.

Tyler and Amy make out in the cellar and then she stops him, apparently no longer under Caroline’s compulsion.  She tells Tyler that she likes Matt and leaves. 

Stefan hears a growl coming from Mason’s SUV and as he approaches, he sees claw marks in the ground.  He also finds the chains and then sees yellow eyes looking at him through the window before the glass shatters and a werewolf jumps through the window.

Alaric and the assistant walk out of the building and he tells her not to talk to anyone about what they talked about today.  He tells her that she doesn’t want to get caught up in all of it.  He confesses that Isobel became her research and she’s now a vampire.  Alaric muses that it was OK to come back to Duke and have Isobel in his past.

Damon helps Elena with the door of the car and tells her that she can’t hate him forever.  He tells her that she didn’t dig deep enough, handing her a book with “Petrova” on the spine.  He tells her that Katherine came from Europe and her real name is Katerina Petrova – he saw it engraved on an old heirloom way back when.  Damon tells her that he understands why she hates him and that it would suck if they weren’t friends forever.  He asks if he’s lost her as a friend forever.  She thanks him for the book, saying nothing else.

Matt and Caroline start making out in the woods and Matt hears a growl.  As they continue making out, Matt cuts his wrist on a tree and starts bleeding.  Caroline licks the would and then clamps on as Matt asks her what she’s doing.  Then her face changes and the fangs are visible.  She goes for Matt’s neck and Stefan pulls her off of him.  Matt collapses to the forest floor.  They hear the growl again and Stefan tells her to run and tells Matt to stay down. 

Caroline and Stefan stop near the ruins and Stefan tells her what’s after them.  Tyler comes out and asks them what they’re doing.  Mason-wolf jumps Caroline and Stefan jumps on to save her.  Tyler looks at Mason-wolf and tells him “No!” and they stare one another down before Mason-wolf runs off into the woods. 

Caroline compels Matt not to remember the attack, making him remember it as an animal attack.   Stefan tells Caroline that he took care of Tyler and that they need to get Matt some vervain to protect him.  Caroline is upset about hurting Matt and asks Stefan if she should be with Matt.  He tells her that it won’t get any easier and confesses that he should have walked away from Elena but he can’t.

Tyler walks through the woods and comes across Mason’s SUV.  He finds the chains as a filthy Mason shows up.  Tyler realizes that the wolf was Mason.

At the grill, Amy sits down at a table with Matt.  Caroline arrives and confronts Amy.  Amy leaves and Matt calls her out for the jealous drama.  He tells Caroline to forget it and breaks up with her.

Back at the Gilbert house, Alaric and Jenna kiss as Damon walks Elena to the door.  She asks for the truth and Damon confesses that he did not know that Jeremy was wearing the ring.  He tells her how he was so pissed off by what Katherine had done to him that he snapped.  He tells her that he was lucky that Jeremy was wearing the ring because he didn’t know what he would have done if he’d actually killed him.  He then tells her that he’s sorry.  She thanks him for his honesty and tells him that she has lost him forever.  Damon realizes that Elena used him for getting information on Katherine and tells her that she and Katherine have more in common than just their looks.

Caroline wakes up the next morning to find Katherine in her room.  Katherine tells her, “Don’t be frightened.  We’re gonna have so much fun together.”

I really enjoyed this episode and getting the scoop on the werewolf – vampire legends.  I like the contrast to the Twilight version where the vampire venom is fatal to werewolves.  The Vampire Diaries vampires are so much more vulnerable, allowing for much more drama.

So…when do you think Tyler will be affected by the Lockwood curse?  Is it something that kicks in when they are 18? 

Do you think that Caroline will sit idly by and let Amy and Matt hook up or will her amplified insecurity and jealousy kick into full gear? 

Katherine’s return to Caroline’s room certainly seems ominous.   Do you have any theories on what Katherine has in store for Caroline?

Do you think that we’ve seen the last of Isobel’s research assistant?  She certainly seemed to take a shine to Alaric, don’t  you think?

Is there anything else from this episode that you’d like to discuss?  Join us in the forum and talk about this episode.  We’d love to hear from you!