The Vampire Diaries became so beloved of a series that it had eight seasons, and led to two spin-offs. The first was The Originals, where fans followed the original vampires, whose storylines and conflicts were more mature. The show begins with Klaus (the original hybrid) finding out that he’s going to be a father. Klaus has to work through his own demons in order to be the type of father to Hope (his daughter) that he never had when he was a child.
Whereas The Originals focuses on adult storylines, Legacies returns to high school. Fans get to follow the lives of the children of well-known characters and the many legacies those beloved characters left behind.
Parallels Between the Main Heroines: Elena and Hope
The Vampire Diaries starts with Elena, the protagonist, trying to figure out who she is in the world now that she’s lost her parents. Since she didn’t die in the same car accident that killed them, she has survivor’s guilt. She can’t be the person she was before the loss. This heavy grief leads her to Stefan, who seems to understand her in ways that others don’t.
Likewise, Hope has experienced intense grief. In The Originals, she lost her mother, her father, and her uncle. All of them died to save her. She also feels survivor’s guilt, wondering if she was worth all that her family sacrificed for her. This parallel shows the connections between The Vampire Diaries and Legacies. It also extends the storyline that started in The Originals.
Setting: Salvatore Mansion and Mystic Falls
Legacies takes place in the same town as The Vampire Diaries. Mystic Falls is a unique town with interesting rituals and a strong supernatural history. Already in Legacies, fans have seen characters complete in the Miss Mystic Falls contest and celebrate Founders’ Day.
Both of these events were important in The Vampire Diaries where the characters were connected to the fabric of the town’s past. Legacies continues this. In addition, the Salvatore Mansion has become the boarding school for the characters in Legacies.
The Children Who Are Legacies: Hope and the Twins
So far, fans have been introduced to Hope and the twins. Hope is the daughter of Klaus and Hayley, two characters that were in both The Vampire Diaries and The Originals. She also is the last blood relative of the Originals line and one of the last of Hayley’s werewolf line. Her existence as the main character keeps The Vampire Diaries alive.
Likewise, the twins (Josie and Lizzie) are the children of Alaric, Jo, and Caroline from The Vampire Diaries. Jo died, and her family magically transferred the twins to Caroline’s womb.
Love Triangles: Tension Between Brothers
The Vampire Diaries had two famous love triangles. The main one was Elena, Damon, and Stefan. Elena starts out with Stefan but ends up with Damon. The two brothers already had tension between them; this love triangle with Elena didn’t help. Damon and Stefan also had a love triangle with Katherine.
In Legacies, this tradition is continued between Landon, Hope, and Rafael. While Landon and Rafael aren’t blood brothers, they are as close as brothers. They both like Hope, but Rafael tries to step back from his attraction.
Rippers: Vampires With Less Control
Stefan and his mother were both rippers. For Stefan, it was an ongoing struggle. He seemed like he was the nice brother, but he was less in control than Damon when it comes to blood and feeding. Dorian’s (a character in The Vampire Diaries and Legacies) family was killed by Ripper-Stefan.
Dorian works to prevent young vampires from becoming rippers and to help them mitigate the urge. It must be working because MG and Jade (two rippers) have more control over their nature than Stefan ever did.
Diaries: Stefan’s Diaries
In the first episode of Legacies, fans see that Stefan’s diaries have been kept by the school in the library for others to read. Hope states that in his diaries, her dad and family are the villains.
In the pilot, she had said the difference between villains and heroes, “is just who’s telling the story.” While Hope doesn’t write in a diary, fans see stories from her perspective. The “villains” are telling the story this time.
Werewolf Gene: How It’s Triggered
In The Vampire Diaries and The Originals, the werewolf gene is inherited. However, it’s only triggered when the potential werewolf kills someone else. It doesn’t matter if the death was intentional or not.
Tyler in The Vampire Diaries accidentally killed someone. Rafael in Legacies accidentally killed his girlfriend in a car accident. Neither one knew their family history, and their first times turning were painful. Luckily, Rafael has more support than Tyler did. Still, the manner in which their gene was triggered was the same.
Guest Appearances: Characters from The Vampire Diaries Universe
While other characters, such as Bonnie and Caroline, are mentioned, there are characters who actually visit Legacies for an episode or two. The two guest appearances that stand out the most are Freya (Hope’s aunt) and Kai (the twins’ uncle), a major villain in The Vampire Diaries.
It was great to see these familiar faces as it helped connect Legacies to The Vampire Diaries and The Originals. Hopefully, there will be more guest appearances.
Alaric’s Role: Teacher and Trainer
Alaric served as an authoritative role in The Vampire Diaries before he became a friend to the other characters. He was a history teacher at their high school. Later, when his connection to the supernatural became known, he still continued to teach the group. He also trained Elena on how to fight and defend herself.
In Legacies, Alaric is the director of the school, which still gives him opportunities to teach. He also trains Hope in how to fight and defend herself.
Gemini Coven: The Merge Storyline
Josie and Lizzie are the last twins of the Gemini Coven. Although they are the last, they will still need to perform the Merge. This ritual was a storyline in The Vampire Diaries. When Gemini Coven twins turn 22, they do the Merge. Whoever is the stronger twin, wins and “absorbs” the other. This means the weaker twin actually dies, and the stronger twin becomes the leader for the coven. Kai was set to merge with Jo (the twins’ mom).
Since he was stronger and psychotic, the coven decided to trick him by sending him to a prison world. Later, Bonnie with the help of the twins, created another prison world for him. Unfortunately, Kai gets out, and he’s still set on killing his family. Luckily, this family reunion doesn’t last long, and the twins are safe. However, they are not safe from the Merge yet, even though Dark Josie attempted to do it.
