This week, I got an early look at the pilot for the CW’s new show The Vampire Diaries, (premiering Sept. 10)—and I didn’t like it. The show trades action, heart, laughs and respectable dialogue for tedious voiceovers from the two main characters, Elena Gilbert (Nina Dobrev) and Stefan Salvatore (Paul Wesley), as they write in their equally boring, uninteresting journals. But I did like Michael Trevino as the badass jock Tyler Stratton (more on that later).
I had high hopes for The Vampire Diaries, which is based on the series of books by L.J. Smith and executive produced by Kevin Williamson (Dawson’s Creek, Scream). Williamson is great at creating a world that is set in the confines of a very small town, and he's shown he can capture small-town charm (like he did brilliantly with Dawson’s). And to some extent, he does that here with Diaries, which is set in a town called Mystic Falls that I wouldn't mind learning more about. However, I couldn't help but be annoyed by the constant use of narration in the pilot, which I think makes the show suffer more than anything else. It would be different if what was being narrated was actually interesting or unique, or it had substance. However, from the opening lines, there’s nothing meaningful about the voiceovers, which begin with a few words from Stefan: “For over a century, I have lived in secret, hiding in the shadows, alone in the world. Until now: I am a vampire, and this is my story.”
Obviously, Stefan is the Edward Cullen of this vampire drama. He’s a vampire with a soul, and he’s back in the small town of Mystic Falls, Va., for one reason and one reason only: To connect with Elena, a girl who looks like an exact replica of a girl he knew (and loved) centuries ago: “I shouldn’t have come home. I know the risk. But I have no choice: I have to know her. I’m simply not able to resist her,” he writes in his journal. (Talk about a relationship that’s doomed from the start: “I love you because you look like somebody I used to love. Cool?” Yikes!)
Like Stefan, Elena likes to journal too, and she has plenty to write about. Four months prior, her beloved parents were killed by a vampire in a devastating car accident, and she is still unable to move on: “I will no longer be the girl who lost her parents. I will start fresh and be someone new. It’s the only way I’ll make it through.” All of Elena’s journals offer much of the same “I’m so down on my luck, please pity me” nonsense. They’re all about her (she seems extremely selfish and self-involved), and they’re all whiny and needy. One in particular was so silly it made me laugh out loud: “I must’ve said, 'I’m fine, thanks,' at least 37 times, but I didn’t mean it once. But no one noticed. When someone asks you, 'How are you?' they really don’t want an answer.” Who writes this stuff, anyway?
But the worst thing about this show is the casting. I’m sorry to say that Paul Wesley (who is by no means a bad actor) looks much too old to play Stefan Salvatore, which makes me wonder why the CW didn’t hire Mexican actor Michael Trevino, 24, for the role. You might remember Trevino for his kick-ass performance as bad boy Ozzie (Naomi’s boyfriend) on 90210. If you don’t, he’s similarly brilliant here, and even though he has one of the smaller roles of the show’s seven leads, he’s the only one with true star quality. In fact, of all the male stars on Diaries (Wesley, Steven R. McQueen, Ian Somerhalder, Zach Roerig), he’s not only the best looking guy on the show, but he’s also got the most charisma—and best of all, he actually passes for a high school student!
Trevino plays a jock named Tyler Stratton, a moody, abrasive (sometimes violent) ladies man who’s dating his best friend Matt’s (Zach Roerig) sister against his wishes (Tyler doesn’t really give a hoot what anyone wants, nor does he seem to care). And even though he’s a friend of Elena’s, he has no qualms about bullying her kid brother Jeremy (McQueen), who he doesn’t know is secretly sleeping with his girlfriend, Vicki, behind his back. Jeremy—who is in love with Vicki—tells her the truth about Tyler: “That guy is a total douche. He only wants you for your ass,” but Vicki can’t help but like Tyler, despite the fact that he treats her like dirt. When Elena shows up with Stefan at the local pool hall (and thereby humiliates his friend Matt—her ex-boyfriend), Tyler doesn’t let it slide. He walks over to their table looking to pick a fight and spills a pitcher of soda on Stefan, saying, “Sorry,” like he doesn’t mean it. Stefan replies with a quick “It’s fine,” but Tyler doesn’t want him to let it go: “Are you sure it’s fine? Because I’d understand if you were mad.” (He doesn’t know Stefan is a vampire, of course.)
Trevino is so great in the role of a complete jerk that I think he also would’ve been a perfect choice to play Damon (Stefan’s older, vicious brother), played here by Somerhalder. Whenever Wesley, Dobrev and Somerhalder were on the screen, I was wondering where Trevino was. He is the true star of this show. Or at least, he should’ve been.