Fadzai and Sandile put on their shining armour with the knight of The Vampire Diaries, Stefan Salvatore.

One of the lead characters of The Vampire Diaries, Stefan returns to Mystic Falls at the beginning of the first season and encounters Elena Gilbert, with whom he begins a passionate romance despite his secret vampire nature. As they fall for each other, though - and the town is plagued by the antics of his villainous brother, Damon - Elena discovers his true nature, and learns to accept him in his entirety. Now allied with her, and along with some friends and family, they band together against the threat of the supernatural.

Over the course of the series, Stefan endeavours to protect his town and loved ones, maintain his relationship with his brother in spite of his antics, and battle against his troubles with human blood. Though he goes through a few periods of being off the rails, and loses a few people from his life along the way, he always returns to trying to be better, and finding humanity in those around him. As such, Stefan ends off as one of the better vampires by the show's conclusion.

(This episode focuses on Stefan in seasons 1 and 2.)

Content Warning: This episode contains discussion of addiction, emotional abuse, mental coercion and manipulation, physical abuse, racism, sexual abuse, assault and related victim blaming, and suicide and suicidal ideation..

Questions, queries, or just to say hi!

E-mail: animalattackpod@gmail.com

Refs and Links: IWAA S1

All our online stuff!

Podcast: It Was an Animal Attack

Twitter: @animattackpod

Instagram: @animalattackpod

Tiktok: @animalattackpod

YouTube: @animalattackpod

Check out "Call to the Dark", Sandile's supernatural horror fiction podcast, wherever you listen!

Podcast: Call to the Dark

Twitter: @calldarkpod

Instagram: @calldarkpod

Spin-off! Your hosts talk about the struggles of CW's Arrow in its later seasons, the very many supernatural love triangles of the 2000s and 2010s, and how TV/movie writers just cannot capture how young people text. Also: the origins of Buffy's Angel, and a tangent about English linguistics.

Content Warning: This episode contains discussion of ephebophilia (and pedophilia), and toxic relationships.

Questions, queries, or just to say hi!

E-mail: animalattackpod@gmail.com

Refs and Links: IWAA S1

All our online stuff!

Podcast: It Was an Animal Attack

Twitter: @animattackpod

Instagram: @animalattackpod

Tiktok: @animalattackpod

YouTube: @animalattackpod

Chapters:

(00:05) - Ricardo Diaz aka Richard Dragon, of Arrow S6

(01:30) - Arrow's tone vs the greater Arrowverse

(03:10) - The untimely death of Laurel Lance

(04:45) - Vampire love triangles (but mostly Twilight)

(06:00) - Edward Cullen is a terrible partner, actually

(07:30) - Jacob Black: a character assassination?

(08:50) - Angel's origins in Buffy the Vampire Slayer

(11:11) - Teen text speech in TV and movies

(12:17) - Gambling, I guess? Are we that hard up on tangents?

(14:10) - Why do Americans speak the way they do?

Sandile and Fadzai are blasting in from the past with the first of the Heretics, Valerie Tulle.

Introduced as one of the antagonists in the seventh season of The Vampire Diaries (though first appearing towards the end of the sixth), Valerie was a witch from the Gemini coven in the mid-1800s - a siphon, born without magic of her own, only able to take it from other sources. She and five other siphons were taken in by Lily Salvatore after being exiled by their coven, and through differing circumstances they were all turned into witch/vampire hybrids known as Heretics. After drawing too much attention to themselves with their feeding habits, though, they were imprisoned along with Lily in a prison world in 1903 by the Gemini coven.

Once back in the real world in present day, Valerie is loathe to adjust to the modern world, and along with her family becomes at odds with the Mystic Falls Gang as they begin causing trouble in town. Amidst the conflict is also her lingering care for Stefan Salvatore from their past relationship in the 1860s, cut short when she was kept from returning to him by Lily's manipulative partner, Julian. Despite her many complex dramas, though, Valerie handles herself with a cool and calculated energy that makes her one of the more fun parts of the season.

Content Warning: This episode contains discussion of domestic violence, familial abandonment, feticide (intentional causing of a miscarriage), mental coercion and manipulation, physical and mental abuse, racism, sexual abuse, assault and related victim blaming, and suicide.

Questions, queries, or just to say hi!

E-mail: animalattackpod@gmail.com

Refs and Links: IWAA S1

All our online stuff!

Podcast: It Was an Animal Attack

Twitter: @animattackpod

Instagram: @animalattackpod

Tiktok: @animalattackpod

YouTube: @animalattackpod

Check out "Call to the Dark", Sandile's supernatural horror fiction podcast, wherever you listen!

Podcast: Call to the Dark

Twitter: @calldarkpod

Instagram: @calldarkpod