'The Vampire Diaries' Season 3, Episode 8 Recap (VIDEO)

['The Vampire Diaries' -- 'Ordinary People']

I honestly can't remember the last time a single hour of television had so many twists and turns -- and made me feel so many different emotions -- than this week's episode of 'The Vampire Diaries.' And for a few minutes, I even started to sympathize with Klaus. That's right, those pesky 'TVD' writers made me feel bad for Klaus. Klaus?!

Did I mention that we finally learned how vampires came to be? But that wasn't it. We also uncovered some pretty big secrets. Mikael, the vampire vampire hunter, is actually Papa Klaus and one of the Originals. And Mama Klaus? In an exciting twist, it turns out that she was the Original witch, and she's the one responsible for turning her family into vampires -- and believe me, it wasn't pretty. Of course, this means that it's Original Esther Klaus who's on the other side trying to stir up trouble with Vicki.

See, I told you this episode was amazing. In fact, it just may rank as one of my favorite 'TVD' episodes ever.

We learn all of these juicy plot twists from Rebekah, who recalls when she and her family first came to discovered America, over 1000 years ago, with the help of their witch Ayana. Back then, Mystic Falls was full of werewolves, which means that werewolves are definitely older than vamps. One day, Klaus takes his younger brother Henrik to go watch the werewolves' transformation, but Henrik is gruesomely attacked and killed.

And for once we saw Klaus get all emotional. Of course, he was a human at the time, but it was still a touching scene.

As you can imagine, Mama Klaus is not happy, so she and Mikael turn to Ayana for help. They want to become immortal as a way to protect themselves from the werewolves. But Ayana, obviously being a sensible witch, refuses to help the Klaus family, and in a shocking twist, we learn that it's Esther, not Ayana, who is the Original witch.

In an effort to protect her family, Esther turns her children into vampires. First, she laces their tea with blood, and then Mikael stabs them through their hearts with his sword (I told you it wasn't pretty!), and then when they awaken, he forces them to drink human blood. But becoming vampires means that they have to face some harsh repercussions.

The sun? Yeah, it burns, but Esther comes up with a solution for that. We also learn that vervain is actually the flower of the white ash tree, and the white ash tree is the only thing that can destroy the vampires. Therefore, the Klaus family burns the white ash tree to the ground. But the biggest effect -- that Esther didn't see coming -- was their intense blood lust.

We also learn that it was Mikeal who killed Esther. In a fit of rage, he killed half the town, and then he ripped out her heart. He wasn't really happy when he learned Klaus was actually the son of a werewolf and not his. After the death of their mother, the siblings share a touching moment at her grave, and it's Rebekah who takes the leadership role, telling her brothers that they will always have each other "always and forever."

Side note: Did anyone else notice the 'One Tree Hill' crossover there?! Sorry Rebekah, whenever I hear the words "always and forever," I'll always think of Nathan and Haley.

Seriously though, for the first time ever, I felt myself sympathizing for Klaus. I mean, his mother rejected him, he accidentally got his little brother killed, he was turned into this weird hybrid and then his dad murders his mom. How can you not feel for the guy?!

Just before I was about to start my Team Klaus campaign, Elena discovered the biggest twist yet. After analyzing the cave drawings, we learned that it wasn't Mikael that killed Esther -- it was Klaus!

Rebekah said it herself: "We're vampires. Our emotions are heightened." And Klaus? He's half werewolf and half vampire, meaning that all of his werewolf aggression was heightened, and Mama Klaus was his target.

So now it all makes sense why the Original witch sent Vicki to the other side to kill Elena. It looks like Esther wants to destroy the monster she made.

We also got to see Rebekah's vulnerable side this week, and dare I say it, I also started to feel bad for Barbie Klaus. She learns that her brother has been lying to her for over 1000 years. That's got to hurt. For the first time, we see Rebekah break down, and it's really, really heartbreaking.

But it turns out that Esther isn't the only one after Klaus because Mikael is back. Unfortunately, we still don't know Katherine's fate, but I don't think our feisty vamp is gone for good. Maybe she's working with Mikael?

Meanwhile, Damon busts Stefan out of Lexi's vampire rehab (much to Elena's dismay), and they head out to grab a drink -- an alcoholic drink for Damon and a cute bartender named Kelly for Stefan.



I didn't realize how much I loved the brotherly banter between Stefan and Damon until this episode. Damon and Stefan really do love each other. Even after Stefan's transformation to the dark side, he still saved his brother from Mikael's wrath (although, it was a little too close for comfort in my opinion). They even have a typical Damon/Stefan fist fight, but as any 'TVD' fan knows, that's just Damon's twisted way of saying he loves Stefan.

So it seems that Stefan is going to lure Klaus back to Mystic Falls for Mikael, and something tells me that this father/son reunion is going to be anything but bittersweet.

Last, but definitely not least, we finally got a super adorable Delena scene. Damon ends up in Elena's bed, and they share an incredibly cute moment. Cue Delena fangirl screams! This long-awaited hookup is so happening.

See, even Elena knows that Damon's going to be the one to save Stefan. After all, there's no one he trusts more than his big brother. But here's the big question: Do the Salvatore brothers have a cute family saying too?

Best lines of the night:

Best Damon line, to Stefan: "It family day at vampire rehab. I thought I'd pay my baby brother a visit."

When stuff started getting real, from Rebekah: "The necklace wasn't Stefan's to give. It belonged to the original witch, my mother."

Ripper Stefan, to Damon: "You better be careful brother. Your humanity is showing."

When Rebekah starts getting deep: "A witch is nature's servant. A vampire is an abomination of nature."

Rebekah describing the Klaus family dynamics: "I'm stubborn, Elijah is moral, and Nick has no tolerance for those who disappoint him."

Mikael's warning to Stefan: "Lure Klaus back, and I will gladly drive a stake through his heart. Fail, and I will be yours."

Elena's realization about Rebekah: "She's just a girl who lost her mother too young. She loves blindly and recklessly, even if it consumes her." Um, pot, meet kettle.