Hope is in limbo, and she confirms with the Ferryman that she has the option of getting in a boat and being taken to peace. She’s sure there’s a catch. The Ferryman holds out his hand and Hope guesses that he wants money. She doesn’t have any, so he points to her Mikaelson insignia pendant. Hope says it’s priceless to her, but she agrees to make a deal if the Ferryman can prove that her family is also at peace.
“I wouldn’t do that if I were you,” a familiar voice says behind her. Hope comments that it wouldn’t be the afterlife without the Necromancer getting involved. Now the mind game she’s found herself in makes sense. But the Necromancer is still Ted, and he tells her they’re not playing any game.
Ethan and Kaleb knock on someone’s door dressed like Mormon missionaries. They want to talk to the man who answers about a “transformative miracle.” The man isn’t interested, and he’s also Jewish. No problem, Kaleb tells him: “This ain’t about the big J.C. – it’s about the big M.” The man threatens to call the sheriff if they won’t go away. Kaleb asks if they can leave him with something. He and Ethan drip Malivore goo out of their mouths and shove it into the man’s. He joins them on their mission to make more Malivore “converts.”
Jed and Wade watch the whole thing from nearby, and Jed takes what they learned from the recon mission back to the school. Wade is still out tracking Ethan, while Jed followed Kaleb to the train yard, where Jed picked up Hope’s scent. He thinks Malidon is controlling Kaleb and Ethan, as well as the townies they’re “converting,” who don’t seem to be monsters. Alaric guesses that Malidon is trying to split up the Super Squad to fight multiple battles. They’ll have to figure out their top priority.
Alaric doesn’t want innocent people to get hurt, of course, but there’s not much they can do without Hope. He decides to go to the train yard alone. He doesn’t think that Malidon knows what kind of a threat he poses or how capable the Super Squad is of taking care of things without Hope. Josie supports Alaric’s decision, knowing that he made a promise to Hope. Lizzie agrees and tells her father for this one time only, they’ll let him put Hope first.
As for the other fronts, Alaric knows the Super Squad will get involved no matter how firmly he tries to forbid them, so they might as well do their thing. Hey, he finally learned! Jed decides that M.G. should lead the squad. He asks which front they should focus on, but M.G. wants to take them all on.
Ted explains to Hope that they’re in limbo, “the brunch of the bloody afterlife.” The Ferryman hasn’t accepted anything he’s offered to be taken to peace. Hope seems to be getting a free pass because she’s been a hero her whole life. Ted’s centuries as a villain mean he’ll have to work harder.
He assumes that Hope died on purpose to try to defeat Malivore, which means she can’t drop her plan now and go to peace. Hope doesn’t think she’ll ever achieve peace if she goes back now. She’s a Mikaelson and a vampire – they don’t get peace. Ted reminds her that she’s the tribrid. That’s what scares her. When they first met, he told her that Klaus would never find peace until she does. Now she has the chance to get there, which will let her father get there, too. Once again Hope is presented with the decision of who to save.
Malivore is torturing Landon by making him think one of his abusive foster fathers has trapped him in a closet. Cleo finds him and frees him. Hope considers her options, knowing she won’t be able to handle the grief of killing Landon or the guilt of taking the easy way out and going to peace. She asks if Ted was telling the truth when he said that her family would find peace if she did. He can’t remember the conversation, since he’s forgotten most of his life as the Necromancer. He’s sorry he can’t help her. She asks him to do her a favor: If Klaus, Hayley, or Elijah passes by, he should tell them not to wait for her. She heads toward the Ferryman, but instead of getting in his boat, she jumps in the water.
Hope wakes up in an abandoned train car. Her senses are all out of whack because of her transition. Malidon welcomes her back and tells her not to get too used to being in the land of the living – she won’t be there long. She tries to use magic to open the door, but it doesn’t work while she’s in transition. She can’t use her werewolf perks, either. Malidon thinks it’s ironic that while she’s becoming a super-powerful creature, she’s more vulnerable than she’s ever been.
Hope knows that will change when she feeds, but that’s why Malidon brought her there. Cleo inspired him to lock her up until her window for completing the transition passes and she dies “alone, broken, pitiful.” That’s her fate. Hope is sure the Super Squad will come for her, but that’s what Malidon is counting on.
Alaric arrives at the train yard and is immediately surrounded by the minions Kaleb and Ethan created. Fortunately, he’s brought plenty of weapons. Back at the school, Finch goes to see Josie, who asked to talk to her. Finch thinks it’s about her feelings about the merge, but it’s not. Wade and Jed arrive next with a ton of salt and the candle they used to keep the banshee contained. Jed is ready and willing to channel another monster if necessary, but Josie wants him and Wade to be her last line of defense. They need to clear the school and keep everyone out of Twin Turret no matter what.
After the guys leave, Josie tells Finch that she’s going to do a very advanced summoning spell from the Necromancer’s grimoire. She’s going to try to pull Landon and Cleo out of Malivore. Finch is just there for support and a first line of defense. Cleo enchanted the candle with a muting spell, and if something goes wrong, Finch will need to light it so Josie can’t speak.
Lizzie and M.G. track down Ethan at Mystic Falls High. M.G. instructs Lizzie to help Dorian evacuate the school while he looks for Ethan. Lizzie notes that she could run into Ethan. M.G. asks her not to hurt him; the Salvatore School students have done enough to him already. As soon as Lizzie leaves, Ethan approaches M.G. with a trio of classmates who have also been infected by Malivore. “You’re about to have an E-mergency,” Ethan says. Weak! He sends the minions to the train yard so he can face M.G. alone.
M.G. doesn’t want to fight his former friend. Ethan appreciates how M.G. told him the truth about the supernatural, so he’s going to repay the favor by being honest with him: He doesn’t have a choice. M.G. is surprised that Ethan remembers the supernatural after being compelled to forget it all. Ethan admits that he’s “not exactly” Ethan – he’s a Malivore drone. M.G. wanted to be a superhero, and now he gets to fight a supervillain. M.G. protests, since Ethan is his friend. Ethan/Malivore (Ethavore, of course) replies that that’s not the case anymore. Also, Ethan finally has powers. He demonstrates by turning invisible.
Landon is grateful that Cleo found him, though he’s not sure she’s the real Cleo. She tells him that Malivore is preoccupied with other things and isn’t paying attention to them. She accidentally gave him a way to kill Hope, so now he’s focused on that. Landon is eager to find a way out so they can warn her. Fortunately, Cleo has an idea. Since the Malivore dimension exists inside Malivore, it’s made of him. They’re surrounded by Malivore mud, which Cleo can use to create a door.
Hope bangs on the window of the train car she’s stuck in until she’s able to shatter it. Weak from not completing her transition, she stumbles past other cars, spotting Malidon in a trance, which she notes can’t be good. Hey, at least it means he’s not watching you. With no magic or super-strength, she’s unable to break down the door to his car.
Alaric has taken out all the drones outside, though he’s sustained some minor injuries in the process. Kaleb/Malivore (Kalevore) arrives and asks if he’s ready for the next round. His eyes glow yellow, and Alaric wisely starts running before he breathes fire.
Ethavore and M.G. take their fight inside the school as M.G. urges Ethan to fight Malivore and take over his body. “Origin story’s over – it’s time to put on your big-boy tights,” Ethavore tells him. He breaks a wooden flag pole, disappears, and reappears behind M.G. to stake him in the side from behind. M.G. thinks these new superpowers are cowardly, but Ethavore’s the one holding the stake, so he doesn’t agree. He disappears again and laughs at M.G.
M.G. rips off a locker door and uses it as a shield. Ethavore keeps coming, and he gets M.G. on the ground with the stake just inches from his heart. M.G. tries to hold him off, and just as he’s about to lose his grip, Lizzie arrives. She siphons from Ethavore, who loses consciousness. She tells M.G. that after she made sure the school was empty, she came back to save them both. M.G.’s vamp hearing lets him know that Ethavore isn’t breathing.
Alaric hides from Kalevore, who calls out for him to come out and fight before Kalevore has to hurt him for real. Alaric thinks that if he’s worried about that, it means there’s still good in him. Kalevore says it only goes so deep. Alaric needs to leave. Alaric says he can’t, since Malidon has Hope. Kalevore knows, as he’s the one who brought her there. Alaric tells him he was only able to because the Super Squad trusted him, just like Alaric is trusting him now. “How many times do I have to believe in you before you believe in yourself?” he asks.
Kalevore really doesn’t want to fight his mentor, so Alaric urges him to resist like he fights his urge to feed and like he fights for his friends. He slowly approaches Kalevore, who warns him to keep his distance. Alaric says he’ll bet his life on Kalevore being able to control himself. The bet pays off and he’s able to reach Kalevore and embrace him. Kalevore asks what he’s doing – he’s going to get himself killed. “Wouldn’t be the first time,” Alaric replies.
Kalevore’s eyes go black and he shoves Alaric away. Malivore has taken over, and he wants that clear so Alaric doesn’t have to make a confused face and asks if it’s him. “I’ve got a Ph.D., dick,” Alaric replies. Kalevore says he’s not teaching his students how to survive. He’s teaching them to be prey instead of predators. It makes Malivore’s job easier, but it’s pretty pathetic. Alaric notes that they’ve been beating Malivore for years. Kalevore says that no one will remember the monsters they’ve killed or the Salvatore School students, once Hope is dead and Malivore has consumed them all. He won’t consume Alaric, though. That way, the world will remember Alaric and his school as failures. But to clarify, Malivore will kill Alaric.
As Kalevore gears up to burn Alaric with fire, someone stabs him from behind. “Nailed it,” Hope says. “Dragon, soft spot, snarky quip.” She passes out and Malidon comes out of his trance. He double-checks Hope’s train car and finds it empty. He follows a trail of blood outside, grabbing a big hook as he goes.
Cleo has made an entire door out of Malivore mud, and she lets Landon make the handle, since he doesn’t really have any other way of helping. A vine shoots up from the ground and grabs at him, but Cleo uses magic to make it let go. She thinks someone’s trying to summon Landon. That someone is Josie, who’s deep into the spell from the Necromancer’s grimoire. Her nose is bleeding and she won’t respond to Finch, who decides it’s time to light the candle. There’s a strong wind blowing through the room, so she ducks under the bed to light it. When she emerges, Dark Josie is there. She puts out the flame with her fingers and grins, greeting Finch with, “Hey, girlfriend.”
Alaric crawls over to Hope and cuts his hand so she can drink his blood. She’s worried that she won’t be able to handle what comes after she completes her transition. He tells her he’s never seen her face something she can’t handle: “I’m willing to take that risk if you are.” He never wanted it to come to this and he’s sorry it has. “Guess that’s why they call it fate,” she says. She takes his hand and title-drops, “See you on the other side.” As she drinks, the sky turns red and a thunderstorm forms. Her eyes glow yellow, then go back to normal.
Malidon approaches and asks if he’s interrupting. Hope tells him they’re done, and so is he. She vamps out for the first time, her transition complete. She tells Alaric to take Kaleb back to the school so he’ll be safe when he revives, because nothing that’s about to happen will be safe. Malidon says that Hope underestimates him – he eats monsters like her. “There is no monster like me,” she replies. She still has her magic, and she’s able to send Malidon flying across the train yard. When he gets up, he looks terrified, and he takes off running. Amused, she notes that he hasn’t even seen her wolf form yet.
Lizzie gives Ethan CPR, worried that she accidentally killed the only boy in the world who likes her. M.G. assures her that he’s not going to die (and also, he’s not the only boy who likes her – not now, M.G.!). He takes over CPR since she’s so surprised to hear that he still likes her. M.G. realizes that Lizzie could use magic to shock Ethan’s heart and restart it. She’s worried about using too much power and frying him. “I believe in you, and other things,” M.G. says. Maybe work on that pep talk, friend. They both put their hands on Ethan’s chest and activate their magical version of a defibrillator. It works.
Finch isn’t intimidated or impressed by her girlfriend’s supposedly evil form: “Do people seriously call you Dark Josie?” She likes Josie the way she is. Dark Josie thinks that’ll change when she starts doing scary things. Also, this is the way Josie is. Maybe that scares Finch. Finch replies that Josie isn’t the only one around with a dark side. Dark Josie doesn’t think their situations are comparable, but Finch knows what it’s like to hide what you are. Josie taught her that there’s a place for all of her.
Dark Josie corrects that she’s Josie, but Finch disagrees, as long as one side of her is trying to take over the other. She doesn’t have to fight her dark side; she just has to love it. Dark Josie suggests that she’s not able to do that. Does that mean Finch will leave her? No – until Josie can love all of herself, Finch will love Dark Josie for her. She kisses Dark Josie, whose darkness disappears. “You brought me back,” she whispers. “You were never really gone,” Finch replies.
Malidon encounters Hope in her wolf form, and when she turns human again, she tells him he’s had “the full tribrid tour.” Now it’s time to end this. She bites her arm and uses magic to make blood pool in her hand. She turns the blood into a dagger and asks Malidon if he has any last words. His eyes go black and he sees Cleo inside him, making a door.
Landon asks where the door will take them. Cleo says they’ll go back to their world. She knows he’s not in control of his body there, so she’ll create a new vessel for him. His consciousness will separate from Malivore’s, and hopefully they’ll be able to put him back in his body some day. Landon’s ready to go.
Hope approaches Malidon with the dagger, accusing him of playing possum. She’s about to stab him when the blackness leaves his eyes. He’s Landon again. He tells her he can’t stay, but he’s happy he got to be with her again, because the thought of that is all that’s been keeping him going. He has access to Malivore’s memories and knows that Hope became the tribrid. “We both know you have to kill me,” he says.
Since Landon is currently with Hope, that means the Landon with Cleo isn’t really Landon – it’s Malivore. He shoves her aside so he can keep her from opening the door she made. He reminds her that he told her centuries ago that he’ll never let her go. He passes through the doorway…but all he finds is a wall of mud. Cleo knew he would trick her, so she made a tomb instead of a door.
Jed brings Josie a sketch that Cleo did of Ayomi (I think because they need something of hers to pull her out of Malivore). Since Josie wasn’t able to pull Landon out, she thinks she might not be strong enough to do the spell without going dark. Finch assures her that she’s strong just the way she is. She, Jed, and Wade agree to be siphoned so Josie can get a magic boost. Wade provides D&D dice for Landon, and Josie starts the spell to extract Cleo.
Hope doesn’t want to hear Landon saying that it’s okay to kill him. He thinks Malivore gave him control over his body in a last-ditch effort to get Hope to change her mind. It won’t last, and Landon is still Malivore’s puppet. Hope reminds him that they’ve been fighting this ever since they found out who Landon is. He agrees that fate wants to separate them, but if they stand together, they’ll win. Yeah, he’ll be dead, but it’ll be a moral victory.
Hope says she’ll miss the way he laughs. He tells her he’ll miss all of it, but he wouldn’t trade a second of their relationship, even though it has to end this way. She says she loves him and always will. He replies that he’ll love her forever. They share one last kiss, and Hope plunges the dagger into his heart.
Malidon punches his way through a wall of his tomb, vowing to escape and find the weapon Cleo told him about that will kill Hope. A wall of flames is rolling toward them, and Cleo says he’ll never get out. Hope fulfilled her destiny. Malidon is pleased that Cleo will die with him. But a vine snakes around her wrist as Josie’s spell summons her. Malidon asks what magic that is. “It is a Squad thing,” Cleo tells him with a smirk. She’s yanked through the ground just as the fire reaches them and burns Malivore alive.
The dagger in Landon chest burns up as well and he collapses, dead. Hope walks away from his body without turning back, her face blank.
Cleo appears in Twin Turret, thrilled that her friends rescued her. Josie can’t believe she pulled it off, but Finch had confidence in her the whole time. Wade asks about Landon and doesn’t get a response.
At the dock in limbo, Ted steals a coin from the Ferryman and tries to offer it as his payment to go to peace. The Ferryman won’t accept it. Ted bahs like the Necromancer and throws the coin down the pier, where it’s caught by Landon. “We really have to stop meeting like this,” he says. “I’ll be damned – obviously,” Ted quips. He’s impressed that Hope went through with her transition. He tries to cheer Landon by reminding him that they’ve gotten out of worse spots than this.
Lizzie worries that Ethan will hate her and M.G. now. M.G. isn’t sure how he’ll respond to his memories of everything M.G. compelled him to forget. But Lizzie was a hero today, so it wasn’t all bad. She says that a guy she likes was in danger. He asks which guys she means. Ethan suddenly appears with beer and no hard feelings about what the Salvatore School students have done to him over the past couple of seasons. In fact, he wants to enroll. Since he still has his powers from when he was infected by Malivore, he’s now a supernatural being.
Finch is still freaked out about the merge, but not so much that she doesn’t want to be with Josie. They start stripping and make out on Josie’s bed. Finch’s eyes suddenly glow yellow. “Does that always happen when you kiss a girl?” Josie asks, just like Finch asked about the sparks when they first kissed. Nope, this is the first time. “Well, get used to it,” Josie says. The salt they used for the spell rises in the air and explodes in mini-fireworks.
Kaleb revives in the cell in the gym that the squad was using to hold Malidon. He’s back to his old self, but he still has some of his dragon characteristics. Alaric tells him that all the people he and Ethan infected are back to normal and don’t remember what happened. Kaleb asks about Landon, and Alaric just shakes his head. Kaleb says he doesn’t know what he was thinking. Alaric replies that love makes people do stupid things – that’s the story of his life. “Mine, too,” Cleo says as she enters the gym. Alaric gives her the keys to the cage and leaves the two of them alone. She says she’ll tell Kaleb everything about her little adventure when they go on a date. Right now, she’d like to pray for Landon with him.
Alaric meets Hope in the town square once he’s sure everyone else at the school is safe. She asked him not to tell anyone he was coming, since she knows someone will come once they find out what happened. He says that’s just because they love her. “They’ll eventually realize what I have – love is a burden,” she tells him.
He tries to empathize, knowing she’s in a dark place, but she says he can’t have any idea what she’s going through. She thought she was ready to become the tribrid and kill Landon, and to deal with all the emotions that would come with that. Alaric says that Hope’s grandmother turned him into a vampire once, so he knows how it feels. She asks why he didn’t turn off his emotions. He replies that that’s never the answer.
“Isn’t it?” Hope asks.
Alaric realizes what she’s saying. She tells him that her humanity shut off the second she stabbed Landon. She’s kind of liking it. She was sick of her emotions controlling her and making her relive the cycle of “love, lose, grieve, repeat” over and over. She’s finally free. He shouldn’t try to talk her out of it. She’s not going back.
Alaric asks why she brought him there. She says she wants to send a message to the Super Squad so they’ll stay away. He doesn’t think they’ll listen. “I’ll make it loud and clear,” Hope replies, vamping out.
Etc.: “See You on the Other Side” should have been the title of the previous episode.
You know how I said the scene where Damon tries to get through to Bonnie and the scene where Damon keeps forgiving Stefan were like the Buffy yellow crayon scene? So are the scenes here where Alaric urges Kaleb to fight Malivore and Finch basically defeats Dark Josie with love. And Landon regaining control of his body just before Hope kills him is just like the scene where Buffy kills Angel.
I can’t believe that when Hope tells Landon she loves him, he doesn’t reply, “I know.”
Alaric says it would have been wrong for him to turn off his humanity right after Esther turned him, but he was already evil, so it would have just been redundant.
Also, do you think the twins know what Alaric did while he was evil, including to Caroline?
An Eternity of Misery 