'The Vampire Diaries: The Complete Sixth Season' Blu-Ray Review

Season 6 of ‘The Vampire Diaries’ is now available on Blu-Ray, and it will forever be known as the last season for series star Nina Dobrev. So does the BD do justice to what is a turning point for this popular CW series? Warner Bros. has you in good hands.

Dobrev’s exit is the most buzzy part of this season of Vampire Diaries, but there’s a lot of other stuff going on here, too. With Elena returning to Whitmore College, it sometimes feels like the college part of Buffy the Vampire Slayer, with supernatural mayhem and campus drama in equal measure. Like that show, TVD has figured out how to balance both parts of its story.
Season 6 is busy both on and off screen. There’s time travel, flashbacks, amnesia, a wedding and death for the residents of Mystic Falls, while Matthew Davis (Alaric) is promoted back to series regular, both Paul Wesley (Stefan) and Ian Somerhalder (Damon) direct episodes, and both Dobrev and Michael Trevino (Tyler) make this their last season. So if you’re a die-hard fan or even just a casual viewer, this is a season you should see if only because there’s a lot packed into it.

The most interesting part of the season involves the arrival of Lily, a woman whose identity is a major spoiler in and of itself. She’s portrayed by Annie Wersching (best known as Renee Walker on 24), who makes a fantastic addition to the series and plays well off the existing cast, particularly Somerhalder. To say much more would be giving too much away, but her seven appearances are definitely highlights.
The way in which Elena is written out and the note on which the season ends will likely cause a lot of discussion, and understandably so. It’ll be hard to really judge if either idea worked until we see their aftereffects in Season 7. For which, here’s the sizzle reel:

The Blu-Ray Set

Warner Bros. Home Video, which being the BD/DVD arm of Warner Bros. is responsible for releasing the majority of CW programming, is also one of the best studios when it comes to TV on DVD releases. Their collections are always well-produced and at least decently packed with bonuses, and The Vampire Diaries: The Complete Sixth Season is no exception.
Firstly, the video quality and audio quality here is great – especially since we’re talking about a show that is by nature very dark and full of spooky sounds. Given that, it’s really nice to have a presentation where you can still see details and hear every scream, instead of squinting at your TV and asking “What?” And that’s the most important part.
Special features aren’t abundant, but they’ll keep TVD fans happy. The best one is a featurette called “Good Bite and Good Luck,” which naturally addresses Dobrev’s departure and her importance to the series. That’s exactly the kind of bonus you want when a main cast member leaves.
The rest are a mixed bag full of missed opportunities. “Best Reactions Ever” is just a roll of fan reactions to the season, which while it’s nice to see service paid to the show’s devoted audience, doesn’t have a lot of rewatch value. EP Julie Plec sits in for commentary on “Let Her Go,” but you can’t help but wonder why cast members weren’t involved, or why there wasn’t a track for the season finale with its big reveals.
A San Diego Comic-Con panel is included, but it’s from 2014, so many fans have probably either seen it in person or on YouTube since last July. The set is rounded out by a gag reel, deleted scenes, and an ad promoting Georgia, where TVD films.
It’s not the best special features package that WB has ever put together, but at least it includes a bonus for the one thing that most people will have on their minds when they think of Season 6 – and the wonderful production of the episodes themselves (plus a free Ultraviolet digital copy of said episodes) makes it still worth a purchase. The Vampire Diaries: The Complete Sixth Season may not be a game-changer for this big season, but it does all the fundamental things right.
The Vampire Diaries has its season seven premiere on Thursday, October 8 on The CW. The Vampire Diaries: The Complete Sixth Season is available now Blu-Ray, DVD and Digital HD.

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