The Vampire Diaries is still on a mini-hiatus, so what to do in the mean time? Oh, yes — I know. How about watching TVD episodes over and over again?! Doesn’t that sound like such a great plan? Throughout the seasons, there has been outstanding, heart-wrenching, and down right jaw-dropping episodes. To choose one top-episode out of so many would just be cruel. Instead, let’s take a look at 10 episodes that majorly stand out — the ones we all love to watch many times over.

Let’s take a look at 10 episodes any TVD fan could watch over and over again:

(FYI, these are in no particular order).

1. Season 1, Episode 22, “Founder’s Day”

No top episode of TVD would be without mentioning the fierce Katherine Pierce. “Founder’s Day” was the episode of the big Katherine Pierce reveal — you know, the one where Kat pretended to be Elena, kissed Damon, and then entered the Gilbert household to casually cut off Uncle John’s fingers. I always remember her line, “Hello, John. Goodbye, John.” Yup, crazy, right? She did enter with a bang, and definitely left with one, too.

2. Season 3, Episode 19, “Heart of Darkness”

This one is for you, Delena shippers! This is the episode where Elena and Damon had that epic motel kiss that no one can ever forget. This scene was hot and steamy and was the start of something great. After Damon and Elena denying their feelings for each other for so long, it was refreshing to finally see them give in to what should have happened ages before that. For that scene only, that made the episode one of my favs.

3. Season 3, Episode 5, “The Reckoning”

Season 3 of TVD is by far my favorite season, and this episode will always stand out to me. This was when Klaus turned up to Mystic Falls and caused insane havoc. He threatened everyones lives and this was the first time we actually saw the real danger from being Klaus’ enemy. The top scene was when he tested Stefan’s willpower — he had to fight off his compulsion to not kill Elena. At the end, Klaus gave us one of the iconic lines of the show, “TURN IT OFF.” And with that, Stef turned off his humanity and began being the Rippah.

4. Season 4, Episode 15, “Stand by Me”

Nina Dobrev’s acting skills were on-point in this episode. This was when Elena finally gave in to the fact that Jeremy was really gone and there was nothing she could do to bring him back. The grief took over her and she ended up pouring alcohol over everything and then burning her house down since, there was nothing left for her there anymore. Elena’s complete mental breakdown still brings tears to my eyes — it was so painful to watch and see how much she was hurting. After all, at that point she was the only Gilbert left, so how she even carried on was remarkable. Again, bravo to Nina Dobrev for her amazing acting.

5. Season 4, Episode 23, “Graduation”

Just as we thought we couldn’t get any more doppelgänger’s on the show, they dropped this bombshell on us: It turns out Stefan Salvatore had one, too, and his name was Silas. At first I laughed, because I couldn’t get over how there was another one on the show, but then that laughter soon turned to tears when Silas locked Stef in a safe and pushed him into the water to drown over and over again for many months. Oh, you cruel person, Silas.

Not only that, but this was the episode where Katherine took the cure — or, moreso, Elena shoved it down her throat. After many guesses on who would get the only cure for vampirisim, I was so shocked when Kat ended up being the one who got it. It was a remarkable moment to watch one of the most feared baddies turn into a human — what a way to end season 4!

6. Season 3, Episode 22, “The Departed”

Again, another episode from season 3 stands out to me. Have I mentioned it’s one of my favorite seasons? This was the episode where Elena and Matt were run off Wickery Bridge (thanks to Rebekah), and they plunged right into the water. Stefan could only save one in time and Elena made him save Matt. By the time he got to Elena, it was too late and she was already dead — OMG! Little did we know then this was just the start of something new. Elena had vampire blood in her system so when she died, she came back as a vampire. What a cliff-hanger that one was!

7. Season 6, Episode 22, “I’m Thinking of You All the While”

The end of season 6 was truly iconic, but saddening. It was the episode where we would last see Elena before she went into her slumber. Thanks to Kai’s curse, Elena and Bonnie could no longer be alive at the same time as both their lives were now linked. So we had to say bye to Elena and watch her be put in a coffin for decades, while Bonnie could live out her life. It was an end of an era to watch Nina Dobrev’s last performance as Elena Gilbert. BTW, Nina, we miss you!

8. Season 7, Episode 21, “Requiem for a Dream”

This was the episode where we saw Bonnie Bennett turning bad — which was quite a shock, but slightly satisfying to see! After Bonnie’s life was on the line, drastic measures were taken to save her, which ended in her life being saved by the Huntress. However, Rayna Cruz left out the small print with her handing over her last life to Bonnie — she would take over her role as the Huntress! Oh, HELL NO! The tables turned from Bonnie saving her bffs, to her hunting them down. Luckily, they managed to stop her vampire-killing urges in the end. Wasn’t that an intense episode?

9. Season 6, Episode 1, “I’ll Remember”

This was the start of a pairing that we would forever love: Bamon! In this episode, we finally got to see what the heck happened to Bonnie and Damon when they vanished into oblivion. Were they sobbing over missing their loved ones? Or crying over the fact they were stuck in some strange place (AKA, Kai’s purgatory)? NOPE. The pair seemed to be living life to the fullest, and we even saw Damon whip up some pancakes for his BFF, Bonnie. Can I just take this moment to say that Damon was seriously swoon-worthy while wearing that red flannel. Great episode, agreed?

1.0 Season 2, Episode 12, “The Descent”

Remember Rose? This was the episode Damon showed his humanity and gave her a sweet dream before she sadly died from the werewolf venom. This was such a heart-wrenching episode to watch, but it was so lovely to see Damon being caring and doing something selfless. Didn’t you just love Damon for giving Rose a lovely send-off?

There are of course many other top TVD episodes (this was just a few)! What is your fav episode to watch over and over again? Share all your thoughts, feelings, and predictions in the comment section below. And don’t forget to give us a tweet at @Pure_Fandom and @OhMyZinaa. Make sure to keep up-to-date with all TVD news and posts here!

Love always,

Zina

The Vampire Diaries returns Friday, Jan. 13 at 8/7c on The CW.

(Image credit: The CW)