u/Alternative-Meet-569

One thing I’ll always give The Originals credit for is how it handled Black characters and culture compared to The Vampire Diaries. It felt intentional in a way that TVD just… didn’t.
The Mikaelsons were a lot of things—petty, violent, dramatic—but they were never written with that weird racial bias energy you see in some shows. They interacted with Black witches like they were powerful, respected, and integral—not disposable.
And the New Orleans witches? The accents, the tone, the presence—it actually felt Southern and specifically Black New Orleans. It wasn’t watered down or made “neutral” for TV. You could hear the culture in the way they spoke, carried themselves, and moved. For the most part.
That kind of authenticity matters, and it made the world feel real.
It honestly makes me think the behind-the-scenes environment on The Originals had to be different from The Vampire Diaries, because how Bonnie Bennett and Kat Graham was treated was disappointing , and because the difference in how Black characters were written and treated is noticeable.
Like… they didn’t just include Black characters—they let them have identity, culture, and presence. And I loved that.

Esther’s character raises a serious question: how do you create something and then dedicate eternity to destroying it?

She’s the one who turned her children into vampires in the first place. Whether everything went exactly as she planned or not, the reality is that she made that choice. The consequences—immortality, bloodlust, even Klaus becoming a hybrid—trace back to her actions. Yet instead of accepting that responsibility, she spends centuries trying to undo it by targeting her own children.

That contradiction is what makes her so frustrating. She repeatedly returns with the same goal: eliminate the very family she created. At a certain point, it stops feeling like justice and starts feeling excessive. The damage was already done generations ago. Vampires had already spread across the world. Trying to erase it all after the fact feels less like accountability and more like obsession.

What’s also striking is how much she underestimates her children. There are moments where it takes very little for them to recognize her or see through her plans, which makes her repeated attempts feel even more reckless. These are people she raised—she knows how intelligent and perceptive they are—yet she continues to act as if she can outmaneuver them easily.

At a certain point, it also becomes hard to ignore that she isn’t much better than Mikael himself. While he hunted and tried to destroy them through force, Esther pursues the same goal through magic. The methods are different, but the outcome is the same—relentless attempts to eliminate her own children. In that sense, she mirrors the very behavior that made Mikael so feared.

Esther’s story could be read as guilt taken to an extreme, but it often comes across as a refusal to fully own the consequences of her choices. Instead of trying to guide or help her children, she chooses destruction, which raises bigger questions about whether her actions are truly about fixing a mistake—or avoiding responsibility for it.

Curious how others see her: tragic, justified, or just deeply flawed as a mother?

This is something I’ve been thinking about: did all of the Mikaelson siblings actually fear Mikael to the same extent Klaus did, and did they all share the same level of resentment toward Esther?

Klaus’s fear of Mikael is very clear throughout The Originals and The Vampire Diaries. It feels deeply personal and rooted in years of abuse, especially considering how Mikael treated him differently from the others. But when it comes to the rest of the siblings, it’s not always as clearly defined.

For example, Elijah is often portrayed as composed and loyal, but there are moments that suggest even he wasn’t immune to Mikael’s violence (like when Mikael attempted to kill him permanently). That raises the question of whether Elijah’s calm demeanor masked a similar fear, or if he processed it differently. And he fed off of vampires at that.

Then there’s Finn, who seems more aligned with Esther’s beliefs—arguably making him more of a “mother’s son.” Klaus also had strong ties to Esther at times, while Rebekah’s dynamic felt more like she sought Mikael’s approval, almost in a “daddy’s girl” way. Kol, on the other hand, often comes across as someone who craved validation, possibly from Mikael as well. Freya’s position is even more complex, given her separation from the family and her connection to both parents in different ways.

So it raises a bigger question: did they all truly fear Mikael the same way Klaus did, or did each of them experience him—and Esther—completely differently based on their own relationships and roles within the family?
Because in my opinion, Klaus look for validation and love from both of his parents, even though Mikael wasn’t his father and Esther hated him. He still wanted that love.

Curious to hear how others interpret this dynamic.

The Mikaelson siblings are one of the most compelling parts of The Originals, yet it often feels like their story was only partially explored. As a family—Freya, Finn, Elijah, Klaus, Kol, and Rebekah—they carried centuries of history, but much of that history was only briefly shown through scattered flashbacks.

There was a clear opportunity for the series to dive deeper into their past. Their lives before and after becoming vampires, their relationships with other witches, and the early dynamics shaped by Esther and Mikael could have easily supported entire episodes or even a full season. The glimpses that were shown often felt richer and more layered than some of the present-day storylines, leaving the sense that a significant part of their narrative was left untold.

Another overlooked piece of their story is the brother who died before they were turned into vampires. Very little is explored about him, his life, or what truly happened. Given Esther’s background as a witch, there could have been a narrative potential to expand on that storyline—whether through deeper backstory, magical implications, or even the possibility of his presence impacting events later on. It could have added an entirely different layer to the Mikaelson legacy, especially as the only brother who never became a vampire, contrasting with Freya as the only sister who didn’t share that fate.

Beyond their history, the sibling dynamic itself deserved more attention. While conflict was central to their story, it sometimes overshadowed the idea of “always and forever” that defined them. More moments of them simply existing as a family—without betrayal or violence—could have added depth and balance to their relationships.

Even characters like Finn, who often stood apart from the others, showed signs of complexity that could have been further developed over time. With more space and a longer run, there was potential to explore how his perspective might have evolved within the family dynamic.

Overall, the Mikaelsons were more than just the conflicts they faced. Their past, their bond, and their evolution as a family had the potential to be explored on a much deeper level, and it feels like a missed opportunity that the series didn’t spend more time on it.

Klaus and Kol are easily one of the most underrated duos in the series. While the Mikaelson family as a whole delivered some of the strongest scenes—especially when all the siblings were together—there was something uniquely entertaining about the dynamic between these two.

Their interactions carried a chaotic, unpredictable energy that stood apart from the more serious relationships in the family. Where other pairings leaned heavily into loyalty, conflict, or emotional depth, Klaus and Kol brought a kind of humor that felt natural and unforced. Their exchanges were often sharp, unfiltered, and genuinely funny, often balancing out the darker tone of the show.

At the same time, their relationship hinted at a deeper, more complicated dynamic that was never fully explored. After their conflicts, there were clear undertones of tension that suggested unresolved feelings. It often came across as though Kol felt sidelined—especially in moments where Klaus prioritized others, like Marcel—leaving an impression of quiet resentment or even abandonment.

Despite that, whenever they did share scenes, their chemistry stood out. The mix of tension, history, and humor made their interactions feel layered and engaging in a way that deserved far more attention.

While Klaus and Elijah remain one of the central dynamics of the series, Klaus and Kol offered something different—an entertaining, complex sibling dynamic that felt like wasted potential due to how little it was explored.

Rebekah Mikaelson was dead wrong, I’m sorry.

I understand she loved hard and she can be irrational — and yes, Klaus Mikaelson was wrong too. He was angry, controlling, and did a lot of messed-up stuff. Nobody’s denying that.

But nothing Klaus did to Rebekah was bad enough for her to bring Mikael into it — the ONE person whose whole mission was to kill Klaus. That’s not just emotional or impulsive, that’s dangerous on a whole different level.

And Elijah saying she “loved him” and was willing to kill Mikael for Klaus? That doesn’t hit the same when she’s the one who brought Mikael in the first place. Even if her intention was just to make Klaus run, you still set him up to be hunted and killed. That’s crazy.

And on top of that, Klaus had valid reasons for not wanting her with Marcel Gerard. He literally raised Marcel — Rebekah watched him grow up. That dynamic alone is weird.

At the end of the day, Klaus was flawed, but Rebekah crossed a line that can’t be downplayed.

Period.