give me top 5 elijah moments hahaha changing it up.
i hate you. disclaimer: i don’t like elijah past TO season 1, so no moments from there. :) gonna give you some rambling meta bc i know how much you love that. did i pick moments? who knows, who cares, have some elijah thoughts.
1. ANY TIME THIS FUCKER THROWS SOMETHING AT A BUILDING. COINS, ROCKS, AIR. Elijah used to be one scary motherfather. The way he just calmly gathers these items and just throws them without much stress? Yes, Klaus throws a picket fence through the GIlbert front door during the Season I Shall Not Name, but Elijah was the first OP vampire we ever met. He was formidable, calm, composed, and has a great arm. He set the standards for the Originals (which I feel like Plec totally undermined after season 2). I miss this Elijah so fucking much.
2. 2x19: Klaus. His interactions with Elena. Him walking into her room and touching her things. Him believing that she’ll flee and abandon him just like Katerina had. That episode is so exposing of Elijah because he projects Katerina onto Elena and expects Elena to behave as Katerina did, but Elena doesn’t have the same trauma as Katherine (which you know since you let me rant about this all the time) and so expecting Elena to be Katerina is unfair to both women. (Let’s also remember that Elena daggered Elijah, betraying him similarly to how he views Katerina did, but because Elena needs something from him, she comes back. The fact she comes back is the difference.)
This episode and his interactions with Elena and memories of Katerina solidify the fact that Elijah is on a path of redemption with Klaus’ curse. He wants to do right by the doppelgänger; he wants to do right by Tatia and Katerina. He can’t fail the doppelgänger again; he can’t have another dead woman on his hands (even though Katerina is very much alive and thriving). Why doesn’t Elijah just kill Elena? Because he wants the best of both worlds: redeem himself as the hero of the doppelgänger and redeem himself as the hero of Klaus.
He drops so many info bombs during this episode and he remains so calm, so poised, because the Elijah we see is a facade of who he really is.
3. Elijah chasing Katerina in the gardens. When you think about it, it’s such a human moment for Elijah. As a monster, his entire gameplay is cat and mouse, but he finally has a mouse that he doesn’t want to catch, because if he does, “the game will be over.” I always think he’s quietly referring to the sacrifice, which Katerina is unknowingly playing within the confines of at this point. Once she’s caught by he and his brother, the game—the wait for breaking Klaus’ curse, of Klaus feeling like half a man—will be over.
“I don’t believe in love, Katerina” is also such a great moment because “humanity is a vampire’s greatest weakness” and love is often associated with humanity. The way Elijah speaks to her in those moments is just so sad. Katerina has been able to reach a part of him he felt was dead for so long. It’s why he defies his brother and tries to save her. Katerina, a human girl, pities him, one of the greatest creatures in the universe, because he doesn’t believe in love. Their story probably begins with him pitying her, but Katerina Petrova fucking turns the narrative around onto him. It’s so fucking great.
They’re also dressed in earthy tones, which I love a lot.
4. 4x18: “What kind of man would I be if I didn’t try to find my Katerina beneath his Katherine facade?” is a quote that tells you all you need to know about Elijah. I have so many thoughts about it but I always view this as his admittance that he cannot accept someone like Katherine can be the woman he craved and coveted so long ago. He’s a romantic, even though I definitely believe he’s attracted to damsels in distress and very much feeds the Madonna/Whore complex that is often shoved onto Elena/Katherine.
But this episode is so good. Changing from “Katerina” to “Katherine”, him believing that Katherine can handle herself... It’s a pity the middle of the episode fell flat for him because his disbelief in Katherine exposes a wound in him that HE hasn’t healed properly. If you can turn against someone you love because someone told you about something awful they did, you have an immature view of what love is. It’s not about someone meeting all of your standards, it’s you loving them and their flaws. It’s about understanding them; Elijah does not understand Katherine, and it’s a fucking shame. Contrary to popular belief, his rejection of Katherine is a comment on Elijah, not her, and it’s a poor one. (This episode would’ve been brilliant IF the Katherine/Elijah story ended up with them together and him understanding Katherine = Katerina and she was always Katerina.)
5. “Gentlemen. Shall we?” Literally a boss moment in TO. The suave, the calmness, the fact that he is in a fucking suit. He’s smirking. He knows he’s going to kick your ass and not get blood on his suit but definitely splatter it on YOUR clothes. Elijah is frightening and this scene captures his posture and composure so freaking well.
I miss the Elijah who would touch his suit and try and flatten it out. I miss the Elijah who would clean his hands with his handkerchief. This is a true boss moment.
An honourable mention is his interaction with Katherine and Stefan in the tomb and I have so many stupid thoughts about it, but my thoughts on that is covered by #2, #3 and #4, hence why it’s an honourable mention.
i don’t know how to make gifs work in posts, but the still and gifs are amazing! please give the makers some love and reblog.
