“Legacies” is the CW's delightful spin-off of “The Vampire Diaries” and “The Originals" with new adventures, new monsters, plenty of teenage angst, and complicated relationship drama. Where the first two series typically maintained serious tones with humor woven throughout, “Legacies” isn't afraid to get quirky which is highlighted in the last episode when the school faces off with a unicorn carrying mind-altering slugs. The end of both previous series frees up the new series for an opportunity to expand the world with monsters not seen before and a new mythology.
"Legacies" follows Hope Mikaelson, daughter of Klaus and Hayley, as she trains under the guidance of Alaric at the Salvatore School. Throughout the season, Hope has slowly let people in and formed a team of supernatural friends which includes Alaric's twin daughters Lizzie and Josie, vampire M.G, new student and werewolf Rafael, and seemingly non-supernatural Landon. Other occasional allies include Josie's ex Penelope and vampire Kaleb. The series stars Danielle Rose Russell, Aria Shahghasemi, Jenny Boyd, Kaylee Bryant, Peyton Alex Smith, Quincy Fouse, and Matt Davis, with Demetrius Bridges, Karen David, Lulu Antariksa, and Chris Lee recurring.
Familiar faces and love triangles
Several of the characters from the previous two series have made their way onto “Legacies.” Landon originally appeared in the fifth and final season of “The Originals” as Hope's human crush who was being bullied.
Matt Donovan, the resident human on “The Vampire Diaries,” has made a few appearances as Mystic Falls' sheriff. Dorian first showed up on “The Vampire Diaries" and is now recurring as a teacher at the Salvatore School. Lizzie and Josie's birth mother Jo had made a trip from the dead to finally meet her daughters and say good-bye to Alaric.
Jeremy Gilbert, Elena's little brother, has also made an appearance in an episode. Several familiar people have been mentioned including Klaus, Stefan, Bonnie, Damon, and Elena. Caroline has yet to appear on the series but has been mentioned several times and still manages to spend quality time with daughters Lizzie and Josie who often go off to visit their mother.
Season one of "Legacies" set up multiple relationships with plenty of drama, complications, and love triangles. The last episode surprises fans with a love triangle between the three notable adults at the school. Alaric and Emma sing a duet when the slugs takeover and even share some kisses which is complicated by the fact she's dating Dorian. The world of "The Vampire Diaries" has always had a knack for developing complex relationships which "Legacies" continues through the relationships of the teenagers.
Hope is currently dating Landon but has a strong connection to Landon's best friend Rafael who feelings for her have significantly developed over the last few episodes. Other romantic entanglements include Lizzie and Josie vying over Rafael when he first arrives at the school, MG pining for Lizzie, and Josie's complicated past with Penelope.
The relationship drama is balanced out with the students fighting to prevent a variety of unusual supernatural monsters from getting keys and the mystery of Malivore which seems to have Landon at the center.
Landon's origins and two road trips
The biggest mystery so far has been about Landon's origins and his connection to Malivore. He grew up in foster care so all he has from his past is a photo of his biological mother holding him as a baby. This mystery drives him to search for answers and eventually does find his mother which leads to a shocking reveal by her to Alaric: she not only spent time in Malivore but when she managed to escape and when she did she discovered she was pregnant with Landon.
Several clues have led to fan theories about Landon's role such as his complete lack of magic, his draw to the keys, and the lack of interest the mind-control slugs have in him. When asked if Landon's father will be met this season, Executive Producer Julie Plec teases Landon will be coming face to face-ish with his father. Plec also hints at Alaric's fate which she shares will be hanging in the balance, Hope's continued evolution from loner to leader, several more monsters which include classic monsters, and a big reveal at the end which will serve as the season's cliffhanger.
Hope and her friends face off against plagues and a mummy in the CW hit's next episode, “There's a Mummy on Main Street." The press release from the CW teases a road trip for Hope, Lizzie, Josie, Alaric, Dorian, Kaleb, and Emma who go in search for the missing urn which is the second key to Malivore and last seen being tossed into the water by Alaric.
During the episode, Hope (Danielle Rose Russell) deals with Lizzie's annoyance at her for ruining past spring breaks while Mystic Falls faces a quarantine which puts the students in danger of having their supernatural secrets exposed. The promo teases a plague of insects with one biting Josie (Kaylee Bryant) and everyone running for cover as Alaric (Matt Davis) reveals these are plagues as Dorian (Demetrius Bridges) adds the ominous conclusion the insects are just the harbingers of the monster to come. The episode airs February 28.
In the episode “The Boy Who Still Has a lot of Good to Do” finds M.G, Landon, and Rafael taking a trip to see M.G's parents, only for M.G (Quincy Fouse) and Landon (Aria Shahghasemi) to go missing and Rafael (Peyton Alex Smith) to lose any memory of what happened to his friends.
Hope, Alaric, and Kaleb (Caleb Lee) work together to find them. The episode is directed by Paul Wesley and airs March 7.
The following episode marks the return of the Mystic Falls beauty pageant first seen in “The Vampire Diaries” when the Salvatore School acts as host. The episode “Let's Just Finish The Dance” finds Hope having to deal with her magic malfunctioning after a recent trauma and the surprising return of Roman (Jedidiah Goodacre), Hope's ex from “The Originals” who played a part in the death of Hope's mother Hayley. According to the press release, the episode also focuses on Landon's displeasure at Roman's return, M.G's struggles over his actions, and Josie's desire to win Miss Mystic being put second to Lizzie's own plans. The episode airs March 14.
