Finally. A series devoted to my beloved Klaus Mikaelson — and his family. This time, instead of terrorizing the supernatural beings in Mystic Falls, the Originals are out for blood (pun intended) as they return to their home in New Orleans only to find that there is a new king on the throne — one that none other than Klaus sired and loved as his own. And its none other than the charismatic teeth baring dude that is Marcel. Don’t worry, TVD fans, we have not met him, or heard of him but the pilot firmly establishes his origins.

Klaus (Joseph Morgan) returns to New Orleans after 100 years to find the witch who has threatened him in a letter. But things are different from when he left. Witches who used to pose a strong challenge against vampires are cowered by a vampire so strong that he controls the city with an iron grip, and knows when anyone is performing magic. When Klaus meets the tyrant face to face, he is surprised to see that it is Marcel, a boy whom he raised and loved as his own many many years before. He is further surprised when he learns that his one night affair with the werewolf Hayley has made her pregnant. With the witches promising to keep Hayley (Phoebe Tonkin) safe, they manipulate Klaus into executing their plan of destroying Marcel (Charles Michael Davis). With the support of his siblings Elijah (Daniel Gillies) and Rebekah (Claire Holt), the Originals must band together to protect their family and regain what the Mikaelsons lost when they were driven from their home a century ago.

While I am not an avid follower of The Vampire Diaries, I loosely follow the plot because of the arrival of The Original vampires to Mystic Falls. My favorite of the lot is Klaus because he is so deliciously wicked and arrogant that every scene with him in it becomes immediately interesting. Its great that The CW thought of giving him his own spinoff show because I don’t think any other character from the show could do the same so effectively. Pitting him against a cool guy with a disturbingly bright set of pearly whites is kind of brilliant because it highlights the contrast between Klaus’s old school charm and Marcel’s funkier vibe. His (Marcel’s) constant “squint and smirk”  is mildly annoying but considering that he is playing the villain of the piece, I will forgive him for that.

What I like about the direction of the series is the family component of the show. After all that is said and done, the Mikaelsons stick together and as a unit, they are a force to be reckoned with. It is interesting to see Klaus and Rebekah making peace for the sake of Elijah, Klaus’s constant need to build on the tough guy facade, his lack of remorse even for his wrong choices and the understanding among the siblings no matter what issues get between them. I am looking forward to the possibilities between Elijah and Hayley (just a hunch), Klaus and Cammie, not so much and the tension between Rebekah and Marcel (I hope Rebekah kicks his sorry a*s). The witches will cause further complications down the road but for now, in the vibrant city of New Orleans, The Originals have managed to set the stage for a showdown unlike any other in the TVD universe and I, for one, can’t help but be excited about it. While the Originals is indeed a spawn of the TVD universe, it manages to be more intense in its approach and more straightforward in tackling issues between blacks and whites, slavery and the like which happened in the past. There is a lot of room to grow for this series and this is one of the reasons why this is a show to watch out for.

All in all, The Originals manages to present itself as a composite of Interview with a Vampire and Twilight quite successfully and this is a surefire way to get the teenage girls swooning, Score another point for The CW. #TeamKlaus all the way!