There are a lot of reasons to be pumped for The Vampire Diaries Season 7 premiere. Not only will we be able to sink our teeth (pun intended) into full-on Heretic drama, but we'll also get to see the Salvatore brothers take center stage — a bromance which has been robbed of the limelight for the past few seasons. But they won't be the only Mystic Falls relationship that will finally get the attention it deserves. As many of you probably already know by now, The Vampire Diaries will be introducing its very first same-sex couple in the form of newcomer Heretics Mary Louise and Nora.
Played by Teressa Liane and Scarlett Byrne, respectively, this dynamic duo will portray two witch/vampire hybrids who are very much in love and excited to live in a society that doesn't scoff at their affections for one another. (Don't forget that they've been trapped in an alternate dimension well before gay rights was ever even discussed.) So they are more than ready to live in this modern-day world. And while I'm eager to see how their relationship both develops and adjusts in light of all of this, I'm also extremely surprised that it's taken this long for TVD to introduce a same-sex relationship on the show.
In all six years that it's been on the air, The Vampire Diaries has prided itself on its many different 'shipping communities. From Delena and Klaroline to Steroline and even Bamon, these pairings have helped to breathe life into the series since Day 1. But they were all centered strictly around heterosexual couples. There was a brief period of time when I thought TVD was on the right track after bringing Luke on as a cast member. But then the writers did almost nothing with his character. In fact, he was all but forgotten for a while until they eventually decided to just kill him off.
We never got to know him as a person, let alone become familiar with any potential love interest. It was a missed opportunity to establish a LGBT community presence on the show, so I'm glad they've now decided to rectify that wrong. Mary Louise and Nora will play a pivotal role in a story arc that's been long overdue. So get ready, folks, because your next favorite TVD 'ship is just hours away from making its grand debut. You won't understand how you've managed to survive so long without it.
Images: Bob Mahoney/The CW; Annette Brown/The CW
