Vampire Academy Season 1 Episode 10 Review: Ascension
It’s all an out battle on Vampire Academy Season 1 Episode 10, “Ascension.”
The pacing of the hour is done well. Even when the sun is out and the Strigoi are hiding, we don’t lose any of the momenta. There’s only a finite number of hours til sundown, and there’s so much to be done.
Admittedly, I was expecting more suspenseful scenes spread throughout the hour, but we really only get one — the final battle where Christian is trying to dodge Strigoi and re-activate the wards.
You’re definitely on the edge of your seat, trying to keep your eye on all your favorite characters, making sure they’re surviving. This is exactly the kind of moment a big battle and a finale should have. Bravo, Vampire Academy.
The finale is able to give us some wonderful character moments in the midst of the battle: Lissa and the Queen, Rose and Dimitri, and Mia and Lissa all have some great moments.
It’s nice to be able to take a beat from the intensity of the Strigoi’s impending attack and focus on the characters and their relationships. As much as we love the action scenes, the characters are what have kept us tuning in, week after week.
Their growth and arcs shouldn’t be pushed aside for an action sequence, and Vampire Academy demonstrates that it knows this throughout this episode.
If you’ve read any of my prior reviews, then you know that I love Rose and Dimitri. Their scenes in the finale are perfect and demonstrate how well they’ve gotten to know each other. Instead of raving about them, let’s instead talk about Lissa and Christian because now I’m a shipper.
It was rough going for the majority of the season, but these last couple of episodes have made me finally root for them and their doomed romance. They are just so cute together. Lissa blurting out that the two of them are married is adorably hilarious.
“Ascension” sets up many things that a second season could explore — we better be getting a second season, Peacock!
Tatiana’s end goal and her connection to the Strigoi has to be one of the big mysteries of next season. It feels as if we’ve only scratched the surface of her and her villainy. She definitely has something even more nefarious up her sleeve.
Vampire Academy Season 1 does a great job of slowly introducing us to Tatiana and her duplicitous ways. We start out feeling uneasy about her, and then as the season progresses, we witness just how far she’ll go to achieve what she wants.
The flashbacks during “Ascension” show us how calculated she truly is, and how she’s left nothing to chance. Tatiana is a formidable big bad and a nice contrast to the Strigoi, the more obvious villains of the season, and I’m curious to see what she has in store for the dominion.
The fact that Rose and Lissa are going to be out in the human world on their own for part of Season 2 is exciting. For one, we’ll get some more one on one time with the two of them. It’s something that we didn’t get a lot of this season, and so the thought of them being on their own is exciting.
Also, this means that our characters are split up for part of the season. Season 2 will deliver some angst as we wait for Romitri and Dragozera to reunite. But, it also means our favorites will have to team up with some unexpected characters in the meantime.
New pairings are always a lot of fun. Christian hanging out with Mia on Vampire Academy Season 1 Episode 6, “Molnija,” is an extremely good example of this. This was probably the first moment I really started liking Christian.
I can’t wait to see what unexpected pairings we get in the (yet-to-be-confirmed) second season. Who would you like to see spend more time together? Obviously, Mason and Dimitri would be fun, but I’d also love to see Mia keep Dimitri in line.
Stray Thoughts
- Mia’s training sessions with Christian worked!
- Please tell me Alberta survived.
- What exactly is Meredith’s connection to the alchemists?
- Christian has endeared himself to me by using his research superpower to solve the ward issue.
- There’s absolutely no point in spending time with Jesse.
- We didn’t actually see Victor die, so maybe he made it through his encounter with Sonya.
- So has Dimitri been pardoned for the whole treason situation?
- I can’t wait to meet Rose’s dad.
- Andre being Strigoi is an unexpected curveball to throw our way, and I can’t decide how I feel about it yet.
What did you think of the Vampire Academy finale? Share your thoughts and hopes for Season 2 in the comments below!
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Vampire Academy is now streaming on Peacock.
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Allison Nichols
Allison is in a love affair with television that doesn't seem to be letting up anytime soon. Slightly damaged fictional characters are her weakness. She loves to spend her free time curled up with a cat and a show to binge-watch. Allison is a Tomatometer-approved critic (Rotten Tomatoes).