The Originals - S5E3 - Ne Me Quitte Pas

Previously on The Originals, “One Wrong Turn on Bourbon”

Il Faut Oublier (We Must Forget)

After last week’s quest for Hayley, The Originals slows things down and takes us back to the moments after Marcel compelled Elijah to forget his promise of always and forever. Without that seminal piece of his identity that grounded Elijah as a Mikaelson and a vampire, he’s like a newborn babe. When we first see him, he’s getting off a bus in the middle of nowhere and he doesn’t remember his family, his name, or even that he’s a vampire (Or that he has an accent. For some reason, non-Mikaelson Elijah is American). He feeds from an unsuspecting garage attendant and takes his car and drives to New York.

The next part is where I squealed like a fangirl. Even though I knew Jaime Murray (sci-fi/fantasy actress extraordinaire) was going to be on this season of The Originals, seeing her face is always a delight. Here she plays Antoinette, a loner vampire, who takes amnesiac Elijah under her wing and eventually into her bed. Antoinette is a vampire with a code. She soothes her victims rather than terrifying them, she doesn’t go out in the sun, she revels in being a vampire and she’s also respectful of humans. It’s a wonderful place for this show to go. Because the Mikaelsons are always fighting other supernatural beings, it’s rare that we just get the elegant beauty of a vampire and their victims.

Elijah’s new life is thrown into disarray when Marcel shows up warning him to leave New York before Rebekah shows up and Marcel also tells him that he compelled him because Elijah asked him to. Instead of delving deeper into who he is, Elijah decides to join Antoinette in Manosque, France playing piano and being happy and that’s where he’s been ever since… until Klaus. Klaus returns to Manosque after Elijah has just proposed to Antoinette and tries to compel her to leave and convince Elijah to return and help him find Hayley. And a million fangirl’s hearts break when Elijah tells Klaus that while he doesn’t remember him, he does know about the Mikaelsons and who he is but he doesn’t care and he won’t return. Elijah further proves his loyalty to Antoinette by taking off his daylight ring. He’s done being a Mikaelson for good.

The Good

• Everything. This episode was truly a masterful hour of storytelling. The reveal that Elijah knew who he was but chose to stay in Manosque was an graceful twist that was both tragic and striking. I now wonder how many times Klaus visited him and he knew exactly who he was.
• Jaime Murray. She is the best at playing the Yoko. She shows Elijah a new life and teaches him that all he’s known is fear but she truly cares for him while guarding him from the past she thinks will hurt him.

The Hollow

• Seeing Elijah and Klaus truly divided is sad but this season will rest on whether Klaus can shed his selfish ways and his crutches and save his family and himself. If this was the last we see of Elijah, it would be fitting because Klaus needs to walk on his own.

A show that has a clear end and a plan to get there is refreshing because it’s all about executing and this is what the final season of The Originals has been about so far. The execution is flawless and the characters are so fleshed out. This episode was directed by Joseph Morgan and it’s the third episode of The Originals he’s done. The growth this entire cast has made is phenomenal.