The Vampire Diaries Finale Is The End Of An Era

From Dracula to Damon Salvatore, vampires have come a long way in pop culture. Although the bloodsucking creatures have been in our stories for centuries, the obsession with vampires is a more recent development. The Twilight saga, published 11 years ago, kicked off a fang phenomenon. What followed was a massive influx of vampire movies and TV shows all featuring a familiar breed of vampires. Vampire fiction became highly romanticized and much, much sexier. It involved forbidden love, beautiful people, and plenty of abs.

With The Vampire Diaries taking its final bow on Friday, it begs the question: is this the final nail in the coffin of vampires in pop culture?

The vampire craze was HUGE after Edward Cullen entered our lives. We saw great television shows like True Blood (2008) and The Vampire Diaries (2009), and we saw not-so-great films like Abraham Lincoln: Vampire Hunter and Vampire Academy. By the end of 2014, it seemed like vampire lore was dying down (to be replaced by superheroes and zombies), however The CW cult favorite remained strong.

The Vampire Diaries was the CW's most-watched premiere (4.9 mil/2.1) and has brought steady ratings ever since. The show's popularity has kept it going for eight epic seasons. Now that it's ending (with its spinoff series likely to follow), there will no longer be a prominent vampire show in our pop culture rhetoric.

In honor of The Vampire Diaries' final episode, let's take a look back on iconic vampires in pop culture history.

Even though The Vampire Diaries is ending, vampires will never truly go away. They will always have a place in our narrative, and we'll continue to have an undying love for vampire lore long after they leave our screens.

However, like any large-scale trend, there's always a possibility of a revival. It’s time for vamps to go back into the shadows, making occasional ventures into Hollywood daylight, until the inevitable time comes when they can entrance us once again.