Families are complicated. Being around each other for more than one lifetime certainly does not make things easier. Stefan and Damon face many problems in the 145 years they spend since becoming vampires, and deal with more hurdles when they reunite in Mystic Falls. The Salvatore brothers have many issues that start when Katherine entered their lives in 1864, and it takes decades for their relationship to look brighter. But, while Damon and Stefan may have been the original struggling family on The Vampire Diaries, they are not the only siblings to squabble or family to handle critical problems.
The Mikaelson siblings are even more dysfunctional than the Salvatore brothers. Having been around for over one-thousand years, they have had centuries to work together, betray, fight, come back together, and dagger each other. Although Elijah and Klaus reveal a taste of the Mikaelson drama, when Rebekah, Kol, and Finn wake up, and Esther and Mikael join the party, things get much more exciting. Even Caroline, Elena, and Jeremy have their fair share of drama in Mystic Falls. In Legacies, familial issues also continue due to Hope taking on her father’s enemies and Josie and Lizzie facing the Gemini Coven Merge.
10 Elena Kept Secrets from Jeremy and Jenna
One of Elena’s biggest problems is how her desperation to keep Jeremy and Jenna safe results in her making decisions for them and keeping them in the dark about the supernatural. Jeremy’s discovery that Vicki had become a vampire is shocking, but at least he has answers about what happened to her and knows she died when Stefan staked her. However, Jeremy grieving another lost loved one results in Elena asking Damon to wipe Jeremy’s memory, disregarding how Jeremy would feel about it.
Regarding Jenna, Elena determined that no information was the best action. She ignored that Jenna knowing the truth may have allowed her to be safer, as she would have been prepared. Elena never even warns Jenna that her birth mother has still been around and has been married to Alaric.
9 Caroline’s Parents Rejected and Tortured Her
When Liz first learns Caroline is a vampire, she is the furthest thing from supportive. She believes her daughter is gone, and a soulless creature lives in her place. Although Liz eventually came around and understood that Caroline was still there, she put her daughter through much pain before getting there. Bill’s reaction was far more violent. He captured and physically tortured Caroline for being a vampire, as if his methods could change her. Instead, all he did was give her a traumatic experience and memories.
8 Stefan and Damon’s Eternity of Misery
Damon follows through on his threat of giving Stefan an eternity of misery over the decades. While they are not always fighting in flashbacks, none of their meetings end well. Their reunion in Mystic Falls helps them work together for a bigger purpose, which does help heal their relationship. Still, Damon and Stefan have significant problems. Damon has no issues ruining his brother’s relationship with Elena. Meanwhile, Stefan could never not help Damon, even when it dragged him down.
7 Klaus Daggers His Siblings
Perhaps one of the worst portrayals of his inability to trust came from Klaus choosing to dagger his siblings. Whenever his siblings disappointed Klaus, or he felt like he had been betrayed, Klaus jumped to the dagger, which meant leaving his family in coffins for decades, or in Finn’s case, centuries. Klaus’ actions steal time from his siblings and cause them to resent him for daggering them as often as he does. Klaus does not have it in him to let his siblings go, even for the sake of a more healthy relationship, and out of fear, he places them in boxes instead.
6 Esther, Mikael, and Finn Try to Kill the Others
Esther and Finn are against vampirism and want to right the wrongs of the past. But, to do that, it usually means attempted murder on the rest of the Mikaelsons, which always ends up failing. In The Originals, Esther schemes to place her children in the bodies of witches to strip them of their immortality. Finn actually does kill Kol and happily obliges his mother’s requests to cause harm to the rest of the family. Over the centuries, Mikael had searched for and hunted down Klaus, wishing to get rid of the boy who had killed Esther and had never been his biological son.
5 Giuseppe and Lily Salvatore Are Terrible Parents
Giuseppe Salvatore is a horrible father. He is harsh and abusive to the boys, and one of the spearheads of the movement against vampires. He even kills his sons for being Katherine’s allies. The first moment that proves Stefan’s Ripper instincts is when he kills his father and cannot stop drinking his blood. Lily Salvatore is not the best mother either, becoming a vampire and never trying to re-create a relationship with the sons she left behind. Instead, Lily creates a new family and even fights against Damon and Stefan when they reunite after she and the Heretics come out of the Prison World.
4 Kai Tried to Kill Lizzie and Josie
To prevent the next generation of Gemini witches from growing up and eventually taking on the role of Coven Leader, Kai attempted to kill them. The first attempt occurred when Jo was still pregnant and backfired when Jo died, and the twins were magically placed into Caroline. His second attempt came when the girls were young. On Legacies, Kai tried for a third time after spending the day with Josie. He joins forces with Alyssa to have her destroy his link to the Prison World, which would kill everyone inside it, even Lizzie and Josie.
3 The Gemini Coven Merge
No matter which show it occurs, the Gemini Coven Merge is a great way to show a dysfunctional and messy family dynamic. In The Vampire Diaries, Kai is revealed to have killed nearly his entire family, other than his twin, to take on the position of Coven Leader. The more emotional side of what it would mean is portrayed through Liv and Luke, who do not wish to lose each other. In Legacies, Lizzie and Josie face the emotional ramifications of learning only one might survive passed twenty-two years old. During the Dark Josie arc, she sets up the Merge against Lizzie early on a technicality.
2 Hope Inherits Her Father’s Enemies
If it was not bad enough that Klaus made thousands of years worth of enemies, when he died, Hope inherited them. Although Legacies does not spend all of its time showing Hope face off against her father’s remaining rivals, the fourth season does examine the complicated dynamic between Hope and Aurora. Aurora had loved and hated Klaus, and due to the time she grew up, she had never received a proper examination for her mental health. Aurora does not need to be an enemy, but her wish to get back at Klaus results in Aurora temporarily waging war against Hope.
1 Rebekah Calls for Mikael
Perhaps one of the most outstanding examples of betrayal in the Mikaelson family was when Rebekah and Marcel brought Mikael to New Orleans. Rebekah and Marcel wanted to be happy together, and never thought Klaus would back off and allow their relationship to flourish. Rebekah and Marcel bring Mikael to New Orleans to give themselves a chance at happiness, to force Klaus to run. It does not work out in their favor, though. Not only must Klaus flee from the home he built. The city itself goes up in flames, and Rebekah is forced to run with Klaus when she believes Marcel is dead.
