Vampire Diaries gives Twilight a shout-out

CW 2009

Last night before Vampire Diaries aired, co-executive producer Julie Plec sent out a message on twitter. "It's #vampirediaries time! Please watch for a funny Twilight shout-out." After the teaser they'd shown last week for episode four, there was little other incentive needed to tune in. But there is many a Twilight fan who is also in love with the Vampire Diaries, or at the very least, interested, so this couldn't help but give the show a boost.

In one of the early scenes, Damon tells Stefan that he's covered his tracks so that he can stay in town a while. When Stefan asks how he has accomplished that, Damon's answer, a mountain lion, could have been the shout-out viewers were expecting. Twilight fans know that Edward's meal of choice is mountain lion. Though the reference was cute and clever, it may have been unintentional as became clear very quickly.

As the opening credits continued to roll, Damon was reclined on Caroline's bed reading as she tried on dresses for the founder's day celebrations. In between influencing her choices, Damon comments on the reading material, which the viewer only sees as a black book. Here is a transcript, courtesy of Twilight Examiner.

Damon: What’s so special about this Bella girl? Edward’s so whipped.

Caroline: You gotta read the first book first … won’t make sense if you don’t.

Damon: [Sigh] I miss Anne Rice. She was so on it.

Caroline: How come you don’t sparkle?

Damon: Cause I live in the real world where vampires burn in the sun.

Caroline: Yeah, but you go in the sun.

Damon: I have a ring. It protects me. Long story.

Caroline: Will these bites turn me into a vampire?

Damon: It’s more complicated than that. Yeah, you’d have to feed on my blood, then die, then feed on a human … it’s a whole ordeal. This book, by the way, has it all wrong.

Kevin Williamson has said that the popularity of Twilight has set the stage for Vampire Diaries to be successful. He also said the he intended to write Twilight references into the series, mentioning the scene we saw last night.

...I'm trying to put our characters in the real world. They're in the world of it - these are high school girls who actually read Twilight. We just wrote the scene where one of the girls finds out Ian Somerhalder's a vampire, and her first comment is, "Why don't you sparkle?"

So what do you think? Do you like the Twilight references? Do you think they pay homage or make fun? Comment Below