‘The Vampire Diaries’ series finale recap: "I Was Feeling Epic"

Goodbye, Stefan and Damon.(Photo: The CW)

Spoiler alert! The following contains spoilers for the series finale of The Vampire Diaries, I Was Feeling Epic.

Even Damon Salvatore gets to find peace.

The Vampire Diaries concluded its eight-season run on Friday with a whirlwind finale that should have you alternating between sobbing and grinning. Elena and Damon got to live happily ever, after. Bonnie got to live. Stefan made the ultimate sacrifice, but finally found redemption (and Lexi). Caroline and her girls moved on. Matt Donovan is running for mayor.

And Katherine Pierce is finally, finally gone.

Heres what went down in the very-appropriately titled I Was Feeling Epic.

Things were looking bleak at the very beginning of the episode. Although Bonnie was able to bounce back after her magic nearly killed her at the end of the previous episode, Vicky Donovan is still ringing that pesky bell and about to bring Hellfire down to destroy all of Mystic Falls, per Katherine.

Oh Katherine. Shes back, shes pissed and shes got Hell wrapped around her little finger. After pretending to be Elena one last time, she reveals shes hidden the real Elenas body, and that the bone dagger can only send her to Hell temporarily. She's trapped Elena in the high school under a spell from the late Kai. Stefan can't get Elena out and he Hellfire is about to rain down.Damon, as you might expect, is not interested in leaving.

Ric, Bonnie and the girls do leave, heading to the armory to clear the city limits. Its there that Bonnie comes up with a plan to save the world, as she says, redirecting the Hellfire back to destroy the dimension once and for all. And if Katherine is there when she does it, shes gone for good, too. Bonnie is able to pull it off with the help of Grams and some other Bennett ancestors.

The problem is, someone has to stay with Katherine to make sure shes daggered at just the right moment. In one last bit of brotherly banter, the Salvatores argue over who gets to sacrifice himself to save the world. Are you seriously going to stand here and argue with me over who needs this redemption more? Damon says. Yes Damon, Stefan is definitely going to do that.

Damon thinks hes won the argument after compelling the now-human Stefan to leave. The only thing is, as we find out later, Stefan has been taking Vervain. He resists and comes back at just the right moment, saving Damon (and curing him with his own blood) and dying with Katherine in his arms.

He sees Elena just before Bonnie is able to wake her up, and tells her about his sacrifice, giving her a message for Caroline. Then he walks off into the sunlight, where Lexi is waiting for him.

Elena wakes up and is, at last, reunited with Damon. And all is right in Mystic Falls.

In the episode's moving coda, everyone moves on with their lives, helped by the the guiding hands of those theyve lost. Andin a slightly ambiguous twist, Elena is reunited with the members of the Gilbert clan shes lost, including her parents. Damon and Stefan find each other once again, embracing in the episodes final moments. Does this mean Elena and Damon have died and found peace? Is it a dream?

Either way, its the happy ending theyve always wanted. Excuse us, well be over in the corner, sobbing.

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'The Vampire Diaries' series finale recap: "I Was Feeling Epic"