I have been watching The Vampire Diaries on Netflix. Tsathoggua and I give it two thumbs up. While the target audience is teenage girls, the show is far more Buffy the Vampire Slayer than Twilight.
My son adds the caveat that Buffy the Vampire Slayer contained far more vampire fighting than vampire fucking. Angel did not come along till later in the Buffy series. While there is some vampire slaying in The Vampire Diaries, the focus of the show is the romance between Elena and Stefan and the rivalry between Stefan and Damon.
Although the question does arise of how the holy hell a 162 year old being could abide being around high school kids, even if Elena is quite emotionally mature, the romance between Elena and Stefan comes off as far less creepy and psychologially abusive than the romance between Bella and Edward. Elena is also a better role model for teenage girls than is Bella. While she experiences depression following her breakup with Stefan, she does not become non-functional.
Overall, the series is well constructed without too many cringe-worthy lines. However, I find the need to beg the question of why the "good guy" vampires in modern times don't satiate their need for human blood from blood banks rather than relying on animal blood. As well, since it isn't necessary to kill a victim to feed...ah well, I'm not going to dwell on it.
If vampire fiction is your thing, give this show a go. It is a lot of fun.
