The Vampire Diaries returned this week with a flashback, a beheading, a few brotherly bonding moments and one whopper of an ending.

What did you think of the trip back to 1912 and the events we witnessed in the present day? As always, our Round Table team of Matt Richenthal, Steve Marsi, Dan Forcella and Eric Hochberger is here to break down all the action. Won't you join in?

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What was your favorite scene from the episode?
Matt: Probably the image of a blood-stained Stefan staring desperately at Elena after draining that poor woman in the alley. The look of shock on her face, of embarrassment on his, summed up by Damon's: Yeah. She's gonna need some time on that one.

Steve: It was more a collection of scenes: Damon's non-stop one-liners in the first half of the episode. Simultaneously helpful, hilarious and insulting, his interactions with Elena, Stefan and Rebecca were all priceless, even by Damon standards.

Dan: My favorite scene had to be the reveal of the Alaric twist, which we will get to in the next question.

Eric: Mine was almost more of a quote, but really anything related to Damon playing the sober coach. Can't wait continue along the road to recovery.

What did you think of the Alaric twist?
Matt: Totally bad ass. Remember how much fun Alaric was when Klaus took over his body last season? We know Matt Davis has the range, so I can't wait to see how this plays out. And because we also know there's a good chance he's leading TVD, we can expect something substantial to go down.

Steve: Very well done. Even on a show where fans expect the unexpected, I doubt many saw that one coming. The flashbacks dovetailed nicely with the present-day action, too, in explaining the links between the Mystic Falls murders and the rings that unknowingly compelled their perpetrators.

Dan: I loved it... mostly because it took my idiot brain so long to figure out what exactly was going on. Using the comparison to the Gilbert girl from 1912 had my head all spinning, but once I finally realized what was actually going on with 'Ric, I was pleased with the twist.

Eric: As much as I was screaming RED HERRING with Meredith, I won't even pretend to claim I predicted Alaric as the killer. It's kind of beyond awesome. 'Ric has been one of my favorite characters from the beginning and it's exciting to seem to elevated beyond Damon's BFF.

Sage or Lexi: Which vampire from the Salvatore brothers' past would you rather... hang out with?
Matt: I'd say Lexi. But then she showed up on 90210 and I lost all respect for her.

Steve: Lexi. Cuter, and probably comes with lower odds of an ass whomping.

Dan: Yeah, it's definitely Lexi. Sage is way too scary. I'm afraid of her just watching through my TV. Awwww, I miss Lexi.

Eric: Lexi. As much as I like a little abuse while... hanging out... she might take it to a whole new scary level. One I don't live through.

More surprising development: That girl's head falling off in 1912, Meredith actually being on the side of good, or Matt playing a helpful role this week?
Matt: The second two options were certainly more of a big deal, and I didn't really see either coming. But in terms of actual shock? Of screeching like a third grader whose mom forgot to cut the crust of my peanut butter and jelly sandwich? Gotta go with the decapitation.

Steve: Gotta be Matt. Stefan decapitating that girl was surprising, for sure, but perfectly in character given his ripper roots (which we now know the birth of). As for Meredith's shadiness, nothing on TVD is what it seems, so it made sense that there was a twist. Matt threw me for a loop, though. Who was covering his shift(s) at the Grill, I wondering.

Dan: I absolutely loved the few bonding moments between Damon and Stefan. They're slowly but surely returning to their old ways, and each of them recognizes that they were better off that way. Damon did always make a better bad guy.

Eric: Oh, for sure Matt. Just being involved in a storyline alone warrants a surprise development, but helping out AND hiding in a closet with his beautiful ex-girlfriend and not trying to play 7 Minutes in Heaven? Dude wins across the board. Sorry, Return of the Ripper...

To what era should the show flashback to next?
Matt: The steroids era in baseball. Vampire strength and performance enhancing drugs? Damon would erase Barry Bonds from the record book!

Steve: The 1960s. We need to see Damon and Stefan kicking it backstage at some Rolling Stones concerts in rock and roll's heyday. Ian Somerhalder has thrown this out there multiple times, Julie Plec ... take a hint and make the talent happy.

Dan: How about some 80s? I heard Damon killed in Flashdance.

Eric: Ha, I have to agree with Steve and Ian on this one. It need not be 60s, but really I think we need to see the Salvatore boys following some rock band, snacking on some groupies back stage. Follow up: I could go for Paul's idea from the PaleyFest panel of Forrest Gumping some major moments.

Matt Richenthal is the Editor in Chief of TV Fanatic. Follow him on Twitter and on Google+.