Riding on the wave of "Twilight" fan-demonium, the CW network launched their new series entitled "The Vampire Diaries" last night. Based on a series of novels by L.J. Smith (which were published pre-Twilight by the way), CW's latest offering hopes to repeat the book-to-TV adaptation success they have experienced with "Gossip Girl."

The Plotline:
Elena Gilbert (Nina Dobrev) and her brother, Jeremy, tragically lose both of their parents in a freakish car accident. Still grieving and searching for answers, Elena meets a mysterious new high school student (who is really a centuries-old vampire) named Stefan (Paul Wesley) who seems to share an immediate empathy for her parent-less existence. Elena is unaware that this new attraction has thrust her into a crazy world of vampire sibling rivalry as Stefan's sadistic brother Damon (Ian Somerhalder) shows up in the small town to steal some human souls.

The Verdict:
As I watched the premiere, I was pleasantly surprised by the quality of the acting, although Wesley should be a pro at playing the supernatural by now with a werewolf and half-angel on his resume ("Wolf Lake" and "Fallen"). Dobrev has that "Katie Holmes in Dawson's Creek" brooding beauty type-thing going for her, and I knew Somerhalder would be a great addition since I enjoyed his turn on the "Lost" island years ago.

If you have a legion of Twilight fans out there in your home or student ministry, they are either going to love or hate all the similaries in TVD. While it remains to be seen if Elena and Stefan will share the same chemistry that girls have gone ga-ga over with Twilight's Bella and Edward, there is certainly a good foundation for another interesting vampire/human love story. The vampires also seem to have special powers, so I am sure details of those will get unpacked in future episodes. And of course, there is the distinction between "good" non-human-attacking vampires like Stefan and "bad" human blood-sucking vampires like Damon.

The pilot was certainly fast-paced, already throwing in a fog-covered fang attack at a back-to-school bash and a window-smashing fight scene between Stefan and Damon. The fast-paced action elsewhere in the pilot seemed to offset the awkward diary entries communicated to us lowly TV viewers via voiceovers. Having said that, you probably cannot ditch that segment since your show is called "The Vampire Diaries."

While it is yet to be seen whether TVD will be embraced or rejected by all the Twilighters out there, there are certainly some other questions that you should encourage the girls in your life to ask as Christ-followers before they become TVD regulars.

Based on the amount of offensive language, sexuality, and underage drinking portrayed in the pilot alone, this is definitely going to be the CW's typical adult content marketed to a teen audience (think Gossip Girl and their recent OMFG and WTF marketing campaign with a supernatural twist).

If there are girls in your life watching TVD, then consider talking with them using some of the questions listed below.

Questions to Consider:

• Why do you think girls are so attracted to the mysterious and dangerous male characters like Stefan in TVD and Edward in Twilight? What kind of guy do you find yourself attracted to and why? Do you think watching shows like TVD alters your view and expectations of guys?
• How do you think you would respond if you lost both of your parents? Do you think the grieving time would strengthen your faith or cause you to question it?
• Do you believe that people have psychic powers like Bonnie's character in TVD? If so, where do you think those powers come from?
• At one point in the pilot, two characters named Jeremy and Vicki are discussing their past and the following conversation ensues about a new romantic interest in Vicki's life...
  Jeremy: "He only wants you for your @*#"
  Vicki: "Yeah, what do you want me for?"
  This is just one of several pretty intense conversations involving Vicki's character, who has a history of sexual relationships that end badly. How do you think this kind of portrayal of sex relates to what the Bible has to say? (See 1 Cor. 6:18-20 and Eph. 5:3-11)
• And we must also consider whether "dark" material like that within TVD leans toward the occult practices that the Bible condemns...
  Deut. 18:10-13 says, "Let no one be found among you who sacrifices his son or daughter in the fire, who practices divination or sorcery, interprets omens, engages in witchcraft, or casts spells, or who is a medium or spiritist or who consults the dead. Anyone who does these things is detestable to the LORD, and because of these detestable practices the LORD your God will drive out those nations before you. You must be blameless before the LORD your God."
  When you read a passage like this, how do you think it relates to shows like TVD? Why do you think God declares these things to be "detestable?"