Aside from working on a psychology thesis, Jenna spent her time as a somewhat lax authority figure with good intentions. After some failed romances, Jenna pursued her romance with broken-hearted history teacher Alaric Saltzman.
Utterly clueless that her niece’s boyfriend, Stefan, was a vampire, Jenna often turned a blind eye to the supernatural occurrences in her hometown. Even when they literally turned up on her doorstep, Jenna failed to recognize Elijah and Isobel for the monsters that they were and invited danger into the Gilbert home. When she finally learned the truth — that Mystic Falls is full of vampires, werewolves, and the like — she was justifiably angry but eventually forgave Elena and Alaric for keeping secrets from her. Unfortunately, she still fell victim to one of Mystic Falls’ classic blunders, mistaking Katherine for Elena and getting turned into a vampire by the Original Vampire Klaus.
In one of TVD’s most emotional deaths, Jenna went out fighting, killing Klaus’ witch Greta in an attempt to protect Elena. With Jenna gone, Jeremy and Elena have truly become orphans.
Fast facts:
- In The Vampire Diaries novels her character’s name was “Aunt Judith.”
- Her ex-boyfriend Logan Fell became a vampire. She traded up with her next boyfriend, Alaric Saltzman, the vampire hunter.
Read more about Jenna:
Jenna Sommers, Beloved Aunt and Sister, Dies at 29
Aunt Jenna's Worst Parenting Fails
