Lizzie Saltzman: A journey results in a massive transition

Lizzie Saltzman’s journey throughout season four has brought out her dark side. After Hope had left Alaric in a coma with her humanity off, Lizzie had been livid, deciding that not only could she not forgive Hope, but Lizzie needed to get revenge as well.

Lizzie’s time in the therapy box gives Lizzie all the confirmation she needs that vengeance is her next step. She continues this mentality the following episode when she steals a piece of the wood that can be made into the only weapon that can kill a Tribrid.

Although Lizzie seems ready to drive the stake through Hope’s heart in revenge, she decides against immediate vengeance, using the stake to harm Hope in a non-fatal place, which creates enough time for Lizzie to learn the truth. While Lizzie may be talking to Hope’s body, it is Aurora de Martel that Lizzie is speaking with. Knowing they both want revenge on a Mikaelson, Lizzie agrees to team up.

However, this collaboration gets Lizzie to open her eyes and understand just what she has signed up for. Lizzie wants Hope to suffer for what Hope did to Alaric, but she is not interested in Aurora’s long-term eternal suffering plot. So, Lizzie switches sides, knowing that she cannot go that far no matter how angry she may be toward Hope.

Lizzie Saltzman’s reunion with the real Hope gives more insight into if Lizzie can truly move forward with revenge, and in the end, she can not. Hope has been Lizzie’s friend and family, someone Lizzie cares deeply about. In the end, when given a chance, Lizzie can not bring herself to kill someone she cared about so much. Her speech about how much Lizzie cares about Hope triggers Hope’s humanity. At least, that is what Hope lets Lizzie believe.

Sadly for Lizzie, that is not the case. Instead, Hope uses Lizzie’s willingness to take a step back into having Lizzie help Hope get her own body back. Only after Hope and Aurora are in their rightful bodies, does Hope reveal that her humanity is still off. But that is not as far as she takes it.

Hope discovers Lizzie’s weapon, and in doing so, goes further than Hope has before. However, this also triggers one of the biggest plot twists thus far. Hope kills Lizzie, but rather than Lizzie joining Alaric, Landon, and Ted in limbo, Lizzie has a moment with Josie explaining she had an insurance policy for her plan. The next time Lizzie appears on screen, she wakes up as a heretic.

Lizzie’s transition is a big moment, but it also suggests a change for the twins. With Lizzie now a heretic, she has stopped aging just as a vampire would. So, would that mean the Merge is officially no longer an issue?

Lizzie’s transition could also trigger Caroline’s return if becoming a heretic could genuinely mean the Merge is off the table. With the Merge no longer an option, Caroline does not have a reason to be away anymore, and since her daughter has become a heretic, that could be a solid reason to reunite them.

Hope Mikaelson and Lizzie Saltzman have had a difficult journey, but this may be a new level for them to face. When Hope’s humanity returns, she will have to face the truth that while she did not force Lizzie to become a heretic, she was responsible for Lizzie’s death.

When Legacies returns, the show will have to grapple with what it means for Lizzie to be a heretic and how being a vampire changes or heightens Lizzie’s personality.