Changes had to be made because it is run in seasons, so they couldn't have followed exactly like the books if it was to run for maybe 5/6 seasons, maybe more.

I think JP/KW have done a great job and in my personal opinion, I actually prefer the TV show to the book series.

Really? I prefer the Books to the TV. It kinda pissed me off when they made another blonde girl brunette in the show.

I havent read the books yet but i want to

hell no! personally in my opnion the books suck.

I think the TV show is better.
And I've started to read the books but I didn't finish them... I'm more hooked on the show than the books.

the show is better in my opinion

in my opinion the tv show is based on the real life, how it really could be! and in the the books are a lot of fantasy like to rise from the dead and something like that but it would be interesting too.

i like them both, can't decide

I think the TV show better suits today's contemporary life. Like the first TVD book was written almost 20 years ago or so. So if the TV show had been exactly based on the books then I don't think it'd be as good, not because the books aren't good but because they don't fit in as much as to life today. I look at the show as a story completely different to the books I see that Elena, Damon and Stefan are completely different people to the versions of themselves from the books, although I do believe the way they've made the show is more realistic, not that vampires exist, but if they did, the show's version seems more realistic and less fantasy there. I also like the way everything that happens in the show is linked and everything happens for a reason. The way books are written, is that they slowly build up tension and suspense through one story line, while with the show it needs to build up and rapidly decrease every week as well as have a longer story line behind the little ones. That's why the TV show had to be changed so drastically from the books. I think the change was for the best, and I really like Elena as she is, I really don't care that she has brown hair instead of blonde. The books are amazing and the show is awesome! Just the way they are, and that's how people should look at it. <3

Granted, I haven't read the books yet, but everyone seems to be saying the show is better, and I doubt the show can be overtopped, it's already freakin amazing. And I know Elena's supposed to be blonde, but she is also kinda shallow from what I hear, blonde suits her, while in the show, she's everything but shallow. Of course, this doesn't mean she can't be blonde, but I feel like brown suits her more in the show. Or maybe it's just that I can't imagine anyone else as Elena but Nina. And anyway, they can't change the actress now. The worst thing that can happen to show is changing the actors, especially a main actor.