Has there ever been a amor triángulo, triángulo de quite like the one between Damon, Elena and Stefan? Probably not. If it's one thing that gets fans in heated discussions and arguments, it's about who Elena/Damon should be with. When perusing YouTube for scenes for 'Rose', I discovered to my surprise that some people didn't want DE to get together because they didn't want Elena to come between Stefan and Damon. I have to admit, I was slightly puzzled. Didn't they know that, supernatural aspects aside, the mostrar was about a girl, two brothers and possibly the hottest amor triángulo, triángulo de ever created? So OK; they wanted Damon and Stefan to be friends, I could understand that. But come on. How much of a story could there be if there was no triangle? If all Damon and Stefan did was stay up late drinking blood and having heart-to-hearts, then wouldn't things get boring after a few episodes? Like, REALLY boring?

I believe that those who argue against the amor triángulo, triángulo de and DE for whatever reason, whether it's because they prefer SE o BD o 'Defan', are missing the point of the mostrar entirely. I believe that the amor triángulo, triángulo de and the tension which exists between DE are an essential part of the show. I'm not saying that without it, 'The Vampire Diaries' wouldn't still be a good show; Damon would still be entertaining and very popular, and SE would still be cute, but the mostrar wouldn't be the same. Something would be missing.
I've read comentarios from various fans of the mostrar who claim that the triángulo, triángulo de won't last the whole series. I beg to differ. The potential for an epic amor story is huge. In spite of Julie Plec describing them as 'epic', I think SE are más of a sweet, first love, high school romance. SE are not my type of ship, but I do understand their appeal. People think Stefan will naturally be Elena's favourite because she met him/chose him first, and if they weren't a serious couple yet then I might agree with them. But here's the catch SE shippers are oblivious of: most amor stories are about the journey of two people who are secretly in amor but can't admit it, and the problems and trials they have to endure before they can finally be together. The story ends when the couple confess they amor each other and manage to overcome the obstacles in their way. When they achieve this, then they can be together and the film/book/show ends. And that's the thing about SE: we already know they amor each other. They've survived the very few problems they've had in their relationship, and even when they broke up, they were still in love. There's nothing to stop them from being together now that Katherine is locked safely away. Basically, their amor story never changes. It just stays the same. All the elements which make a amor story unforgettable, (love against the odds, unrequited love, forbidden love, denial, love/hate, secret love) are noticeably absent. Maybe they were present at the beginning of Season One, but they are not there now. Because Elena has already 'chosen' Stefan and dicho she loves him, it will be a million times less gratifying for the audience at the end of the series when we discover that the brother she really loves is...um, Stefan. I mean, it turns the whole premise the series is based on into a merry-go-round of absurd proportions. What was the point of spinning the triángulo, triángulo de out for six seasons? None. Absolutely none. It could be argued por SE shippers that Damon represents the 'obstacle' in Stefan and Elena's happiness, but the problem with this theory is that it shows some uncomfortable 'flaws' in SE's relationship, particularly regarding Elena. If it takes her to realise she doesn't amor Damon to discover she belongs with Stefan, then she arguably was never completely in amor with Stefan in the first place.

In stark contrast to SE is Elena's relationship with Damon. I've heard arguments from people who say that we only amor DE so much because of Damon, but if this were true, then it could easily be applied to Damon/Katherine o Damon/Rose, o Damon and anyone. It's true that we amor Damon, but it's not just because of how attractive he looks. I don't think we would amor Damon half as much if he wasn't so utterly dangerous, deadly, charming, witty, and vulnerable while being empathetic at the same time.
Although Elena has seen that Stefan also has a dark side, it hasn't been explored yet, (although if she were to look into his past, she would get a shock.) But for the most part, she only knows the 'good' Stefan. Damon, on the other hand, has done many terrible things, and she's seen for herself how dangerous and unpredictable and deadly he can be. I think it's this knowledge of what he can do, coupled with being Stefan's brother, which is what stops her from even considering Damon romantically, even though the feelings are definitely there.
What we have between DE is forbidden love. It's not just loving someone tu shouldn't because you're already in a relationship with someone; it's loving someone who on the surface, appears to be all wrong for you. But if Damon didn't have the potential to be destructive and deadly, then there wouldn't be much to prevent Elena from choosing him instead of Stefan, and it wouldn't be a forbidden love. The triángulo, triángulo de would be greatly weakened and it wouldn't be as interesting o complex.

Let's look at the 'Damon Versus Stefan: Which Brother Is más Deserving of Elena' debate which continues to rage ever on. I think that some DE shippers tend to get aggravated por Stefan because they think Kevin and Julie can sometimes favour him. I feel that Kevin and Julie have painted Stefan as the 'Conscience' at the corazón of the show. But even if they think Stefan's 'goodness' is integral to the series, I've read comentarios from viewers which seem to indicate that they think that the character at the corazón of the mostrar is actually DAMON.
People relate to Damon in spite of his darkness because he goes through the same emotions we do: anger, jealousy, bitterness, regret, remorse, guilt, pain, heartbreak, and so on. So naturally, we feel for Damon far más than we do for Stefan, because Damon has such a tough time, and Stefan doesn't. I also think that Damon walks a much thinner line between good and evil than Stefan, and is constantly locked in an inner struggle and conflict between his humanity and his darkness. Damon's journey/quest for amor seems más epic and profound than Stefan's because his greatest enemy is not another vampire o a werewolf but himself. It would be a great pity if Elena wound up with Stefan in the end because the key to Damon finding his humanity was meeting Elena. And even if Damon did manage to find happiness separate from Elena, like finding another girl, it would feel too much like a desperate, last-gasp attempt from the writers to be truly convincing. Let's face it: if Elena decides that Stefan is the only one for her, then Damon is much más likely to regress to his former people-biting, wild ways than settle down with someone and live a nice suburban life. Damon's humanity is linked to Elena. He found it when she came into his life, and if she walks out of it, there's a big chance he could lose his humanity forever.

I think that another factor in Damon/DE fans annoyance towards Stefan is that it can be hard to warm to someone who could be defined as 'perfect'. He's the 'good' brother, he's devoted to Elena, he's the perfect boyfriend, he's learned to control his thirst for human blood, he's remained indifferent to Katherine, he never does anything wrong. I like Stefan, but he sorely lacks dimension this season. Although I would never deny that he and Elena amor one another, their relationship is definitely not the stuff that epic amor stories are made of. Put plainly: as a couple, SE just aren't that interesting.

It used to drive me crazy whenever an SE shipper presumed to know that Elena would choose Stefan at the end of the show, simply because they were together now. And it never fails to alarm me whenever we get the occasional blah episode which causes DE shippers to throw their hands up in resignation and go: 'Well, that's it then. I'm giving up.' The formula for a die-hard ship isn't to immediately gratify the audience por throwing the two together; it's show-casing how much insane chemistry they have, how much they amor each other in spite of trying to deny it, and then putting the audience through various levels of agony por keeping them apart. This is key. The result is, the viewers want their couple to be together even more. Wouldn't it be easier if DE were together now? Well, sure. But it would defeat the purpose of telling a great amor story. SE shippers make the mistake of thinking that SE are the main couple just because they're 'together' and they say they amor each other five times a day. But because we're not waiting for SE to admit their feelings for each other, and because there's no tension o conflict, then could it be that it's actually the opposite, and that the REAL amor story is Delena??
It might not be advertised in the typical coupley, hand-holding-soulful-eyes-tight-embraces-way; it's más powerful than that. 'Love speaks in silence', goes the song 'All That I'm Asking For' por Lifehouse. I think any DE shipper knows this is true. And that's one of the reasons why we amor them.