The Sleeping Beauty Spell was Kind of Silly
When they say goodbye to Elena at the end of season 6, they are all compelling themselves into her consciousness.
So why wasn’t it canonically an option to just talk to her everyday that way? I know logistically it was because Nina was leaving, but that’s why the sleeping beauty spell is silly because there was a way for Elena to be in everybody’s lives.
Yeah it’s inconvenient but Damon could’ve still been with her in some shape or form. I know they set up that they had to lock her in the crypt with a spell to protect her from vampires wanting the cure, but the cure and the five/silas were a secret to nearly every vampire, so why would it be suddenly public knowledge after being off the table.
In some ways, I do like the path they took because it gave an end goal for Damon to take the cure at the end of the series, but I think if I were to rewrite it, I’d have Kai lock her in a prison world and then the prison world goes blip after he turns himself into a heretic.
Then the rest of the series is trying to get her back but they get distracted by the heretics, sirens, devil, etc.
Or i’d film scenes of Nina before she left reacting to the cast and just write in a reason for her to stay silent when they all talk to her every 5 episodes or so.