EW caught up with Julie Plec where she spills about what’s to come in the next 4 episodes that will conclude season 3. As always…SPOILER ALERT.

From Ep 3.19  ”Heart of Darkness”:

“We have a very passionate fandom that has very passionate opinions about things like whether Elena should be with Stefan or with Damon,” Plec says. “With Stefan’s encouragement, Elena is trying to understand and explore this relationship that she’s developed with Damon. There is some series-wide epicness that goes down in this episode, for sure.” (Something she and the series’ director of photography Dave Perkal will talk about on that NAB panel is how they strive not to make the best-looking episode of television each week, but the best-looking movie you could see on TV. “We don’t tend to go on the road very often, and we’ve got Damon and Elena in a motel,” she says. “It’s a dive motel by our production office that we called Crack Alley,” she adds. “It’s a very dingy, disgusting exterior, and Dave Perkal and Chris Grismer, who directed the episode, worked together to make it sexy and interesting and visual in spite of the complications of the location itself.”

From Ep 3.20 “Do Not Go Gentle”:

“Stefan and Elena have had a lot of beautiful moments together at these decade dances in spite of the chaos that tends to drown them at these events. This episode, they’ll definitely get to have a nice moment or two before the s— hits the fan.” Yes, there is a promo shot of Elena sobbing in Stefan’s arms. How dark will the show’s annual decade be this season? “All I can say is that I’ve watched the episode five times now through the editorial process, and every single time I end up crying like a baby with Elena. I’m not in Stefan’s arms. I’m alone,” she laughs. “But it’s a pretty powerful episode. We’re really proud of it.”

Read about the rest of season 3 over at EW.