WARNING: Spoilers ahead through the end of Season 5.

The story begins in Mystic Falls, Virginia in 1864.

A twisted, confusing, dramatic, and tragic mess ensues as the eternal love triangle between three people, some dead and some alive, begins.

The CW’s The Vampire Diaries revolves around this love triangle and the supernatural world the story is set in. From vampires to werewolves to witches, the writers’ supernatural world creates unlimited possibilities.

Last season, a group of witches called travelers cast a spell upon Mystic Falls that prevented any supernatural beings from entering the town’s border. The main characters devised a successful plan, and Elena (Nina Dobrev), Stefan (Paul Wesley), Alaric (Matthew Davis) and Tyler (Michael Trevino) made it back from the other side, but Damon (Ian Somerhalder) and Bonnie (Kat Graham) did not.

This was a huge disappointment to TVD fans like myself because after the finale, it was unclear that the show would be returning for another season. The fact that the show could be over was crushing enough, but the thought that Damon and Bonnie would go in such an understated way was disappointing because they were two of the best characters. Also, when the show came back, I knew Elena wouldn’t be as entertaining to watch because she becomes so one-dimensional when she is not with one of the Salvatore brothers.

Thankfully, the show did come back for a sixth season and the premier was just as good as I expected.

The episode examines Elena’s coping method for dealing with her loss.

She is trying to communicate with Damon because she is in denial that he is gone, but it has dangerous consequences. Caroline tries to intervene, but Elena doesn’t want her help because she has to decide to let go of Damon on her own.

During Elena’s emotional journey, I really felt her emotions partially because I love Nina Dobrev and mostly because Damon was my favorite character. Elena’s method of “coping” was typical because she never really copes with anything. This never turns out well, and her decision at the end of the episode is a bad sign because Elena without being in love with someone is annoying and bratty. (Example: Season four when Elena turned off her humanity.)

Another character I’d like to see return is Bonnie because she brought sass, woman-power, and calmness to this over-dramatic and crazy show. She is the most human among the characters and that loss of humanity was felt in the premiere because it was filled with vampire drama. Also, if Bonnie doesn’t come back, Liv (Penelope Mitchell) and Luke (Chris Brochu) will be the dominant witches on the show, which is unfortunate because everyone hates them.

There is one character that I would love to see leave, and that is Tyler. His character was interesting at first because he was the first werewolf on the show, but after he broke Caroline’s heart and became a vampire-werewolf mix, there wasn’t that much to do with his character. This season he reverted back to just being a werewolf, and the only thing that could happen now is he becomes a hybrid again (unlikely because his creator is no longer on the show) or breaks Caroline’s heart again (unlikely because she probably has feelings for Stefan); he’s pretty pointless. Sorry, Michael Trevino, you’re just not needed anymore.

Apparently, a character who’s also not needed anymore is Caroline. She is usually the one that keeps people grounded and in-line because she’s type A to the extreme, but in the premiere, Elena has rejected her help and so has Stefan. She doesn’t want to talk to Tyler, and her and Alaric had never been close. She also distanced herself from her friends over the summer to spend time with her mother who Caroline protected from other supernatural beings. This protection is unneeded now that supernatural beings can no longer enter Mystic Falls.

No matter what characters come back, stay, or leave, The Vampire Diaries is in for an interesting season because of the possibilities the writers have for why Damon and Bonnie are still alive, if they will come back, and what will happen to the eternal love triangle. The show never seems to disappoint, and the bar is set high for this season.

TVD is on the CW Thursdays at 8 p.m.