The L Word: Generation Q has followed in the footsteps of its predecessor The L Word in creating groundbreaking television, and its latest episode is no different.

Deep into the reboot’s third season, the LGBTQ drama is trying something completely unexpected and is giving its fans an all-singing and dancing musical episode. Fans can expect a wild ride with some very surprising outcomes for the beloved characters.

“I knew if we were gonna do a musical episode, it would have to turn all of my main characters’ stories in major ways,” showrunner Marja-Lewis Ryan tells Newsweek.

First premiering on Showtime in 2004, The L Word showcased the lives of lesbian and bisexual women in ways that was not happening anywhere else. The L Word became a cult classic, building up a passionate base of fans who were beside themselves at the news the show was coming back to life in 2017.

The episode follows Alice, Shane and Sophie heading to a work retreat where they take ayahuasca, because one night on the plant-based psychedelic is better than “years in therapy,” according to Alice.

It’s a chance for the show’s veterans to look into themselves to explore their mistakes, trauma and ask some big questions about life, especially “who is the one?”

The L Word: Generation Q is certainly not the first TV show to tackle a musical—teen vampire series Buffy was one of the first to do it—but it might be one fans would have thought the least likely.

But Ryan says fans shouldn’t be so shocked, because she’s been planting the seed that this was coming for more than a year.

“If you go back and watch season two you’ll see my calibrations. There’s little tiny pieces of things,” she explains, recalling the karaoke episode and Jordi’s “prom-posal,” complete with a choreographed number.

Dropping clues about a musical episode was not the only reason Ryan played with music in season two, but also to test the capacity of the cast and crew to actually pull it off.

They did not disappoint, with everyone banding together “like nothing else” to get the episode ready in just nine days without any extra budget or time to prepare.

“I would open my office doors and see Kate Moennig (Shane) and Rosanny Zayas (Sophie) practicing in the parking lot,” Ryan explains, adding that along with Alice actress, Leisha Hailey, they “worked their a*** off” to carry the episode.

“The three of them were really so brave and they slammed it.”

Deviating from a tried and tested formula is a risk for any TV show, especially for one with such an invested fan base. But Ryan is not too worried about negative reactions because “the whole reason I made this is so that people can f****** talk about it.”

But as a mega-fan of the original show herself, Ryan understands the fans’ passion and actively seeks their input.

While both feeling immense pressure to honor the show’s legacy and represent LGBTQ people well, Ryan also understands she’s in a unique position.

“It’s just the most amazing privilege I’ve ever had. I’ll never again get to go to a bar and watch a bunch of queer people scream at my television show,” she explains.

Ryan’s love of theater is reflected strongly in the musical episode and a deliberate choice by the showrunner.

During their trip, Shane goes back in time into a “hypermasculine space” as a Navy sailor where she reconnects with Tess (Jamie Clayton) and fights between her urge to remain a queer Lothario or settle down with the one that got away.

Meanwhile, Sophie grapples with the ongoing feeling of being stifled in her relationship with Sarah (Jacqueline Toboni) and is thrown into a 1950s sitcom where she plays the role of a submissive housewife.

It’s here that actress Rosanny Zayas gets a chance to show off her amazing vocal talents and helps her character get free from the shackles of her toxic relationship.

But it’s during Alice’s trip that Ryan has pulled out the big guns. She brings back fan favorite Dana Fairbanks (Erin Daniels) who died in the original The L Word.

She returns as a figment of Alice’s imagination to help the talk show host figure out which one of her exes is actually the one she’s meant to be with forever.

“I’ve always wanted to bring her back, but I knew I could only do it once and I wanted it to be so right,” Ryan explains of the decision to have Dana appear from beyond the grave.

Dana’s scene is “so fun,” much like the rest of the episode which is littered with humor and fan service among the more profound realizations.

Even though the women have some major breakthroughs and fans will love the many callbacks, they should not necessarily expect a happy ending.

“It doesn’t turn out the way you thought it was going to and turns it in a totally different direction,” Ryan teases.

The showrunner also promised the musical episode was not the end to major surprises this season and there were plenty more shocks in store.

“We really bang it out this season, I promise.”

THE L WORD: GENERATION Q, “Questions for the Universe,” is available to watch today (Friday, December 23) on streaming and on demand for all SHOWTIME subscribers, before its on-air debut Sunday, December 25 at 10pm ET/PT on SHOWTIME.