The 100th episode of The Vampire Diaries [1] does not disappoint — for such a big milestone, we get the long-, long-awaited hookup of two characters we've been rooting for. The Originals crossover finally happens (I like to think of it more as a homecoming), and we even catch a glimpse of some former characters who have passed on. Speaking of passing on, that's what we're waiting for Katherine to do the whole episode — and, of course, she can't go out quietly.

The final moments of this episode almost ruin things for me, but honestly, I'm not letting them, because this episode has something that's so good, it's kicking off The Good this week.

The Good

• The good? Try the best. Klaus finally comes back from New Orleans (and his own spinoff), and when he does, it's to surprise Caroline in the woods while she's looking for Matt. There's a lot of blah blah blah with Caroline sassing off to Klaus about Katherine, and then we get to the point. Klaus challenges Caroline: if he lets his Katherine vendetta go, would she be into him? She gives resistance one last shot, and then she gives in and gives Klaus (and us) what we wanted. And it's not just a hot makeout — it's a full, dirty, getting-it-on-like-the-plane's-going-down sequence. It's that "scandalous sex" Caroline talked about not having, so congrats, Car. You got it.
• Now back to the main plot of the episode: Katherine is on her deathbed, being tortured by Damon and her own terrible memory of having her daughter ripped from her arms just after childbirth and the day she came home to find that Klaus had killed her family. Both memories are effective in channeling what Katherine's been through and how long her life has been and getting us ready to let her go.
• Nadia isn't ready to let go yet, though. She kidnaps Matt to make Stefan and Elena help her and give up some of their valuable doppelgänger blood. The purpose is so Katherine can become a traveler in someone else's body: Nadia's. Katherine refuses, insisting it's Nadia's turn to live.
• Klaus isn't the only original to come back: it's Rebekah who gets to rescue Matt, standing up outside the box Katherine's daughter had imprisoned him in. It's not as earth-shaking as the Klaus/Caroline reunion, but it's still very cute.
• The Katherine's death drinking game is megaentertaining and is also a fitting goodbye for one of the series' most devilish characters. I also like that Elena gets in on the action — and how relatable is that awkward look she and Damon exchange when they first see each other postbreakup? Bonus points for Caroline, who says, "She did kill me. Although, I'm really better off."
• Speaking of that breakup! Sounds like it could be a make-up soon, as Damon pledges to try to get Elena back, and Stefan even seems to be encouraging him. Too bad Elena might not be able to hear him out (we'll talk about that in a minute).
• Getting to see long-dead characters is such a fitting 100th-episode gift. There's Vicki, there's Alaric, there's Jenna, there's Uncle John. The best throwback is "He says you're a dick" — Jeremy's message to Damon from Alaric.

The Bad

• Say it with me: REALLY?! We invest all that time retreading Katherine's life and villainy, and she doesn't even die?! I should have predicted that this wouldn't be the end of her, but when Katherine grabs Elena and recites the traveler spell, I really, really didn't want it to be happening. Can't anyone die and really be gone on this show?
• My big complaint about the long-awaited Originals crossover is that there isn't enough of Klaus and Rebekah! Where does Rebekah go after rescuing Matt, and where does Klaus go after giving Caroline all the hot love? Did they really just come to Mystic Falls to hang out in the woods? They better not be illusions like Elijah.
• Tyler's back. I just can't get excited to see this dude anymore.

The Bloody

• Yeesh, that massacre scene of Katherine's family is so gnarly. It made me really feel bad for the girl and also reminded me how much Klaus had tortured her.

What did you think of the 100th episode of The Vampire Diaries?