Pretty Little Liars EP on the final season: 'We're going out in a blaze of glory'

Pretty Little Liars type TV Show network Freeform genre Drama

It’s finally time for some Answers. (See what I did there?)

Pretty Little Liars returns Tuesday for its final 10 episodes, and with one last trip through Rosewood, fans will (hopefully) be able to solve the mysteries that have existed for months, or, in some cases, years. And that all starts when the premiere picks up moments after the season 7A finale, which is to say that Spencer is headed to the hospital after being shot (and possibly suffering a mini heart attack when Mary Drake told her she was her secret daughter). Also at the hospital? Toby, who was last seen post-car accident with Yvonne.

And then there’s the mystery of Jenna, who got away after pulling a gun on the Liars, though she ended the finale coming face-to-face with A.D., which means her fate could be up in the air. “The topic of ‘where is Jenna’ comes up very quickly in the premiere and we learn a little bit more about where she is in the premiere as well,” executive producer Joseph Dougherty, who co-wrote the premiere with Allyson Nelson, tells EW.

As for the other Liars, let’s not forget that Ali revealed to Emily that she’s pregnant, and according to Dougherty, “We’re not done shocking with that story!”

With that pregnancy — and that Emison kiss — Ali will be going on a big emotional journey this season. “Ali is somebody who basically has always tried to be somebody other than she is. Ever since she came back, it looks like she’s been trying on personalities to figure out who she’s supposed to be and she doesn’t have the best track record for rushing into what look like society-acceptable relationships,” Dougherty says. “By the time season 10 ends, Ali may finally come to a place where she understands enough about herself to actually be an adult with other people. She has an awful lot to process. She’s not been the best person in the world. It’s [a journey about] who the heck am I and why do I deserve to be loved?”

Also on an emotional journey is Spencer, who will find herself trying to deal with the realization that she could be Mary Drake’s daughter. “She deals with this problem the way Spencer deals with problems, which is in a very direct and analytical way,” Dougherty says. “She has that piece of information from the finale and it is at the very front of her mind going into the premiere. It’s something she’s trying to deal with, if she can, on her own. But Mrs. Hastings will be returning this episode and there’s going to be a confrontation between those two women about what was I told in that room? Who is your mother? How do you define motherhood? And did Mary tell the truth? It’s really interesting to watch the two of them in the premiere.”

When it comes to winding down these stories, Dougherty says it was less about ending things and more about putting the characters “at a place where the fans could continue the stories in their hearts.” But that doesn’t mean that the show is going to hit the brakes when it comes to drama. “We’re going out in a blaze of glory,” Dougherty says. “A lot of the episodes, particularly these last 10 are touched by a sense on the part of the writers to make them as satisfying as we can, to have one last great flourish, one great big magic trick to take our bow and walk off stage with, and I think we pulled that off.”

Pretty Little Liars returns Tuesday, April 18 at 8 p.m. ET on Freeform.