Friday night sees the return of the Bundesliga after a four-week break and, from top to bottom, it's very much game on.
Bayern Munich's three-point lead makes this the closest title race in five years, while half of the league's 18 teams have a shot at the Champions League places. Below them, no one is yet safe from the drop; not even blue-chips clubs such as Schalke 04, Wolfsburg or Borussia Monchengladbach.
Here are the five key questions for the drama that lies ahead.
Will RB Leipzig do "a Hoffenheim"?
In the first half of the 2008-09 season, league debutants Hoffenheim rocked Germany with a fast, high-energy brand of football that took them to apex of the table going into the winter break. They couldn't maintain the pace, however. Their title challenge quickly petered out and Hoffenheim finished in a disappointing seventh spot, outside the European places.
Many are now asking whether history will repeat itself for surprise runners-up RB Leipzig and there certainly are some parallels: Ralf Rangnick, Leipzig's sporting director, was Hoffenheim's manager eight years ago and both clubs have found success as newcomers without any significant history.
Hoffenheim, a village club, only got going when software billionaire benefactor Dietmar Hopp started pumping in money in 2005. RB Leipzig were founded in 2009 and their financial power gave/gives them a significant edge over "normal" newly-promoted sides.
Neither club spent money on existing stars and household names, instead concentrating on overlooked pros with potential and South American imports (Hoffenheim) or very young players (Leipzig). Quite a few tip Ralph Hasenhuttl's team to badly with the sudden pressure of expectation as did Rangnick's in 2009.
But the similarities only go so far. Hasenhuttl, for starters, is a much quieter, calmer coach than Rangnick, who got perhaps a little carried away with Hoffenheim's strong start. Further, Leipzig's players didn't spend their winter break partying in New York and getting their heads turned by big offers from bigger clubs. Leipzig, with sponsors/owners Red Bull behind them, have more financial firepower and clout to fight off advances, which explains the lack of any credible transfer speculation surrounding their squad.
More importantly, Hoffenheim's 2008-09 season became derailed as a result of leading goalscorer Vedad Ibisevic -- 18 goals in 17 games at the break -- ruptured his cruciate ligament ahead of the restart. Leipzig are arguably less reliant on particular player, even if midfielder Emil Forsberg has been the best performer in the Bundesliga so far this season.
Not much points to Leipzig crumbling, once you look beyond the obvious. Whether they can keep up the pressure on Bayern, though, is another question. Tactically, more teams will have wised up to RB's quick transition game, meaning they will not only have to keep up performances but also evolve.
It's a big test for Hasenhuttl and an even bigger chance; neither Bayern nor the usual Champions League contenders look invincible this season.
Will Bayern Munich win the treble?
Bayern are optimistic that everything could fall into place at the right time, following their slow start and arduous transition from Pep Guardiola to Carlo Ancelotti. The mood in Bavaria has lifted since Ancelotti's men destroyed Leipzig 3-0 in the final game of 2016. Now it's down to the team to perform as sharply in lower-profile matches.
Ancelotti's managerial record suggests he's better at getting his men to turn on the style in the big European matches than for everyday encounters in the league, though, which should make for a fascinating second half of the season.
Bayern's sheer qualitative advantage allows them to play with less intensity and still win most games but the Champions League knockout stage could prove a big distraction. On the other hand, most big hitters in Europe have also failed to play consistently well.
Will the underdogs stay the course?
Leipzig (second), Hertha (third), Frankfurt (fourth), Hoffenheim (fifth), Cologne (seventh): Who would have thought so many unexpected sides would occupy the European places at this stage of the season?
Leipzig's brilliance is one thing but the results of Hertha and Frankfurt appear even more sensational if the relative scarcity of real class in their respective teams is taken into account. Hertha manager Pal Dardai and Niko Kovac of Frankfurt have worked wonders with the players at their disposal.
The same goes for 29-year-old Julian Nagelsmann, whose Hoffenheim side are the last remaining unbeaten team in Europe's big leagues. Cologne, meanwhile, have been fired by Peter Stoger's defensive discipline and the goals of Anthony Modeste.
Having said all this, it's impossible to imagine Dortmund -- currently sixth -- not breaking into his group and Bayer Leverkusen - ninth -- could well follow suit. But glory nights in Europe beckon for at least a couple of these brave overachievers.
Who is the next managerial casualty?
Andre Schubert's dismissal by Monchengladbach shortly before Christmas confirmed that 2016-17 has been the most volatile in history of the league: Seven managerial changes at seven different clubs had never been recorded after 16 match days.
Borussia Dortmund CEO Hans-Joachim Watzke called the willingness to fire coaches "madness" but Schubert won't be the last one to lose his job. The league's unpredictability makes too many clubs jumpy.
Leverkusen's Roger Schmidt will come under renewed pressure if his team don't improve immediately. Further down, all the clubs behind 11th-place Schalke are already on their second manager of the campaign but further last-ditch attempts to escape relegation, with the help of a miracle worker, are almost guaranteed this stage.
The Bundesliga's propensity for promoting young, in-house coaches might be laudable, but it also increases the likelihood of their dismissal. They tend to be cheap and on short-term contracts, which makes them dispensable if the gamble misfires.
Can Dortmund get it right?
Tipped by yours truly as this season's champions, Dortmund have disappointed in the league. To be sure, they're still in the running to achieve positive results in all three competitions, but one would have expected this immensely gifted side and their hugely impressive coach Thomas Tuchel to be much closer to Bayern than the 12 point-gap that has opened up.
First and foremost, Dortmund need to find defensive stability; their 19 goals against tally is the stuff of mid-table sides (whereas 35 scored marks them out as second best behind Bayern). Mats Hummels is sorely missed as captain, leader and assured passer. His replacement Marc Bartra has done well but lacks presence and composure.
Playing possession football without that sense of security at the back has so far proved beyond this team but third place remains a realistic target. They surely have too much going on up front to continue to tread water.