It's the moment you've all been waiting for. Having shelled out $50 for the latest-and-greatest lip plumper, LipFusion XL, it is now time to share the straight, honest facts with you. Let's be scientific and start with the main details:

1. It's glossier than the original LipFusion, and the formula is clear, unlike the original which was somewhat opaque in the tube. This is a plus.

2. It has a spearmint scent, while the original had some nondescript fragrance, I think it kinda smelled like lemon custard. I would say this is a neutral.

3. It's in a shiny new mirrored tube, which I have to say is quite the drawback; it picks up fingerprints and smudges, which annoys the hell out of me.

4. It does a better job than the original of keeping lips moisturized; I think this may be due to the addition of Hyaluronic Acid to the ingredient list. This is definitely a plus.

5. Oh, and the plumping? It works. Better than the original? Yep. It plumped without burning, reddening, or drawing comparisons to any of the following: Melanie Griffith, Amanda Lepore (left), Lara Flynn Boyle, or the newly-Restylaned Jessica Simpson.

However, the plumping effect doesn't seem to be "double" that of the original, as one would tend to believe from the advertising. The original is $36. XL is $50. If you have nothing better to do with the $14 in between (and you could get, say, a Stila Kajal eyeliner), I'd say go for the XL, since it is an improvement. But it's not a must-have.

It leaves me wondering, though, what's next? How far can science really go with topical plumpers? Methinks that we are near the end of the rope with the innovation already. The next wave from Fusion - or any other brand - will probably have cooler packaging and a more sophisticated marketing concept, but will work only marginally better. And the price will go up, up, up.

Will we be willing to pay? Probably. We're always looking for the next big thing that's bigger, better, faster, more. But how much is too much?