Courtesy of The CW
The battle for the hostages in Mount Weather reaches an apex, but things don’t go quite as planned.
Let’s bitch it out…
This is the first part of The 100‘s two part finale, so it was clear from the very get go that Clarke (Eliza Taylor ) and Lexa’s (Alycia Debnam Carey) attack won’t go exactly as planned. Admittedly though I was expecting something more in line with Raven (Lindsey Morgan) and Wick’s (Steve Talley) struggles to blow the five generators, not the full blown blindside that Lexa pulls.
This kind of about-face is one of the things that the series has become significantly more comfortable executing. I’ve read several sites that have applauded the show’s more confident execution over the course of this expanded second season; it’s evident in the way the plot has unfurled in the threeway battle between first the Sky People and the Grounders, then the pair versus the Mountain People. Clarke’s growing confidence as a leader has been impressive to watch and the show’s trademark willingness to make realistic and difficult decisions when it comes to the fate of its characters remains one of its greatest assets.
Which brings us to ‘Blood Must Have Blood Pt. 1’. Throughout the season Clarke and Lexa have battled about the price that accompanies leadership and the sacrifices required to protect your people (the recent incident with the missile is a great example). At the core of The 100 is the question of leadership (who has the power? who is responsible?) so recent narrative developments are very much in line with those themes. It makes sense that all three leaders – Clarke, Lexa and Cage Wallace (Johnny Whitworth) – willingly make the tough decisions when push comes to shove. In this case, Cage uses his father Dante’s (Raymond J. Barry) sense of self-preservation and the life they’ve built behind the dam for 97 years to tap his expertise in diplomacy.
Let’s be clear: the union of the Mountain Men and the Grounders is destined to fall apart almost immediately (something Dante is quick to acknowledge), but as a temporary band-aid solution, the bold move addresses the Mountain people’s most immediate, pressing threat, which is an attack by a united front. Divided, Lexa and Clarke’s attack plans end with an anti-climatic whimper, leaving Clarke, Octavia (Marie Avgeropoulos), Raven, Wick and all of the Sky People – Jasper (Devon Bostick), Bellamy (Bob Morley), Monty (Christopher Larkin) – held hostage in the dam stranded. It’s a dark, unexpected development that really drives home the ramifications of Clarke’s decision to trust Lexa. Without the Grounders, all hope of recovering the 45 hostages inside are lost (to add insult to injury, Cage also manages to capture another party of 12 Sky People, which according to promos for next week’s finale feature some of the series’ more familiar faces). This is some grim shit.
Heading into the second half of the finale, it is clear that this will be a much smaller – and likely more personal – battle than we were anticipating last week when the giant Grounder army marched on Mount Weather. That, in a pinch, is the world of The 100: everything can change in a single episode.
Courtesy of The CW
Other Observations:
- I definitely spent the episode anticipating that Maya (Eve Harlow) would die, especially after the ring of finality in her goodbye with her father Vincent (Ian Tracey). Turns out I was half-right about the goodbye, just not about the person.
- Octavia earns her number two stripes with Indra (Adina Porter) and just as quickly loses it after Lexa sounds the retreat. This is definitely one story line that advanced too quickly to find its footing; almost immediately after Indra offers Octavia platitudes, she has a knife to her throat. Also: can you really hear a horn down in the tunnels? I’m a wee bit doubtful.
- Anyone think that the Grounder girl that Bellamy rescues in the opening scene will play a larger role in the future? It seems like they share a brief connection when he releases her.
- There’s a throwaway line from Indra that if Lincoln (Ricky Whittle) goes against the Grounders again, he’ll be killed. I can’t help but wonder if he’ll be on Lexa’s chopping block next week after challenging her when it’s revealed that the Sky People have been thrown under the bus.
- Of course this assumes that Clarke herself doesn’t kill the warrior girl (Full disclosure: Debnam Carey landed the lead role in AMC’s The Walking Dead spin-off, so she’s definitely not sticking around). Regardless of what happens to Lexa, I guess her vacation plans with Clarke to visit the Capital during the summer hiatus are off the table?
- I didn’t miss Jawa (Isaiah Washington), Abby (Paige Turco) or Kane (Henry Ian Cusick) tonight but that’s mostly because the adults have really taken a backseat this season in order to let Clarke become a leader. And if we’re being honest that’s been to the show’s benefit.
- Catching up on other plot lines:
- I’m surprisingly invested in Jawa and Murphy’s (Richard Harmon) journey to find the City of Light, mostly because I have no idea where it’s going.
- RIP Finn (Thomas McDonell). He became unbearable near the end and I’m glad he died because it was damn fine television.
- Hurray for Raven hooking up with Wick! I could, however, do without the angst. The people on this show are always facing awful life and death situations, so it would be great if two hot people could just get it on without overthinking it. Tonight’s episode hints that there’s more happy coming their way if they don’t bite it, so that’s positive.
- Finally, I know he’s been in tons of TV in the interim, but I will always know Whitworth as AJ in Empire Records. What is crazy is that he barely looks any different than he did 20 years ago!
Your turn: how are you feeling about The 100 this season? Were you surprised that Lexa sold Clarke out? Will Clarke get her revenge on everyone next week? Who do you think will die? Jot down your predictions below.
The 100 airs its second season finale next Wednesday at 9pm EST on The CW