The 100 The Other Side

Wow. That's all I can say about this one. The 100 season four has been amazing so far, and tonight's episode was no exception. As always Skaikru is its own worst enemy, and the internal divisions and tough choices make the conflicts with the Grounders look tame by comparison. That is true here as well, with Jaha and Clarke adamant that they will not open the bunker door, even though Octavia won the conclave and is alive. Bellamy for his part will stop at nothing to open the door- after all his sister is out there (not to mention Kane)- so we have a standoff. People are going to have to pick their sides and make their decisions- and with two episodes after this one everything is coming to a head. Spoilers for this episode of The 100.

We have three tracks all exploring the same thing- what does it mean to live when there's no hope? Do you take that stab in the dark, do you keep fighting until the last breath? How do you keep going? Clarke and Jaha have decided that they are saving the human race, not just Skaikru or Grounders- they reason that opening the bunker is suicide, whether Octavia and Kane are out there or not. Jaha here is back in full on villain mode- the ultimate expedient, the ends justifies the means. He tells Abby that Kane is a good man- but he's not opening that door. And Clarke, conflicted as she is, goes along. I had a problem with Clarke in this one, with everything she's been through I refuse to see her as an expedient like Jaha- that's just not who she is. Yes she made the tough decisions in Mt. Weather and elsewhere- but there was no recourse then. Here there is.

Elsewhere Raven is struggling with seizures and trying to get to space before she croaks, but Sinclair shows up. Kind of. Just as she has residual programming in her head manifesting as Becca, somehow another side of her personality, the side that doesn't want to quit, manifests as Sinclair, and shows her another way. She can fix herself, if she tries. And she chooses life, even though Becca tells her there will be no pain if she gives in. Again, when do we stop fighting? For Raven Reyes, the answer is never... which is the Raven we've always known. Sadly, the same cannot be said for Death Party.

Back at Arkadia, Monty is trying desperately to save his friends, all the people who've stayed behind- given up- but sometimes you can't help people. In a very well acted scene Monty and Jasper say goodbye for perhaps the final time? Jasper has brewed jobi tea so that everyone can check out before the death wave hits- yes they're committing collective suicide- and there's nothing Monty can do. I thought Jasper would come around maybe in the end, but they're playing this straight and it appears that... he's gone. Harper however wants to live- it takes her a while to realize it, but she's a fighter too, as Monty tells her, and she's not giving up yet. Her and Monty are the only ones left, and have time to get to Polis- maybe they'll pick up Raven?- the question is will they get there in time to get in the bunker?

Speaking of the bunker, what an intense ride. Bellamy and Abby team up to take down Jaha long enough to open the hatch- saving Octavia's life (and Kane's) and also a bunch of Grounders. Octavia has decreed that all the clans will be saved- one hundred from each- and that includes Skaikru. So the sky people are going to have to pick one hundred people to survive- after Jaha had promised everyone in Skaikru they would survive. Will there be riots? Fighting? Clarke, in the end, refused to shoot Bellamy to stop him, so she seems to be allied with Octavia, Bellamy and Abby now. Jaha will not give up, I suspect, so with two episodes to go expect some treachery. Jaha always seems to choose the expedient path, the way he thinks is right. The problem is- who is he to make those decisions?

Random Thoughts

The Raven storyline was silly. That's been unfortunate all season, keeping her in that lab away from the rest of the crew. While it was powerful at the end, seeing that she survived and did it through science, the whole freezing herself thing was just... kinda bad. Get her back with the crew and move on from all that. 

Disappointed by Murphy. Clarke sets him to guard Bellamy when they lock him up (yes they locked up Bell) and he could free Bellamy... but doesn't. I thought it would be neat to see those two working together again, and we know that Murph doesn't always agree with Clarke, but nope. He was no help.

 Who exactly put fucking Jaha in charge? I mean the security guys (fuck you Miller) were obeying him. If it was Clarke's idea, why is Jaha acting like he's the man? I was starting to come around on Jaha, thinking maybe he wasn't so bad- and in his defense the only reason they KNOW about the bunker is him- but he is such a prick in this one. Not for the first time I wish they would just put him down. 

Is Jasper dead??? 

Clarke gets into bed with Niylah and they still are a thing. 

The bunker looks pretty big! Lots of tunnels and stuff... I've been wondering for a while how large the place is. 

"Welcome home" Octavia tells the chosen Grounders. She's clearly in charge now, and in the bunker, with Indra (and Bellamy) at her side. Can she control Jaha? Also Clarke was on the wrong side of a lot of this. What will her role be? Oh, and does anyone else think the Grounders were surprisingly civilized about making their choices, whereas Skaikru were like fuck you we're taking the bunker. 

Echo is let go by O- after all she knows about the banishment- have we seen the last of Echo? 

"I must have missed the election that made you chancellor again" Bellamy tells Jaha. Exactly. They gave Jaha another chance after the City of Light fiasco. what will they do now?