"Game over, man."
As with a lot of episodes, the story above is more compelling than the story below, but I have more fun writing about the story below so that will take up the bulk of this review.
The Ark was in full blown disaster movie mode. The theft of the Exodus Ship has left it virtually crippled (thank you very much, Ellen Tigh) and its crew scattered. Kane found himself alone, wandering the corridors looking for other survivors and also taking the time to complete his journey from scheming villain to tragic anti-hero, his guilt over the 300 people who were culled driving him to save everyone he can. This transition may have been sudden, but I do prefer this more heroic version of Kane to the moustache twirler of earlier episodes. It also helps that I’ve adjusted to Desmond’s new accent.
Down on the ground, due to a mixture of poor planning, insufficient health and safety precautions and sheer stupidity, the 100's food supply literally goes up in smoke. With their food supplies gone, and their enemies closing in, the remaining one hundred were forced to sacrifice Finn to the Lord of Light. Wait, no, that was some delightful fan fiction I read somewhere, probably in my head while watching Finn scenes. Damn you, wandering imagination, you got me all excited!
Not content with being the worst boyfriend ever, Finn is now aiming to be the worst ex-boyfriend ever. Now that he and Raven are no more he's all over Clarke like a flesh eating virus. Really, Finn? Would it have killed you to maybe wait a while before going after Clarke? And did you really have to do it so publicly? He pretty much rubbed it in Raven's face, leading her to have meaningless revenge sex with Bellamy. Eww. I mean, sure, they’re both good looking people and the sight of them semi-naked wasn’t completely unpleasant. But still, eww. Why do TV writers think that the first thing any person wants to do after a bad break up is have sex with the most inappropriate person they can find to get back at their ex? Raven deserves better than this. So much better.
I know this is a CW drama and aimed at a teenage audience, but surely even they find all the relationship drama on this show as agonising to watch as I do? It's all just so clichéd with lots of predictable love triangles, overly dramatic break ups, people sleeping with the wrong people because they’re, like, really emotional, and longing looks from afar while soft rock music plays. None of this is particularly interesting – more like nauseating – and you do get the sense that the writers have only included all of it because it was mandated by the network.
Anyway, while they are out hunting, Anya grabs Clarke and Finn (leaving poor Red Shirt for dead) so that Clarke can heal Tris, her second, which I imagine is Grounder for Intern. Man, Anya must really hate getting her own coffee. Why Clarke? Because the Grounder’s healer is gone? First, why is it tribal cultures only ever seem to have one healer? And two, was that healer killed on the bridge? Why were they in the vanguard? That seems like a foolish place for your healer to be. A healer should be kept as far away from the fighting as possible, especially if you only happen to have the one. This is just careless battle planning, Anya. Then again, they never do say that their healer is dead, only that they are gone. Maybe they are simply vacationing in whatever the Grounder version of the Hamptons is and there's no one to cover for them. Again, though, that is careless battle planning, going to war without any medical professionals.
Anyway, Clarke fails, Tris dies and Anya has Finn taken away to be killed because killing him right then and there like a sensible person would prevent him from making some improbable escape off screen (you're not fooling anyone, writers). As tedious as this storyline was, it did ultimately show us just how dangerous and ruthless Clarke can be when pushed to her limits. She took full advantage of how nice her guard was being towards her, or as nice as Grounders can be, to get him to lower his guard and reveal his weaknesses. Without an ounce of hesitation or regret, she slashed open his throat and bolted, not even bothering to stick around to see if she could save Finn (smart woman). If she manages to get down from that tree and make it back to Camp Hormonal, will she turn her back on her previous pacifist ways and go full Boudica on the grounders?
Notes and (No) Quotes
— What or who crashed the Exodus ship and did they just kidnap Monty?
— Abby's survival was both expected (no way were they going to kill off a major character off screen) and frustrating (how the hell did she and all those other people manage to get off the ship before it left?).
— More Wick, please.
— The scenes on the Ark didn’t sync up perfectly with the ending of ‘Unity Day’. Kane was with Jaha when the Exodus ship left, how did he end up all alone in that corridor? Did he get lost in the space time continuum again? (Sorry, Henry Ian Cusick, but you are always going to be Desmond to me, just as Alessandro Juliani is always going to be Gaeta.)
— This episode just left me with a lot of questions about Grounder culture. How primitive are they? How much knowledge was lost after the war? Are these the only survivors or is crazy shit like this going on in Australia:
Two and half out of four flesh eating viruses.
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Mark Greig has been writing for Doux Reviews since 2011. More Mark Greig.
Loved the review, Mark. :)
ReplyDeleteI was seriously shocked and pleased when Clarke just killed the guard, left Finn to die, and ran like hell back to the camp to warn them. Hardcore hero action, there. And Desmond rescuing Abby, the woman he spent the early episodes trying to get executed. Holy reversal, Batman.
At first I felt exactly the same about the above story being compelling, and the below story being less than compelling. Slowly though, I've started to shift my position on that. I think the new situation on the Ark is definitely better than the political stuff that clogged things up for the last six or so episodes, but I'm not sure if that will always stay the case. Will they fix the Ark and go back to brutal laws and pointless executions?
ReplyDeleteAs for the Below story, things have been progressing at a nice pace. I don't like Finn, and personally I think Raven and Clarke have more chemistry. But what I've really liked is that our teenage characters, complete with raging hormones and bad taste in lovers, have been learning by trial and error. Sure they are screwing up more than they are succeeding, but I like that they aren't just making the same stupid choices again and again.
Yeah, I'm not sure what happened to the Grounder healer, but I hope there is more of an explanation later on. It also sounded like the Grounders were going to induct Clarke into their tribe, unwillingly, but as a full member eventually down the line after the 100 were wiped out. That means they understand she has value. Will they avoid killing her again, just because she could be considered an asset?
Clarke's escape was probably the best moment for the character so far in the series, and she has had some pretty good moments so far. I did feel a bit sad, because that Grounder seemed like he could've been a fun character though.
Mark, your review was a lot of fun, and made me laugh more than once. Onto the finale, I can't believe we've progressed through the season this quickly. Also, what a lovely idea that Mad Max is happening on the other side of the globe in this universe.
the remaining one hundred were forced to sacrifice Finn to the Lord of Light. Wait, no, that was some delightful fan fiction I read somewhere, probably in my head while watching Finn scenes.
ReplyDeleteHahaha! I don’t know a single fan/viewer who likes Finn. Didn’t the writers notice he was completely out of place? Finn didn’t start out so bad, but the love triangle completely ruined his character.
I like some of the teenage stuff. For instance, I didn’t mind Raven having sex with Bellamy mostly because she didn’t show signs of guilty neither he was a jerk about the situation. But I agree that some stuff, like the love triangle, is just bad. If there’s any consolation, the writers do get the memo and the teen melodrama parts of the series are mostly dropped on season two.
Clarke is pretty kickass. And, you guys, that awesome scape is just the beginning of her awesomeness.
The grounder healer was obviously Lincoln that's why they need a new one.
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