And just like that, the band's back together. For now. I think.
This was an episode of reunions. Clarke and Bellamy got to properly ascertain that the other is in fact alive and well. I have to say it was very sweet. I very openly love their friendship and think it's been central to, well, everything, but sometimes I am still surprised by just how electric the two of them are. Bellamy got another reunion with his sister, and we got to see some of the O that Bellamy has been missing. It was as nice a sibling reunion as I have been hoping for. The look Clarke and Bellamy shared after checking out the fighting pit screamed volumes, though. It was such a thick moment.
No one in the bunker is looking particularly great. Abby is on drugs. Kane is in the pit. Indra is no longer following orders blindly. Otavia is right, six years is a long time. Long enough so that no one seems to be precisely where we left them (which is interesting since they're literally trapped and can't leave). Kane is still trying for the same things, though. He wants to protect Abby and he wants the human race to be on a path that isn't soaked and tarnished in blood. You could feel his anguish in trying to bring Octavia back into the light. It's still what he wanted but he was ready to stop fighting, too.
When worlds collide...
Fleshing out what everyone has been through separately in these last six years was very smart before bringing every dysfunctional faction together onscreen. Time jumps are hard to do and especially on a show like The 100 where everything happens at a lightning pace, it would've been easy to skip over some of this important character growth that's happened. Having said that, getting (mostly) everyone back in the same story was a breath of fresh air for me.
For the sake of the Blakes I seriously hope that Bellamy recognizes that his sister is now a queen and can speak for herself and that Octavia doesn't forget who got her out of the ground. Teamwork makes the dreamwork, y'all. Octavia's been preaching it for a while now, but is there room for more than one leader?
Clark's first instinct was to start picking the criminals off. She ended up in a shock collar. Bellamy's was to bend them to do what he couldn't with the napping army as leverage. He ended up betrayed. Without the gunpower and the manpower and the moral high ground, how long are they going to last? How bad is it going to get for them? I've been seeing this new world as a reset to season one and while I've enjoyed the parallels a lot, it does take the wind out of watching when it feels like I know what's coming around every corner. This was the first time that I see the unknown opportunities here and I'm excited for it.
4 out of 5 double-crosses
Bits and pieces
Wanheda translated to the commander of death. Does Wankru translate to crew of death? Crew of the dead?
Speaking of Clarke, there was a reaction to her showing up in the bunker. Was it because Wanheda is still famous or because they know Clarke is a nightblood?
It seemed like head criminal guy was poised to overthrow Charmaine. Then he took out the loose cannon instead. Does he have a crush or is it all part of his plan? Or was this to exemplify that to him, people and loyalties are interchangeable? Maybe he has a Murphy level survival instinct.
Where is Eligius III? Are they already setting up for season 6? If the criminals are the reimagined 2.0 juvenile delinquents of season one, maybe Eligius III will be the next mountain men, The Spacecraft Sallys?
How big is this valley? Can echo stay hidden awhile? Octavia doesn't seem to be in a very cumbaya mood.
Callbacks to season one:
-Kane reminded us that he used to rule with an iron fist. He floated Octavia's mother. Abby brought it up not long ago that he also ordered her to be killed.
-Charmaine ordering the missiles to be launched reminded me of the 100 torching the grounders outside of the drop ship at the end of season one.
Murphy: "And they call me the cockroach."
Kane: "Strength without mercy is nothing."
Kane: "Abby, what have we done?"
Abby: "What we had to do to survive."
Kane: "How many times are we going to tell each other that?"
Abby: "It's the truth."
Kane: "No, it's what we tell ourselves to justify the horrors."
Abby: "I can't lose you,"
Kane: "I lost myself."
Octavia: "Now we go to war."
I had thought that Won-kru stood for "one crew", or one people. But I absolutely could be wrong.
ReplyDeleteIt's funny but one of the things I'm enjoying the most is how adult the actors all look now. The makeup artists probably tried to make them look like teenagers before, but like, Bellamy in particular looks like a grown man of 30 now.
Billie, that's what I had assumed also but I saw it spelled out as Wankru and made a Wanheda connection. I should stop making assumptions about a language I don't know, haha. Maybe they'll explain it eventually?
ReplyDeleteIt could be the Wan is Commander, so Wankru would be Commander's People. Things aren't totally desperate yet, though. While the criminals who've gone up can certainly kill Raven & Murphy, they might not be able to fly the ship, or Raven could set it up to crash before they get a chance. And as long as they stay in the air, Wankru has an overwhelming edge in numbers.
ReplyDeleteAlso, I think the Prisoners must have another weakness that hasn't been revealed yet. What is it they need Abby to cure? I'm thinking the 283 may be infected with something.
We already know that Heda means commander. That's how Lexa was adressed back in season 2 and 3. So I'm for the "One crew" explanation.
ReplyDelete