The 100 (Season 3) (1 Viewer)

[Adam Lenhardt]

Previous Season Threads:
Season 1

Season 2


Held for mid-season, "The 100" will begin its 16-episode third season on January 21st at 9/8c, following the series premiere of the hotly anticipated DC Television Universe team-up event "Legends of Tomorrow".


The first promo for the new season has been made public, with a full trailer to follow Monday:

 

[Adam Lenhardt]

Extended Trailer:



It's remarkable what this show pulls off on a CW budget.

 

[ChristopherG]

Looking forward to the return of The 100.

 

[mattCR]

This is one of hte best, under-rated series on TV.. I expected in the first season for how pop and kiddie this would be; and it has been a very deep, well written fully fleshed out universe with some great storylines. SciFi fans should definitely give this a go.

 

[DaveF]

This is one of hte best, under-rated series on TV.. I expected in the first season for how pop and kiddie this would be; and it has been a very deep, well written fully fleshed out universe with some great storylines. SciFi fans should definitely give this a go.

Like my beloved Hellcats Thankfully The 100 survived its first season.

 

[Jason_V]

I am so thankful I stuck with the first season and didn't abandon the show. I really can't wait for the 21st. Aside from the production values, I am floored with the content the producers are able to incorporate into the show without a network problem.


The extended trailer seemed to show a lot of spoilers (at least, that's my take on it), so beware.

 

[Adam Lenhardt]

Season 3 premiere powers "The 100" to its best ratings since the sixth episode of first season, best demo ratings since the second episode of first season, doubled the season's timeslot average


Even though the entire hour was setup, I really loved it. It continues to amaze me how the show continues to improve; the cinematography and production were more sophisticated than ever, and the world building is right up there with the best shows on television.


The cold open with Murphy trapped in the bunker and slowly losing his mind was an effective and elegant way to handle the time jump between seasons.


The consequences of the second season finale felt organic and satisfying. Lexa gambled and made what seemed like the safe call at the time to get her people back in exchange for betraying the Sky People. But the Mountain Men were hated by all of the grounder tribes, and Clarke pulled off a devastating and complete victory even without the Tree People's reinforcements. It makes sense that both Lexa and the Tree People would be weakened politically within the confederation of tribes, and that Clarke would be elevated to a legend somewhere close to a god. Had she stayed within the leadership of the Sky People, the grounder tribes probably wouldn't have dared challenge them. But out in the wilderness on her own, it makes sense that she'd have a target on her back.


The scouts from the Ice Nation having the beacon from Farm Station raises interesting questions: Did they pull it out of the wreckage of Farm Station, did they murder all of the survivors of Farm Station and take it as a trophy, or did the survivors of Farm Station and the Ice Nation work out some kind of accommodation?


It looks like the City of Light is less a physical place and more a virtual reality accessible though some kind of neural interface. The concept reminded me a bit of the pins from Tomorrowland. It's still a little WTF-y for my tastes, but I'm glad they grounded that storyline a bit more than the closing scenes of the second season finale.


I've never gotten into the whole shipping thing with television characters, but I definitely ship Octavia and Lincoln.

 

[mattCR]

I'm just kind of wow on the premiere. It surprised me in some of the directions it has taken. This is a show that has not been afraid to completely shift the plot as time moves on, and it feels very organic in doing it. Love it.

 

[DaveF]

Good premiere. Glad to see some organic consequences and conflict: Raven's leg is again a problem. I like seeing her move as if she was wounded and is not a perfect 20-something in the prime of life. Octavia and Lincoln; I'm having some trouble remembering how they ended things last season, but I believe her 'gone native' would take her to this place. Clarke off, literally in the wilderness, is a good idea and I'm curious how it's prosecuted. And Monty...just wow...


Jaha and John is the loose thread for me. This plot line feels bolted on.


My anxiety: The 100 has exhausted its sci-fi stores and is now wholly in the realm of action/drama serialized stories. The tremendous strength of the first two seasons was smart storytelling grounded in some classic scifi standards. Can it continue strong in its third season? (I hope so.)

 

[Adam Lenhardt]

The second episode of the new season was even better than the first. It's unbelievable how the scope of this show has expanded over time to a mythology nearly on par with "Game of Thrones". The cast of characters continues to expand, while keeping everybody and their allegiances crystal clear in the audience's mind -- all through exposition that feels natural and organic instead of shoehorned in.

Roan is completely different than any other character I've seen Zach McGowan play, but he's really knocking it out of the park.

Michael Beach's Pike is a well conceived character. Based on the extended trailer, it's safe to infer that he's going to be trouble down the road, but in this episode I was struck by how competent and level-headed he seemed. Except for his unnuanced hatred for all Grounders -- somewhat understandable given his group's early interactions with them -- he was a voice for the smart play over the hasty play.

My assumption that the City of Light is not -- at least currently -- an actual place seems to be correct. The question is: Was A.L.I.E.'s tall deformed brute really ressurrected in the City of Light, or is the avatar they're seeing just an A.I. created by her to keep Jaha and Emori's former partner focused on the task at hand?

Nice to see Monty reunited with his mom, and it'll be interesting to see how he handles the news that his father was apparently the victim of a Grounder slaughter, especially since he was party to committing genocide on innocent children himself.

Nice cameo by William Blake's The Lovers' Whirlwind.

Lots of twists and turns in this episode: The reveal that the ambush party on the humvee was actually composed of the survivors of Farm Station; that Clarke's captor is actually the Ice Queen's son; that he was bringing her to Lexa rather than to her mother.

Speaking of Lexa, I'm so glad Alycia Debnam-Carey was able to making the scheduling work between "The 100" and "Fear the Walking Dead". It probably helps that that the latter show moved production to Vancouver, where "The 100" was already being shot. She was so good in that scene, where you could see Clarke's anger and hatred wounded her to the core, and yet her resolute stoicism never wavered.

And then that final shot, of Lexa on the balcony atop the crumbling tower, the ruins of a great city all around her, a massive torch burning above. Wow. Maybe the most epic single shot I've ever seen on any CW show. Anybody know what building that was supposed to be?

Based on this photo posted by supervising producer Aaron Ginsburg:

...we can see that Roan was navigating using a transit map of the Greater DC Metro system. The underground room where Roan was holding Clarke was a station for South Laurel, Maryland. There doesn't appear to be a South Laurel metro station, but a fair amount of time presumably passed between 2016 and the end of the world. The photo of the map matches the current system, but there are additional lines and many of the existing lines go much further out than right now.

The tricky thing is that we don't know where Clarke was in relation to TonDC when she got snatched. Presumably the Ice Nation is north, which would imply that she was north of Baltimore where she got snatched. I vaguely recall mention that the Tree Crew's capital was a place called Polis. Assuming that that's the ruins of Annapolis, Maryland, they would have been heading southeast when Bellamy caught up with them.

But there's no tower like that in Annapolis. But a fair amount of time presumably passed between 2016 and the end of the world.

Interesting tidbit: Kass Morgan, who wrote the book that the show borrowed its concept from, named all of the initial main characters after famous scifi authors: Clarke (Arthur C. Clarke), Bellamy (Edward Bellamy), Wells (H.G. Wells) and Octavia (Octavia Butler).

 

[mattCR]

Damn, this show pulls no punches. Brutal episode tonight. Brutal.

 

[Stan]

Never seen it, but sounds interesting. Is this something I can just dive into and enjoy?

Never saw "Game of Thrones" and was warned to start from the beginning or I'd be lost. Luckily HBO did rerun all the previous seasons.

I'm sure the previous episodes are out there somewhere, might be best to start from episode one.

 

[mattCR]

Yeah, you really do need to start at the beginning because of the path this takes, but I think it's streamable if you have a Hulu subscription.. really good stuff.

 

[David Weicker]

As a fan of both Edgar Rice Burtoughs and Flash Gordon (serials and, more appropriately, the original strips), I am loving the different factions presented. A definite traditional 'sci-fi' world. Infinitely interesting.

Oh, and it was only last night that I caught the Wannheda/100 sound-alike. Although it is a coincidence that natives word for Clarke matches the show title

 

[Adam Lenhardt]

I agree with Matt. And give yourself a few episodes before giving up on it. It starts out as your traditional teen CW show, and then quickly becomes something far greater. The first two seasons are available on Netflix, and both seasons are also available on DVD/Blu-Ray.

Last night's episode was a masterpiece. I hope the Ice Queen gets what's coming to her. There is a special hell for people who force war when there are all the ingredients for an equitable, lasting peace.

 

[Charlie Campisi]

I agree with Matt. And give yourself a few episodes before giving up on it. It starts out as your traditional teen CW show, and then quickly becomes something far greater. The first two seasons are available on Netflix, and both seasons are also available on DVD/Blu-Ray.

This is very true. I just watched the first two seasons on netflix over the past 10 days or so. Got started on a day we were snowed in. Started out very much like a teen show and then got very slick. First three eps of season three are available (and I watched) on The CW app. I have it set up now on the dvd and am missing being able to binge on it. Very good show and probably not worth jumping in at the middle. Start from the beginning and enjoy!

 

[mattCR]

Seriously blowing me away right now. I have absolutely no idea where this goes, but it is incredibly organic in the development of characters and plot so everything seems believable based on what we know about the characters.

 

[Charlie Campisi]

but it is incredibly organic in the development of characters and plot so everything seems believable based on what we know about the characters.

I like the show a lot as I said and it's mostly believable but the near misses sometimes make me shake my head. Last night having Lexa and Clarke preserve the alliance while simultaneously having a major government change at Sky Crew with immediate plans to attack the peacekeeping force which will undoubtedly shatter the alliance had me rolling my eyes. Like the show but found the instant switch of Bellamy to the fighting side to be out of character. This may be his Finn moment.

 

[DaveF]

The latest development is what the show needed. We now have the terrible conflict looming, the consequence of past actions, emotional prejudices, and multiple parties unable to communicate. This is what I have been waiting for.

 

[Adam Lenhardt]

Seriously blowing me away right now. I have absolutely no idea where this goes, but it is incredibly organic in the development of characters and plot so everything seems believable based on what we know about the characters.

I agree completely. There were several developments in Thursday's episode that I didn't see coming. The one I did -- Pike becoming chancellor -- had a terrible inevitability about it. The advantage of Alycia Debnam-Carey being a series regular on "Fear the Walking Dead" is that I keep expecting Lexa to be killed off so that she doesn't have to divide her time. When she stepped into that arena, I was sure she was a goner, which made what happened instead all the more effective.

I like the show a lot as I said and it's mostly believable but the near misses sometimes make me shake my head. Last night having Lexa and Clarke preserve the alliance while simultaneously having a major government change at Sky Crew with immediate plans to attack the peacekeeping force which will undoubtedly shatter the alliance had me rolling my eyes. Like the show but found the instant switch of Bellamy to the fighting side to be out of character. This may be his Finn moment.

I agree that it's terrible timing, but like Dave said, it's all grounded in who these characters are and what we know about them.

Clearly, Charles Pike is the wrong person to be chancellor at this moment in time. What Kane and Abby achieved diplomatically was an immense accomplishment, and the first steps toward rebuilding true civilization.

But this is not a world that's conditioned for democracy. The chancellor on the Ark was more of a parliamentary position, selected by the Council from among its own membership. It's not even clear whether the Council was elected or selected by some other means. Then, as the station started dying, even that semblance of representative government crumbled. Jaha passed the chancellorship to Kane when he stayed behind the launch the stations to the ground. Kane passed the chancellorship to Abby when he went to seek peace with the Grounders. And Abby's kept it ever since.

Since then, working together, Abby Griffin and Marcus Kane have accomplished remarkable things together. But they took their position of leadership for granted. Voters don't like being told who to vote for. When Abby chastised Pike for being disrespectful to "your next chancellor" in front of a large segment of the camp, at the memorial service for the camp's victims of the Ice Nation's treachery at Mt. Weather, the day before the election, I winced.

All of the progress has been made at the highest levels. Abby and Kane didn't keep the people involved. The fact that Kane's branding was a shock to the camp demonstrated just how out of touch the leadership had become with its constituency. It's not enough to make the right call, to make the right decisions. You have to convince your constituency that it was the right call, that you're making the the right decisions. Abby and Kane took their constituency for granted, and it cost them the election and seems poised to cost them the peace.

It would have been easy to make Pike a mustache-twirling villain. The show wisely didn't do that; like Abby and Kane, he possesses the ingredients to make a good leader. His problem is experience. His station landed in the wrong clan's territory. His experience since has brought him to the point that the 100 were at by the end of the first season. He has had none of the experiences that humanized the Grounders to the other main characters. His first attempt at giving them a shot led to half his remaining people being slaughtered.

So while Abby and Kane scheme to ensure a lasting peace, Pike is out in Arkadia, speaking with their constituency. And in Arkadia, there are a lot of other people who haven't had any humanizing experiences with grounders, either. For whom the prospect of grounders has always been associated with near or actual violence.

So Pike is absolutely the wrong choice to lead at this particular moment of time. He is about to shatter something fragile but precious. He is not thinking long-term; he's thinking like a cornered animal lashing out. By launching a preemptive strike on the peacekeeping force Lexa sent to protect Arkadia, he is awakening a sleeping giant.

But he has captured the mood of the people, offering them something immediate and clear and satisfying. And Abby and Kane have not successfully made the other argument.

Which gets us to Bellamy. I can see the argument that this is his Finn moment, where a tolerant character suddenly and somewhat inexplicably turns to unthinking vengeance. If Bellamy continues to spiral, that might very well end up the case.

But I don't think so. I'm betting that the show learned from that mess. And among the young cast of characters, Bellamy is second only to Clarke in prominence. The other difference is that Finn was motivated by the personal -- I've got to save Clarke! -- while Bellamy is motivated by his responsibility to the group -- I've got to protect my people.

When Echo showed up, he trusted her. He trusted the bond they'd developed locked in cages next to each other in Mount Weather. When she betrayed them, he felt personally responsible for the outcome. And now he feels that if she could betray him, someone who went through hell with him, then any of them could betray them. And Pike stoked that self-reproach, nurtured those feelings of betrayal.

If he had a week or two to really think about it, I think he'd come to a different conclusion. If Clarke was still with him, the angel on his other shoulder, I think he'd have come to a different conclusion. But he doesn't have the luxury of time or of his better angels.

So he'll march with Pike. And my guess is, he'll almost instantly come to regret it.

Interesting to see both Monroe and Harper's reluctance at what they saw as a bad call, but ceding to their respect for him personally by backing down.