The 100: Blood Giant (7.13) Things of Note

Let’s just get to it.

Cadogan owns Sheidheda. The episode picked up right where 7.12 left off. Gabriel looked surprised that “Russell” would sit upon a bone throne and dress in black leather. Of course, Sheidheda had no idea who he was. One of Sheidguard let them know that “this is Malachi kom Sangedakru and you will kneel before him”. Sheidheda offered his usual deal (kneel or die) but Cadogan had no time for that. If he wasn’t in such a hurry, he’d recruit them. I wonder if Cadogan attempted to recruit any of the Eligius mission teams that survived the journey. Maybe he stole some embryos. Anyway, Cadogan smartly brought ghost Disciples with him. They took down Sheidguard with the quickness. Only Indra and Sheidheda were left standing. Sheidheda charged but one of the ghost Disciples stabbed him. The soldiers tie Indra up along with Sheidheda because she was unrestrained. She was only left alive because she was unarmed. Cadogan offered Sheidheda a deal. As long as he allowed them free reign to look for the Flame, Gabriel would be left to treat his stab wound. I have to give it to Cadogan for being prepared. However, he doesn’t actually do anything! He just stands around pointing and waving his arms.

Snowlit chats. It was snowing during the Red Sun. Gotta love that Vancouver winter weather! Murphy was like some of the fans in that he was hoping Bellamy was playing the long con. Nope. Murphy seemed genuinely disappointed. So much that he walked away to talk to Clarke and Raven. After walking for a while, Cadogan decided to send Clarke to go get The Flame alone. Why?! I guess he was banking on the love she has for her friends. He should have at least sent a ghost Disciple to follow her! Once she left, Cadogan sent Doucette away to have another “Shepherd to sheep” chat with Bellamy. Doucette was up for a big promotion to First Disciple. He, Levitt, and the other Disciples were born in the cause. All except Levitt don’t know anything different. Anyway, Bellamy asked Cadogan how he dealt with his family thinking he was crazy. He felt like he was failing both his family/friends and Cadogan. Cadogan assured him that he wasn’t. He told Bellamy that he was special and that he reminded him of himself. Is that a bond? I bet Reese would have given anything to hear Cadogan say that to him. Raven and Murphy exchanged a little banter about their experiences with Bardo and Sanctum respectively. They did “good” even though Bellamy’s a sheep and Sheidheda’s the ruler of Sanctum. It was nice to see their gentle ribbing again.

Hallucination Josephine. As Gabriel was tending to Sheidheda’s wound, he inquired about whether Russell suffered when Sheidheda killed him. Part of him hoped Russell had suffered because Josephine hit him with “Like you care”. First sign of the Red Sun. He needed to get some antitoxin quickly! He told the Disciples about the Red Sun even though Josephine told him not to. By the time he got to the skeleton room, the alarm was going off. Josephine didn’t take to kindly to having her hosts’ skeletons turned into a chair. Anyway, Gabriel ran into Jackson who was preparing patients for transport. Back to the scene of his biggest breakthrough and greatest regret. The remorse was written all over his face. No time to wallow in it though because he needed that antitoxin. Jackson came in and inquired about the others, specifically Nate. Gabriel told him he was not there but he was safe. Anyway, there was only one dose left so Gabriel offered it to Jackson. Gabriel has worked with the toxin for centuries so he knows how to work under the influence. Jackson would be useless without it. As Jackson was working on making the antitoxin, Josephine floated the idea of using Eligius tech to fix The Flame. Gabriel has the know-how to do it. He did reverse-engineer the mind drives after all. He resisted because he wasn’t interested in working with Cadogan. It was interesting seeing someone with more experience feel the effects of the toxin. Gabriel was affected but he wasn’t so affected that he couldn’t function. Through Josephine, we were able to get a little insight into what Gabriel was thinking. Loved seeing Josephine back and Gabriel interacting with Jackson.

Let the bugs in! Meanwhile, Knight and other remnants of Sheidguard were still trying to break down the reactor door. If they succeeded, Red Sun toxin would get in. Emori told Jeremiah and Trey to get everyone into secondary containment. As soon as Jeremiah opened the door, Nikki jumped out and grabbed him. His son blocked the way knowing what would happen if they opened the door. Madi made a comment about human shields which inspired Emori to cut the power and take down the shield. With the power off, Luca knocked out Nikki with a wrench. Outside, Raven saw the bugs and suggested running. It took some convincing but they eventually made their way to the reactor. The bugs came in and attacked Knight and the others. Bellamy, Cadogan, and Doucette arrived with Raven and Murphy in tow. The torches repelled the bugs. Too late for Knight and the other Sheidguard. Clarke popped up just before they could seal the doors. She had a bag full of antitoxin. Cadogan made a snide remark about it being for Madi. He hates familial love the most because he was so burned by it. Anyway, Clarke agreed to give up the Flame if they opened the reactor door. A Disciple soldier shot a hole in it. Emori, not knowing it wasn’t Sheidguard, prepared to shoot whoever comes in. She relaxed when she saw Murphy. She was very happy to see Raven. Bellamy spurned her when she inquired about the story behind his outfit. Ouch. They all inhaled the antitoxin and waited out the bugs. Clarke gave Cadogan the Flame but Madi told her it was a bad idea.

Long-awaited confrontation. It was the first time Raven had been in the reactor since Hatch, X, Y, and Z died. The guilt was coming back full force. She got the power back on but one of the coolant pipes started leaking. A chance to overcome her fear and fix the leak herself. Luckily, it was a quick job. Unluckily, Nikki was waiting for her with an Exacto knife. I loved the camera work on this section! Nikki’s eyes had been on Raven as she as repairing the pipe. Hatch used to say only fools return to the scene of their crime. Nikki held the knife to Raven’s throat. Before killing her, Nikki wanted to hear Raven say what she did. Raven began to cry and told Nikki about how she was too scared to make the repairs. She locked Hatch in the reactor because she thought he was as cowardly as she was. He wasn’t. He was brave and got the job done. She begged Nikki to kill her if it would bring her peace. Nikki decided not to kill her. She was satisfied that Raven so shattered by her guilt. Nikki came out of the control room and Clarke, Emori, and Murphy feared the worst. Raven was alive but distraught. Her actions did save all of Sanctum but they were based on prejudgement and self-preservation. As I mentioned in my 6.03 recap, she saw Hatch and his crew as expendable.

Temporary allies. With Gabriel gone, Indra and Sheidheda were left with the Disciple soldiers. The toxin began to affect Indra. She heard Sheidheda tell her mother that Trikru had been defeated and that she should kneel. She saw her mother kneel as well. All the while, she was trying to saw through the rope binding her hands. Sheidheda expected Indra to escape faster because Trikru spent so much time trying to escape him. There had to have been a rivalry! Maybe my theory about Reese starting Sangedekru is correct. One of the Disciples started to hallucinate and killed his commanding officer as a result. I guess he thought he should be the leader. Indra was nearly free but needed more time. She asked Sheidheda to distract the hallucinating soldier. He offered to help him get antitoxin for The Shepherd so he could be a hero. The soldier was interested but Indra was finally free. She quickly dispensed of the Disciple guards. The last one standing ghosted but the blood on the floor revealed their footprints. Sheidheda alerted Indra. She decapitated the soldier just before Jackson and Gabriel ran into the room. Jackson gave her the antitoxin. She might have killed Sheidheda had she not gotten it. Instead, she opted to let his stab wound do the work and ordered Jackson and Gabriel not to treat him. No problem.

The Flame is destroyed…for real this time. Gabriel rigged up a memory viewer to download Becca’s memories from the Flame. He explained how and why it would work as a scientist would. He started the download and things were going great. Hallucination Josephine goaded him to “volunteer” to put the newly loaded memory drive in his head. Gabriel had second thoughts about restoring The Flame. It seems to me that he doesn’t think anyone should have it at this point. He finally took his dose of antitoxin and Josephine disappeared. He pulled out a gun and shot The Flame to smithereens. He then pointed the gun at Cadogan and ordered everyone to put their weapons down. Bellamy attempted to talk him down. He pointed out Cadogan was the only one who knew where Echo and Hope were. Gabriel still didn’t drop his gun so one of the Disciples yelled to take him. Doucette ran at Gabriel but Clarke shot him in the chest. His last words to Bellamy were “Don’t lose faith”. Cadogan is a moron for sending Clarke to get The Flame alone! She might have picked up a gun when she was at the farmhouse. If she had the gun the whole time, he’s a dumbass for not searching her before they left Bardo! Way to lose control of the situation! He may have already lost control because of the Red Sun though.

Already gone. Raven booted up the stone but when she asked which planet, Cadogan told her that only he knows the code. Clarke threatened to kill him if he didn’t put in the code. He did and she took him hostage. Bellamy moved towards the open bridge but Clarke stopped him, stating that he made his choice. Murphy really hoped his newfound belief was worth it. With little hesitation, Bellamy said that it was even though it essentially cost him his family and friends. Cadogan cracked this smug “near-smile”. It delights him that his “ideals” have such an effect on Bellamy. I guess it makes him feel powerful even though he’s lost control of the situation. Raven was resigned. She, Madi, Murphy, Emori, and Jackson stepped through the bridge. Clarke stepped to Bellamy and said she had lost him even though she promised herself that she wouldn’t lose anyone else. At this point, the Bellamy she knew was already dead. He has betrayed her before but this time cut really deep. It seemed like they had reached the point of no return. Transcendence was a deeply held belief for Bellamy and he was willing to give up everyone he knew and loved for it. Their relationship would never be the same again. Both were devastated. One would think that Bellamy being torn between his belief and his loved ones was a sign that he could “come back”.

RIP Bellamy. I’m stunned! That small part of me was right. I even described the scenario. It was the last thing I expected to happen at the end of this episode. I won’t demand my prize for this one. Anyway, as Clarke was walking into the bridge, Sheidheda told Bellamy about the book on his throne. That stopped her in her tracks. Speaking Trigedeslang, she ordered Bellamy to give her the book. He told her, in English, that he’d make sure Madi wasn’t harmed. That’s telling. I think he would have answered her in Trig if he wasn’t fully in with the Disciples. Cadogan had already have gone through the bridge so their conversation would have been “safe”. Also, he had already betrayed Clarke in regards to Madi by giving her The Flame. Anyway, Clarke believed that the Disciples would kill Madi to get the code. Bellamy tried to explain that this was about saving the human race. He tried to tell Clarke that it could be the end of her suffering and of Madi’s suffering. Clarke wouldn’t hear of it. Still, Bellamy believed handing the book to the Disciples was the right thing to do. He was sorry. So was she. That was that. Bellamy died for his beliefs at the hand of his (former) best friend. He believed that transcendence was the way to save all of humanity, including his sister and friends. Putting it that way, he died trying to save them. Bellamy was a real jerk in the beginning who really didn’t care about anyone else aside from Octavia. Bellamy evolved into someone who was dependable and cared about his people. Even when he was on the “wrong side” of things, his actions were driven by his love for his friends and family. Thinking with his heart. He did learn to use his head when needed but he tended to lead with his heart. Echo and Octavia are going to take it hard. Clarke already is even though she felt that he was already gone. Bellamy’s presence will definitely be felt even if he doesn’t appear onscreen again. Just like it was when he was pseudo-dead. Except it’s real this time.

Ummm… I really had to mull this over. I’m not angry. I’m not heartbroken. I get the impression that I’m supposed to be. Those feelings are valid but so is not having them. I do understand why people have them though. Bellamy meant a lot to some people and a lead character’s death is expected to be a big moment. I guess I’m more flummoxed than anything. On the one hand, I don’t think it was completely for “no reason”. I see the rationale that the writers were trying to convey. Sure, Clarke mainly wanted to protect Madi but there’s a bigger picture. Bellamy believed in transcendence with all his heart and was loyal to Cadogan. Madi told Clarke earlier in the episode that she shouldn’t have given Cadogan The Flame. Becca believed Cadogan was the “wrong mind” to have The Flame. Even without the sketchbook, Bellamy still knew that Madi has memories from The Flame. He would tell Cadogan as soon as he saw him again. On the other hand, the scene suffers from Bellamy not being around for half a season. The conflict between Clarke and Bellamy didn’t have a strong enough foundation for that ending. There were only two episodes between the start and end of it. In terms of time on the show, it was a day at most. They rushed it in more ways than one. I thought that if Bellamy died, it would be during the penultimate episode. That would have allowed a little more time to either build the conflict more or for Bellamy and the others to come to an understanding. Sheidheda was probably too out of it to realize that Clarke was still there but he could have waited a few seconds. Had he waited, Bellamy would still be alive. I have no idea. There’s a damper on the season for sure but it’s not completely ruined for me. How it ends will determine that. It’s a shame that it is ruined for some people this late in the game.

What could have been? The whole thing had me questioning whether Bellamy dying in this episode was the original plan. The “Inside the Episode” for 7.14 confirmed that it was a last-minute pivot of sorts. It shows and it sounds like we won’t be seeing Bellamy onscreen again. Clearly, something significant and abrupt happened offscreen to predicate that ending. It had a huge impact on 7.14 as well because apparently the tone of their return to Earth was supposed to be “happier”. Interesting that they released the “Inside the Episode” on Friday. My thought is that it’s because there’s a vague explanation of why this episode ended the way it did. I don’t think any explanation can appease angry fans. I wonder what the original story was supposed to be. Was the plan to have Bellamy go to Bardo? Maybe Levitt and Bellamy would have met which would have been very interesting. They have similar experiences in that they both were exposed to new ideas. Levitt saw the beauty of having close bonds. Bellamy embraced a path that forsakes them for a love of all of humanity. They both believe in transcendence and the Last War but they could have come to disagree with Cadogan on how to get there. Maybe they would have overthrown him and led the Disciples together. Bellamy might have been more hopeful and less torn about his path. Or was Bellamy going to work with Sheidheda? That would have been a fun dynamic to watch! I have also been pondering what the story would have been if Bob Morley was able to do the whole season. I think that it was always the plan for Bellamy to go Disciple. We would have seen the events of Etherea much earlier. The first half to two-thirds of the season would have built the conflict between Clarke and Bellamy. The circumstances of Bellamy’s death would’ve had more of a leg to stand on. So much wasted potential with or without Bob Morley’s early-season absence! It’s unfortunate.

Other things. Despite everything, the acting was on point. Cadogan is so judgy! He thinks he the way of life he created is the best and every other way is degenerate. He’s not even the best at following his own teachings! Are we ever going to see Levitt again?! He might be the most senior Disciple on Bardo right now. It has been at least a few weeks on Bardo so I wonder what’s happening there. Either Sheidheda and most of the Disciples were immune to the toxin or the show just didn’t bother to show them being affected. We only saw Gabriel, Indra, and the one Disciple affected. Gabriel and Indra kept their composure for the most part. You know, I think the Disciples do make bonds but they’re just weak. They probably do the bare minimum in order to work together.

Next time on The 100…

Back to Earth! Everyone’s back together so I’m expecting a lot of emotional scenes especially since Bellamy is really dead this time. If the “Inside the Episode” is any indication, the actors likely didn’t need the movie tear eyedrops for this one. Jordan and Hope appear to be getting romantic. I’m against it. Cadogan’s going to call them out on “May We Meet Again.” He’ll tie that to transcendence for sure! Jessica Harmon (Niylah) directed this episode so I’m interested to see how it turned out.

Doing this write-up wasn’t so fun. It’s a shame because there was a lot of great stuff in this episode. It all got overshadowed by Bellamy’s end and the ensuing backlash. I could feel it even though I personally didn’t have that strong of a reaction to it. If you’re reading this and have decided that you’re done with the show, I’m sorry. I hope you can hold on to the things you loved about it. For those who will finish it out with me: Until next time.