The 100: The Last War (7.16) Things of Note

For the last time, let’s jump in!

Welcome to the Final Exam… When Clarke, Octavia, and Levitt arrived in the stone room, Cadogan had already entered the cool white ball. It brought him to a pier surrounded by a vast purple sky. Callie appeared. Cadogan took a moment to reminisce about that one time he took her fishing. He realized that it wasn’t her when she said, “She took after her mother.” Cadogan “chose” Callie as his avatar for the test because she represents his greatest teacher, love, and failure all at once. I sensed a little fear in Cadogan when he asked if the avatar was “God”. Not God but a judge. The test is a simple question-and-answer session. If the answers are satisfactory to the judge, humanity will transcend. If not, humanity will be eliminated, turned to crystal. My prediction Twitter thread said that failing the test would mean getting wiped out by the species’ greatest failure. For humans, that would be war. I like my idea better. Anyway, Cadogan agreed to the terms. For the first question, Judge-Callie asked Cadogan why he attempted to erase the gift of love in pursuit of the test. Before he could answer, Clarke pumped him full of bullets. “Pencils down.” Too late! The test had already begun. It’s too bad that we won’t know Cadogan’s answer for sure. I have a theory that he wanted to erase love because he was badly burned by it. He focused on the hurt it caused. I think he read The Giver in middle school like every other millennial. Maybe The Community resonated with him so he modeled his society after it with a few “improvements”.

Rallying the troops. Meanwhile, in the Second Dawn Bunker, Jordan and Miller were attempting to dig out the rubble. Jordan went to take a water break but there was no more. He was on his way to get more when he saw Hope sitting on Blodreina’s throne. Jordan calmed her worries a bit because that’s what friends do. Hope wanted more so she kissed him. Before they could go too far, the bridge opened, revealing Raven, Nikki, and a few other Eligius prisoners. Raven thanked Nikki who in turn said that Hatch would help. The prisoners went to work blasting the rubble while Raven and the others took cover in the “control room”. Indra gave Raven the update: Gabriel’s dead, Madi’s on Bardo, and Clarke and Octavia went to get her. The group decided to go to Bardo but Gaia hadn’t made it back from Greendale yet. No time to wait! Nikki brought Echo and Nyliah up. Jordan channeled Monty (again, it’s never Harper) to create a distraction on Bardo. “For my first trick, I’ll make an army appear.” Such a “Monty” thing to say! He used a pulse to deactivate their suits. Wonkru/Eligius showed up and the Disciples were so sure it was the Last War. Nope! Just a distraction to get Raven and Echo past them. Inside the building, Levitt was helping Octavia put on her warpaint although his hand lingered on her cheek. She asked him if Bellamy would transcend and he said he wouldn’t. Only the living can transcend. Octavia cried a single tear upon hearing that. Levitt looked away and told her that pass or fail, that day was the end. They both wished they could have lived a little first. Raven and Echo interrupted and told them they brought Wonkru to distract the Disciples. Levitt was alarmed because the Disciples will think it’s The Last War. A war during the test would look bad and the entity would send Gem9. He was still upset with Echo for torturing him. She apologized but no time to dwell. Octavia, Levitt, and Echo went to stop the war while Raven went to find Clarke. I wonder how Cadogan learned that only the living transcend. I know Levitt said “Book of Bardo” but maybe Cadogan “spoke” with the transcendent entity during his Etherea pilgrimage. That might explain why judge-Callie asked, “What took you so long?”. They left out the fact that it was a test though. Or they let him believe what he wanted to believe.

Memori (and Mackson) forever. Meanwhile, on Sanctum, Emori was as stable as she was going to get for Jackson to remove the rebar. Miller arrived, having opted out of the potential war on Bardo. He enveloped Jackson in a big hug. He wasn’t leaving him again! I loved that because it shows how important Jackson is to Miller. It gave Miller a tiny bit of dimension beyond being a hired gun. Anyway, Jackson needed to get back on task so that Murphy could have his happy reunion with a healthy Emori. Jackson removed the rebar from Emori but she began to bleed out and flatline. He tried adrenaline but it was no use. Murphy was so devastated. He has never cried so much for anyone. That’s how deeply he loved Emori and how much he needed her. I nearly cried! Murphy asked Jackson to take out Emori’s mind drive and put it in his head. Jackson hesitated because of what nearly happened with Clarke and Josephine. He relented after Miller said he’d do the same thing. Later, Emori woke up in the palace, wearing an emerald dress. When she opened the curtains, she saw the place where she and Murphy first met (the desert). Murphy remarked that he would have chosen their cave. He explained to her that they were in the mind space. It dawned on her that she had died and he put her mind drive in his head. Life without Emori would be no life at all. Emori didn’t want Murphy to die for her. He was ok with it if it meant getting to spend a few more hours with her. Music started to play. Murphy was reminded of the time Emori stabbed him after he had asked her to dance. No red sun toxin around this time. They shared a dance while Miller and Jackson shared one as well. That was a beautiful transition shot!

…and you failed. Clarke was alone inside the orb. She wondered aloud why she was still there. A familiar voice answered. One the fans had been waiting for all season. Judge-Lexa appeared and Clarke immediately ran to hug her. Judge-Lexa didn’t quite return the hug but she entertained it anyway. Clarke knew it wasn’t her and realized the test wasn’t over. Clarke became the representative of the human race. Judge-Lexa asked Clarke why she killed Cadogan even though he was unarmed. Clarke told her that he had killed Madi. Judge-Lexa knew Madi wasn’t actually dead. She called Clarke out on putting her need for revenge over the fate of the human race. Clarke claimed it was justice but it’s still “jus drein jus daun”. Clarke recounted her most painful moments (Lexa’s death, Russell body-snatching Abby, killing Bellamy). She called out judge-Lexa for “playing games” with people and thinking they were better than her. She had no remorse for anything she had done in the name of love. That was the nail in the coffin for humanity. Neither Clarke nor Cadogan was the right mind. I think Cadogan might have lasted longer in the test though. I’ve said this before but they were the two extremes on a scale to no love to utterly selfish love. Bellamy and Levitt were going to meet in the middle so maybe one of those two could have been the right mind.

Can we get a retake? Clarke came out of the ball to find Raven and Cadogan’s body. She told Raven that she failed the test. It should have been Raven taking it and not Clarke. I think almost anyone but Clarke would have had a better chance of passing! Raven asked if the entity would change their mind. Clarke didn’t know but she had to be with Madi for the last moments of the human race. The white ball turned red and Raven touched it. It brought her to the Ark but she couldn’t see Earth out the window. Enter judge-Abby. They made her look so severe! I guess it’s because humanity had already failed the test and they were ready to unleash their wrath via Gem9. Anyway, Raven easily figured out that the entity took the form of someone they love. The judge found it interesting that Abby isn’t Raven’s mother. Raven tried to convince judge-Abby to give humanity more time to do better. Judge-Abby wasn’t buying it and brought Raven to the oxygen farm where the Disciples and Wonkru were poised to go to war. Raven explained that it was a distraction. Judge-Abby pointed out Sheidheda hiding in the bushes, ready to strike. Sheidheda fired at the Disciples which proved judge-Abby’s point that war is inevitable and humanity will never change.

Sheidheda finally gets his. Levitt ran out to try to convince Wonkru and the Disciples not to fight. They appeared to be listening to him but Sheidheda was not happy. Sheidheda loves war and he’ll be damned if he doesn’t get to participate in another one! He fired a bunch of bullets and one hit Levitt in the stomach. The Disciples began firing. Wonkru returned fire. Judge-Abby was ready to bounce so they could release Gem9 and end humanity. Octavia ran to Levitt and Echo ran after her, getting hit in the process. Octavia and Echo dragged Levitt off the battlefield. Hope and Jordan went after them. As he was dying, Levitt told Octavia that she had to stop the war. He believed in her, always has. She told Hope and Jordan not to let Levitt and Echo die. Octavia told Indra to hold fire. Indra ordered Wonkru to hold fire but Sheidheda overruled her. His plan was to charge the wall and kill everyone. He was stopped in his tracks when he saw Indra holding a sonic cannon. Indra shot him with it, for her mother. Finally! We’ve been waiting all season for this moment! Just like that, the embodiment of the worst of humanity was vaporized. It made sense to eliminate him as he was irredeemable.

Octavia saves humanity. Once the personification of bloodlust and war was destroyed, Octavia appealed to everyone to stop fighting. She reminded them that humanity is “One Crew” and that if they don’t stop killing each other, there won’t be anyone left to save. She told Indra, “Our fight is over.” Indra took out her sword and dropped it. Wonkru followed and they walked towards the center of the battlefield. Octavia turned to the Disciples and told them that Bellamy believed in transcendence just like them. He died for that belief and thus won’t transcend. Fighting the war meant that humanity didn’t deserve to survive. The only way to win a war is to not fight it in the first place. Mic drop! That speech was epic! I got chills. Octavia ran back to Levitt and Echo, both of whom were inches away from death. Levitt complimented the speech but Echo slipped away. Octavia told Hope to pump her heart. Back on the battlefield, the Disciples were waiting for orders on what to do. Kwame stood up and proclaimed, “For all mankind” before laying down his weapon. The girl next to him did the same. Soon, all of the Disciples were laying down their weapons. Raven turned to judge-Abby and reiterated that humanity can change with more time. Ok! Judge-Abby did them one better. Echo began to glow as Hope continued to pump her heart. She disappeared into a ball of light. Levitt remarked that he felt no pain before also disappearing. Jordan began to glow and he realized that this was what he saw when he was Adjusted. I have to wonder if Jordan was able to see that because of his pure heart. Russell must have seen it too, though, because he told Jordan that he built Sanctum around what he saw. Maybe Russell got the corrupted version. Octavia watched Hope and Jordan transcend and realized Bellamy was right. It’s bittersweet because he won’t transcend. Everyone left alive on the battlefield including Indra, Niylah, Octavia, and Nikki transcended. I guess more time wasn’t necessary for the entity.

Transcendence? No thanks. Back in M-Cap, Madi was reluctant to transcend. She didn’t want Clarke to be alone. Somehow she knew Clarke was ineligible. Clarke knew it and told her that she had to go. After Madi had transcended, Clarke walked around Bardo to find no one around. Only golden glowing stick figures remained where people used to be. She went to Sanctum. Same thing although Picasso was still there. Together, they went Earth. Clarke resigned herself to being the last human left. Today, shelter and water; tomorrow, food. Picasso took off running. Clarke said that she didn’t want to be alone. Judge-Lexa appeared and said she wanted to explain everything. Clarke thought she had it figured out. She bears it so they don’t have to. “A curious species”, judge-Lexa remarked. Humanity has added so much to the entity already. Clarke thought the judge was there to take her to transcendence. Nope! Killing Cadogan during the test took that option off the table. Clarke would do it again. Madi said she’d say that. Madi also knew Clarke wouldn’t want her to live without people her own age around. Her choice to stay was made easier by the others returning. Transcendence is a choice but no one had ever opted out before. Clarke heard Raven laughing and turned to see Echo, Emori, Octavia, Levitt, Raven, Murphy, Jackson, Niylah, Miller, Indra, Gaia, Jordan, and Hope. There won’t be babies and they won’t transcend when they die but whatever. Clarke was touched that they had all chosen to keep her company instead. Murphy spotted her and alerted everyone else. Clarke jogged to meet Raven and Murphy for a hug. They met the rest of the group and hugs went all around. I loved that they superimposed Clarke drawing on the floor in her cell on the Ark over the last shot. Look how far they’ve come. And they all lived happily ever after! The end!

Other Things

The music in this episode was perfect! Every moment was made even better. I like how Iola Evans, Alycia Debnam-Carey, and Paige Turco approached playing their judge-characters. There were subtleties in their portrayals that made you realize that they aren’t really Callie, Lexa, and Abby. I’m so mad they cut out “We’re selfish and we’re violent and we’ve destroyed too much. But we survived!” It’s such an incredible line! I wonder who the “judge” would’ve been for Becca. A.L.I.E.? Someone from Eligius? That would be something for the prequel maybe. I hope it gets picked up! Levitt was exasperated with Clarke’s rampage much like Gabriel was exasperated with Echo’s. How did they (especially Levitt) get their clothes at the end? Were there some left in the bunker? I didn’t catch this until I rewatched but Octavia and Levitt were playing Hand Slap. So cute! They both missed out on a real childhood so it’s nice that they can enjoy carefree moments now. It’s also funny that they and Hope and Jordan were just hanging out while everyone else was working.

Danny of Fade of the Internet had an Instagram Live chat with Jason Diaz aka Levitt on Friday. It was a fun two hours! Jason told a few behind the scenes stories. While they were filming, he posted a video of him in the makeup chair. Behind him was the board with all the actors and their “status”. The board mentioned that Bellamy was dead. Jason had a whole anxiety attack about it! His fiance chimed in to say that he should have checked with her before posting the video. She is his publicist apparently. LOL! Like Sachin Sahel, Jason is a fan of the show. It’s hilarious how he goes hard for Levtavia! He also agrees that there’s zero evidence for Obriel! Unfortunately, they couldn’t save it because Jason’s phone died. I’m sure some tech-savvy fans recorded some clips from it.

Final Not Final Thoughts

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All leading up to this. If you think about it, Octavia’s journey was leading up to stopping The Last War. She had the same idea back in season 4 when she decided that the bunker would be shared amongst the clans. As Levitt said in Welcome to Bardo, she lost her way. The weight of leadership was a lot to bear and the older people around her enabled her ruthlessness as Blodreina. For Octavia, seasons 6 and 7 were about coming to terms with what she had done and learning to believe in herself again. She had a little help from Levitt but yea. She used everything she had learned from her experience as Blodreina to reach the Disciples and Wonkru. As for Raven, I think her arc this season was leading up to taking the test. She finally faced an “impossible” choice and she didn’t “keep it cool and move on” as Clarke would have. She felt incredibly remorseful. I think that was key. It shows a willingness to learn and do better. I’ve heard people say that Raven represents the soul. I think that’s apt especially compared to Clarke. It all comes back to that scene in Nakara I keep referencing. Clarke did not believe in karma or a soul. She wouldn’t allow herself to feel the weight of those impossible choices. From a soul perspective, I don’t think Clarke really learned from Mount Weather. That lesson came back around when she took an extreme measure (killing Bellamy) to protect Madi. Raven, on the other hand, allowed herself to feel and work through her guilt over Hatch, X, Y, and Z. By doing that, she found the lesson. Raven was a great representative for the human race. Octavia and Murphy would have been good candidates as well.

On the ending. So, I loved the ending! I have been watching that last scene over and over! I loved that it ended with everyone being at peace, one way or another. They have been fighting to survive for so long. They can finally rest/live. Clarke had essentially sacrificed her soul for the others so it was only fitting that they return the favor in the end. Well, except for Levitt. He wanted to experience life and be with Octavia. I wonder what his reaction was to being above ground and breathing non-farmed air for the first time. I think “death is life” also ties in as there is no life without death. Choosing life means choosing the inevitable event of death.

The moral. The overall message of the show is that we have to stop fighting each other in order to evolve and become better. I’m reminded of a line from episode 9.09 of Smallville. Zod said to Clark, “When faced with a crumbling world, these humans would rather die than unite under a single leader and do what’s required to build a glorious new one.” Context aside, Zod had a point and I think it connects to the final message of The 100. Humanity has to unite and do the work to build a better world. We are faced with a crumbling world at this moment and instead of coming together, we’re divided. It seems lofty and at times I don’t believe in us. However, love is humanity’s greatest strength. There is beauty in it. Makes sense that judge-Callie would refer to it as a gift. If we use it right, we can truly remake this world into something greater. War, on the other hand, is humanity’s greatest failure. Love is often used as an excuse for war. Love of country, love of culture, love of an ideal, etc. On a basic level, humanity needs to learn how to work together to get to the next level.

I’m not ready to let go yet! I have one more post in me to wrap up the season.

Until next time!