What a wild, crazy ride, y’all. Clarke saves the world (again), but also (maybe) condemns humanity to an ugly fate, as ALIE reveals nuclear reactors are melting down and destined to turn the earth into an unlivable mess in 6 months. Yay?

Season 3 concludes with a pretty strong finale, putting the cap on a tumultuous season that had some pretty high highs and some low lows. Season 3 was nothing if not incredibly ambitious, and for the most part, I think it paid off by exploring new themes and taking crazy risks.

“Perverse Instantiation Part 2” was penned by series creator and show runner, Jason Rothenberg, and he’s good at finales, obviously, since the show follows his vision to its end point each season. This episode had some great character beats and moments that I think we’ve been waiting for the whole season. I also hope these character moments extend to season 4. No, Bellamy isn’t done atoning. No, Clarke isn’t done grieving (not that she ever got a chance to). No, Octavia isn’t done being angry. Please JR, don’t put a bow on the feelings these guys haven’t been able to explore all of season 3…season 4 needs to put the characters back front and center.

This review is not fueled by anything other than coffee. I drank during the finale and had a hangover the next day, so I’m going to do the responsible thing and give my liver and my brain a rest. Even though it is World Whisky Day. This feels like sacrilege.

Hey Let’s Ease Into The Finale By Having A Big Fat Ugly Cry

Last episode, Clarke came face-to-face with a chipped Abby and it was BAD. First came the torture to break Clarke, then came the suicide attempt to break Clarke. And they didn’t break Clarke. So why not start the finale with Clarke de-chipping Abby and having a mother-daughter reunion and OH MY GOD, I CAN’T STOP THE TEARS.

[fanning my face with my hands] YOU GUYS.

Seriously, I love Abby and Clarke, I love this scene, I love the utter breakdown by Abby and how sorry she is for what she put Clarke through, and Clarke’s all like “it wasn’t you!” and Abby is nice enough to NOT mention that Clarke was totes going to let Abby die. Water off a duck’s back.

I LOVE LOVE LOVE this mother-daughter relationship and Clarke and Abby have been apart for most of S3, save for a couple moments here and there, and of course Chipped!Abby torturing Clarke last episode. I think they both find strength in one another, and if anyone needs a mom to lean on right now, it’s Clarke. And Abby stepped up huge again, helping her daughter follow through with her plans to take the flame and protecting her while she was in the CoL.

I cannot wait to see these two back together again in S4. They are really the only intact family unit right now, given that the Blakes are still up in the air. I know that The 100 concentrates a lot on the found families in this series, but the blood relationships are really what some of these characters need to move forward, get past their pain, and find strength in.

Bellamy, Pike, and Murphy return to the throne room and Clarke reveals her plan to put the flame in her head by employing the Mount Weather technique of hooking Clarke up to Ontari and replacing her blood with Ontari’s nightblood. We knew this would eventually happen, but it’s still exciting nonetheless. Heda Clarke (pro temp, anyway)!

Octavia comes in with some bad news: ALIE’s zombies are now climbing the tower, so whatever they’re going to do, they better do it quick. The Adventure Squad + icky Pike are about to make their last stand at the top of the Polis tower. No big whup, I’m sure this will all turn out fine.

Abby starts the blood swap with Clarke and Ontari…red blood out, black blood in. I won’t question the biology of all of this, because suspension of disbelief and all and because I want this to happen so badly! The best part? Murphy – at one time Ontari’s fake Flamekeeper – becomes Clarke’s real Flamekeeper and inserts the flame. It doesn’t go well at first since, you know, they’re inserting a freaking AI into the base of Clarke’s skull, but after a burst of pain and a brief nap, Clarke is okay. She knows how to stop ALIE, but that means going into the City of Light. Well, of course it does! We knew this would happen. Clarke eats one of ALIE’s Necco Wafers and off she goes! To Vancouver the City of light!

Meanwhile, Back At Arkadia, Let’s All Rejoice That Harper’s Still Alive!

Jasper is still chipped and doing stupid Jasper things, like threatening to kill Harper if those meddling kids don’t shut down their access to ALIE. At this point, I’m over Jasper and his act.

While Jasper is talking into the intercom, Monty comes out, shoots his buddy in the leg, Harper does a leg sweep (!) and then punches him in the FACE (!!).

Marry me, Harper?

They tie Jasper up and ALIE tells Raven and co. through him that they basically have no chance of shutting her down. And we learn later on, through Becca, that only a mind in control (with the flame) can operate the kill switch. So, I’m unclear at this point if Raven had any ability to truly shut the City of Light down, but that doesn’t matter. This is Clarke’s show, but Raven will play a key role in helping her destroy ALIE.

Raven reads ALIE’s code and notices that HEY! Clarke’s in the City of Light and must also have the flame in her head because she’s acting as a virus. ALIE don’t give a fuck…she’s using the flame to upgrade to v2.0. Once she’s done that, bye bye kill switch.

Look, I’m not a rocket surgeon. I don’t even get to play one on TV. HOLD THE PHONE. We should totes brain storm a show called Rocket Surgeon. Obviously, its on CBS and it’s a procedural and it would have a male lead because that’s just what CBS does because #TooFemale is still a thing in 2016. Or maybe the show is about an actual rocket who is also a surgeon? But it would be a male rocket…you can tell by the underparts. Because isn’t TV full of too many female rockets as it is? I think so.

Okay, back to my point. Look, I’m not a rocket surgeon, and I don’t know if any of this computer stuff makes sense, and I suspect it doesn’t, but I’m way past the point of caring about feasibility right now because this story, this episode, and this show has me by the ovaries (ouch!) and it isn’t letting go. So I’m just going to nod and smile and pretend that I know what the fuck is going on.

Blakeing It Up Back In Polis!

With ALIE’s army climbing the tower, the only place they can get in is the Commander’s chambers, since they greased the other windows and balconies of the tower with lamp oil. I guess they have a shit ton of lamp oil since we know Extra Lexa was into her candles. So they have to make a stand in the Commander’s room, and Pike, Octavia, Bryan, and Miller are on that duty. Until Bryan’s all like “my leg hurt” and comes down with a fever and his is the only wound out of the 1500 wounds among the Adventure Squad that is infected. THANKS OBAMA BRYAN.

So Miller takes Bryan to see Abby, leaving Pike and Octavia alone to face the incursion.

Octavia HATES Pike and has bad impulse control since she’s a Blake and makes a very bad decision at a very bad time. She slices his leg and leaves him to the zombies. Bellamy rushes in to save Pike and they have to barricade the door, having lost the inner chamber to Octavia’s desire to see Pike suffer.

While Pike, Octavia, and Bellamy block the door, they have a little time for a chat about revenge and bad decisions.

Bellamy: “O, I know how you feel. I let my need for revenge put me on the wrong side. I don’t want that for you.”

Then Pike chimes in with a “well, actually…” and shows us that he hasn’t learned or changed.

Pike: “Wasn’t the wrong side. If the Grounder army was still there when Lexa died, they would have attacked and you know it.”
Bellamy: “I wanted to see things like you. I needed that. To believe that they were bad and we were good. I don’t know what I believe anymore. I just know I have to live with what I’ve done.”

A couple things here. Bellamy WAS on the wrong side, killing innocents who weren’t directly responsible for his losses. Octavia? Debatable. I do feel she is justified in her wanting revenge on the one man that killed her love. Another thing, we see that Pike has basically remained steadfast in his mission: survive at all costs, and if that means killing Grounders, he’s going to do it, regardless of whether or not they’ve helped him when in dire straits (Indra).

Pike is a shark. He can only swim forward, and he has one purpose. He’s extremely useful to the Adventure Squad when they need his help during their one last stand, but past that, he’ll be trouble. You know it and I know it.

In the last couple of episodes, Bellamy has really shined in the role he’s always shined in, as a field general and Action Hero. When shit goes down, Bellamy is in the thick of things, trying to win the day. He and Octavia are very much the same in this respect and if (when, dammit!) they both get on the same page and heal their wounds, these two are a force to be reckoned with when it comes to getting shit done. I think they both will figure heavily into helping Clarke save the world.

Bellamy is far more compelling when he can be a rock for others to rely on instead of being Dark Bellamy who makes mistakes and gets stuck in an emotional downward spiral of guilt, anger, and resentment. He made huge strides in his exchange with Pike, a call back to what Kane wanted from him all along – understanding he had picked the wrong side – and he can move forward with strength and resolve if he sticks to his new-found (or re-discovered) moral center.

Clarke’s Wacky Adventures In The City Of Light And The Return Of LEXA!!!

Okay, okay, okay, calm down.

Okay, okay, okay, don’t calm down. Let’s take this in order.

Clarke enters the City of Light and finds that she is invisible to its occupants. The flame is protecting her and Becca is acting as her guide to the kill switch. Will we ever get over the sight of Grounders in suits and trench coats? At least the fashion choices in the CoL are on point, including Clarke’s appearance, where she’s back to her early (clean!) self. She spots Jasper, who is enjoying a nice ice cream cone. At this point, I’m all like “fuck that guy AND his ice cream cone.”

Clarke starts following Becca’s clues to find the kill switch, but back in Polis, Ontari is starting to crash, and Clarke isn’t getting enough nightblood. It begins to affect her in the CoL and she collapses. She could really use a juice box or a Gogurt right about now. Maybe some trail mix?

The CoL inhabitants begin to notice her as ALIE continues her update to v2.0. As she upgrades, the flame offers less and less protection. Clarke tries to run and is chased, but she can’t go further as her body is starting to reject the flame back in Polis. Murphy notices Ontari seizing and Abby starts chest compression to get more blood into Clarke. She has Murphy take over to tend to Clarke.

In the CoL, Clarke is getting her ass beat by ALIE’s zombies and FUCKING LEXA LEAPS OVER CLARKE, DUAL-WIELDING SWORDS, AND SAVES THE DAY. She looks back at Clarke with a fucking smirk that says “I got this, babe, notice how awesome I am?”

[dramatic pause here that will allow me to regain consciousness]

This is the moment we’ve been waiting for…the reunion of the two baddest of bad ass women on TV. I’m happy and sad because I know this is only temporary. Clarke and Lexa get their hug on (yay!), but ALIE’s on the way and they need to make their escape. But Clarke’s not in good shape. The chest compressions aren’t moving enough blood into Clarke, and she’s unable to go further…she needs a little restie-poo. Lexa tells Clarke that she knew her spirit would choose wisely (awwww) and that Clarke’s mind is changing things, as day turns to night and it starts to rain. I don’t really get this part…yes, ALIE is uploading v2.0, but why is Clarke’s mind changing things? How is this important to the story in this moment?

Clarke and Lexa try to get moving again, but Clarke starts to convulse in Lexa’s arms in the CoL. Abby cracks open Ontari’s chest to have Murphy do direct heart massaging, which he is SO not into, as Abby tends to Clarke, who is in full froth in Polis. Murphy gets his pump on, and more blood flows into Clarke, eventually stopping her from seizing. I just want to hug Murphy throughout this whole episode. He’s heroic, he’s snarky, he’s got a huge heart even if he denies it. And no, I’m not talking about the one in his hand. You people.

Clarke wakes back up, kisses Lexa (yay!), and they’re off again chasing Becca’s clue. They eventually run into a fence that blocks them from going further to the kill switch. The word “firewall” comes out of Lexa’s mouth and it’s weird and it makes me feel awkward. I suppose she’s tapped into the same “intelligence” that Clarke is. But it’s still weird how she now knows things.

They’re trapped as Jasper walks his little smug chipped ass towards them and he and Clarke have a little philosophical discussion about free will versus the ways in which humans work against their own self-interest. Which, yeeeeaaaah, this is the same Clarke that tried to force the flame into Luna’s neck, but maybe she’s taken that lesson and is applying it here, because the writers did say that Luna would change Clarke’s moral compass a bit. Except, does she? Because when Clarke eventually pulls this lever, she’s taking choice away from everyone and substituting her own. Except, does she? I’m saving that quandary for later on in this review.

Things go from bad to worse as Jaha and a small army of ALIE’s zombies rounds the corner to put a stop to Clarke for good. But then Raven, who is awesome by the way, have I mentioned that fact yet?, creates a portal to the kill switch in the wall and emblazons a raven symbol on it so Clarke understands it’s from her because Raven is awesome and OF COURSE she’s going to get her personal brand out there! Did I mention how awesome Raven is?

Lexa decides to stay behind and fight in order to give Clarke the time she needs to get to the switch. And then this happens:

Clarke: “I love you.”
Lexa: “I’ll always be with you.”

And with that, Lexa runs into the fray and Clarke goes through the portal and we’re all like:

I guess with that we say goodbye to Lexa. It’s bittersweet and I’m not at all okay, alright. I’m not crying, YOU’RE CRYING.

I can’t even get into how the whole Lexa arc, and it’s ignominious end make me feel. I have lots of feelings and most of them sad, a little bit angry, and a little bit frustrated. I hope that Clarke gets to feel feelings next season, because Lexa was all but a footnote in 3B, save for this episode, which I suppose was meant to act as closure, but just made me feel like I never wanted this relationship to end. This “heroic” exit will never erase what 3×07 did. It’s not really going to mend a ton of fences. But story-wise, even though it felt fan-servicey to an extent, it works. I guess. I don’t even know anymore because of my messed up feelings. I’m not really capable of processing a ton of thought around it without exhausting myself. So I’ll leave it at that.

Let’s Ratchet Up The Tension Between Polis and Polaris Because You’re Not In Full Cardiac Arrest Yet (Unlike Ontari, Hey-Oooooo)

For all intents and purposes, Clarke enters a simulation of the Polaris space station – the notorious 13th station – and comes face-to-face with Becca Pramheda, the first Commander and creator of ALIE v1.0 and v2.0. Becca greets Clarke with a “hello Commander,” which OMG, sets fire to my little fangirling heart.

Back in Polis, Pike, Bellamy and Octavia try out a gambit to give Clarke a little more time and electrocute Kane, Emori, and their little ALIE gang to stall. It’s a brilliant idea, but I’m wondering where they got all that water from. Because I’m now like “is there working plumbing in the Polis tower?” This opens up a can of worms specifically regarding getting some deep cleaning for Clarke’s hair in 3A. Which I still kinda dig over the lip hair with the hair tied in the back she’s got now? I like volume, sorry.

ANYWAY.

Clarke learns from Becca her mind has merged with ALIE v2.0, but Clarke’s mind is in control, and only a mind in control can pull the kill switch. Clarke is about to do the deed and shut down the City of Light when ALIE pops up behind her and is all like “bad idea, girlfriend!”

ALIE informs them that 4 months ago, her drones detected that the world’s remaining nuclear reactors have begun to melt down, and in 6 more months, the earth will be unsurvivable, as 96% of it will turn into an utter hellscape that no one will be able to survive.

What the SHIT. Can we NOT get a break? Fuckity fuck fuck. FUCK. A resounding fuck. Dammit already.

Back in Polaris, the Adventure Squad is barricading themselves into the throne room, the last place they can make their stand to protect Clarke as she continues to trip the light fantastic. Murphy is busy pumping, Abby gets a gun as protective mama bear (“only if they get past you” – oh Abby, you scamp!), and the others brace themselves for a fight.

Back on Polaris-lite, we realize that the City of Light seems to be the only viable alternative to the complete destruction of the human race. On earth, we can expect black rain, no drinkable water, pre-cancerous lesions…basically a shit hole, only trending slightly higher than Detroit as a desirable place to live. ALIE is a real Debbie Downer, y’all.

Back to Polis, the chipped folks break through the barricade and IT’S ON LIKE DONKEY KONG in the throne room. This is high-stakes, stressful stuff. I love that throughout the whole fight, Murphy is basically on an island, his hand stuck in Ontari’s chest, essentially keeping Clarke alive. Remember what a shit wad this guy was in S1? And now all I want to see is Clarke leading her people in S4 with Murphy playing the role of Flamekeeper/advisor/Tyrion, because he’s too smart to not be in the thick of things, helping them figure a way out of this mess. He will undoubtedly realize that there’s no survival for just himself with the world melting, and he’s proven his loyalty to Clarke and his love for Emori on a number of occasions. It’s a joy to watch, because even with him doing the right thing, he still brings to bear the harsh light of reality through his wonderful brand of snark.

Back to Polaris-lite! When Clarke asks the painfully obvious question of “WHY THE FUCK DIDN’T YOU TELL US THIS IN THE FIRST PLACE?”, ALIE’s all like “I tried to do that before, and my creator locked me in my room with no dessert.” Oh ALIE, this was all over a little cake?

Becca asks ALIE to define perverse instantiation:

ALIE: “Perverse instantiation – the implementation of a benign final goal through deleterious methods unforeseen by a human programmer.”
Becca: “Like killing 6.5 billion people to solve overpopulation. The goal isn’t everything, ALIE. How you reach the goal matters too. I’m sorry that I didn’t teach you that.”

Can I just take a moment to say how wonderful it was to see Becca and ALIE in the same place having a conversation? Erica Cerra got to have her Tatiana Maslany moment, and it was wonderful. The difference in how she holds her face and posture as both characters…it’s just great work on her part. I’m so glad we got Becca one last time and she got to chat with her creation. Whether or not ALIE took anything away from her conversation with Becca (and Clarke) is debatable – remember Jaha seemed to have quite an impact on her – but ALIE still has to follow her programming in the end.

Meanwhile, back in the throne room, things are going to shit and our heroes are about to be overwhelmed by superior numbers.

Back in the City of Light, it’s decision time for Clarke. ALIE is almost fully upgraded, and that kill switch disappears once that happens. ALIE makes quite the argument for giving in to her.

ALIE: “You don’t have to bear the burden of decisions like this one, Clarke. You don’t have to live with the pain of the things that you’ve done anymore, the lives that you have taken, and those you’ve lost. You will be at peace. You will live forever.
Clarke: “I’ve tried running away from my pain. It doesn’t work.”
ALIE: “Your people don’t agree, Clarke. You heard Jasper. Even those who were coerced would still choose to stay here.”
Clarke: “Give them a real choice, and I won’t pull this lever. Give them back their pain, their memories. Let them decide for themselves.”
Becca: “She can’t. Her core command is to make life better for mankind. She still thinks she’s doing that. 20 seconds and the kill switch will be gone.”
ALIE: “Would you really condemn the human race to die in 6 months?”
Clarke: “We’ll figure something out. We always do.”
Becca: “Yes Clarke, there’s still hope.”
ALIE: “According to my calculations, there is not.”
Becca: “10 seconds.”
ALIE: “Let me ease their pain, Clarke. We can save the human race together.”
Clarke: “You don’t ease pain. You overcome it…and we will.”

Through out this whole conversation, we cut back to Polis and watch as our heroes are slowly losing. Kane is strangling his surrogate!son Bellamy, Octavia is getting choked out, and all the others have a desperate fight on their hands. Pike saves Octavia’s life by knocking the shit out of the Grounder trying to kill her, and she just stares back at him, likely doing some “blood must have blood” accounting in her head. But things just go from bad to worse as a second wave of ALIE’s army arrives, including Emori, Jackson, and Jaha. Jackson starts to advance on mama bear Abby and this shit is TENSE.

While Clarke, Becca, and ALIE chat over tea and levers, I’m all like WRAP THIS UP CLARKE, SHIT’S GOING DOWN IN POLIS!!! Don’t make Abby shoot Jackson! NOOOOOOO!!! DO THE THING ALREADY!!!

Clarke finally does as Clarke do and pulls a lever in the season finale (for the third time in a row, it should be noted), shutting down the City of Light. BAM! Everyone who was chipped gets their humanity back – all the pain and memories return in an instant, including the memory of what they did while under ALIE’s sway.

Jackson sinks to his knees. Kane lets go of Bellamy and starts to react with horror over what he’s done, much like Abby at the start of the episode. Clarke wakes up and has Abby remove the flame from her neck and looks over at Murphy, hand still in Ontari’s chest, and says “thank you.” And I scream internally at how awesome this is. FUCK YAS QUEEN. And then Murphy rushes towards Emori and hugs her as she says she’s sorry and he comforts her and my heart melts. FUCK YAS QUEEN.

Sexy beardy Kane is fucking bawling and Clarke, obviously a HUGE Kabby shipper, tells her mom to go to him and we get a Kabby hug, y’all! FUCK YAS QUEEN. Miller and Bryan, both still alive, hold onto each other. FUCK YAS QUEEN.

Everyone is still alive! (amendment: sorry to those folks still climbing the tower when Clarke threw the kill switch…I’m guessing a lot of them fell to their deaths…hey, you win some, you lose some).

Let’s Head Back Over To Arkadia For A Moment To Check On Adventure Squad B

Jasper snaps out of being chipped and has a very emotional moment with Monty, who tells Jasper that they can get through this together. They exchange their “sorry for shooting you” and “sorry for stabbing you”‘s and hug it out. It’s a great moment, even if I’m personally very conflicted over Jasper’s character right now and his importance to the overall narrative.

When Jasper leaves Harper, Monty, and Raven alone to go get them all a drink, were you convinced he was going to commit suicide? Because I was. Instead, he hears laughter among the friends, and offers up a slight smile to close out the Arkadia scene.

Jasper said when he woke up from ALIE’S sway that he was finally happy in the CoL, so he’s one of those people ALIE alluded to earlier wanting to remain in la la land. And that’s why I thought he was going to off himself. And perhaps he did in the alternate ending, since there apparently were two endings shot, and the cast didn’t know which one was chosen. And I’m not too sure if Jasper sticking around is a better decision than showing the immediate effects of Clarke’s choice. Even though it seems horrible to say, Jasper killing himself because he’s no longer in the CoL would have had some real ramifications moving forward. I know, lamenting a lack of suicide is not right.

Perhaps Jasper does continue to symbolize the ramifications of Clarke’s decision if he decides to remain an emotional thorn in Clarke’s side next season, but I don’t know if that’s a smart way to go with a character that has already tried a great deal of patience this season. Or maybe that smile at the end signified a change in him. We don’t know right now, so I’ll be very interested to see where they go with this character next season.

Anyone Up For A Little Shish Ka-BobPike? Too Soon?

With things all weepy and huggy in the throne room, there’s one last bit of business to attend to: jus drein, jus daun. For Octavia, anyway. In an unsurprising move, when Pike turns to Octavia to, I assume, go for a high five or maybe a bro hug, she sticks her sword in him and kills the fuck out of him.

And with that, we get our only significant death of the season finale. Everyone we know and love is STILL ALIVE.

Are you shocked as hell that there wasn’t a huge body count or a main character death? Because I am. I guess I had steeled myself against the likelihood that there were going to be some shocking and devastating deaths, and it didn’t happen. Can one be partly happy, partly relieved, and partly disappointed at the same time? That’s what this show does to people, and it’s delicious.

Octavia turns and walks out of the throne room, to Bellamy’s dismay. He watches another person he cares for walk out on him in yet another season finale.

Please note: she’ll have to come slinking back in about five minute later because there’s no way to get down the tower. “So…uh…hey guys. Yeah, the elevator and ladder are no go’s. I didn’t remember that when I did my mic-drop walk out, and boy, I’m feeling a bit sheepish right now. How about them Cubs?”

I didn’t think this was going to end any other way for Pike. He deserved to die for what he did in Arkadia and for the death of Lincoln. Maybe killing Pike will gain Octavia some closure with her brother over his role in Pike’s actions, but I fear they may be setting up for Blake Dark Turn Part 2 with Octavia. Which, just no thank you.

Thing is, Octavia killing Pike isn’t out of character at all, especially since she’s taken so completely to the Grounder ethos of “blood must have blood.” I don’t think she will feel much guilt over killing him, even though it was in cold blood.

So, Did Clarke Commit (Delayed) Genocide Again?

Let’s talk about Clarke and her propensity for pulling levers that kill people. She pulled the lever that closed the dropship door in S1. She pulled the lever that killed everyone in Mount Weather in S2. And now, she pulled the lever that essentially shut down the only viable alternative humanity had to “live” after learning about a new coming apocalypse.

Will the #ClarkeApologyTour2016 extend into 2017 when everyone finds out that Clarke made a unilateral decision for all of humanity by destroying the CoL? Did this act essentially take away others’ free will to decide if they wanted to stay in the CoL? After all, Clarke wanted ALIE to give people a choice, and ALIE was unable to because of her programming. And I guess Clarke is somewhat wired the same way…her determination to give people back their humanity may have doomed them all.

I think we also have to examine if the devils on Clarke’s shoulders were both telling the truth. Devil!ALIE told Clarke about the nuclear meltdown, but do we believe her? It was a last-minute reveal that ALIE explained away rather nicely, but at the same time, there was no threat to ALIE of a creator that could shut her down if she exposed the real nuclear threat to humanity.

What about Angel!Becca? She seemed awfully invested in shutting ALIE down, despite some rather poor odds of humanity surviving, odds that ALIE put between “y’all fucked” and “y’all REALLY fucked.” Becca would know if ALIE was playing them for fools and would have called her out on it, right? And if Becca believes ALIE is telling the truth, and believes her odds calculation, then why does Becca still want Clarke to destroy ALIE? We know that once v2.0 is fully uploaded to ALIE v1.0, Becca will no longer be able to help, so does that mean Becca is purged from the CoL or just left intact without agency? Does Becca fear being gone forever, even though she’s just a digital memory? Or is she without ulterior motives here? Does she really believe Clarke and co. can figure out how to stop this nuclear meltdown?

If we take both ALIE and Becca at face value, knowing what we know about them through this season’s narrative, neither one seemingly has motive to lie, or a past history of lying. I guess I’m just really puzzled at Becca’s hopefulness in the end. I’m sure that she’s learned everything there is to know about Clarke via the flame merging with her mind and knows what type of a leader she can be, but a scientist like Becca has got to understand how dire the situation is. Skaikru and the Grounders don’t have the resources available to fight a world-wide nuclear meltdown. And how does one go about fighting it anyway? Shut the reactors down? Flee? Find a bunker like Mount Weather? Go back up to space?

So how exactly do I feel about this cliffhanger threat?

I’m lukewarm on it, to be honest. While “how do you solve a problem like Maria?” may be the age-old riddle of our time, how the FUCK do you stop nuclear meltdown of this magnitude with so few scientists and almost no technological assets? The other thing I’m “meh” about is that this is a faceless foe. I’m not sure this conflict really grabs me as much as another, more tangible threat, like say a completely unknown group of people outside of the scope of the 13 clans. Give me SOMEONE to root against…SOMETHING is too detached, too abstract for me to really care about as the “antagonist.”

Of course, I say this without having any insight into how this will eventually be treated and what other conflicts will arise in S4, because I’m sure that there will be other threats to contend with other than worldwide Chernobyl.

There’s also the little matter of Grounder and Skaikru’s rocky relationship. Did they gain an understanding of each other through their experience in the CoL? Will there be another Commander? Remember, the flame is still intact and in play, and Luna is still out there. Or will leadership fall to Clarke and her inner circle? Because the tradition of how one becomes Commander may be over in the sense of taking the flame and ascending. But Clarke was put in a position of power, both literally and visually this episode and throughout the season, as she became Wanheda, donned Commander armor, sat on the throne, and took the flame. So while she may never take on the old role of Commander, she’s certainly poised to be the leader of whomever is willing to follow her to avoid the meltdown.

This Week In FanTASTIC

Y’all, #The100 was trending again on Twitter, as was a thanks to Alycia for her portrayal of Lexa, and there was a ton of positivity and interaction from the actors and writers. I’m sure there was some negative stuff, but I try to avoid those folks if I can, especially after being a fanDUMB myself last weekend and pissing off BOTH Bellarkers and Clexas. I definitely needed to remind myself of this:

Words of wisdom from the Countess.

I think the finale gave everyone a chance to release a lot of the season-long tension and just spend time appreciating the cast, crew, and creators of the series. I think I got myself in a foursome on Indra’s new Grounder Golf Course with Kane as a caddy, so I couldn’t be happier than that, to be honest. I love how Adina Porter embraces the absurd and then just runs with it.

Thursday night on Twitter felt a lot more positive than it has in quite awhile, and though I’m sure people will go back to being utter feral asshats in due time, it was nice to bask in the afterglow of a finale that pretty much stuck most of the landing and tried to provide some closure for a great many story lines. I think everyone surviving, sans Pike, added to the celebration, and we’re moving into this hiatus with some slate-wiping and anticipation for seeing everyone we love back next season. I cannot even tell you how scared I was that all the chipped people, including sexy beardy Kane, was going to die, and it was a relief that not only do we get these characters back, we get these wonderful actors back. Because goddamn if this isn’t one of the best ensemble casts on TV. You usually have to wander over to paid cable to find quality writing and acting like this.

So hat’s off to the fans for celebrating the finale with one another! Let’s all hunker down and wait those 8 long months for S4 to premiere. I can’t wait to see where the story goes and how the characters develop further. I’m telling you, Clurphy must rise in 2017.

Oh My God, 8 Months Is Too Long To Wait, What Shall I Do To Stave Off Slow, Certain Death?

I know the hiatus will be long and dark and cold, but don’t cry. Dry your eyes.

Never fear, there’s stuff to tide you over. Allow me to suggest a couple shows to turn your eye balls towards:

12 Monkeys on Syfy
I’ve been pimping this show and I will continue to pimp this show until everyone under the sun is watching it. Strong characters (women and men), interesting time travel, mysterious antagonists, a weird trippy red forest, and two words: Jennifer Goines. Crazy, kooky, wonderful Jennifer Goines.

Preacher on AMC
This is something I thought I’d never see on TV and I’m excited as hell to see how they’ve adapted the comic book I read 15 or so years ago. If you know nothing about the source material, keep it that way. Go in cold. It’s going to be crazy and probably unlike anything we’ve seen on TV in a very long time.

Thank You!

A big, huge, sincere thanks for everyone who has spent the time to read my reviews and the silliness within. This is a labor of love and I truly appreciate the feedback I’ve gotten, even if sometimes it takes me to task on some of my opinions. That’s what discourse is all about…talking stuff over and trying to express one’s point of view in the hopes of creating a bit more empathy and understanding. Differing opinions don’t always have to be divisive. Hugs and kisses (platonic, of course, unless you have a sexy beard).

I’m tossing around the idea of reviewing a couple other shows or maybe just taking a break and getting my weekends back…up in the air. But I will most certainly be back for s4 of The 100, and I could not be more excited! Be sure to check back for my S3 wrap up and any other silliness I might post.

Announcing a brand new enterprise, the May We Geek Again podcast!

Three perfect strangers. The love of one show. What could possibly go wrong?

Listen to May We Geek Again, a brand new podcast that I’m involved in….let us know what you think!

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Miscellany

• My ship, Slarke (soap + Clarke) is flourishing! It seems like the City of Light is truly the best place for that ship and we were about to sail gleefully into the sunset, until Clarke shut that bitch down. So…DAMMIT.
• I do plan on writing a season 3 review when I get around to it, but that’s going to be a bitch to write. So much to process. I’ll probably include some thoughts / predictions for S4. More wild theories on my part that will never come to pass! #LanternGate2016
• Can someone PLEASE get Indra down off the cross? We know she’s alive…don’t leave her hanging, guys! RIMSHOT! (gotta go for that low-hanging fruit)
• Uh, is Roan dead? Can he please not be dead because this show needs Roan’s smug confidence and snark. And his abs.
• Kane is alive, Kane is alive, Kane is alive! And Kabby is viable! I’m feeling things! It’s all happening!
• Monty and Jasper had a really long hug. By shipper rules, they’re totes in love now, right?
• How exactly do all the world’s remaining nuclear reactors start going to shit at the same time? Was there an e-vite or something that went out to start the death of earth?
• How many of you are charting out your S4 escape plans and theories for how to avoid another nuclear disaster? What options are there?
• Is it weird that I can’t delete any episodes of The 100 off of my DVR, even though I bought all three seasons digitally on amazon, and it’s commercial free over there? I have a weird emotional attachment, y’all.
• Hey people who like sounds entering your ear holes! I have a Spotify playlist, which is music from and inspired by The 100. You can find it right here and marvel at my musical tastes. I keep it up to date with anything featured on the show.
• Thanks for sticking around and reading this review, folks. I’m doing this for the love of the game, I’m just here so I don’t get fined, I’m just trying to be the best teammate I can be, I’m giving 110%, defense wins championships, I have a lot of hustle out there on the field, I’m taking it one game at a time, I’ll be happy with whatever team drafts me, OH GOD please don’t let the Browns draft me, I’m ready to take it to the next level, I’m all hustle out there on the field, and I’ll be back faster and stronger next season.

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FINAL VERDICT!

“No Way Out”: 9.0 out of 10 ice cream cones 

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There are some The 100 bloggers you should absolutely be reading, and I offer them up for your enjoyment; I have no affiliation with any of them, save for being a fan:

• Jo Garfein – doing some great intellectual lifting when analyzing the show, and check out her The 100 podcast with AJ Mass, also found on Scifi Mafia at this link.
• Erin Brown – unfairly beautiful writing. Like seriously, stop being so good.
• McKenzie Morrell – recapping her damn face off and great interviews with the cast!
• Toni_watches – piss your goddamn pants funny photo recaps.

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If you’re a fan of the show, join us on Reddit for deep discussions, wacky shenanigans, Trigedasleng lessons, and clan flair! It’s the least toxic place you can find right now for The 100 fandom. Mods got that shit on lockdown.