For those of you who might not be aware, my first TV review gig was reviewing The 100 for The Fandomentals last year. Yeah, that’s right the year. I was on the ground when 3×07 happened and pissed about it. It changed the flavor of my reviews from then on.
Let me back up and say that I enjoyed the first two seasons of The 1oo. Season 1 has it’s flaws (pacing, some characterization issues, a bit contrived at times), but it was enjoyable. Clarke Griffin appealed to me as a female protagonist right off the bat, same with Raven and Octavia. Those three are my babies. I was a nascent Princess Mechanic shipper before I knew that it had a name.
Season 2 built on everything I liked about S1 and gave me more. Mt. Weather was a compelling piece of plot complication to the interactions between the Delinquents and Grounders, plus Dante Wallace was my favorite kind of villain. Give me all the outwardly benign, secretly machiavellian, pragmatic, gentlemanly, sophisticated, nuanced villains. There were layers there. The questions of what makes someone really human and what can be justified for the ‘greater good’ were awesome themes.
The growing romance between and separateness of Lincoln and Octavia from both ‘sides’ of the Delinquent/Grounder war became one of my favorite parts. Despite what I think was a misstep in giving Lincoln essentially a drug addiction arc, which, for a moc character bothers me, I think overall the season was better and showcased exactly what The 100 could be. A complicated examination of multiple perspectives in a situation where culture clash, misunderstanding, and self-preservation color every interaction.
The opening of Season 3 felt in line with that trajectory, even if the time gap weakened many of the beats of interaction and characterization. Lincoln and Octavia’s sudden tension, Bellamy’s off screen romance with Gina, Bellamy’s and the rest of Arkadia’s resentment at Clarke’s absence, Jasper’s grief, Monty’s annoyance, Arkadia’s frustration with Grounder politics and resentment of Lexa’s betrayal. All of these could have been better served with one or two episodes focusing on life on the ground in Clarke’s absence. It would have provided greater explanation and believability for character actions later in the season.
Still, I enjoyed the first 6 episodes despite the pacing issues. The politics were fascinating, and I was invested in the budding romance between Clarke and Lexa. This was the season I started reviewing for The Fandomentals and my early reviews reflect my investment and interest, while also being willing to talk about perceived flaws and weaknesses in storytelling.
Then 3×07 went down. My reviews are far angrier after that, and also saltier. I’m particularly proud of 3×12 “Demons” because that episode made no sense and undermined much of what The 100 3Α was about (mercy, life being about more than survival).
With Season 4 back up and running, I’m starting up my reviews again. I’m still salty, but I want it to be clear this comes from love. I enjoyed the show and had high hopes for it. I wanted it to be good. It was good, to me. Then it let me down. So I’m not just taking pot shots to be awful, I’m doing it because the show has gone downhill in quality of writing since S2, and yet, all people can talk about is how ‘edgy’ it is. I’m here to say it’s not only not edgy, it’s nonsensical, absurd, badly written, and we deserve better.
I’m also taking one for the team, so that people can know what’s happening but not have to watch it themselves.
You’re welcome for the salt.