ATLA 3X06 “The avatar and the fire lord” - Zuko
Dylan O’Brien as Joel Dawson in Love and Monsters (2020)
I know I’ll see you.
I know I’ll see you on the other side.
I think this is my first original post, but the series finale of The 100, my favorite show, has frustrated me to the point of a compulsory blog post.
I never thought I’d say this: This show was derailed by a narcissistic, spiteful showrunner who felt disdain and resentment towards his own fandom, his own characters, and his own lead actors. He hired all new writers, who didn’t have the history and understanding of these characters and storylines. He changed the genre and themes of the show after 6 years. He gave us a nihilistic, City of Light-esque ending where the human race fails to do better or live happily and just accepts absorption into an alien hivemind instead. Where Clarke is made the villain and scapegoat for humanity’s sins. Where giving her any semblance of a peaceful end required the destruction of the human race. And, most importantly, he systematically destroyed the most beloved and foundational relationship dynamic on the show: Bellamy and Clarke. They were the head and heart, the driving force of the plot, and it became more obvious when they were not there anymore to do so. Clarke’s story was inexorably tied to Bellamy, so she and the story as a whole floundered in his absence. And that was because Jason insisted on ignoring a missing Bellamy rather than making that the story. And when he returned, the head/heart dynamic was dispatched cruelly, complete with painful callbacks and parallels, effectively stripping the show of its narrative backbone. It also dismantled the greatest familial relationship: Bellamy and Octavia. And worst of all, such a monumental loss had no aftereffects on the plot or characters and gave us no closure. A seven year journey of one of the most important characters came to an abrupt and pointless end.
This season was Jason’s self-sabotage of the worst kind. He thinks his show was a “tragedy”, but his legacy is the greatest tragedy of all. His personal vendettas and utter disregard of the story elements fans loved most benefit no one, least of all himself. We did not feel betrayed because he gave us loss, pain, and suffering. We felt betrayed because the show has always shown us that life was about more than brutal survival and tragic ends. That humanity was capable of something greater. That we could do better and learn to live happily. That we could find true peace if we were willing to work for it. That as long as we were still breathing, we could have hope.
And with this series finale, that hope has finally died.
Seasons 1-6 are the true story. Season 7 is, for lack of a better word, an anomaly.
“The ties that bind you together make you stronger than you are alone.” – Sir Reginald Hargreeves
“The ties that bind you together make you stronger than you are alone.” – Sir Reginald Hargreeves
“The ties that bind you together make you stronger than you are alone.” – Sir Reginald Hargreeves
