On the season 4 finale of The 100, “Praimfaya,” Octavia steps up to lead Wonkru, Raven and the others encounter multiple problems while preparing to return to the Ark and one person makes the ultimate sacrifice to save them all.
All of season 4 has been leading up to tonight’s penultimate episode. As much as we may have hoped that somebody would come up with a plan that saved everybody, Praimfaya is going to claim most of mankind, leaving a scant 1,200 and some change. We’ve got Wonkru (the new conglomerate of Grounders and Skaikru) signed, sealed and delivered to the Second Dawn bunker, and the rag tag group of our favorite juvenile delinquents — except for Emori — on the island, planning to return to the Ring — what’s left of the Ark.
O is Running the Show
Bellamy breaks the news to Octavia that he’ll be spending the next five years on the Ark. She promises she’ll be waiting — the girl under the floor — when he returns. Bellamy tells Octavia she’s not that little girl anymore, and it’s time for her to step up and be a leader. Octavia questions whether she’s got what it takes, believing Clarke or Bellamy would be better suited to lead Wonkru. Bellamy says neither he or Clarke could have accomplished what Octavia has done. She didn’t just win a fight, she gave people hope when there was none.
The two declare their love for each other just before the radio signal dies. Hey, they got closure. What else was there to say? May they meet again. This is more than Clarke gets because she doesn’t get a chance to say goodbye to Abby.
Indra warns Octavia that the natives are getting restless. Apparently, they’re unable to figure out when to eat, where to sleep and how to live without some guidance. Indra wants Octavia to reassure everyone before the unrest turns to violence. Octavia tells Indra that she’s no Commander, but Indra replies that the time for Commanders and Flames has past, it’s Octavia’s time now, and Indra will help her.
Octavia addresses the residents of the bunker. She tells them that they are all that is left of the human race. She knows the next five years will be hard, but she promises them that if they stand together, from the ashes they will rise.
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Raiders of the Lost Ark
On the island, Clarke, Bellamy, Raven and others get a glimpse of the Death Wave engulfing Polis. It’s 210 miles from Polis to the island. According to what was their last drone, the wave is accelerating. If they aren’t off the ground at least 20 minutes before it hits, the rocket will sustain damage rendering it unable to fly. They’ve go 90 minutes to overcome a whole bunch of obstacles. Primarily, that they’re trying to cram eight people and supplies (food until they can get the algae farm up and running. Yummy.) into a two-person rocket and docking on the Ark before the oxygen runs out.
Clarke isn’t looking so hot, and she’s concerned that Abby’s vision of her dying could still come to fruition. Clarke decides to have a heart to heart with Bellamy, preparing him to man up and lead if she doesn’t make it. She admits she didn’t like him at first, but she knows everything he did, he did to protect Octavia. Clarke says Bellamy has a big heart, and people follow him because of it, but the only way to make sure they survive is if he uses his head as well.
While prepping the ship, Raven runs into a huge snag. The communications system is offline, and it can’t be repaired. According to Raven, they aren’t going anywhere. There’s no power on the Ring, but Raven was going to use the rocket’s communication system to activate it remotely. Now that’s not an option. Without power, they can’t even open the hangar door to get inside. Clarke tells Raven she’s solved bigger problems than this before, but Raven is convinced it’s over. Maybe if she still had A.L.I.E.’s code eating away at her brain, she could come up with a solution. She’s not smart enough by herself.
Bellamy gives Raven a pep talk, reminding her of all the times she’s saved their asses without A.L.I.E.’s help. He says they don’t need A.L.I.E. on the Ark, they need her. Raven has an epiphany. She remembers how close she was to the kill switch when A.L.I.E. escaped the Ark by transmitting herself to the Ring using the pod in the temple.
Clarke says they don’t have time to make it back to Polis, and the radios are dead. Raven responds that they have the satellite tower which is better than radios.
Monty and Murphy go to retrieve an oxygen generator from the light house. They’re unable to unhook it without damaging the wires unless Monty removes his gloves. The radiation immediately burns his hands, but he’s able to pry the generator loose. Murphy helps Monty put back on his gloves. Monty’s hands look like beef jerky, he’s been exposed to some serious radiation and he’s in pain. Murphy offers to carry the equipment alone, but it’s too heavy, so Monty mans up.
Murphy tries to keep Monty’s mind off his pain by asking about Harper. As Murphy comments on how love changes people, Monty passes out. Murphy tries to wake him up, but Monty won’t budge. Murphy apologizes, picks up the generator and leaves Monty in the woods.
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The Voyage Home
Raven, Clarke and Bellamy head outside. The tower is less than a mile away. Raven instructs Clarke and Bellamy to plug a tablet into the junction box at the base. Once the tablet is connected, the dish will align itself with the Ark. The graphic will flash green, meaning it’s locked on. Then all they have to do is hit send. Without coms, even with the power on in the Ark, they won’t be able to open the hangar bay door from inside the rocket which means Raven gets to take a space walk.
Bellamy spots Murphy with the generator. He tells them what happened to Monty, and he and Bellamy head back to grab him. It’s up to Clarke to align the dish. It will take Clarke 10 minutes to get from the tower to the cockpit of the rocket. If she doesn’t make it, she’ll be left behind.
Clarke makes it to the tower, but predictably, something goes wrong. The dish won’t align. Clarke realizes she’ll have to climb the tower to align it manually. She can’t do this and make it back in time. As she begins her ascent, Clarke says “My fight is over.”
Murphy and Bellamy find Monty who is awake but disoriented. They make it back to the lab. They’ve got five minutes before blast off. Echo has gone missing, and it’s obvious she’s having doubts about going into space. She appears to be making plans to become a toasted marshmallow instead. Bellamy catches her just as she’s about to impale herself with a dagger. She tells him to go back to the sky where he belongs. Echo says she belongs nowhere. Bellamy calls her a coward, and Echo reminds him that she betrayed him and wonders why he’s trying to save her.
Bellamy admits he’s afraid too. They’re heading into space for five years where they will be tested every minute. He may not trust her, but she’s strong, and they stand a better chance of surviving if she’s with them. The pep talk works, and Echo suits up.
From atop the tower, Clarke can see the flames approaching. Inside the lab, Raven has waited as long as she can. The radiation is already affecting the rocket’s avionics. It’s time to locomote. Everybody straps in. Emori wants to give it more time, but Bellamy insists this is what Clarke would want them to do. If they wait, they die. Murphy questions how they’ll know if Clarke succeeded, and Raven replies they’ll know when they get there. They take off, and Clarke watches from the tower as her friends leave her behind.
Raven and the others make it into space, but when they see the Ring, it’s still dark. Bellamy has no doubt Clarke will get the job done. Raven suits up and makes her way to the hangar door. Inside the ship, oxygen is running out, and Bellamy is regretting leaving Clarke behind.
Clarke makes it to the top of the tower and aligns the dish. She takes off running towards the lab. She takes off her suit, and her face is showing signs of radiation exposure, and she’s vomiting up blood. The lights go out.
Raven opens the door, and the group makes it into the Ark. Everybody’s oxygen levels are critical, and Emori, Raven and Murphy share until they run out. Bellamy and Monty hurry to hook up the generator, but everyone passes out, and a struggling Bellamy gets it hooked up at the last possible second.
Bellamy is able to see the earth consumed in flames. Raven tells Bellamy that Clarke saved them again but wonders if they can survive without her. Bellamy says they have to, otherwise Clarke died in vain.
Six Years and Seven Days Later
Yes! A time jump. This seems the only way to go since nobody wants to watch 1200 Grounders playing tiddlywinks in a bunker or Emori and Murphy make out for 13 episodes.
Clarke survived which is no surprise. She’s got a new, short do with some flaming red and purple highlights. She gets on the satellite radio, trying to contact Bellamy. She says it’s been safe for him to come down for over a year and wonders why he hasn’t. The bunker has gone silent too. She mentions that “we” tried digging them out for awhile, but there was too much rubble. There’s been no contact. She still has hope. Clarke instructs Raven to aim for the one spot of green, and they’ll find her. The rest of the planet, from what Clarke has seen, sucks.
All of a sudden, there’s a blast, and Clarke spies a ship entering the atmosphere. She climbs into a rover and wakes up a young girl who she refers to as “my little Nightblood.” The girl’s name is Maddie, and as the ship gets closer, Clarke realizes it’s not the rocket. Clarke gets a gun and looks through the scope. Writing on the side of the ship says Eligius as well as prisoner transport.
Clarke tells Maddie to gather up the guns and get the rover out of sight. A concerned Clarke watches as the ship prepares to land. And we don’t get to find out who or what is on board for about nine months. Kind of wish we could time jump. Until we meet again.
Are you excited or disappointed by the time jump? Who is Clarke about to meet? What do you think happened to everyone in the bunker? Why hasn’t anyone emerged? Are Clarke and Maddie the only Nightbloods who survived? Let us know your thoughts on the season 4 finale in the comments section below.
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(Image Courtesy of The CW)
Contributing Writer, BuddyTV
Jennifer has worked as a freelance writer in the entertainment field since 2012. In addition to currently writing feature articles for Screen Rant, Jennifer has contributed content ranging from recaps to listicles to reviews for BuddyTV, PopMatters, TVRage, TVOvermind, and Tell-Tale TV. Links to some of Jennifer’s reviews can be found on Rotten Tomatoes.
