'The 100' Season 5 Premiere Review

The 100 Season Premiere Review:

After a long wait, The 100 is back and it looks better than ever. Clarke takes in a young girl she found. We see what happened in outer space, and we get to know more about who was on that ship that landed on Earth in the season four finale.

Spoilers for the most recent episode of The 100.

The first 15 minutes of the show was superb. Fifteen uninterrupted minutes of Clarke trying to find her way through the wasteland after the conflagration. It was a lot to ask of Eliza Taylor, but she’s grown so much as an actress since season one that she carries this episode no problem.

The sequence works for a number of reasons. We get to see Clarke try to survive, her desperation, and even the moment when it looks like she might call it quits.

But it also gives the viewer some time alone with Clarke, which is nice considering that the show has moved at such a breakneck pace. We see Clarke haunted by the ghosts she’s accumulated through the seasons. Maya’s iPod is a grim reminder of when she was forced to kill all the people in Mount Weather. Jasper’s goggles are there too. In an indirect way, Clarke caused his death too, as he lost the will to live after Maya died, and she has to reestablish her identity. As the show puts it, “What does it mean to be the Commander of Death when there’s no one left to die?”

She finds Maddi and I thought for sure this would be an annoying character, but they’ve handled it well. I buy their chemistry and it’s nice to see the nurturing side of Clarke after four seasons of warrior Clarke.

Things aren’t going well for the Space group. They’ve been up for a year longer than they’ve planned, and it looks like they were never able to figure out how to make more fuel, so they’re marooned for now.

There have been some developments on the romantic side of things. While Clarke continued her one side-sided radio affair, Bellamy has taken up with Echo, which is interesting because she was instrumental in the death of his girlfriend, but a lot can happen in six years. Murphy and Emori broke up, but that was expected because nothing goes well for Murphy. Also, Murphy seems to have exiled himself and I’m sure we’ll find out why. But, Harper and Monty are going strong, despite Monty’s algae cuisine.

The Eligius group lands in the Great Valley and I like how confident the main leader is. She has no idea who she’s messing with. Clarke switches to Wanheda mode pretty quick as she tries to keep Madi safe. Unfortunately for the men that find her, Madi isn’t very good at hiding. Clarke kills both of them even though one guy tried to help Madi.

And she commands death once again.

Random thoughts

Ugh, Bellarke delayed again. It better happen.

I wonder who is the budding hairstylist on the space station? Something tells me Murphy has always wanted to let his inner Vidal Sassoon out.

So we finally know how the grounders dyed their hair.

Is anyone really surprised Murphy is single again? He seems destined to be miserable. Also, it’s got to be rough considering he shot the only remaining woman and left her handicapped.

I have no idea why Bellamy and Murphy randomly fight, but it’s fun to watch.

It doesn’t look like things are going well in the bunker. But that’s to be expected since Octavia made one of the dumbest decisions I’ve ever seen on television.