The 100 season 3 finale was about choice, hope, and humanity. While Clarke held the fate of the world in her hands, the world proved why it deserved to be saved.

Here we are, at the beginning of the end. Considering the dark season we’ve endured, the deaths and the heartbreak, I honestly didn’t expect The 100 season 3 to end on such a high, hopeful note.

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But I should have known better. At the end of the day The 100 is not just a story of survival, it is a story of why we survive. Why we endure, why we keep standing up again after the world knocks us down. Ge smak daun, gyon op nodotaim.

Clarke’s decision to pull that lever — a vote for hope at a time where there seems to be no hope left, both in the show and in reality — reminded me of another one of my favorite stories:

And another:

And another:

At the core of The 100 is one simple question: What does it mean to be human?

Is there such a thing as ‘good’ or ‘bad,’ in a world where everyone is scrambling to survive from one day to the next? Can any decision be justified, or does one need to seek redemption for one’s mistakes — and is there even such a thing as redemption and forgiveness? (Meta twist: This is also what The 100 fandom is currently grappling with.)

Through season 3 we’ve seen main characters struggle with guilt, self-doubt, fear, grief, and most significantly for this episode, the loss of faith.

Is Mount Weather last year was a metaphor for a hell posing as heaven, the City of Light increased that message tenfold; Clarke, the Chosen One, entered the Holy City to defeat the Devil on behalf of all mankind, but when faced with a choice between salvation and damnation, Clarke chose the latter. Because at the end of the day, our ability to choose our destiny — even if that boils down to the manner our own demise — is what makes us human.

While the question of why ALIE didn’t just tell her would-be subjects why she was collecting them was a valid one, the show gave a decent explanation — and it allowed Clarke to stand here, the fate of the world on her shoulders, and do what ALIE couldn’t — what even she has not always been able to do — to give people a choice.

Facing death is not a question; the characters on The 100 do that every day. But choosing how they want to meet it, and on what terms, is the greatest gift one character can give another. Whatever happens next, Clarke gave them all that gift by shutting ALIE down, and choosing freedom.

My tears were all of happiness when the final credits rolled. Even Octavia choosing ‘blood must have blood,’ however much we may have wished she had chosen otherwise, was a display of the free will The 100 champions. There are shades of grey to even the best person, and this, the show has just unequivocally proven, is what defines humanity. Broken, flawed, and beautiful.

The Church of Clarke

The third season of The 100 has really hammered home the religious symbolism, between the devil in red (even going so far as to suggest that ALIE is the ultimate Mary Magdalene seductress, whereas the demure, soft-spoken and humble Becca is the Virgin Mary herself), her chosen disciples, and the followers of the ‘true’ religion nailed to the cross.

In this episode, the Clarke-as-Jesus parallel was so thick, we even saw Bellamy hold the communion wafer to her lips as she entered the Holy Place. I usually don’t care for mixing my sci-fi with religion (BSG‘s thinly veiled ‘true God’ message always felt alienating), but I think The 100 leaving it at symbolism was very effective.

ALIE was the false god, offering only the illusion of salvation, her City of Light only being ‘Paradise’ if you relinquished your humanity. (Earth may be the Hell in this parallel, but at least the pain and suffering you feel there is your own.) And Lexa was Clarke’s guardian angel, even insofar as she flew into battle, her swords like wings.



(I don’t know about you, but that’s how I always make my entrance at parties.)

And oh, the joy of seeing Lexa again. We all knew it was coming, and I daresay there’s been much dissent about her role in this episode, but I personally thought it was perfect.

The world of The 100 only ever felt safe when Lexa was around. I still remember when she was introduced in season 2, and we realized that the Grounders truly could be allies to the delinquents. Way before Lexa was equated with LGBT representation, for me she already represented hope, safety, and strength. And while I still hate that it happened, this is why the loss of Lexa in season 3 was necessary: As much as we want a happy ending for these characters, Lexa ultimately made the world, especially Clarke’s world, feel too safe. To get Clarke to where she was in this episode, they needed to cut away her safety net.

But how perfect that Lexa should show up here, a guardian and a symbol of hope and strength (already having obtained sainthood the eyes of her most devoted fans), a flicker of good in an otherwise hopeless situation. And, for me, it was vindicating to see Lexa finally go out the way she was always meant to go out: Fighting.

And then we were back with Clarke, her faith in a better world renewed by seeing Lexa fight for her and their shared purpose. Standing between the Devil and the Grounders’ God, she watched the world burn from up above.

In one fell swoop, Clarke not only broke with all false icons in favor of a burning world, but she Ascended, if only for a moment, to the divine herself. Once again, Clarke herself became a God, pulling a lever and choosing who lived and who died; this time, her decision was on behalf of all of humanity.

And she chose life. Just as Lexa would have done. (As Lexa said, “My spirit chose wisely.”) Wanheda ascended beyond the Commander of Death in this episode, rising to be the Bringer of Life. She returned to Earth with a message (much like, you know, Jesus), and now, it’s up to humanity to earn its own salvation.

The damned and the redeemed

It was no coincidence that, as Clarke walked among the Gods, the mere mortals back on Earth fought a dirty, desperate and gritty battle, clawing in the dirt and grappling with their own humanity.

There was Murphy, literally holding Ontari’s heart in his hand and, in a way, playing God himself. The final “thank you” from Clarke absolved him of all sin: Continuing with our theme of Clarke as the Savior (which isn’t something I necessarily subscribe to in general, but it was absolutely true for this episode), her ‘blessing’ of him was the key to finally unlocking his own heart.

Murphy embracing Emori, ending the season having fought on the good side and being rewarded for it, was a thrilling end to his arc. Next year, I look forward to seeing him working with the group. He’s had one of the best character developments on The 100, and he’s now undeniably standing in the light — which is even more interesting when you compare him to Octavia, who moves in the shadows.

Ah yes, Octavia. Gritty, visceral and a Grounder through and through, Octavia chose revenge over forgiveness, pulling her in a decidedly dark direction for season 4. Bellamy, wiser from having made the same mistakes, basically gave her the “do as I say and not as I do” speech, but we all know that Octavia, for better or worse, is following her own path.

Octavia’s pain and anger at Pike were absolute, all-consuming, and there was never a version of this story that wouldn’t have ended with her killing Pike. One of the reasons I love — yes, still love — Octavia is because she acts on instinct; she feels too much, she loves and hurts with her entire being.

For his part, Pike actually got to go out a hero (something he hadn’t earned, although it just goes to show that fighting on the ‘right side’ doesn’t equate being a ‘good guy,’ because life isn’t that simple). If nothing else, Pike always believed he was doing the right thing, and I want to thank Michael Beach for his brilliant, nuanced performance. I’m going to miss him, but I’m glad the character is gone. Unlike Murphy, his actions at Polis did not earn him absolution for his sins.

We know Indra is alive (thank you, writers!). My guess is that Octavia and Indra, having chosen to be each other’s people, are heading off on their own. What this means for Octavia in season 4, I don’t know (and I hope we’re not looking at a villain story), but I said it last week and I’ll say it again: Octavia: Grounder Princess has a nice ring to it.

The contrast between Octavia and Murphy here also shows something I think is very important: That giving people a choice isn’t unequivocally a good thing. Humanity isn’t good or bad, it’s simply human, defying definition. ALIE was right in everything she said, but that’s the point: The beauty of humanity is that it is free to be good, free to be bad, free to be selfish, free to be brave, free to hurt, and free to die. Humanity isn’t just one thing, and, reflective of that, each individual character on the show isn’t just ‘good’ or ‘bad.’

And therein lies the true significance of Clarke’s choice — to give everyone a chance to choose who they want to be, to choose how they want to be human, for however long they’ve got left to be human in.

Jasper’s road to salvation

Meanwhile in Arkadia, a miracle happened: Despite all odds and predictions, Jasper survived.

And this is literally a miracle, because allegedly, Jasper’s fate was still up in the air even after filming wrapped. I have been told (and am awaiting confirmation) that they shot two versions, one in which he lived and one in which he died. Considering how sure I was that Jasper was dying, the writer in me is glad I saw it coming, but the fan in me is SO RELIEVED it went the other way.

When ALIE was destroyed and Jasper was left as broken as before, I thought, ‘this is it.’ When Monty gave that beautiful speech about them getting through it together I thought, ‘this is the swan song.’ And, when Jasper went outside alone, I was ready for him to pick up a gun and shoot himself. I was ready for Monty, Raven and Harper to hear the shot; I was ready for the slow-motion running. But it didn’t happen. Instead, we got another little sliver of that all-elusive thing called hope.

Knowing that it could have gone either way makes this moment all the more powerful. Because this was it: No easy fix, no external force standing by to save him if he couldn’t save himself. This was when Jasper could have chosen to give up. But he didn’t: He chose life. He chose hope.

Jasper is alive. He’s broken, he’s scarred, he’s lost, but he’s alive. For right now, that is enough.

And that must be exactly what Clarke thought when she stood on the Ark, in that room, and made the decision to let humanity choose the manner of its inevitable end: For right now, that is enough.

For your consideration

Taking a step away from the metaphysical: What really defeated ALIE was the combination of Raven’s brain, Clarke’s heart, and Lexa’s strength. Can we just take a moment to appreciate that this is the world of The 100? This is the reality the writers have built. I will never, in a million years, denounce a show that brings me these kinds of victories.

Lexa kom Trikru, my feelings for you cannot be summed up in words. Every scene of her kicking ass is my favorite scene, and the finale did NOT disappoint in this respect. In many ways this finale was all about Clexa finally getting the goodbye they deserved, and I think under the circumstances, they got the best sendoff possible. Clarke finally got to tell Lexa she loved her. Lexa told Clarke she will always be with her, and got to go out fighting. There is no doubt that they were each other’s true love, at this point in time, and nothing can ever take that away from me.

The opening scene with Clarke and Abby had me bawling. Probably the most emotional scene of the episode, other than Monty’s speech to Jasper.

Kane and Abby. KANE AND ABBY. The way he broke down and cried as she comforted him — in fact, the way all these men are allowed to be frail and express guttural emotions — is yet another reason The 100 has earned my loyalty and respect.

The bond between Clarke and Bellamy grows stronger and stronger. He is her strength, and she is his, and while Bellamy’s role in the finale was fairly marginal, the sheer, unwavering trust in and support of Clarke he showed was beautiful. Whatever shape their relationship takes in the future, it continues to be one of the most rich, interesting dynamics of the series.

For all our worries about the finale, let’s just take a deep breath: We’re still here. We’re still fighting. We will go down with this ship like Clarke and the ground, and we’ve got so many reasons to support The 100: The LGBT lead(s if Jarod Joseph is joining the main cast??), the interracial gay couple, the POC representation, our two(!) POC disabled characters, a male character with PTSD… I hate reducing characters to facts and figures but this is actually what our cast looks like, and I’m proud to call myself a fan.

JAHA IS ALIVE!!!!! YAAAAAAAAA–wait, why are you all staring at me? I love that crazy bastard, leave me alone.

That’s it, everyone. School’s out for summer… and, uh, winter. The 100 is not coming back this fall on The CW, the network having decided to hold it back until January, just like this year. That’s a good thing! The writers have just begun breaking season 4, they’ll begin shooting in August, and until then, we can all enjoy a relaxing hiatus.

Thank you to everyone who’s been keeping up with my recaps, your support has kept me going. We’ll be featuring plenty of The 100 content over the summer (including hopefully from Comic-Con!), and you can always find me on Twitter @SelinaWilken if you want to gush about Clarke, Raven, Octavia, Monty, Bellamy, Jasper, Minty (you didn’t think I was gonna let that go, did you?), literally every other person on the show, and most importantly JAHA! HE LIVES! What a world.

Next up on The 100: How to Save The World In 180 Days. It’s gonna be a blast.