#the100 meta

[bellamyblake]

Bellarke and leadership

something i wanna talk about now that I’m rewatching s1 and perhaps awfully late realizing for the first time is the part about leadership and especially when it comes for Bellamy and Clarke to take up on those roles.

While yes, it’s true that when Clarke comes down, she tries to take charge and make the others listen to her, I don’t believe she’s in an absolute leadership position, not even when they decide to banish Murphy in 1x04. It’s interesting for her because the progression that’s happening there for her is a bit different-she loses her dad, then she’s locked up, then she comes to earth where she does try to take care of the people but in fact just kind of gets caught up in some personal problems. The first of which is the one with her mom, dad and Wells-it takes some time figuring out what happened there. The other one is a newly created problem that is Finn, falling in love with him, then Raven coming down and her having to first swallow down her feelings for him and then save his life and keep doing that for the good of him and Raven as she can see how much they mean to each other.

In other words, I don’t think she fully assumes the role as a leader until 1x07/ or maybe I dare say 1x08 where she 1st-decides to agree on torturing Lincoln for information which is a big step, a leader step where the decisions weigh on you and it’s not just maps and runnign around trying to find Mount Weather or being in the weird dynamic place beteween an old friend who’s in love with you and a new guy who’s interested in you.

She actually takes a step towards real leadership there and later absolutely fills in those shoes when she meets Anya.

But What I want to talk about here is Bellamy. I believe he assumes the real leadership position at first and carries it on a bit longer before Clarke joins him in. That is of course, a product of the circumestances-he has taken charge a long time ago when his mom put his sister in his hands and told him she was his responsibility. She makes him name Octavia and take care of her, promising to keep her quiet and safe. The whole reason why we were lucky enough to have a Blake siblings flashback was, I believe, because of that-showing where it all came for for Bellamy but not just the understandting behind his current actions (aka taking off the wristbands for his love for his sister) but also why he fits in the leadership position from the moment they hit the ground.

He had already been a parent and a leader for the past seventeen years. With a mom who made sure she did just enoug hto survive but offered no love, he had to fill in a gap between Auora and Octavia, while putting himself away from experiencing what a real family was in order to take proper care for his sister and please his mother. 

When he comes to the ground he tries to ensamble his people, then convinces them taking off the wristbands is good for them (even though he is indeed trying to save himself here FOR Octavia, a part I think people forget often), he surrounds himself with people he trusts but also helps built this camp-organizes the delinquents to build a wall (remember 1x04 “If it wasn’t for her, those idiots would still be building a wall” when he talks about Clarke saying the truth about Wells;), He quickly realizes what’s good for the people-the truth and omitting it in the case with Charlotte because it will safe them in this unstable situation; He cares for them which is shown when he goes out to look for Octavia and Roma and Mbege die. (I hate when ppl say he only started caring about the delinquents later-he did, from the beginning), he went hunting with them, made them work on rations, etc. 

He also makes some very big leadership mistakes-the first one being hanging Murphy and the second one-throwing the radio away in the river when Raven lands. Now that second one is a really big and very heavy decision, one that Clarke if you think about it doesn’t get to make until the end of the season where she agrees on Raven using the hydrozyne to kill the grounders. Yes, he does make it so he can save himself but his personal decision weighs on the whole camp because if the rest of the Ark doesn’t come down, how do they survive. The whole conversation with Jaha in 1x08 where he hallucinates him just proves all that. While for Clarke it’s her dad she sees and misses, Bellamy is the one already beating himself up for mistakes akined to someone who’s ruling and leading. (and who feels the same amount of guilt the council on the Ark does, aka the parallels between Kane and Bellamy starting here)

Then there comes Lincoln and I think that’s the moment that kind of glues Bellamy and Clarke as leaders which is concluded in 1x08 when they bring the guns back home and it’s quite clear and established who is in charge of those kids. 

That is where they take their first big decision together (yes, I scartch Murphy because while he was a hard choice, he was one of them, he made mistakes, a kid died because of him and banishing him was the only thing they could figure out at the moment but Lincoln is an outsider, a grounder, the enemy. And this is their first time trying to decide how to deal with that.) You could see how new in it all they were, how uncertain-they argue and they do not want to do any of that. They are both mentally torn-you could tell so by the looks in their eyes but they’re also fighting with the new reality-the one where the world is cruel and those people out there already killed 10 of their friends and what is there to do?

What is the RIGHT thing?

And all of that was solidified in the last conversation they have in 1x07 where Bellamy picks her hand holding the screw he put in Lincoln’s hand and he says “Who we are and who we need to be to survive are very different things.” I believe this is the first time he’s being honest with her, basically screaming ‘I am not this person, I am not a killer, I’m not a torturer but I have to be this now. For my sister. For us. Do you understand?” but she’s lost herself and doesn’t know what to respond so he adds, shyly, almost as if he didn’t want to give himself away “It’s not easy being in charge, is it?” because he already HAS been in charge but now she truly IS too. Finally, in that moment.

[dramaticalsquirrel]

I do think the big issue people are having with Bellamy is that he just doesn't seem to care much about Clarke. And people are trying to spin that into some irrational shipper thing, but even jason has said that relationship is the core of the show, that the show is about Clarke's relationship with Bellamy. So idg how people can pretend that seeing it gutted is no big? Even if we never got romantic Bellarke, but had Bellarke who trusted/cared about each other above all else. And we don't now.

I do think Bellamy cares a lot about Clarke, even now. I mean, the whole “She is” + willing to kill 300 people for her when he was so against it before. The way they hugged, so softly. 

What I think the problem is: Bellamy wants everything to be as it was before. And he doesn’t realize that Clarke feels insecure about this new Bellamy Blake. You can see it in 5x05 when he says “I have to go with them” (about Raven and Murphy) and Clarke looks down like a kicked puppy until he hands her the other pack. For Bellamy, it was obvious that she was coming with him. For Clarke, it was not. 

The same happens in 5x06: Bellamy is shocked about what Octavia has become and wants Clarke to do her thing (”She’ll come around and see how special you are” / “She might not always have seen it, but I did”) but Clarke is worried about Madi and leaves. He’s confused (”Clarke?” “Sorry, I… I have to go”). So, we can assume Clarke didn’t tell him about Madi’s blood. 

Clarke is scared (”Everything is just so… different”) and feels alone. She’s in a really bad place now. She lost her mom after reuniting with her, she lost Bellamy to Echo and now she lost Madi to Octavia. She feels isolated, a stranger among all these people she doesn’t seem to know anymore. 

And Bellamy loves his “Six years is a long time” only when it suits him. But he pretends those 6 years didn’t happen with Clarke. And 5x06 was the first time he realized that 6 years also passed for Clarke.

“Clarke you don’t understand-” 

“No, YOU don’t understand”. 

And boy, is she right. Bellamy is confused and Clarke isolated. They have to fix it, and they have to face their feelings. Because  Clarke is seeing someone else with Bellamy for the first time and she’s hurt. And he doesn’t understand. Or does he? Or is pretending nothing has changed easier? 

I think 5x08 will give us what we’re waiting for. A confrontation. 

But don’t say Bellamy doesn’t care about Clarke, please. He really does. He’s just confused and too much of a coward right now to face those feelings. 

I do feel terrible for Clarke, that is true. I pity her and she deserves so much better from EVERYONE. But I’m sure by the end of the season she will have found her place again. Because this is HER story. 

[skaifaya-heda]

The 100 and the loss of individual autonomy (aka the Josephine incident)

SEASON 6 SPOILERS

One of the storylines of The 100 that I hate to love is the whole Josephine incident in Season 6. For those who don’t know, Josephine Lightbourne took over Clarke’s body after an AI chip holding her consciousness was inserted into Clarke’s neck against her will. Ignoring the pseudo-tv-science, I think that this situation really goes into some of the most interesting things about Clarke’s character. Through seeing into her mind (literally), we were able to see Clarke’s insecurities, her fears, her regrets. All in all, it provides a really deep insight into her mind and thoughts.

The show also does a pretty good job of looking at Clarke’s mental state as she goes through this complete loss of control over her own body. She is determined, finding out how to make Josephine tap more code onto her shoulder to let her friends know that she is alive. But, there are also times where she just seems tired, like she wants to give up. 

Something about this whole storyline that I think was actually well done (as well as season 6 could get) was how this looked at Clarke’s relationship with the other characters (specifically Spacekru). It still hits me hard that Murphy was pretty much the only one to realize something was wrong with Clare (until Bellamy). Clarke was so invisible to people that only when Josephine didn’t know the language correctly did anyone, later on, realize anything. Clarke was so alienated by Spacekru after Season 5 that they didn’t notice when someone literally took over her body. 

The perspective on the trauma Clarke went through that this series showed is a whole other discussion in itself. After being paralyzed by one of the Children of Gabriel, Clarke was taken advantage of. She was brought to a room against her will and she lost complete control over her body, essentially dying alone and scared. As fans of the show, we’ve seen Clarke go through some crazy stuff but that has to be one of the most horrifying things of them all to happen to her. 

[apocalyptist]

This post got me thinking...

I think Shaw will hate strongly dislike Echo in season 6. I mean it’s right there. He’s def not a fan. With Raven being bffs with Echo that’ll be an issue. 

And honestly, I think he and Clarke will really get along—which will be another issue for him and Raven. They’re kinda equal on the ‘letting the other be tortured’ front. Plus, he’s so good he doesn’t even realize how good he is, so it makes sense that he’d be on board with Clarke’s “good guy” mission (courtesy of Monty).

I mean, I’m not being all bellarke about it, but I’ve already said that I (and others) see season 6 being a clear split—among everyone (but yeah, especially Bellamy)—between Clarke and Echo. And I don’t see Shaw being on Echo’s side, like ever.

Selfishly, I want Bellamy/Shaw—Bellaw? Shellamy?—friendship so that too would be interesting tension. I’d love to get Shaw’s take on the B/C/E of it all.

[bellarkesgf]

bellarke thoughts after season 6:

Even if Bellamy and Clarke do not get together in season 7 aka the final season of the 100, they still remain the most epic love story to grace television. Their love IS canon. They ARE romantic. Even if we do not get a verbal confession or canon sexual encounter, they still have canon intimacy and love. We have a ship that has gone through enemies to acquaintances to leaders to friends to lovers to soulmates. They DID that. We have six seasons full of history all building up to their magical love story. They ARE that couple. Their moments are unmatched and their chemistry is out of this world. No matter what happens this story is canon. Their love for each other is canon. This show is about bellarke. It always has been and always will be, even if they do not end up together.

side note: I had to pick words so carefully for this post because bellarke has shown love and confession and intimacy over and over again. They are romantic. All we are missing is the sexual encounter.... but my point is, even if we don’t get that... they still are a canon love story you guys!!!!

[atavisticenthusiast]

S6 thoughts and SPOILERS

... under the cut. This includes information from 6x01 and 6x02 (I’ve seen both), so don’t read on if you’re avoiding spoilers. Lots about (Bellamy’s) psychosis.

Can I just say first that I am shocked, SHOCKED, by how much Bellamy and Clarke’s relationship has been foregrounded this season? Not that it hasn’t always been central to the show, but as I die-hard science fiction fan, I tend to be equally invested in characters AND their surroundings. The new world is gorgeous, mysterious sci-fi GOLD, and (to me at least) it paled before the character dynamics. These episodes - 6x02 especially - delivered on the emotional front, unlike S5, which foregrounded the action. Now relationships have BECOME the action.

Clarke and Murphy’s relationship stands out. He’s the only member of Spacekru to whom Clarke gives as well as she gets. She accepts most everyone else’s criticism. He’s also one of the few other people who have, at one point or another, been suicidal and isolated from the group. Since he’s the only person who witnesses Clarke’s psychosis-induced suicide attempt, he’ll be crucial in helping her address her mental health. And I do think that scene marks a turning point in their relationship; something in his expression softens when he realizes what she’s trying to do, and he immediately starts to talk her down. Which isn’t to say all is forgiven, but he might be closer to forgiving her than anyone but Bellamy. (Though maybe Bellamy hasn’t forgiven her as much as he wants to believe. More on that later.) Murphy’s also a loose canon, and between alluding to Clarke’s drawings of Bellamy, pointing out that the eclipse causes people to hurt those they love, and suggesting that he can’t shoot her because “Bellamy would hear,” he’s unwittingly propelling them towards confronting their feelings for one another. Thank you, Murphy.

It’s clear that Bellamy and Clarke are squarely on the same side when the season begins, and he doesn’t hesitate to speak up when Spacekru criticizes her. (Neither does Echo. Cheers.) In 6x01 and pre-psychosis 6x02, he actually seems a few degrees warmer towards her than he did in last year’s finale (and that includes the one-armed hug). He’s the only person that waits for her to leave the main ship for the drop ship. He touches her arm when they land and Shaw snarks at her and smiles. Then of course there’s the radio conversation (so much smiling, both sides) and tosses his radio awkwardly (doesn’t know what to do with his hands) when she walks out, suggesting that he didn’t get what he needed from that conversation. 

And then the toxins begin to affect him. I’m not sure any of us will be able to explain this properly until the characters address it themselves (hopefully in 6x03, x04), because we only hear CLARKE’s experience of the psychosis (Abby talking to her). All she says aloud is “shut up,” and all we hear from Bellamy is the equivalent of “shut up” - we don’t hear what he hears. But we can speculate. When Bellamy begins to experience the effects, he is trying to enter the room that Emori and Echo have locked themselves into because he thinks Murphy will try to kill Emori. Though he shouts for Echo to open the door, the content of his shouting doesn’t have anything to do with Echo, interestingly enough. (Not to say he doesn’t care for her, we know he does, but maybe that he’s focused on protecting people who need protection.) Clarke, meanwhile, is trying to coax him back to the school house so she can secure him before he gets worse. He rounds on her and says, “Maybe you haven’t noticed, Clarke, but I don’t nEeD you aNyMorE.” Yes, his voice breaks on those words. 

I have several thoughts here: 

First, this is setting up a parallel line later in the season. We know they don’t technically need one another to survive any more, but that they do want each other. I can see this being addressed later in the season in a, “It’s true - I don’t need you. But I choose you,” kind of way, but then, we also thought they’d have a “what does your heart say” moment last season to parallel the “what does your head say,” so who knows. I like this concept though - you shouldn’t need someone to love them, it’s not healthy to be that dependent. But to want them? Even though you know you could survive without them? That speaks DIRECTLY to “Life should be about more than just surviving,” and Monty has told them to live. That is HEALTHY. That is ROMANTIC.

Second, he’s saying the opposite of what he feels (because he does still love her deeply, and right now he doesn’t have any other word for it than “need”), and this is an attempt to make her as insecure about their relationship as he is. We’ve already seen ample evidence that he is uncertain how Clarke feels about him. In these two episodes alone, he fidgets around her (tossing the radio when she bails on their talk to watch Murphy sing) and is still thoroughly shocked that she radioed him every day for six years. So saying that he doesn’t need her is his addled way of evening a playing field that he perceives as unbalanced (she sent him into MW alone, she chose the Grounders and he lost Gina, she aimed a gun at him, he poisoned Octavia and Clarke left him to die, etc.) It’s simply not true.

My third thought is a bit more of a stretch but takes their surroundings into consideration. He has JUST been talking to Echo through the door when he is distracted by Clarke, and “maybe you haven’t noticed” suggests that there is something evident about him that should prove to her that she’s no longer needed. To me, that says, “Maybe you haven’t noticed, but I have a girlfriend now, so I don’t need you anymore.” Again, it’s more of a stretch than the other two, but YOU GUYS. He could be comparing her, again, to his canon girlfriend (and we know there’s a long history of him only having romantic relationships when Clarke is MIA) and suggesting that whatever he feels for Clarke he now feels for this other person. Non-platonic feelings. Still lying to himself, but he does want to believe it’s true. I also think the “maybe you haven’t noticed” is hilarious because (except for the night Echo defected), he has missed all of Clarke’s jealous expressions when she watches them together, and might think that his relationship doesn’t bother her when we know it does. So saying what he says could also be a way to elicit a reaction.

Where I am confused, admittedly, is when Bellamy tries to kill Clarke (and Murphy) and shouts that he is protecting an unspecified person or group of people. Does he mean that he is protecting Clarke and Murphy by killing them, or that he is killing them to protect other people? The two things that set Bellamy off are Clarke and his feelings for her, and his need to protect people (Emori + whoever else he’s protecting by killing Clarke). Saying things like “you’re going to die for real this time” seems like an odd manifestation of his fear of losing her again (maybe), whereas saying things like “how many times have you tried to kill me” left me confused ... she only left him to die once? When and why did this become a revenge killing? (Would LOVE to get some peoples’ thoughts on this ... though like I said at the beginning, I think there are some things we won’t understand for sure until the subsequent episodes are released.)

Then we see Abby, Raven, Jordan, and the Sanctum woman waking them up. Raven asks CLARKE what happened to Shaw (interesting - it wasn’t accusatory so does she think she’ll get a straight answer from Clarke and not the “he died a hero” story that Bellamy concocted?). Then Bellamy looks at Clarke with dawning horror, and although she’d been touching his arm, she releases it now. I think that, although he may have forgiven her, he is painfully uncertain about where HE stands with her and THAT is what we see during his psychosis. And Clarke now knows that all isn’t forgiven/forgotten, and hearing him say those things to her while she was hallucinating about all the people she loved and lost certainly took a toll. I wonder if she'll be worse off emotionally in 6x03, before experiencing some of the positivity we saw in the trailer. Also - I just watched the trailer again and there are a couple of scenes where it looks like she has some bruising around her neck ... namely, when she meets JR Bourne and when she’s in the blue dress at the rave. Would love a second opinion.

Anyway, there’s a lot more I’d like to discuss about the episodes but this got loooong so I’m cutting myself off. If there’s anything else you’d like to know, my Ask box is open.

[the-suns-also-rise]

Allusions (3/?): Gustave Dore’s Death on a Pale Horse

This scene really stood out to me the first time I watched Season One. Here, an unconscious Clarke is being carried away from the Grounders by a masked man on horseback. We don’t know until later that the rider is Lincoln.

It starts in slow-motion, moving the figures in-and-out of obscurity, and gradually transitions to real-time. At the same time, the audio overlays the sound of hoofbeats with the slow beating of Clarke’s heart, quickening as she wakes. It feels as if Clarke is gradually waking from one nightmare only to be riding towards the next.

My first thought during this scene was of Gustave Dore’s Death on a Pale Horse (even down to the horse’s gusts of breath, its flowing mane, and the eerie shadows shifting in the background):

This engraving illustrates Revelations 6:7-8 from the Bible, which prophesies the Four Horsemen of the Apocalypse and the end of the world.

I am seeing Lincoln, implacable and silent in his skull mask, standing in for an iconographic depiction of Death on his nightmare steed. This not only foreshadows Lincoln’s upcoming transformation into a Reaper, but also provides a striking image of Clarke, cradled in Death’s arms, riding on towards all the events leading to the Apocalypse/Praimfaya.

Bonus! The Commander of Death leaving Polis on her pale horse:

[sometimesrosy]

What do you think about Octavia's behavior lately?

I think she learned something from Pike.

He was a dangerous man. She let Marcus and her brother deal with him. She tried to go through official channels. She tried to talk Lincoln into leaving. She tried to get Clarke to stop it. And none of it worked. She was so sure she knew what was right and people either ignored her, or took her insight the wrong way, or did it wrong. 

So she’s taking things into her own hands. That ambassador was a dangerous man who was threatening to destabilize everything. So she took him out, because she could. She has that power. Problem solved.

Octavia is an easy killer. It doesn’t bother her. She’s a warrior, now an assassin. She’s the hidden girl, under the floor, right? She shouldn’t even exist, but she does. She is outside of the rules, both sky crew and grounder. 

On a personal level, she was cold as ice… but we started to see a little bit of Octavia, the loving girl, come back in, when she felt empathy for Ilian’s loss of his family.

She is not quite made of ice yet. It’s a good sign. 

[the100survive]

After watching the first 5 episodes, I’ve realized that Ethan and Madi are both representative of the conflicting sides of Octavia.

Madi is the happy go lucky version of Octavia who was a big nerd who was trapped under the stairs for her safety for her young life but still has a light in her.

Ethan is the dark version who had an anger sparked in him after his father was killed for the good of the group.

I don’t think it’s a coincidence that these two children of similar ages have such a parallel to Octavia. And not only that, but both children are being mentored by opposite forces in Octavia’s life. Clarke, who always encouraged Octavia to be safe for Bellamy’s sake is caring for Madi while Gaia and Indra, who have always encouraged Octavia’s warrior side are caring for Ethan.

I don’t think that these parallels can be overlooked and I think it’ll eventually become more pronounced as to why these kids are so relevant and I’m kind of expecting them to either fall in love or the universe grow into a Madi vs Ethan world

[noxchalant]

you see, i literally have no information or education on cinematography, but based on many things i read on tumblr “nothing on camera is put there by accident”

meaning that they CHOSE that clarke’s reaction was more important then the b.echo reunion itself.

they fucking BLURRED THEM. and the focus was on clarke.

like, if the b.echo shippers want to make gifs of the reunion or the kiss, they can’t, it’s so blurry

it was clarke’s reaction that mattered. we didn’t even see b.echo since 501

[ghostsnymeria]

Um? Can I just quickly say "...to kill another person who she loves" is obviously a huge omission on the part of the writers in and of itself, but I'm sitting here staring at the script, analyzing all of it, and here's what I've come to realize: Another. That word says everything. You might argue that there's still some ambiguity, that it leaves the question of what *kind* of love up in the air, but there's not and it doesn't. As a lot of people have already pointed out - this whole scene comes down to a direct parallel to 2x08, when Clarke kills Finn for the sake of her people. What we see here is that she can't bring herself to kill Bellamy, or even harm him in any menial way, not even to save the whole human race. Because the fact is that she loves Bellamy in a bigger, deeper, truer way than she loved Finn. And she did love Finn romantically, as we all know. As Clarke knows better than anyone. So if we're being told that her thought process is "I can't do this again, not to *another* person I love," well, then that means she's admitted to herself that it's the same situation all over again, except two-fold. Because it's Bellamy this time. What other person that she loved has Clarke killed? Sure, she's got a thousand deaths on her hands at this point. People she cared for or felt responsible for or wanted to protect in some way. But people she loved? Only Finn. She sees it as we all do. She loves Bellamy, better than Finn, better than anyone in the world. So, y'know, jot that down.

[bellamybb]

DID ANYONE ELSE REALIZE THAT ILIAN’S FATHER WAS A NIGHTBLOOD??

and before anyone says that it’s the lighting, right before this camera switch, the blood of ilian’s brother is shown in the exact same lighting and it’s red af. 

sooooo, INTERESTING

(i didn’t edit this at all, i just cropped it)

[apocalyptist]

I tried to dig into Bellamy’s mind, see what went on inside his head when he forgave Clarke and it turned into a season-long bellarke meta.

Bellamy really didn’t know the trauma Clarke experienced in six years alone.

When he got back to earth, it was just amazement and excitement that she was alive. And when he asks how she survived, he is honestly curious—figures it’d probably be a great story. When she gives him a short answer and goes to bed, he thinks maybe they’re just not as close as they used to be. It’ll get better…

And they do work well together but then she’s leaving and he’s in shock because he doesn’t understand and that is a foreign feeling for him with her. But then they fall right into step and they figure out their dynamic again and it works. All is forgotten.

When Clarke is sentenced for execution, he thinks they’re right back where they’d always been—“non-romantic partners and soulmates aligned, going in the same direction.” So he does everything he can to save her. And then Octavia accuses him of being in love with her.

And she’s wrong, alright? He’s with Echo. Clarke’s been all-but-dead for six years, and he loves her, sure, she’s his best friend and she means the world to him. But he’s not still in love with her, if he ever was at all. That’s ridiculous.

And he’s all too aware of that ridiculousness when he realizes their only choice is for Madi to take the flame. He’s all too aware of his feelings and, well, Clarke was the one who told him to remember to use his head so he uses his goddamn head. He’s gonna do it despite his heart (Clarke) telling him it’s wrong.

I think when Madi said, “if you do this, she’ll never forgive you,” he thought Madi was wrong. He figured Madi didn’t know how Bellamy and Clarke worked, how forgiveness worked between them. He knew Clarke would be mad, furious even. But he also knew she’d come around when things worked out. He was willing to stake their relationship on that.

So when she actively thwarts his plan and leaves him behind, he’s shocked. It’s as if their relationship, everything they’d been through together, means nothing to her. She threw it all away and left him to die. And that hurts.

But he lived six years without her. Her being alive doesn’t change the fact that he can go on without her. It’s over. They’re done. He’ll move on. But thank god he has a war to focus on for now. And, hey, he’s got Echo somewhere out there, too. He’s not alone.

When he sees that rover, he’s not sure what to think. He doesn’t know who’s driving it or why they’re there. Not until he’s inside and sees Echo in the front seat. It’s a relief.

Then he sees Madi. And who knows what the hell he’s thinking then. Echo probably doesn’t let him wonder for long, let’s him know Clarke let her take Madi and stayed behind to take out the missiles. Does she go into detail? Probably not the kinda detail Bellamy wants to hear. Just that Clarke nearly killed them all when they tried to take Madi, but Madi convinced her to let her go. That Raven and Shaw were captured. She tells him the essentials because this is business.

But what about Madi? What does she say to Bellamy? Does she talk to Bellamy about Clarke at all? Does she apologize for leaving him for dead? Tell him she’s glad he’s alive? That Clarke is, too? Does he believe her?

He can’t worry about it too much at that point.  Because, again, they’re at war (great distraction technique, he would highly recommend).

So he doesn’t deal with it again until he sees Clarke. She’s running for Madi, barely sparing him a glance. Ordering people around and whatnot. And the look she gives him when Madi tells her about saving the Eligius prisoners shakes him. He can still read her and that throws him. He can’t go back there with her, so he looks away. Let’s the others handle things and shrinks into the background.

He almost caves when she starts running off to find her mom, but thankfully Echo steps in before he can—even if his heart did stop beating for a second there.

He keeps his distance as they wait, and when Madi comes to talk to him he’s already trying his best to ignore Clarke’s presence over his shoulder because there are more important issues at hand.

And because he’s butt hurt.

So he tries to dismiss her words. He really doesn’t appreciate her logic, comparing Clarke’s behavior to everything he did for Octavia. Well, maybe he accepts that realization a little bit—Madi is Clarke’s Octavia. But ultimately, the fact of the matter is, he doesn’t give a flying fuck about why Clarke left him to die. He gives a fuck about the fact that she could.

So to hear that Clarke called him on the radio every day for six years… it doesn’t make sense. She doesn’t care about him, right? But what Madi’s saying… Clarke does care about him, was waiting for him to return all this time. She was alone for six years, talking to him on the radio for company and he finally sees…

He sees that he underestimated the trauma of what she’s been through without him, underestimated what it did to her. 

He sees that just because she doesn’t outwardly display her affection in ways other people would, doesn’t mean she doesn’t care. And maybe that’s always been true? And he was blind. Because Clarke never acted particularly caring—she was always guarded, even (or maybe especially) with him—but she always told him where they stood. And she’d kept doing that for six years, apparently. Maybe if he’d looked a little harder, he’d have seen it a long time ago—that she cares.

So when he puts that all together—when he imagines how he would feel about someone doing that to Octavia (when she was twelve) and when he remembers that slap in the face—he sees that it wasn’t a calculated move at all. That Clarke wasn’t thinking with her head, she was running on all heart—and dear god has he missed a lot. He really underestimated how much she changed over the past six years. She was running on all heart and she felt angry and hurt and betrayed so she took Madi and ran, probably thinking similar things as him… that he doesn’t care about her.

So he forgives her. He sees that Clarke let Madi go, that she used her head in the end and realized her mistake. He understands her again so he forgives her.

He doesn’t exactly have the words to explain it all to her… but she is forgiven. Completely.

[atavisticenthusiast]

What are your thoughts on the clone!Clarke theory? It seems like the eclipse makes them hallucinate versions of themselves, but doesn't actually create those other versions. And why do you think she's affected but not Bellamy?

Hey there.

Yeah, I’m not a believer in the clone theory. In fact, I’m going to point you in the direction of @sometimesrosy‘s post on this subject, where she suggests several alternative ways the show could play with duplicate (or triplicate) Clarkes.

As for your second question, I actually think the trailer is pretty vague about who is and who is not affected by the eclipse. Apart from Emori and presumably Echo (they’re chained in that room together), the only other person that we KNOW is affected is Octavia. 

There are three scenes from the trailer that could show alternate Clarkes …

her attacking the brunette at the dance

Mount Weather

the blurry scene around 3:09 where she fights someone with similar hair

… but I’m not convinced that any of these were Clarke experiencing psychosis. We know Clarke is capable of violence. Under the right circumstances, it would not be out of character for her to attack someone at the dance, and certainly not to defend herself against what appears to be a group of attackers (3:09 again). 

Mount Weather is even less clear. Obviously this is an alternate Clarke - BUT (if you haven’t already, read Rowena’s post linked above) is it Clarke experiencing psychosis or is it Madi, connected to Flame!Clarke and reliving Clarke’s traumas at Mount Weather?

I’m thinking the latter. In Octavia’s eclipse-induced episode, not only are there two versions of herself in combat, but each is dressed according to their season. Current Octavia looks like herself, and Bloodreina is outfitted in her S5 costume. Clarke, on the other hand, is dressed like herself in the City of Light,  DESPITE the fact that she was wearing a white tank and capris while a prisoner at Mount Weather. The version of Clarke that exists in the Flame seems to be connecting experiences on this new planet (and with Sanctum) to something that happened in Mount Weather. Madi can then relay those connections to Clarke and Bellamy and help them heal from that original trauma.

You asked why Bellamy isn’t affected. I really don’t have enough information to answer that - he could have an episode, and it’s just not shown in the trailer - but it does seem like only a part of the population is at risk. Bellamy says something around 1:58 that I can’t quite catch (“When the stars align ….. it’s time to run away”) which suggests that there IS a way to avoid psychosis. (Or the people it drives mad.) 

That actually reminds me of a meta I wrote a while back about Isaac Asimov’s short story Nightfall (link), where people spend every two millennia between eclipses preparing for an event that will end life as they know it. The scientists determined to understand the eclipse lock their loved ones away in a bunker to protect them, and are all driven mad by the eclipse themselves. The descendants of the people in the bunker then spend the next two millennia trying to prevent history from repeating itself. This is probably what happened to Eligius III, which JR has compared to the lost Roanoke Colony. And in the trailer, the town seems pretty deserted when the suns eclipse - maybe they leave our characters above ground to suffer its effects while they retreat to “the Sanctum���?

[the-suns-also-rise]

Bellarke isn’t just Endgame

Allusions (1/?)

Ima sing a little song about a Girl and a Boy, and it goes a little something like this:

Girl and Boy are introduced to a new world.

On their first meeting, Girl runs from the Boy, not liking what she sees.

They learn to work together.

Boy watches the Girl sleep.

Girl needs some space and wants to work apart for a time.

Boy repeatedly asks her not to leave him.They they work better together and he can’t protect her if they’re apart.

She persists, he loves her too much to restrict her and lets her go.

Boy senses part of him is missing while she’s gone.

Girl’s weaknesses are preyed upon, she gives into temptations leading her to make a terrible choice, one that will bring Death into the world.

Boy is horrified, but she already has his Heart. Losing her would be losing himself - he can’t go on living without her.

Boy freely decides to make the choice with her, knowing they’re both doomed.

Emotional pandemonium ensues - they blame each other:

Boy: You left me! This wouldn’t have happened if we were together.

Girl: You’re the Head, you could have forced me to stay! What makes you think you would have been stronger than I if you were there?

Boy: I couldn’t cage you -  I trusted you! Can’t you understand the sacrifice I made for you?

Neither take responsibility.

Literal pandemonium ensues which ends the world - beasts turn upon each other and begin to eat each other. The land burns to ash.

Fleeing the destruction, they must find a new home.

The blame game continues, and Girl pleads for forgiveness. Boy gives it to her.

Girl takes all the grief, shame, guilt, and remorse onto herself, bearing full responsibility for the loss of their home.

Girl suggests suicide. Boy talks her out of it. They have to redeem themselves for their mistakes.

In time, Girl realizes she was meant to be with the Boy and chooses to stay with him above all else. Home will always be wherever he is.

The two usher in new generations, ones that embrace both life and death, and there is a new dawn for humanity.

Any of this sound familiar?

I actually just speed-bulleted Adam and Eve’s journey through the Temptation, Fall, and Redemption of Man in Milton’s Paradise Lost. Just minus the hosts from hell, the choir of singing angels, and a few divine interventions, of course.

If Paradise Lost has been the inspiration for countless other literary works, songs, plays, films, video games, and tv shows, why not the 100 as well? Is it coincidence that the Narcissus myth has been evoked for Adam/Eve in Paradise Lost as well as for Clarke/Bellamy in the 100? 

If anyone ever doubted that Clarke and Bellamy will end up together, the roadmap is right here, written in this epic poem by a blind Puritan over 300 hundred years ago. Clarke and Bellamy aren’t just mirroring canon couples in the 100, they are reflections of the Original Couple. The show’s Head/Heart trope is a direct literary allusion to Adam and Eve’s conversations in Paradise Lost. Bellarke isn’t just endgame. They are the beginning, the middle, and the end of this story, and it is everlasting.

[meeraria]

God I’ve missed your metas

ok so after time to reflect, i have thoughts about why the finale of the 100 was so upsetting for so many people in the show. 

hear me out: bellamy and clarke are the central relationship of the show. some of you don’t remember what it was like to not even have that statement be a canon fact. i remember back in season ½/3, people were denying bellamy as even a main character on the show, saying that his and clarke’s relationship was just a background plot point rather than anything centrally important to the show. 

that being said, this finale did not emphasize it in the way that it deserved to be emphasized. the 100 is a show notorious for focusing on plot over relationships. i don’t know how many of ya’ll have been in this fandom long enough to remember the ENDLESS interviews of “the 100 isn’t about relationships!” bullshit we went through. but season 6 was truly about relationships in a new sense. while most other seasons have been about deciding the fate of humanity and avoiding apocalypses, etc., season 6 took things back to a smaller scale, which is why i think that so many people liked it. 

the first chunk of the show was about finding a new home for Bellamy and Clarke’s people (the introduction of sanctum, Children of Gabriel, etc), the second chunk was about saving Clarke, and specifically, the lengths Bellamy was willing to go to in order to save Clarke (and if you are an anti-bellarke shipper like JRoth, you could even say the second chunk was about the lengths ALL the characters were willing to go to in order to save Clarke and each other). The third and final chunk of the season was where the writers stumbled and really didn’t stick the landing to what would’ve been an amazing season. 

You see, the third chunk of the season was emphasizing that doing better causes loss, and more specifically, beating Clarke over the head with just about every tragic thing they possibly could. This, i feel, is really where the writers lost the audience. the stakes switched from finding a home and saving one person to “we have to save the people of sanctum” which, as callous as it sounds, the viewers don’t have very much investment in. we don’t know the people of Sanctum. we know the extended Spacekru/Wonkru team. Therefore, Bellamy, Gabriel, Octavia and co.’s arc in the final was…kinda boring. i wasn’t invested. the stakes didn’t seem that high. there was a split second where I thought maybe murphy would die, but other than that? it was a pretty fight sequence. but that was it. 

the other big flaw in the finale, imo, was how heavily they focused on the clarke/madi relationship. don’t get me wrong, i love their relationship and i’d love for the show to focus on it, but the simple fact is that we hadn’t had a madi/clarke interaction in 9 episodes. we know that clarke cares about madi (obviously) and lovers her unconditionally, but madi and clarke’s relationship wasn’t the one being built up and explored the whole season. 

the finale is supposed to be the culmination of a season’s worth of story and build up, and instead, the 100 season 6 finale ditched the relationship it had been investing in for 12 episodes to focus on relationships it hadn’t invested almost any time in (spacekru x people of sanctum, clarke x madi). even the main antagonist of the primes were kind of shrugged off and “defeated” when clarke….ran away….with the mind wipe serum…i guess? like talk about anti-climactic. 

basically what im sayin’ is that either the finale should’ve 1) focused on bellamy and clarke doing something together that required utilizing the new depth of their relationship and their journey over the past 7 episodes, 2) used the finale to show that something has changed between bellamy and clarke’s relationship due to their 7 story arc of bellamy going through hell to save her OR 3) cut down on a few of the other story elements to allow for more time to invest in madi and clarke’s relationship or spacekru’s relationship with the people of sanctum etc (do ya’ll remember how devastating the mount weather lever was? you know WHY it was so devastating? because we had MAYA and the mt weather people who were HELPING the 48 and we were INVESTED in saving the people who had HELPED our characters! do u know how great it would’ve been for bellamy, who has canonically spoken of how upset he was that they had to let people who hELPED THEM die via 3x05 , speak up and say no, not again. i won’t let the people who helped us die again. it would’ve been SO POWERFUL).

but yeah. those are my thoughts. i feel like it was more than just “bellamy and clarke didn’t kiss :(” that made ppl mad. it was the fact that a whole season’s worth of exploration and time just didn’t add up to anything in what is supposed to be the biggest episode of the season.