The 100

This week I’ll be taking an in-depth look at one of my personal favorite shows, The 100. This science fiction TV show had me addicted.

The 100 takes place far in the future after the Earth has become unlivable due to nuclear warfare that left the ground with high radiation levels. A community managed to survive by leaving to live in space until the radiation levels dropped.  When the administrators of the ship are faced with the threat of overpopulation, they decide to sent 100 prisoners down to the ground to see if it is survivable. These 100 (who are all teenagers) face challenge after challenge on a changed Earth.

The main character, Clarke, stands out among the group immediately. Many of the prisoners are the children of low level workers. However, Clarke’s mother is a doctor and her father an engineer. Many of the others resent her because she was privileged while they were often overlooked. Despite the crowd’s apparent distaste for Clarke, she stands out as a strong leader early in the series.

Another important leader of these misfit teenagers is Bellamy Blake, the dreamy bad boy. I went back and forth with my opinion on him so many times, but at the end of the day his heart is always in the right place. Bellamy and Clarke compliment each other and help one another grow as leaders.

It’s hard to talk about Bellamy without mentioning his sister, Octavia. She is similar to her brother in that she is always hellbent on breaking all the rules and causing some conflict.

Best Parts About The Show: Every episode had me on the edge of my seat. There was never a shortage of action or anticipation. It was definitely a show that required 100% of my attention because it was just too hard to look away. There are so many plot twists that I was never bored.

The plot is also eerily realistic as far as the initial setup. If the world was to end in nuclear warfare, this is kind of what I would expect to happen. I think the writers also do a great job of balancing everything out, and making a pretty cohesive story that still goes pretty in-depth. It does get a little more unrealistic as it continues, but in a good way.

The characters are amazing. Each one has such a good backstory, and I connected to so many of them. These characters were extremely well written. So well written that I often got very absorbed with their stories and was brought to tears during some scenes.

Worst Parts About The Show: This is a really hard one to stop watching and then pick up again out  of the blue. There are typically a few different plots being advanced at any given time so it is a lot to keep up with and remember. I didn’t have much trouble with this because I binged the available shows, but it could be an issue for some.

Cliffhangers. I don’t know about you, but I hate when episodes end in these awful cliffhanger that force you to watch another. Obviously I understand why it’s done, but it’s hard to ever find a good place to stop watching. I also finished watching all the available series and was heartbroken when the last episode out on Netflix ended with an intense cliffhanger.

My Overall Ratings

Binge-worthy-ness: 9.4/10 – I’m rating this one so high because I personally binged this one in a very hardcore manner. The cliffhangers made it hard to stop watching.

Plot: 7/10 – Sometimes the plot gets a little wild and out of hand, but overall it’s a good watch and had interesting plot advancements.

Characters: 8.5/10 – There are so many characters you love and others that you love to hate.

Overall: 9/10 – My rating for this show it probably higher than most people would give it, but I absolutely loved it.

And I’ll leave you with my favorite character… Finn.