The 100 finale recap: 'Perverse Instantiation – Part Two' 

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'The 100' recap: 'Perverse Instantiation – Part One'

T.S. Eliot’s poem “The Hollow Men” has many themes: war, hope, religion, failed relationships, among others. Is this what

writers were thinking when they wrote season 3?

, probably not, but we’ve seen those themes play out, and as big and loud as the finale was, “Perverse Instantiation – Part Two” also ended in a quiet, reflective way, leaving lots of questions to be answered in season 4. For a season that really made us think — about the writing, about the characters, and about the decisions of both — it’s fitting that we will now be thinking even more. Because it really doesn’t seem like there’s a way out of this problem. I know I say that with every new Big Bad, but a planet that’s at the end of its lifespan seems like the end. For real.

But before I go too far down the rabbit hole of what will happen next, let’s talk about what happened tonight. Bellamy, Murphy, and Pike are securing the tower and all the chipped people inside it. While they’re out of the room, Clarke uses the EMP chip from Abby. Clarke says, “I need you,” when her mother doesn’t open her eyes, and it’s heartbreaking. Clarke may be a badass Commander of Death, but she’s also just a teenage girl who needs her mother. Luckily for all of us, Abby wakes up. Instantly the memories of what she did while in the City of Light flood over her. She starts sobbing and apologizing for what she did to her daughter. It’s a beautiful scene (all of the scenes between Clarke and Abby are beautiful, but this could be my favorite yet), but there’s no time to dwell. Clarke explains to everyone that she is going to take the flame, which is why she used the one-time-use EMP on her mother: She needs a doctor to help her get “connected” to a nightblood.

Using Mount Weather technology, Abby hooks up IV lines from Clarke to a brain-dead Ontari and back again. (They’re doing all this while Clarke sits on the throne, where she looks perfectly at home if we’re being honest.) As if this isn’t dangerous enough on its own: It’s also a race against time. Even though Bellamy’s group took out the ladders after they climbed up the elevator shaft, the City of Light citizens are doing everything possible to get to Clarke, and they’re climbing up the outside walls. So with the blood transfer going, Murphy says the incantation and inserts the flame into Clarke’s neck. She screams and goes unconscious.

At Arkadia, Jasper is still taunting Monty and Raven with the threat of Harper’s life. Jasper is telling them just to give up because the chances of reaching the kill switch again is less than 2 percent. He says that A.L.I.E. added security, and they’ll know if they do anything. But while Evil Jasper was monologuing, Monty sneaks out, comes up from behind, and shoots his friend in the leg so they can tie him up and save Harper. “Good thing there’s no pain in the City of Light,” Raven quips.

Speaking of the City of Light… Clarke wakes up and says she needs to take the chip and go there. She doesn’t know why or how she knows it, but she

it. It’s reminiscent of all the times Lexa would make decisions with unwavering faith. So Clarke does just that. Once inside, Clarke is clearly overwhelmed by it. But she doesn’t have time to marvel modern architecture because she’s being led through the city by the sacred sign.

Just as she realizes that no one can see her, an infinity symbol pops up on a crosswalk sign. She heads toward it until a woman with an infinity symbol walks by and Clarke follows. (Can we just pause for a minute and talk about how hilarious it is to see Grounders in trench coats!?) Things are going well until Ontari starts dying, which means Clarke isn’t getting enough nightblood and she’s rejecting the flame; whatever protection it provided is fading.

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