"You know, I liked you better as a peacemaer." (Murphy about Finn, "Human Trials")
Well, the peacemaker did it. A truce between the Sky People and the Grounders seems right around the corner after the events of Wednesday's The 100 episode. But the peacemaker had to give up something that was very dear to him, something valuable and irreplaceable, something that can never be taken back...
HIS LIFE
Yes, after the Grounders demanded his life at the end of "Long Into an Abyss" last week's episode ended with just that: the death of Finn Collins. In one of the most powerful episodes of The 100, the entire episode was about the question whether Finn gets to live or die. But to say that the only thing that really happened in this episode was Finn's death would do the episode no justice.
As our Chancellor trio discuss their options, tension runs high in the camp and people are asking for Finn to be hand over. Bellamy decides it's best to hide Finn in the dropship. Not only will he be safe from the Grounders there, but also from the people in Camp Jaha. Bellamy, Clarke, Octavia, Finn and Raven split up in groups and head to the dropship. On their way, Clarke and Finn encounter a random Grounder, who immediately recognizes Finn as the village murderer and attacks them. After hitting down Clarke, he is set to take Finn. However, Finn manages to grab a gun but tells the Grounder he doesn't want to kill him. It's another tense situation, but all is well when the Grounder voluntarily leaves.
In flashbacks, we learn that Raven failed a psychical test so she cannot walk in space. Therefore, as a present for her 18th birthday, Finn borrows a spacesuit so Raven can have her spacewalk. Sadly, when Raven returns to the Ark there is a door breach which causes a loss of three months of oxygen. Knowing they Raven will be floated because she is 18, Finn takes the fall for her and saves her life.
Meanwhile, Abby meets with Indra after Lincoln speculated that she is probably standing in the way of a truce. Abby talks about all the lives both sides have lost, saying that it will only help the Mountain Men. Indra is not taking it and puts a knife to Abby's throat. If you were afraid she was gonna slit it, you were not the only one. Fortunately, that's not the case. Inra makes it clear, however, that Finn is the only one who can pay for what he's done.
When darkness falls upon the Earth, the Grounders get ready to execute Finn right in front of the camp so they can watch. In a last effort to save Finn's life, Clarke decides to talk to Lexa. Raven gives her knife so that if Lexa doesn't come around, Clarke can kill her and save Finn in the chaos. After nearly getting speared by Indra, Clarke makes every effort to convince the Commandor to have mercy. Lexa doesn't give in but allows Clarke to say goodbye. She kisses Finn and tells him she loves him as well, thereby answering Finn's love confession for her earlier in the episode. Finn thanks her and leaves his head hanging. Clarke has killed Finn. Indra and others prepare to attack Clarke, but Lexa tells them it's done. Raven shouts it out as the camp watches Clarke's desperate move.
This was an outstanding episode and the best of the season. The performances were top notch. Thomas McDonell owned the entire hour with his shining performance, showing us a scared Finn that wasn't able to forgive himself for what he did. Eliza Taylor showed Clarke's conflict of interest in the final scene as she was considering her options. When she had decided to kill Finn, you could feel how much she cared about him and that she really didn't want to do this. Lindsay Morgan's screams is something that I won't forget anytime soon, and Henry Ian Cusick and Paige Turco showed the surprise and terrifying looks of Kane and Abby as they watched one child kill another.
Also, the fact that the The 100 writers and producers could build an entire episode around just a single topic (a.k.a. Finn's life) speaks volumes about the quality of the show. The build-up in this episode was perfect and there were some very tense situations. I was afraid Abby would die when she confronted Indra, and for a moment I even thought Clarke would die when Indra put a spear to her stomach.
The writers' decision to kill Finn off is a bold one, but that's what The 100 is known for. Various fans had a feeling Finn would die in 'Spacewalker' and even more saw it coming that Raven was the spacewalker, not Finn. Therefore, you might say that Finn's death was the first predictable twist that The 100 has done. However, I don't think anyone can say that they saw the way he died coming. When Clarke looked at Finn and asked Lexa to say goodbye, that's when I knew she would take his life. But only then did I see it coming. In fact, during the final scenes of the episode, I was prepared to take my eyes of the screen because I didn't want to see Finn die such a gruesome death. It was a very conflicting situation because I didn't want to look away as I was afraid I would miss something, but on the other hand I couldn't take it to see such a gruesome death. Fortunately, Finn died a relatively painless death, and with Clarke by his side his death became even less painful.
That brings me to another topic. With Finn's death, the writers have also killed an infamous love triangle. The Clarke-Finn-Raven triangle was one of the major criticisms of season 1. Finn obviously cared for both women, and if I remember correctly he has said "I love you" to both. Still, the question remains which one he truly loved. It became obvious in 'Spacewalker' that he cared deeply for Raven as he said goodbye to her. But once again, he said the three words to Clarke. Maybe he saw Raven more as a sister than as lover, maybe he did love her. Did he love Clarke? He said it himself. But also an interesting question is: did Clarke love Finn? She said it right before she stabbed him, but did she say that because it was the truth or because she knew that's what Finn wanted to hear in his dying moments? I don't know, and I am not even sure Clarke herself knows. That's something she will have to figure out during the rest of the season. I'm also very interested in seeing Raven's reaction to what Clarke did. I am pretty certain the two won't exactly be best of friends anymore.
-Did anyone actually miss the Mount Weather side of the story? I am ashamed to say that I didn't. Of course, we should see them soon if the truce between the Grounders and the Sky People holds.
-Major Byrne gets hit by Raven! Finally, that was long overdue! Remember that time when she shocklashed Abby? Seems like ages ago!
-Speaking of Kane, I loved the way he looked when Jaha said Abby had him detained. Cusick is such a great actor, and along with Turco and Isaiah Washington he made it one of the most memorable scenes of the episode.
-Also, Abby managed to offend both Jaha ("That was another time... and another chancellor.") and Kane ("No offense, Marcus, but I'm keeping the job."). With Abby in charge, it also makes it easier to negotiate with the Grounders as their leaders are all females as well.
-Check out some of the best quotes of this episode in SpoilerTV's Quote of the Week article.
-Finn's death is also one of the Scenes of the Week chosen by the SpoilerTV team.
Goodbye, Finn Collins! You and Thomas McDonell will be missed! You finally got the peace you wanted, but it's too bad you had to die for it. Rest in peace!
The next new episode of The 100, 'Remember Me', airs January 21st. A promo can be found here.
