The 100 season 5 episode 1 review: Eden
The fifth season of The 100 premiered last night, and the first episode held nothing back. If the rest of the season is anything like “Eden,” fans are in for a wild ride.
The first episode of The 100 ‘s season five has finally aired, and it actually answered a handful of our questions following the season four finale. As predicted, it did raise some new ones as well, particularly in regards to that carrier ship we’ve all been speculating about.
“Eden” was an action-packed premiere, full of suspense and drama. If the rest of the episodes follow in its footsteps, season five is bound to be the best one yet.
Clarke’s journey to Eden… and Madi
“Eden” opens almost two months after Praimfaya, showing Clarke’s efforts to remove the rubble from above the underground bunker and join her friends and family there. When she realizes her attempts are futile, she travels to Arkadia. She finds nothing there either, except sad memories of those who were lost. The moment she finds Jesper’s goggles is definitely a tearjerker.
Clarke then treks through the desert, hardly able to survive on her own. The ground is barren, and she’s at her wit’s end by the time she finally reaches the valley. There’s a moment of desperation when she starts screaming to the sky that she’s lost everything, and fans will feel it in their guts. Clarke’s loneliness is emphasized a lot during this episode, and the writers did a great job of portraying her suffering.
The premiere also reveals how Clarke’s relationship with Madi begins. After discovering the remains of the Shadow Valley Clan, Clarke burns their dead and sets up camp on the only fertile ground left.
She soon realizes she isn’t alone, though Madi isn’t eager to run into her arms. She catches Clarke in a bear trap and attacks her, only holding back when she realizes they’re both Nightbloods. And even then, the girl makes a habit of tracking Clarke before warming up to her. Grounders are nothing if not cautious of others.
The mysterious prison carrier
“Eden” then skips six years into the future, bringing us up to speed with the ending of the fourth season finale. Clarke and Madi still reside happily in their valley, though they’re soon joined by passengers on the prison ship briefly shown in season four.
If you were crossing your fingers that the newcomers would be friendly, you can quit holding your breath. Rothenberg made sure to drop a line, telling us that the majority of them are violent offenders. Apparently, they’ve been asleep. Their leader didn’t elaborate on exactly what that meant, but it wouldn’t be a shock if they were hidden away all those years for safety purposes.
Even if there was hope of Clarke settling a truce with these violent prisoners, it likely went out the window when she and Madi shot and killed two of their men. In all fairness, it was in self-defense.
Meanwhile, on the Ark
The episode also shows a few scenes on the Ark, all of them taking place after the six-year jump. As expected, the relationships up there have changed and evolved. While Harper and Monty seem to be thriving, it appears that Murphy and Emori decided to end things. Remaining on friendly terms doesn’t seem to be one of their top priorities.
“Eden” also reveals that Bellamy and Echo have developed romantic feelings for one another, though Echo seems certain that things will change when they return to the ground. After all, she did attempt to kill Octavia last season — on multiple occasions.
The question of getting back to the ground is also up in the air. It appears that Raven can’t figure out how to get her friends there, a point of contention between her and Bellamy. The group does eventually spot another ship, watching it drop the prison carrier down to Earth.
They plan to rendezvous with whoever is on this ship, assuming the crew will allow them to dock. Hopefully, the passengers won’t be nearly as aggressive as the ones they sent to the ground. It is totally possible that they had the original idea to send the prisoners to Earth first, just to see if it was inhabitable.
A surprising ending
In typical Rothenberg fashion, “Eden” ends on a shocking note. We get a glimpse at two ruthless warriors fighting in a gladiator style pit. Then the camera shifts to Octavia sitting on her throne, decked out in red war paint. She’s all but expressionless while watching the violence unfold.
We’re going to need more flashbacks to see how Octavia got to this point in her leadership. The episode also fails to show what remains of Skaikru underground. If we had to guess, we’d say Kane and Abby probably aren’t thrilled with Octavia’s new hobbies.
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Hopefully, we’ll see more of the 13 united clans in the next episode. “Red Queen” airs Tuesday, May 1, 2018. That title certainly sounds like it’s about Octavia.