The 100 season 7 episode 2 review: “The Garden” almost gives our snakes a happy ending

The latest episode of The 100 shows what Octavia and Diyoza were up to all those years in the Anomaly — and will make you wish both could have a happy ending.

“One garden, two snakes.” This week’s episode of The 100 will leave fans thinking about Octavia’s words from the end of the fifth season, as both of our snakes found their garden in the Anomaly — well, at least for a little while.

In this week’s episode, “The Garden,” The 100 finally attempts to shed some light on what the Anomaly actually is, as well as who has been venturing in and out of it. It does this by jumping back and forth between past and present, showing fans what Octavia and Diyoza experienced when they entered it, then following Echo, Gabriel, and Hope on their journey into it.

The actual what of the Anomaly can be a bit hard to follow as Hope hastily explains what she knows about the strange phenomenon, something she prefers to refer to as “the Bridge.” Fans already guessed that time doesn’t act normally inside of the Anomaly, as Hope returns at age 22 not long after Diyoza enters pregnant — not to mention that Octavia changes on her trip inside, despite only being gone for a few minutes on Alpha.

As it turns out, though, Octavia and Diyoza were transported to a planet Hope refers to as “Sky Ring” for 10 years, with Hope having lived there for 20. It’s a scary prospect how long one could be trapped there without those back on Alpha knowing — not to mention, even entering the Anomaly at different times means that time has passed differently for all parties involved. (Basically, there’s no guarantee any of them will be able to find Bellamy since he was dragged in earlier.)

Time jumping aside, the Anomaly also gives the characters the ability to travel from place to place. Right now, we know the Bridge connects Alpha, Sky Ring, and a place called Bardo, which is evidently where our new villains hail from. Referred to as the Disciples, these people mostly remain a mystery to viewers. They’re the same people who dragged Bellamy away and shot at Echo and the others, but we’ve yet to see them without masks — or to learn of their motivations.

The people of Bardo use Sky Ring as a prison planet, and it turns out that Eligius III and Becca are wrapped up in this storyline, too. (Of course, all roads lead back to Becca.) Becca seems to know a thing or two about what she calls “time dilation,” but how she and the other Eligius III members discovered the Anomaly and moons it connects is currently unclear.

We’re also told that traveling back and forth between planets, or moons, is easier said than done. While it seems the Disciples have a handle on things, our characters find themselves trapped on Sky Ring, although it’s suggested they can use the Anomaly stones Gabriel discovered last season to travel from planet to planet. There’s also the memory loss issue, which still hasn’t been totally explained … but, with any luck, we’ll get there.

The science behind the Anomaly and the many planets we’ve been introduced to can be a bit overwhelming, but it certainly sets viewers up for some interesting developments going forward. After all, who knows what our main characters could do with time travel and more planets to work with? Perhaps they’ll find peace somewhere after all. And speaking of…

Two Snakes

Although it’s nice to get some answers about the Anomaly, the true heart of this week’s episode is the narrative that follows Octavia and Diyoza as they raise Hope together and finally find a peaceful existence, even as Octavia misses her brother and friends back on Sanctum. Through a number of flashbacks, viewers watch these three become a family, building on the relationship that Octavia and Diyoza had already begun to form in season 6.

Despite both characters having done terrible things, fans will genuinely find themselves rooting for this unlikely family to have a happy ending — even though they know it’s not possible, given Octavia and Hope’s return to Alpha later on.

And while Octavia does attempt to get back to Bellamy and warn him about the Primes for years, she steadily grows content with her existence on Sky Ring. Eventually, she leaves him a letter, explaining that she “understands” — and that sentiment alone will have Blake fans weeping, glad that both found their kin somewhere in this series.

Unfortunately, that letter is found by the wrong people when she pushes it through the bridge, leading to the end of Octavia, Diyoza, and Hope’s almost happy ending. The Disciples invade their home on Sky Ring and take Octavia and Diyoza prisoner, with Octavia hiding Hope in the house, rightfully counting on the fact that the Disciples don’t know there’s a third person living there.

The whole scene is heartbreaking and incredibly remniscent of Octavia’s childhood living under the floor. It’s difficult to watch as Diyoza and Octavia are dragged away, but we know Octavia escapes somewhere down the line — and we know that Hope survives and finds a way to the Disciples in an attempt to rescue her mother.

The Disciples

Now that we know about the Disciples — and that their leader, Anders, is the reason Hope returned to stab Octavia — we’ll need to figure out how they factor into the show’s final season. Clarke and the others back on Alpha, who are completely absent from this episode, are already dealing with Russell Prime, his followers, and Sheidheda (though they’re not aware of that last one just yet). Do these new antagonists have any connection to the old ones, or is the show splitting up its final season to contend with two threats at once?

With only so many episodes of the series left, it seems unlikely The 100 would introduce new villains with no connection to any of the show’s previous storylines. And considering we’ve already seen that Becca and Eligius III are involved somehow, it’s possible the Disciples could draw connections back to all of the show’s previous seasons — something that would be pretty impressive if done right.

What did you think of this week’s episode of The 100? Share your thoughts in the comments below!