The 100 season 7 episode 6 review: Too many storylines, not enough answers

The 100’s latest episode is a disjointed installment that attempts to tackle too many storylines at once — and ultimately goes nowhere.

As The 100 draws near its end, the remaining storylines have become increasingly convoluted, but the series has done a decent job at balancing them in spite of this. This week’s episode, “Nakara,” changes that by attempting to cover every storyline at once — and ultimately not bringing fans any closer to the answers they seek.

“Nakara” opens with a montage of Diyoza being held captive on Bardo, and to be fair, this is one of the highlights of the episode. It’s been too long since fans caught up with the character, and watching how impossible it is to break her — especially with the cheery music playing in the background — marks a satisfying return for her.

It’s almost as satisfying as watching her finally reunite with her daughter and Octavia, both of whom show up to rescue her, with Echo and Gabriel in tow. The reunion is shortlived, however, as the group needs to find a way out of Bardo — and fast.

But just as they’re about to use the Anomaly Stone to get out of there for good, Octavia sees Levitt — who has been demoted to a janitor after helping her — and he tells her that it’s not safe for them to use the stone. Instead, he suggests heading to an oxygen farm that will lead them to the surface of the planet, which isn’t survivable for long but may buy them some time to get away from their captors.

It’s unclear what the plan from there would have been, but no need to worry about it. When Octavia and the others finally reach the entrance to the oxygen farm, an elderly man warns them against going forward. An argument ensues about who the group should trust, but Gabriel shuts it down with the dumbest move yet: using his suit to stun the entire group, essentially leaving them all in the hands of the Disciples yet again.

Gabriel’s decision is an infuriating one, not just because he left them at the enemy’s mercy, but also because this back and forth at Bardo is starting to get old. Without answers, it’s hard to be invested in anything outside of wanting our characters to escape imprisonment — but it looks like that’s not happening just yet.

A Planet or a Tomb?

“Nakara” also picks up where fans left off with Clarke’s group, which stepped through the Anomaly and onto an icy planet that clearly wasn’t where they intended to go. The gang soon finds out this is where the people of Bardo store their dead — and they make moves to get out of there as quickly as possible.

Raven’s suit tells her that the Anomaly Stone they can use to escape is inside a cave, so that’s where they head — but there are some horrifying surprises waiting for them there. For one, it wouldn’t be a season of The 100 without some completely random creature popping up to attack our characters and then leave forever. This time, we get killer spiders, which will give you serious Lord of the Rings vibes. Luckily, they aren’t around for very long.

The other shocker is that the cave is closing in behind them, leading the group to a dead end. Only after they’re trapped inside do they realize that they’re actually moving around the insides a living organism — and that they’re about to become its next meal.

The whole storyline here feels like a weird escape from the rest of the season, but there is one gem to be salvaged from it: a brief scene between Raven and Clarke that offers some much-needed closure after the rocky relationship they’ve had recently. As always, Lindsey Morgan and Eliza Taylor play the emotions to perfection, and Raven’s guilt will have fans tearing up, while Clarke’s continued determination to survive will leave them feeling inspired.

And that determination apparently rubs off on Raven, who manages to get the group off the planet using the Anomaly Stone inside of … whatever creature we’re dealing with’s … stomach. Unfortunately, the episode doesn’t give us clues as to where the group is headed next. (But hopefully they’ll show up to rescue their friends on Bardo. That would be nice.)

There is also one moment that connects this subplot to the rest of the series, and that’s the discovery of a symbol Clarke once saw in the bunker at Polis. Are the grounders somehow connected to the Anomaly? That, at least, would make for an interesting twist.

The New Commander

Alongside what’s happening on the other planets, “Nakara” also returns to Sanctum to build on the unrest that’s been bubbling there. Sheidheda is pitting the different groups residing there against one another, and Nikki stealing a bunch of artillery from the armory suggests that tensions are about to boil over sooner rather than later.

Indra’s trying to keep all the groups in check, but that’s easier said than done — especially now that Wonkru refuses to follow her commands. She turns to Madi, who’s starting to make friends at school, but that plan fails when the poor girl has a panic attack and proves herself unable to be Wonkru’s commander.

Truthfully, after building up Madi’s character so much last season, it feels like she’s been benched during these final episodes, and that’s a shame. There’s no reason she needs to be the commander, but this story is being told from everyone’s perspective but hers — and the show could use more screen time from her, honestly.

Still, there is one highlight that results from Madi’s inability to address her people: Indra stepping up to become Wonkru’s new commander. It’s about time her character was given more responsibility — and more screen time — and Adina Porter delivers Indra’s speech stunningly. It’s clear through every word she speaks that Indra isn’t interested in the power she’s taking on. But, as Emori suggests, that’s exactly why she’s so well suited for it.

Unfortunately, with Sheidheda working with Nelson, Indra’s going to have to do more than convince Wonkru to follow her. Let’s hope the grounders are prepared for what’s coming … because things aren’t looking pretty behind the walls of Sanctum.

What did you think of this week’s episode of The 100? What was your favorite moment?