The 100 S02E08: "Spacewalker"
When The 100 first decided to take Finn, a character previously known to be a rational hero dedicated to peaceful co-existence, down a dark path littered with death and destruction—one that ultimately resulted in his death this week—I wrote about how the dangerous environment created by war often forces young men and women to grow up faster than they would have otherwise. I also wrote about how it's the bloodiness of war that ultimately teaches us that life and freedom are gifts, not rights, and both of these themes were evident this week in "Spacewalker," an emotional capper to an arc that rightfully inflamed the show's loyal community of fans. And both themes, I expect, will continue to play an important role in the very fabric of this savage, but highly engrossing world that Jason Rothenberg and his team of writers have carefully created for our enjoyment.
After Finn slaughtered Lincoln's village, I noted that his sudden shift in personality felt too abrupt and that there wasn't enough story to support this change in his character. In the weeks that followed, I voiced several other complaints about how the show dealt with the fallout, particularly in regards to how the Council pardoned Finn off-screen and how Clarke was the only person who seemed to treat Finn differently in the aftermath. And I stand by those complaints now knowing what I know about where we were headed. Because I do think his descent was rushed—a result of a quick pace that's usually praised rather than criticized—and I would have really liked to explore Finn's psyche in the lead-up to those events that day in the village so I had a better understanding of his motivations—love and a desire to find and rescue Clarke are still not really enough of an excuse when I still don't fully buy their deep connection—but the conclusion to Finn's story was ultimately well done. And like everything else, I'm conflicted about how I feel about that.
Once again I must applaud The 100 for being willing to go to places other shows will not. The series began pushing boundaries from the moment it sent the Hundred on what was likely to be a suicide mission in the pilot, and it continued to do so in the episodes that followed. Whether it was killing Wells, having Charlotte jump off a cliff, or any other number of grave examples, the show was committed to honestly portraying a savage and brutal world created from the ruins of nuclear war. And so the series pushes its characters into the deepest crevices in its darkest caves and then forces them to deal with the consequences of whatever actions led them there. This results in great character moments for our protagonists and highlights the growing list of dangers they face in this war for survival. Far too often writers will stretch the imagination to unrealistic and laughable lengths in order to find loopholes or last-minute saves that will allow their characters to escape whatever unfortunate predicament they've found themselves in, but not The 100. No, The 100 has never been that show. When the writers commit to an idea, no matter how dark it may be, they stick to it, and for that I will be forever grateful.
In that regard, "Spacewalker" reminded me a lot of the Season 1's "Twilight's Last Gleaming", which probably shouldn't be all that surprising since both episodes were written by Bruce Miller. If you'll recall, it was the episode in which several men and women on the Ark sacrificed themselves to free up oxygen so the others could live. Viewers knew that the ground was hospitable and that the Hundred had survived, but the people of the Ark assumed they'd all died once the wristlets that reported their vital signs went dark. The Hundred spent the entire hour attempting to send flares to alert the Ark to their very much alive status, and I, like everyone else, expected someone to look up and see the flares just in time, thus allowing everyone to live. That didn't happen, and the result was a dark and incredibly powerful hour, one that I never expected the show to follow through on, but ultimately was happy when it did. It was the first time I realized that this series wasn't going to back away from stories that were dark or that some might see as being too heavy. And so it's with this in mind that I look at Finn's death and know that even if I disagree with the execution of his storyline and possibly even the ending itself, I can appreciate the fact the show once again followed through in its mission to knock down all of the pins it had carefully set up.
Last week, when Lexa first offered Clarke and the Arkers a shaky alliance against the Mountain Men in exchange for Finn, I said that I didn't think killing Finn for his actions was necessarily the right choice, not because he didn't deserve to be punished, but because it would only perpetuate the idea that "blood for blood, eye for an eye" is the only option for conflict resolution and would likely only result in a vicious cycle of violence. This week, the idea of a trial was put on the table, but ultimately didn't happen. Like the decision to pardon him, the deliberations about whether or not to try Finn for war crimes were done off screen, but it's fairly safe to assume that Abby—who wasn't yet ready to relinquish the chancellorship to a newly returned Kane—didn't want to entertain the possibility that they might spare Finn the vengeance of the Grounders only for him to still die by the hand of his own people.
It's a valid concern, but also the scenario I think I ultimately would have chosen for a number of reasons. First and foremost, I think living with the guilt of what he'd done would have been an incredibly rich story for Finn. A lot of writers look at death as the ultimate punishment, but if seven seasons of Sons of Anarchy taught me anything about how I feel regarding death and consequences, it's that death is often the easy way out and living with what you've done is the harsher punishment. I'm not really comparing The 100 and what transpired between Finn and the Grounders to the often senseless bloodbaths that took place weekly on FX's gritty biker drama, but I do think there were alternate outcomes that could have proven to be as emotionally fulfilling as watching Clarke mercy kill Finn turned out to be. I'm also always down for a carefully plotted redemption story. Plus, as Clarke herself pointed out, she was more or less responsible for the deaths of 300 Grounders in the Season 1 finale and still no one was forcing her to die a slow and gruesome death for her crimes. The show even pointed that out but still seems content to give Clarke carte blanche, which doesn't exactly line up with the way Finn's story unfolded. I'm not saying the writers have created a double standard by ignoring Clarke's sins since they were arguably done in self-defense during an active battle and Finn's were not, but I'm not not saying it either.
For all intents and purposes, Finn is not a bad guy. The flashbacks to the Ark gave us a bit of his backstory (which really should have been the first clue that he wouldn't survive the episode) and showed us that the thing that landed him in lockup and which ultimately put him on the dropship to Earth—his unauthorized spacewalk that depleted three months of oxygen—wasn't actually his spacewalk. An underage Finn took the fall for Raven because she was over 18 and would have been floated instantly, which means Finn has been doing (sort of) selfless acts to protect the ones he loves for years, not just recently. He likely also took the fall for Raven because he blamed himself for everything that happened since it was his idea for Raven to go on that spacewalk and he was the one who actually made it happen. So no, I'd argue that Finn is not a bad guy, but rather a man who did a bad thing.
Clarke said that what we do to survive doesn't define who we are, but that ultimately doesn't change the fact Finn had to pay for his crimes. Nor does it change the fact most of the people from the Ark weren't willing to die in order for Finn to live. The way they saw it, the Grounders only wanted one man to pay the price instead of an equal 18, and they were willing to sacrifice Finn for the greater good. "I'm not dying for him!" was just one of the things shouted during the show's opening scene, and it's not hard to understand where they were coming from. Still, violence is not an answer, it only begets more violence, and I stand by that.
I concede that I am reflecting my own worldview onto these fictional characters, and that our world is not the same world the show inhabits, but I also pose this question: Why shouldn't I want a world where justice and not revenge prevails? Why shouldn't I ask for the series to put Finn on trial instead of asking him to pay with his life for his crimes? Even if the Arkers chose death for his punishment, at least it would take the power out of the Grounders hands. At least he would have had a trial. As I watched "Spacewalker" and resigned myself to Finn's sad fate, I realized that the real reason I watch and enjoy The 100 so much on a week-to-week basis—besides the fact the show has a giant size of cajones—is because it asks me how far I'm willing to go for what it promises, which ultimately could be a clean slate for humanity.
So much has happened over the course of a season and a half that it is easy to forget that it was a nuclear war that lead us to where we are now. And it bothers me—as it should—that the Arkers, the Grounders, and the Mountain Men are all repeating the same mistakes that led to this savage environment in the first place. "We are what we are," Lexa told Clarke as she begged Lexa to show mercy toward Finn, but why resign yourself to such a primitive way of thinking? It's the only world the Grounders know—they say if death has no cost then life has no worth—but why settle for that existence when other factions or civilizations are offering the opportunity to evolve? I've enjoyed the clash of the Arkers and the Grounders until this point, but the idea that all of this has happened before and could all happen again—nuclear war is still ways off, but there are other ways to wipe out entire civilizations—makes me wish the show would focus more on the bigger picture while also dealing with the day-to-day events that make up these peoples' lives.
I might never fully decide where I come down on Finn's death—it was a deeply emotional moment that will likely haunt Clarke for the rest of her life—and even if I commend the series for having the balls to stick to its convictions, the idea that there's a better way to operate still lingers in my mind. The idea that the Grounders have set a precedence and appear to have the upper hand also now bothers me. It's likely that I'll still be sitting here when the show returns from its winter hiatus in January trying to decide if this was the right call or not, but in a way I'm also content to be conflicted. And maybe that was the point.
VITAL STATS
– Everyone will focus on Clarke and her decision to kill Finn in this episode and how that will affect her going forward, but it's important to remember that Finn was the only family Raven had, and his death is just as likely to level her world as it is Clarke's. I look forward to exploring that when the show returns.
– At first I was annoyed that the show was treating Clarke's head wound like she was gravely injured, but then I realized that head wounds actually are serious and only on TV are they treated so casually. I mean, maybe Finn was overreacting a bit when he was worried that she'd died, but it was also refreshing to see a show take her condition seriously.
– Haha, Raven wanted to give Murphy to the Grounders instead. That was a brilliant if treacherous thing to do, but to be fair, he is the one who shot her, which makes him the reason she needs a brace to walk. I like that the show toyed with the idea for 30 seconds, because I think a lot of fans have probably championed Murphy's demise for awhile, but the decision to let him live in this case was ultimately the right one.
– In a way, I find it a little hard to believe that Lexa would be OK with Clarke killing Finn before the Grounders had the chance to make him suffer for what he did. For a society that was begging for blood to ease their pain, the idea that Clarke took that power from them should have probably upset more than just the average Grounder, no?