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This article is about the TV series. You may be looking for the book series or the 100 delinquents.

The 100 is an American post-apocalyptic Sci-Fi Dystopian drama television series developed by Jason Rothenberg and is loosely based on the book series of the same name by Kass Morgan. The series follows a group of Delinquents, who have been sent down to Earth to see if it is survivable or not. For the first time in nearly a century, humans have returned to planet Earth, but they realize they're not alone.

The series premiered on The CW in the United States on March 19, 2014, attracting 2.73 million viewers on the original airing. In August 2019, it was announced that the series would come to an end with the seventh season. The last season premiered on May 20, 2020 and concluded on September 30, 2020.

The series is loosely based on The 100, the first novel in the hundred series by Kass Morgan. Some characters are original characters and do not appear in the books. A few also have their personalities switched or shared. The TV series is also considered to be ahead of the book series in events. Many of the events that happen in the TV show may not happen in the books.

Plot[]

The-100-Logo-gif

The 100's logo

Set in 2149, 97 years after a nuclear apocalypse has devastated the surface of Earth, the only survivors were approximately 400 inhabitants of 12 national space stations that were in orbit at the time. Three generations have survived in space. The Ark has strict measures, including capital punishment for those over 18 and population control, as the leaders of the Ark take steps to ensure the survival of the human race. But now, resources are running out and the Ark is dying. For the first time in nearly a century, there is talk of returning to Earth.

100 juveniles convicted of various crimes are sent to Earth to see if it is survivable. Among them are 17-year-old Clarke Griffin, the daughter of the Ark's chief medical officer and of the Ark's chief engineer; Wells Jaha, the son of Chancellor Jaha; the daredevil Finn Collins; the illegal sister Octavia Blake; her stowaway brother Bellamy Blake; the lighthearted Jasper Jordan; and the resourceful Monty Green.

Technologically blind to what’s happening to the 100 on Earth, the Ark’s leaders Chancellor Jaha, second-in-command Marcus Kane, Councilwoman Abigail Griffin and the Council are faced with difficult decisions about life, death and the continued existence of the human race.

For the 100, Earth is an alien planet; however, they quickly discover that Earth is filled with new wonders and dangers of all sorts. Then, they discover that not all humanity was wiped out, and some survived the nuclear apocalypse: the Grounders, who live in 12 clans locked in a power struggle; the Reapers, another group of Grounders who have become cannibals; and the Mountain Men, who live in Mount Weather and locked themselves away before the apocalypse.

In the second season, the remaining 48 of the 100 are taken by the Mountain Men to Mount Weather, where they discover a community of survivors. It is eventually revealed that the Mountain Men are transfusing blood from imprisoned Grounders as an anti-radiation treatment. Medical tests of the 100 show an even more potent anti-radiation efficacy; their bone marrow will allow the Mountain Men to survive outside on the ground. Meanwhile, the inhabitants of the Ark have successfully crash-landed various stations on Earth and begun an alliance with the Grounders to save their groups of people, naming the main settlement at Alpha Station "Camp Jaha".

In the third season, Camp Jaha, now renamed Arkadia, comes under new management when Pike, a former teacher and mentor, is elected over Kane as Chancellor and begins a war with the Grounders. An artificial intelligence named A.L.I.E. was revealed to be responsible for the nuclear apocalypse that devastated Earth 97 years before the series, and she takes over the minds of nearly everyone in Arkadia and Polis – the capital city of the Grounders. In the third season finale, Clarke manages to destroy A.L.I.E. after it is revealed that the world is facing another nuclear disaster. This is due to nuclear reactors around the world that have fallen into disrepair and are irradiating Earth, once again threatening to make it uninhabitable.

In the fourth season, two dozen nuclear reactors around the world are melting down due to decades of neglect that will result in the majority of the planet becoming uninhabitable. Clarke and the others investigate ways to survive the coming wave of radiation that will result in the second nuclear apocalypse. When it is discovered that Nightbloods have a higher resistance to radiation, Clarke and the others attempt to recreate the serum but fail to test it. An old bunker is discovered that can protect 1200 people for five years. Twelve Champions fight in the Final Conclave to determine control of the bunker. Octavia wins and decides that each of the twelve clans receive a hundred spots in the bunker, uniting everyone into a single clan called Wonkru. Bellamy and six others return to space to live in the remnants of the original Ark while Clarke, who is now a Nightblood, remains on the ground.

In the fifth season, which takes place six years after the meltdown of the nuclear reactors, an Eligius transport ship full of prisoners arrives in the only habitable land on Earth, known as Shallow Valley. There, Clarke has been living with a Nightblood child named Madi. Using resources from the prisoners' ship, those who survived in space and in the bunker return to the ground. Both Wonkru and the Eligius prisoners want control of the valley resulting in the battle ending with the valley being destroyed. The survivors escape to space and go into cryosleep while their ship travels to a new habitable world.

In the sixth season, after 125 years in cryosleep, Clarke, Bellamy, and the others wake up to find out that they were brought to the new habitable world, called "Alpha", also known as Sanctum. After landing on this world, they discover a new society, led by the ruling families, known as the Primes. However, they also discover new dangers on this new world, and a mysterious rebel group, known as the Children of Gabriel. It is soon revealed that the Primes have been living for hundreds of years as they discovered a way to implant a "Mind Drive" into another body allowing for a person to live just in a different body. After discovering the Primes' dark secret, Clarke, Bellamy, and the others, along with the Children of Gabriel, manages to defeat and overthrow the Primes, thus ending their reign.

In the seventh season, Clarke and the others try to find a way to live together in peace, following the aftermath of the events of the previous season, as the mystery of the Anomaly is finally shown. It was later revealed that the Anomaly is actually a wormhole to other different worlds in space, as it was controlled by a mysterious, theocratic military regime, known as the Disciples, and Earth is connected by the Anomaly, due to having a mysterious alien artifact, known as the Anomaly Stone. It also shows that a regenerated Earth has become habitable again. At the end of the series, humanity achieves Transcendence aside from Clarke who committed murder in the test. It is shown that transcendence is a process to join a peaceful universal consciousness that grants immortality for those who took the test, which is an evaluation to determine if a species is worthy of transcendence or not. Clarke returns to Earth where her surviving friends choose to join her for a peaceful new life, so that she would not be alone, although Madi remains transcended.

Cast[]

Main article: Character Appearances

Main Cast[]

Major Recurring Cast[]

Production[]

Conception and development[]

In 2012, prior to the publication of the first book, the TV team in Alloy Entertainment pitched the idea to its partner studio at Warner Bros. TV as a potential pilot.[2] Television producer Jason Rothenberg was drawn to the project by the idea of "sending these hundred juvenile delinquents down to the ground" in a Lord of the Flies esque fashion.[3] Rothenberg came back with a take they liked, and the series was successfully pitched to The CW.[2]

On May 9, 2013, it was announced that the CW ordered The 100 for midseason launch, developed by Rothenberg. The series premiered on March 19, 2014, attracting 2.73 million viewers on the original airing, making it CW's most watched new series premiere of the season, and delivered the network's best total viewer numbers in its time period in 3.5 years.[4] Following a positive reception to the first thirteen-episode season, the CW renewed The 100 for a second series.

Rothenberg believes the series had shaky debut and didn't find its footing until episode 5. Rothenberg thought a darker storytelling and was encouraged to do so by CW President Mark Pedowitz's.[5][6]

Filming[]

Main articles: Filming Locations and Filming Schedule

The 100 has a total of 100 episodes.

Season Ordered Episodes Filming Originally Aired
One May 9, 2013 13 N/A March 19, 2014 - June 11, 2014
Two May 8, 2014 16 July 7, 2014 - January 23, 2015 October 22, 2014 - March 11, 2015
Three January 11, 2015 16 July 15, 2015 - January 28, 2016 January 21, 2016 - May 19, 2016
Four March 11, 2016 13 August 6, 2016 - January 16, 2017 February 1, 2017 - May 24, 2017
Five March 10, 2017 13 August 14, 2017 - January 27, 2018 April 24, 2018 - August 7, 2018
Six May 7, 2018 13 August 27, 2018 - February 13, 2019 April 30, 2019 - August 6, 2019
Seven April 24, 2019 16 August 26, 2019 - March 14, 2020 May 20, 2020 - September 30, 2020

Music[]

Main article: Music

The first season was soundtracked largely by pop jams and notable contributions by Imagine Dragons, Ben Howard, Youngblood Hawke and Disclosure with some trendy recognizable additions. As well as original music was composed by Evan Frankfort, Liz Phair, and Marc Dauer.

The second season still offered instances of contemporary music with frequent appearances by Raign, but much more of the soundtrack came from recordings of classical music and original compositions for the show by Evan Frankfort.

The third season introduced an original score composed by Tree Adams and made more use of diegetic sources, playing in the world of the show rather than as a part of the soundtrack. According to Inverse, season 3 has been by far the most cohesive in terms of music choice.[7]

Other[]

The series is produced by Bonanza Productions Inc. in association with Alloy Entertainment, Warner Bros. Television, and CBS Television Studios, with executive producers Matthew Miller, Jason Rothenberg, Bharat Nalluri, Leslie Morgenstein and Gina Girolamo.

Zoic Studios does CG work for The 100, Mastersfx handles the practical effects.

Cancelled prequel series[]

A prequel series was in development, with Rothenberg developed the series for The CW. In October 2019, it was reported that a backdoor pilot episode had been ordered, which would serve as an episode of The 100. The prequel series was set to show the events 97 years before The 100, beginning with the nuclear apocalypse that wiped out almost all life on Earth.[8] On November 5, 2021, a year after the episode aired, it was reported that the series wasn't greenlighted[9]. It was reported that The CW had decided not to move forward with the prequel series.

Similarities to The Tribe[]

The TV show bears strong resemblance to an earlier series called The Tribe (1999-2003). It was a post-apocalyptic show where a virus kills the entire adult population, leaving the kids alone to form tribes for survival. The show was cancelled in 2003 but there was an attempted return when a movie was announced in 2011. [10] However, the project fell though due to creative differences in 2015. [11] According to Tribe creator Raymond Thompson, he stated one of the writers he worked with on The Tribe movie was Jason Rothenberg. [12] Due to Rothenberg's knowledge of The Tribe, it is believed he might have drawn inspiration from it as fans have noticed similarities between The Tribe and The 100. Tribe fans often call The 100 as a much darker version of The Tribe, which targeted kids and teenagers. The similarities between both shows are as follows:

  • Both shows have characters wearing face markings.
  • Both shows dive into grey areas and moral dilemmas.
  • Both shows have mantras repeated frequently, which are "Keep the Dream Alive" and "May We Meet Again" respectively.
  • Both shows deal with a virus infection midway through their first seasons.
  • Both shows initially start as "tribe factions" fighting and then learning to survive together for the betterment of all.
  • Both shows become increasingly sci-fi as the seasons progress.
  • Clarke resembles Amber. Both are the Female Leads, are fiery de-facto leaders, are blonde and left their groups for a period of time in their respective 2nd Seasons before returning in their respective 3rd Seasons. Amber faked her death at the start of her Season 2 and came back in Season 3. Similarly, Clarke imposed self-exile after killing the Mountain Men and did not reunite with the main characters until mid Season 3. Both Amber and Clarke had a male best friend called Dal/Wells who died during the show. Wells was originally written as Clarke's boyfriend in the novels, but this was changed in the show to be her childhood best friend instead, like Dal was to Amber. Both Amber and Clarke also had an alternate title given to them in Season 3, which is Eagle/Wanheda.
  • Bellamy resembles Bray. Both are the Male Leads, emotional and grew into a reluctant heroes. Bray was initially a brooding loner who becomes a father figure and a reluctant hero mostly due to Amber's influence. Bellamy was initially violent and rebellious, later regrets his actions and grows into a hero mostly due to Clarke's influence. Both Bray and Bellamy have a younger sibling who they are protective of: Martin/Octavia. The only difference is that Bray's brother died while Bellamy's sister lives on, regardless the sibling dynamic is continually emphasised throughout their shows. Bray's replacement, Jay, also had a somewhat antagonistic beginning before joining the good guys mostly due to Amber. He also had a younger brother, Ved.
  • Murphy resembles Lex. Both are anti-heroes, aggressive and occasionally side with the villains if it benefits them. Their backstory is similar in that they had abusive parent. For Lex, his father was an alcoholic who physically abused him and his mother until he died. For Murphy, his alcoholic mother blamed him for his father's death until she died.
  • Monty resembles Jack. Both are scientific engineers who aid the main characters. Jack gets into a relationship with a blonde called Ellie, similar to Harper who is also blonde. Both Ellie and Harper have dealt with suicidal tendencies in the 4th Seasons of their shows.
  • Jackson resembles Dal. Both are medics who aid the main characters and do not have major storylines of their own compared to the rest of the cast. Jasper also resembles Dal due to his strong friendship with Monty, which is similar to Dal and Jack's friendship. Both Dal and Jasper die midway through their shows with Jack and Monty surviving much longer. Dal died in his 3rd Season while Jasper in his 4th Season. Most interestingly was that Jasper was originally meant to die in Season 3 like Dal, but it was changed to Season 4. Regardless, Jack/Monty mourn their best friend's deaths greatly
  • Octavia resembles Trudy. Both started out as timid, became rebellious, betrayed their groups, became evil leaders (Supreme Mother, Blodreina), learnt survival skills from another group and became stronger characters as the seasons progressed. The only difference is that Octavia never had a baby like Trudy. Octavia can also be compared to Ebony due to their warrior and survival abilities.
  • Abby resembles Salene. Both are mother figures, were emotionally dependant on their partners and suffered addictions in the 5th Seasons of their shows.
  • Gaia resembles Tai-San. Both were very spiritual, stubborn in their beliefs and offered guidance to the cast. Although Tai San believed eastern philosophy, while Gaia was very devoted to the Grounder faith.
  • Emori resembles May. Both were outcasts who had conflicting loyalties and betrayed the main characters on several occasions for their own survival. Perhaps the most interesting parallel is that Murphy/Lex is the first to bump into Emori/May out on the streets in their respective Season 2. They are instantly attracted to each other but Emori/May tricks and betrays Murphy/Lex. Emori/May do not reappear until much later. Although the only difference is that Lex and May never got into a romantic relationship, only sleeping with each other once, while Murphy/Emori became a romantic couple.
  • Levitt resembles Luke. Both were part of brainwashing cults who were sympathetic to the main cast and eventually betrayed their cults mainly due to falling in love with one of the main cast. The only difference is that Luke's relationship did not work out, while Levitt's did
  • A.L.I.E. resembles The Guardian. Both started cults believing they were doing their deceased leader/creator's will. They both used fear and violence to force people into their cults. Russell Lightbourne and Bill Cadogan also resemble The Guardian to a degree as they also created cults, but it was in worship of themselves.
  • The Grounder clans resemble the Gaian Tribe. Both live in forested areas and mostly reject technology. In The Tribe, all tribes are from the City with the exception of the Gaians who live in the forest. The 100 reverses this as most groups live in the forest and are war-like, with only the Sky People being civilised.
  • Becca Franko resembles Zoot. Their actions continue to affect the characters even though they both died very early, having a god-like persona throughout their shows. Zoot was the first to welcome the new world after the adults died and formed the notorious Locos that spread fear in the city. After his death, The Chosen and the Zootists worship Zoot and terrorize others believing it was what he wanted. Similarly, the Grounders worship Becca as their first commander who died a martyr. The technology left behind by Becca made her the center of the storylines. Becca's creation A.L.I.E ended the world and brainwashed the population, thinking it was what Becca wanted. Becca also created the Mind Drives which were misused to cause death. The only difference was that Zoot became evil and died a villain, while Becca unintentionally caused harm and died a martyr.
  • Both shows have fanatical brainwashing cults. The Tribe had The Chosen and the Zootists, while The 100 had A.L.I.E.'s Cult, the Sanctumites and the Disciples. All of them borrow language and imagery from Christianity.
  • Both shows had an Artificial Intelligence being responsible for making people flee their homelands. In The Tribe, the AI Zoot releases a Virus into the city causing the population to evacuate. In The 100, the AI called A.L.I.E is responsible for nuking the world which caused nuclear reactors to form a Radiation Wave that engulfs Earth 98 years later, forcing the cast to flee underground or in space.
  • Both shows of their respective Season 6 deal with the characters exploring a brand new planet/island only to come across two new groups at war with each other. Although The Tribe was cancelled after Series 5, The Tribe: A New World (2011) continues the story as Series 6 in novel format. But the most interesting parallel is that the unused Tribe Series 6 scripts featured an antagonistic tribe called The Privileged, who worship their leader Flame as a god. They only accept "attractive" kids and turn "unattractive" kids into their slaves called The Discards, most of whom are brainwashed to look up them. Similarly, the Primes of Sanctum claim to be gods who discard anyone that doesn't have Nightblood by branding them as "Nulls." If not, the Primes brainwash them into becoming their fanatically devoted citizens.
  • Both shows introduce the concept of Cryosleep midway. Ram tries to sleep in Virtual Reality forever, while The 100 cast enter Cryosleep to await Earth's recovery from radiation. Cryosleep is more predominant in the plot of The Tribe: A New Dawn (2014), which is The Tribe Series 7 in novel format. Several elite adults are revealed to be in Cryosleep, hidden under Eagle Mountain since the virus outbreak. Similarly, the Eligius Prisoners were transported by a space ship to an asteroid before the Earth was nuked. They enter Cryosleep to head back to earth. The 100 cast also enter Cryosleep to await Earth's recovery from radiation and ultimately traverse to a new planet.
  • The Tribe had a spin-off sequel called The New Tomorrow (2005), which detailed the descendants of the characters from The Tribe. It was unpopular with fans and was cancelled after only one season. Similarly, The 100 was going to have a spin-off prequel that would detail the ancestors of the characters, which ended up being cancelled. Perhaps most interestingly, The New Tomorrow was originally meant to be a prequel with Sky (the lead character) being Bray's great great grandfather. But this was changed by executive orders and became a sequel instead.

See Also[]

References[]

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External links[]

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