After all the fighting and loss, Clarke and her friends have reached the final battle. But is humanity worthy of something greater?
Tropes
- Almost Dead Guy: Madi is left as a vegetable, Emori dies from her wounds and Murphy has her mind drive inserted into his head so they can spend their last hours together in their mental world, and Levitt and Echo are mortally wounded while trying to stop the Final War. Fortunately, humanity ascends before they can die, and when Emori, Levitt, Murphy, and Echo return in the ending, they're shown to be healed of their wounds. Emori is especially impressive since her physical body did die but she ended up coming back after she transcended.
- Always with You: Clarke's last words to Madi after she convinces her to transcend is to tell her that she will love her forever.
- And This Is for...: Before killing Sheidheda, Indra says "This is for my mother."
- Arc Words:
- When Emori tries to convince Murphy to take her mind drive out so he won't die he tells her that "without you I'd just be surviving. I wouldn't be living". Of course referencing the "life should be about more then just survival" concept that was brought up between Clarke and Lexa in Season 2.
- While walking on the beach with Lexa, Clarke calls back to her words about how "[she] bears it so they don't have to" in regards to how much the two leaders have sacrificed their own needs for the sake of others. She doesn't have to do that anymore. Not by herself.
- Ascend to a Higher Plane of Existence: Humanity transcends, while Clarke's killing of Cadogan bars her from being able to transcend, condemning her to a life alone. Or not...
- Assimilation Plot: Cadogan starts the Test, and Levitt explains that if the Test is passed, humanity will ascend, but if the Test is failed, humanity gets wiped out by GEM9. Clarke fails it, but Raven and Octavia are able to pass it, leading to everyone outside of the main group ascending. Those who ascend are turned into balls of light that float into the air and their bodies are left as tree-like figures of light reaching out to the heavens.
- Babies Ever After: Inverted. The Happily Ever After explicitly states there will be no children, so the characters don't have to worry about starting a new civilization.
- Bait-and-Switch: After killing Cadogan, Clarke has to do the Test and it seems she'll be able to pass it. Nope. She fails it. It's Raven and Octavia that end up saving humanity.
- Barred from the Afterlife: To an extent since transcendence seems to be the closest thing the show has to an afterlife. While the rest of humanity was able to transcend following the completion of the test Clarke's actions in murdering Cadogan during the test means she can never be allowed to transcend. In an interesting turnaround however Clarke's friends all rejected transcendence in order to be with her again despite knowing that they won't be allowed to create children to continue the species and they wont be able to return to a higher consciousness after they die. Also, despite humanity transcending anyone who died before that happened does not transcend.
- Bond One-Liner: "Pencils down."
- Book Ends: In the shows final panning shot the scene is briefly imposed with the shot of Clarke drawing the ground in her cell in the series pilot showing how things have come full circle and now Clarke and her friends can just enjoy the ground without worrying about fighting for their survival.
- Call-Back:
- After failing the test Clarke says that she "should have picked you first" to Raven. This references the conversation the two had in "We Are Grounders - Part II" wherein Clarke tells Raven that she would pick her first to chear her up.
- Once again a Season Finale ends with Clarke seemingly alone after humanity transcends leaving her as the last human in existence. Fortunately her exile isn't for long.
- Octavia talks down both Wonkru and the Disciples from their war, convincing them that they are all human and that it would go against their belief to stand "For all of mankind" if they continue to fight each other, much like how in Die All Die Merrily she united the Grounder clans into Wonkru and granting them all space in the bunker after winning the Final Conclave. It works, and she and Raven are the reason why humanity is spared and granted transcendence.
- Deader than Dead: The Flame has been destroyed, Russell's mind drive has been removed, and the dead do not transcend leaving Sheidheda dead for good.
- Didn't See That Coming: The Judge is surprised when Octavia actually manages to stop the two sides from fighting each other.
- Earn Your Happy Ending: After spending her entire life "bearing [the burden] so they don't have to" and being paid the ultimate consequence of being left alone while the rest of humanity transcends, Clarke discovers that her companions from throughout the show rejected transcendence in favor of staying with her. With no one else to fight, their fight is finally over.
- The Extremist Was Right: Octavia realizes that Bellamy was right about transcendence after all once the test is complete and humanity starts moving to its final evolution.
- Failure Hero: Clarke ultimately isn't the one who is able to complete the test and in fact almost dooms humanity to destruction. In the end it is Raven and, unknowingly, Octavia who end up proving that mankind aren't irredeemable monsters and convinces the Judge to change their mind.
- A Form You Are Comfortable With: The Judge of the test takes the form of the subject's "greatest teacher or the source of their greatest failure... or can be their greatest love." For Cadogan it transforms into his daughter Callie, for Raven it takes on the form of Abby, and for Clarke it takes on the form of Lexa. The Judge muses Callie might be all three for Cadogan, and Lexa is arguably also all three for Clarke.
- Final Boss: Cadogan is killed early on in the episode, leaving Sheidheda as the final antagonist on the show.
- Grand Finale: The 100th and final episode of The 100.
- Heel–Face Turn: Raven is able to convince Nikki and the rest of the Eligius prisoners to help her save her friends in the Second Dawn Bunker with Nikki even noting that it's what Hatch would have done.
- Humans Are Flawed: The Judge's opinion after Clarke fails the test, the battle between the Disciples and Wonkru just furthers the issue. Then Octavia stops the fighting, and the Judge is forced to reevaluate.
- Humans Are Special: The Judge comes to view this way about humanity after they transcend. It notes that despite not having transcended for very long they have "added so much to us already." It also tells Clarke that while those that transcend can return literally no one has ever done so before now. By the end it even seems intrigued about humanity afterwards.The Judge: A curious species indeed.
- Killed Off for Real: Cadogan and Sheidheda are both killed.
- Last of Their Kind: Clarke and her friends become the last humans in existence after the rest of humanity transcends. And since the Judge ensured that the returning humans wouldn't be able to reproduce and create children of their own it means that once they die humanity will truly be gone.
- My God, What Have I Done?: Clarke almost says this word-for-word after her actions caused humanity to fail the test.
- Non-Protagonist Resolver: Clarke is set up to take the Test, everyone thinks she will pass it and grant the human race transcendence... but she fails. Raven and Octavia save the human race from extinction, Octavia's battlefield speech inspiring the Judge to grant them transcendence instead.
- Please, Don't Leave Me: After Picasso (Russell Prime's dog) runs off when they get to Earth Clarke begs her not to go as she doesn't wont to be on her own again. Fortunately she was just running off to meet the rest of Clarke's friends on the beach.
- Refusing Paradise: Clarke's friends all decide to come back from transcendence to be with her instead, knowing they will not be able to return. They are the first beings to ever choose to do so.
- The Reveal: Jordan was right that the stone unlocks a last test not war, and Cadogan was right about transcendence.
- Screw You, Elves!: Clarke and Raven call out the Judge on how it/they judge entire species, and are willing to completely destroy those that fail the test instead of simply keeping them from transcending.
- Sheathe Your Sword: After getting both sides' attention Octavia tells them that fighting each other in another war is ultimately pointless and drives her sword into the ground. This convinces Wonkru to drop their own weapons and the Disciples drop their weapons to not break their vow "for all mankind." This ends up redeeming humanity in the Judge's eyes and allows them to transcend.
- Surprisingly Sudden Death: Cadogan is shot by Clarke shortly after the test begins, in a very anti-climatic manner.
- Throw the Dog a Bone: Finally. Our heroes' attempts at having opposing groups make peace with each other finally pays off, with Octavia managing to convince the Disciples and Wonkru to stand down because mankind shouldn't fight itself, unknowingly giving the Judge a reason to spare humanity and allow them to ascend.
- Together in Death:
- Averted. Octavia asks Levitt if Bellamy will be there when they transcend and he answers no, as the dead stay dead and only the living will transcend.
- Invoked by Murphy who has Jackson implant Emori's mind drive into his head so that he can spend his last moments with her in the mind space despite knowing that two minds cant coexist for long. When Emori tells him that he cant do that he tells her that he'd rather spend a few hours left together then forever apart.
- Also invoked by Clarke after she realizes that she failed the test and seemingly doomed humanity who decides to be with Madi before the end. This ends up being averted once humanity begins transcending and she tells Madi to go and leave and she will be okay.
- A Truce While We Gawk: Both Wonkru and the Disciples stop fighting each other in shock after Indra blows Sheidheda apart with an Eligius sonic cannon. This gives Octavia the time she needs to convince both sides to stand down.
- True Companions: It seems Clarke is the only human left in existence... and then Lexa tells her about how transcendence is a choice. Cue Clarke reuniting with her companions on the beach.
- We Need a Distraction: Clarke's friends inside the Bunker decide to summon all of Wonkru (and the Eligius prisoners) to Bardo as a delaying tactic long enough for a small insertion team of Echo and Raven to find and assassinate Cadogan (unaware Clarke has already taken care of that).
- You Are Not Alone: Clarke is about to fall into another Heroic BSoD when faced with the punishment of being the only human left in existence, only for Lexa's spirit to appear to her to assure her that she's always with her... and that transcendence is a choice. Cue the revelation that Clarke's friends rejected transcendence to stay with her.
