Warning: major spoilers ahead for the series finale of The 100 on The CW.
The 100 has come to an end after seven bloody seasons on The CW, and the final scene was one that few fans could have seen coming. After everybody except for Clarke transcended, she was resigned to living out the rest of her days alone with the exception of Picasso the dog... until the judge in the form of Lexa showed up with some good news for Clarke: almost all of her nearest and dearest gave up transcendence to return to Sanctum. There was one notable absence, however, and showrunner Jason Rothenberg revealed that the character was originally supposed to be present.
According to Jason Rothenberg in a chat with TV Guide, Bob Morley's Bellamy Blake was originally intended to be part of the happy ending (such as it was) on Sanctum. Rotherberg revealed:
In the beginning of the season, before we had to make the changes that we made to accommodate Bob this year, he was supposed to be there. But, you know, ultimately, the way it broke down where we came up with the rules of transcendence, and that if you are not alive — I think it's what Levitt says to Octavia, when she ask is Bellamy's going to transcend, and he says no... only the living shall transcend — once the rules were established, then it was fairly clear that only the living could be there.
The 100 featured very little Bellamy in Season 7, aside from the one Bellamy-centric episode that ultimately resulted in his death not too long after. Bob Morley reportedly requested a lighter load in the seventh and final season, resulting in some rewrites and -- as it turned out -- Bellamy being axed from Clarke's happily-ever-after after Clarke killed him.
While Bellamy fans were undoubtedly bummed that he didn't make an appearance in the finale as the male lead of the series, especially when versions of Abby and the long-dead Lexa popped up, the episode did at least foreshadow that Bellamy wouldn't make a magical reappearance due to transcendence loopholes.
Bellamy couldn't transcend because he had already died; Levitt and Echo could transcend because they were only on the verge of death. So, Bellamy died and stayed dead, while Clarke faced the rest of her years with Octavia, Raven, Murphy, Emori, Miller, Jackson, Indra and pretty much all of the other named survivors other than Madi.
Whether this really constitutes a "happy" ending in the long run is up for debate; I for one would have happily waved aside the rule that was just established earlier in the same episode if it meant Bellamy was part of the group at the end. And honestly, I can't see Clarke living happily ever after when she felt so guilty about Bellamy's death. And now none of them can transcend or build families!
Despite Bellamy's absence from the series finale and the uncertainty that Clarke's ending was really all that happy, The 100 did at least end on a surprisingly uplifting note. Although Clarke failed the judge's test of humanity pretty spectacularly by killing Cadogan in the middle of it, Raven and Octavia did enough to prove that humanity is worth saving and transcendence.
The journey of Clarke on The 100 may be finished, but the 100 universe may still have stories on the small screen. A prequel spinoff scored a backdoor pilot in The 100 Season 7; if it wins a series order to perhaps fill a vacancy on The CW left by the ends of Arrow, The 100, Supernatural, or even Supergirl, then viewers could see more of Callie's adventures well before transcendence. Only time will tell.
For now, you can find some new and returning TV options on our 2020 fall TV premiere schedule.
