One of my many guilty pleasures has been watching The 100 since it debuted in 2014. The 100 is a post-apocalyptic science fiction drama television series developed by Jason Rothenberg, loosely based on the book series by Kass Morgan. At first it seemed like a typical CW show: good looking young actors portraying teens who will hook up with one another and experience angst. But the series found its footing over the next few episodes, and focused more on the post-apocalyptic world, with a dystopian society thrown in for flavor.

I’m going to assume anyone reading this has an interest in the show, knows the story and has seen the series finale by now.  Also, there are a lot of writers out there who make a living off reviewing The 100, so this post won’t be so much a review of what was, but what went wrong and what could have been.  I actually liked the series ending for what it was — a riff off the Battlestar Galactica ending — but only because it put an end to a season that became harder and harder to justify as each episode aired.

THEY CHOSE CLARKE GRIFFIN. This is the ending she deserved. After all the sacrifices and people she has lost, she deserved this. #The100 pic.twitter.com/GcSI9FbWEJ

— we.will.rise (@skyripa_blake77) October 1, 2020

The 100 was always about survival in a world that would rather kill you than simply let you exist.   First it was The 100 versus the Grounders.  Then Mountain Men.  Then Artificial intelligence, etc.  This formula worked well in the early seasons.  Eventually, the earth ran out of enemies so the writers brought some from outer space in the form of prisoners from the Eligius IV mining expedition returning to earth.  This would be a bit of a stretch except for two important elements.

First, if you had space stations, you presumably had space ships.  Second, and more beneficial to the storyline, the writers planted an Easter Egg midway through Season Four that most fans noticed before that season’s finale.  By alluding to the Eligius missions beforehand, the introduction of a ship returning to earth to set up the conflict for Season Five doesn’t look too much like anyone pulled something out of their asses at the last minute.

It became a different show in Season Six when it morphed into The Muppets 100 go to Outer Space.  Using the same idea as Season Five, but without any build up or bread crumps, it felt a little forced that there was this planet of humans that conveniently left earth before the bombs went off — but not too much before so they were familiar with Season Five villain turned hero Diyoza.  Once again the 100 become the invading foreigners bringing death and destruction and no interstellar immigration authority in sight.

Season Seven doubled down on credibility and completely retconned an element from the past: Bill Cadogan and the Second Dawn disciples.  Personally, I would have preferred more Becca Franko.  The storyline that Cadogan had Becca burned at the stake, a storyline that always seemed to me to lack foresight.  Becca was the Tony Stark of The 100 universe (sans iron suit) and there were more opportunities for her character other than being the answer to who invented this piece of technology that allows us to advance the plot.

 The whole storyline with the Dark Commander seemed unnecessary other than what else do we do with Madi?  Except the whole she’s a nightblood and that made her valuable to the Primes would have been enough to fill episodes.  

Season Seven had some issues outside of The 100 universe.  Not only was filming rushed because of COVID-19, but two of the actors — Eliza Taylor and Bob Marley, married in real life — experienced a miscarriage that obviously devastated them.  Marley, who publicly admits to suffering from depression, requested time off from the show.  It is wonderful that they allowed it, but as the second lead cast member, it is hard to write a story around it.

What I would have done was keep Season Six focused on the Primes and the Children of Gabriel.  Once you moved what was left of the Grounders to outer space, there was no longer much use for them and their barbaric, primitive ways…keep them in cryo storage.  

Instead of having Sheidheda try to take Madi over so fast, they should have introduced the Dark Commander arc more slowly while the Primes were busy trying to body snatch the young night blood.  You could still have the transfer to Russell Lightbourne’s minddrive plot twist.  He kills Bellamy in the first episode of Season 7, sparking unsuppressable desires of revenge from Echo, Octavia and of course Clarke.  Revenge for Bellamy!

It wouldn’t be the first time the show killed a major character.  The 100 has made it clear time and time again that no one on the show is safe. And given that they killed him off in episode 13 anyway, it would have been better to kill him in the first episode and make it the storyline of the last season.

Instead of Cadogan killing Becca, it could be shown it was more of a History became legend, Legend became myth thing where Becca faked her death using the anomaly stone.  We could lose the higher beings and ascension and focus on the humans finally doing better and have no more wars among themselves.  A society made up of Skykru, Grounders, believers, Children of Gabriel, Elgiusians (instead of prisoners) that live in a real City of Light designed by Becca.  

ah what could have been.  Oh well…

May we Meet Again

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BY SANDRA GUY

If you’re rusty on your history of natural medicine, it’s time for a primer — and this one just might be a remedy for our continued coronavirus vigilance.

The topic is Ayurveda, one of the oldest healing sciences — it originated in India more than 5,000 years ago — that translates into “The Science of Life” in Sanskrit.

Ayurveda posits that everyone comprises three kinds of energy. They go by the Sanskrit terms vata, pitta and kapha.

Vata governs movement, but can be as subtle as breathing, blinking, the heart pulsing and cell membranes regulating materials transport. In terms of balance and imbalance, vata can promote creativity and flexibility or fear and anxiety.

Pitta controls digestion, nutrition, metabolism and body temperature. Its optimal energies boost understanding and intelligence, while its out-of-sync version is said to arouse anger and jealousy.

Kapha provides the glue that holds cells together and provides the energy for bones, muscles and tendons. Its high road expresses as love, calmness and forgiveness, while its evil twin leads to envy, greed and attachment.

These three energies are known as doshas.

Each energy is believed to be positively impacted by three tropical fruits that make up the compound Triphala. The three fruits — native to India — are believed to promote the health of the doshas.

Though Triphala’s effects are scientifically unproven on people, its adherents boost its antioxidant properties. Ayruvedic practitioners tout it for oral health, to boost the immune system and to treat tiredness and upset stomach.

Triphala is available as a pill, a powder, a supplement and a liquid extract.

Experts advise talking to a doctor before taking Triphala.

If you get the go-ahead, Tiphala could well join your nighttime or daytime rituals for staying calm, balanced and creative — just when you need it most.

BY SANDRA GUY

The burden of caregiving has reached a new breaking point for anyone unaccustomed to its daily, exhausting empathic erosion.

November — designated National Family Caregivers’ Month — sets aside time to focus on resources, strategies and coping mechanisms.

But it cannot stop continuing anxieties, including that the U.S. Supreme Court has slated the week after the Nov. 3 presidential election to take up arguments on the Affordable Care Act (known as Obamacare). As many as 13.3 million Americans — roughly half the population under age 65 — have pre-existing medical conditions that could disqualify them from buying a health insurance policy or requiring them to pay much higher premiums if the court overturns the law, a 2017 government analysis revealed.

At the same time, the coronavirus pandemic’s enormous strain — emotionally, financially and psychologically — seems ever-expanding in new and excruciatingly complex ways: Are the children suffering from social isolation, and is that so debilitating that they must risk getting a life-threatening virus? For those who’ve lost entire careers, how to pivot without spending a fortune on retraining? How to seek medical and psychological help with the barest of healthcare coverage that requires huge out-of-pocket spending? Is working as a lowly paid warehouse worker or online shopping delivery person worth the health risks?

Though the strains weigh on everyone, surveys show women say they’re shouldering more of the daily chores — shopping, cooking, overseeing schoolwork and cleaning house with a coronavirus-resistant vigilance — than are their male partners, if they have a male partner.

And a caregiver who lives alone with the person requiring care suffers even more. That’s when social isolation, financial difficulties and a lack of choice in one’s situation grow even more concerning.

It’s no wonder that caregivers may feel — and should recognize, experts say — feeling overwhelmed, constantly worried, becoming easily irritated, having body and headaches and/or turning to alcohol or medications for comfort.

Though it’s tough to accept help, experts say it’s a huge step in righting one’s mental state.
In fact, why not let friends and family help when they offer? Or make a list of things that they can do to help. Know that you’re doing your best, and work with people who truly want to lend a hand rather than one-up you in terms of being a martyr.

Find or create your own support group, as long as you focus on uplifting each other and solving problems.

And build yourself up: It’s OK to focus on getting a good night’s sleep, sticking to a stringent exercise routine and eating a healthy diet.

And if a male partner is in the home, now’s the time to change the dynamic.

“The stress of being the schoolwork disciplinarian
while working is a new thing [for many dads and male partners],” said Pamela Culpepper, who along with Caroline Dettman and Erin Gallagher, founded “Have Her Back.”

The firm — the only female-owned company backed by advertising-agency holding company InterPublic Group — strategizes on how businesses can evolv the workplace so women thrive.

“People will go back into brick and mortar with a different mindset of how complex and important
shared support is to the working experience,” Culpepper said.