The 100 Review: Sleeping Giants (Season 5 Episode 3)

The 100 Season 5 Episode 3 “Sleeping Giants” hits the ground running, literally.

After the first two episodes of Season 5 established the new world of The 100 “Sleeping Giants” kicks off the action, reveals several plot twists and a heap of backstory, and it even brings us the first of many long-awaited reunions.

Focusing again on Clarke, Spacekru, and our new favorite enemies, the Eligius mining prisoners, “Sleeping Giants” is equal parts heart racing and heart-wrenching.

Directed by Tim Scanlan and written by Aaron Ginsburg and Wade McIntyre, a combination known for some of The 100‘s best and most action-packed episodes, “Sleeping Giants” does not disappoint.

TELL THEM ALL I’M COMING HOME

After discovering the Eligius mothership on “Eden,” Bellamy and Raven lead the rest of Spacekru in “Mission: Uninvited Guests” and boy do they find more than they bargained for. There’s so much backstory revealed on this spaceship I almost don’t know where to start.

But the backstory of both Eligius and Spacekru isn’t the only thing revealed on the mothership. This portion of the story also dives further into the relationships that we were reintroduced to on “Eden” exposing all sorts of feelings between the various members of Spacekru.

It’s not 100% clear how long Memori has been broken up, but the feelings between them still seem very fresh.

The barbs they throw at each other are hurtful and mean, but they’re also fueled by an obvious passion and designed to hurt each other in a way that you can only do when you know someone very deeply.

Murphy: I’m staying too. Look, Raven might need backup. What? I mean, with Emori flying this is the survivor’s move. See you on the other side.

It feels like they’re setting these two up to fall in love all over again, or to remember why they did in the first place. Emori’s so upset with Murphy— and with herself — that she says she’d rather see him stay behind than Raven. But when he takes her up on it, she doesn’t look quite so certain that she meant it.

While they’re no longer romantically involved, the goodbye between Raven and Bellamy hits the audience just as hard.

Raven knows that someone has to stay behind, she knows it has to be her, and she knows Bellamy would never leave her behind without a way to make sure she can come home, so she lies.

These two depend on each other, they’re the veritable mom and dad of Spacekru, so even though we just watched one of the most anticipated reunions of The 100 Season 5 I might be looking forward to Bellamy seeing Raven again just as much.

“Sleeping Giants” also shows how well Bellamy and Echo work as a team. On the ground, Echo was a brilliant tactician and warrior, and those skills haven’t gone anywhere.

When Spacekru learns that the passengers of Eligius are 100-plus-year-old prisoners, most of whom are still in cryo-sleep, it’s Echo that figures out what to do about it.

Murphy: What the hell, let’s be good guys.

She and Bellamy have an ability to understand each other immediately and it’s great to finally get a look at how they work together rather than against each other.

They also work really well in action, both with each other and with Raven. I know Bellamy’s not that impressed that it took three of them to take out one prisoner, but it sure as hell was fun to watch.

Despite her performance anxiety, Emori proves that she’s an excellent student and brings her friends home safely — well most of them anyway. When Murphy learns there’s not actually an escape pod, he looks like he might regret making that sacrifice. But hey, at least Raven’s happy to have the company.

I have no doubt these two will eventually make it back to the ground, but it’ll be interesting to see what they discover in the meantime on that big empty spaceship.

100 YEARS IS A LONG TIME

Down on the ground, we learn more about Diyoza, McCreary, and Shaw as they differ over how to deal with Clarke and “her people.” Clarke takes a page out of Lincoln’s book and refuses to tell Diyoza anything until they threaten the life of someone she loves.

The 100 Season 5 is giving us all the Season 1 callbacks and I am living for it.

We’ve often heard that “love is weakness” on this show, and Clarke so clearly loves Madi more than anything, it’s obvious that she’s her one and only vulnerability on “Sleeping Giants” and Diyoza knows it.

The legendary Wanheda took out 4 of Diyoza’s men within a matter of hours. The Eligius crew is full of murderers and hardened criminals, so they’re hesitant to believe that this soft earth girl is capable of that much destruction on her own.

Shaw: I highly doubt she was alone.

Underestimating Clarke Griffin rarely works out in your favor, but these guys are new so we’ll give them the benefit of the doubt for now.

Clarke’s strategy of not talking works for a while and she learns, just as Spacekru does, that these people have missed a lot while they were in space. The prisoners from the Eligius ship are from before the bombs fell, so in exchange for Madi’s safety, she tells them how the world ended.

But Clarke doesn’t count on Mission: Uninvited Guests 2.0 coming home and throwing off her record for what’s true and what isn’t.

There’s a clear trichotomy between the leaders of the Eligius crew. Diyoza is the obvious leader, with Shaw and McCreary playing the devil and angel on each of her shoulders.

A former Navy SEAL and staunch opponent of the fascist government, Diyoza is the smartest and most pragmatic of the group.

Diyoza: Without this valley we die. I’d say that’s worth fighting over, wouldn’t you?

Meanwhile, we learn that Paxton “Graveyard” McCreary is more of a torture and kill first, ask questions later kind of guy. But Zeke Shaw, the only guard left alive, is a former altar boy who loved his motorbike more than most people and is very much not-a-fan of letting McCreary flex his violence muscles.

The wildly different ideologies of these two men are already clashing and it’s going to be interesting to see how that friction plays out. Could Shaw turn on the prisoners and help Clarke and her friends later? Just how dangerous and bloodthirsty is McCreary?

REUNITED AND IT FEELS SO GOOD

Most of Spacekru has finally returned home! And in the words of Abby upon landing on Earth for the first time: it’s everything I dreamed.

Almost immediately, Spacekru comes face to face with the Eligius prisoners they just stole fuel from. Thankfully, there’s a tiny nightblood badass lurking in the woods to save the day. Madi comes storming out of the treeline and takes out half as many Eligius prisoners as Wanheda herself, as they say, like mother like daughter.

Madi recognizes Bellamy and the rest of Clarke’s friends immediately, which is exactly what audiences have been hoping for since we learned that Clarke spent six years sketching the people she loved and filling Madi’s head with stories of her people.

Madi: Bellamy? Clarke knew you’d come.

Bellamy: Clarke’s alive!?

This news hits Spacekru like a ton of bricks as they all react to this new reality. Madi a pretty clever tactician herself, takes Bellamy and his little space family to Clarke where she’s admittedly having a pretty bad day.

One of the best things about this final scene is that Bellamy proves just how much he learned from Clarke’s words of wisdom in Priamfaya by using his head just as much as he uses his heart. Bellamy knows that with Raven in his pocket, he has the upper hand in this situation, and if he plays his cards right, he can get a lot more than 1 life for 283.

Diyoza: 283 lives for 1, she must be pretty important to you?

Bellamy: She is.

I am sure we’ll see a more personal version of this reunion and others next week on The 100, but for now, this one is pretty damn great. Clarke is the center of The 100, without her, the show simply doesn’t exist. Bellamy’s line shows us just how important she is to not only the audience but every life she’s touched over the last 7 years.

Apart, Bellamy and Clarke, and the rest of Spacekru have become even more incredible versions of the characters we fell in love with many Seasons ago.

Now that they’re finally reunited, they’re only stronger together. I can’t wait to see what the rest of The 100 Season 5 has in store. Diyoza and co have no idea who they’re dealing with.

OTHER THOUGHTS:

• Great-great grandpappy Blake had FOUR PHDs?! Please tell me everything about the adventure squad’s ancestors! Pretty please!?
• So McCreary is the reason Eligius 4 doesn’t have a doctor anymore, huh? I might know one of those. Someone keep an eye on Abby Griffin, please.
• Eligius 3 had nightblood like Clarke, but Eligius 4 doesn’t. How might this come into play in the future?
• How much to do you think Bellamy can bargain for with those 283 lives? I’m pretty sure there’s at least one more person he’s set on rescuing before he’s done using that particular piece of leverage.
• I would like to know literally everything about the history of Eligius, the history of the adventure squad’s ark ancestors, and the history of bunkerkru and the grounders. Where’s that prequel series at?
• I’m obsessed with Diyoza’s balance between McCreary and Shaw and how it might shape her perspective throughout the rest of the season.
• The first one was spectacular, but MORE REUNIONS SOON PLEASE??
• How do you guys think Kane and his new man bun are doing down in that gladiator ring?
• Someone come cry with me about that promo revolving entirely around Kabby. I’ve lost the ability to do more than scream in OTP.

What did you think of this episode of The 100? Share your thoughts in the comments below!

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The 100 airs Tuesdays at 9/8c on The CW.

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