Discussing Ep. 3.16 - So I had read that this episode really left off on a cliffhanger and that it was all super suspenseful and what not, but I really found that this season ended on a 'meh' kind of vibe. Though there were developments that I was very happy with, this really felt like it should have been the penultimate episode rather than the season finale and that another episode should have been done where all the main characters were truly left with a cliffhanger of their own.
And it also creates a few issues that I had hoped they had gotten past already but apparently they didn't. If Landon is still out there, then it means that there is still a chance that he could be saved and that Hope and Landon could have their happy ending after all. I don't like that! I don't like it because they've already gone through the motions of having ended their relationship...MULTIPLE TIMES!!! They've falsely pulled the trigger so many times at this point that emotionally speaking, the audience is over it. It's like the way they treated death on TVD, having characters die and come back to life so many times that death meant nothing and all the tears and sorrow the characters felt after another character had died were for nothing since that character would eventually come back to life! So them having Landon and Hope 'break up' so many times but it not being the real Landon just creates so many false emotional herrings that I keep asking why I should care at this point.
And the fact that Clarke came back as human only adds fuel to that dumpster fire. Now there is even more hope that Landon can somehow do the same and become human and he and Hope can live happily ever after! Fuck that! The only crinkle to all of this is the fact that if Landon were indeed to come back as completely human AND as useless as he was before, then I don't see why Hope would ever shack up with him. He'd be the liability that he always was and she can't have that, especially if she ends up becoming a tribrid. Consider also that she's already gone through two versions of Landon that were somewhat superior to the old Landon so how could she settle for Original Landon? I don't think she could but I imagine they're going to change Landon somehow (make him a phoenix again or something) and that's how they get their happy ending.
And as far as Clarke goes, I was super disappointed in him. I'm not against the idea of him turning into a good guy, but he didn't earn it. Not by a long shot! From the first season until now, he's been nothing but the bad guy and they were totally building it up that he would return as the bad guy that him suddenly turning good because he's human just doesn't work. It kind of worked for NecroTed but, credit to the writers, they made his turn happen in a way that was entertaining and believable. It doesn't work for Clarke. You need at least a full season of him playing on Team Good Guy before you can elevate him to the rank of 'Frenemy.' This was far too quick and I wonder if he's going to be a part of the cast now. And if so, what would he do? He's human now. I suppose his experience at Triad might come in handy but I was looking forward to Clarke's return because he had potential as a great bad guy. I suppose they shifted that over to Malandon, so they don't need Clarke anymore. Still, a disappointment.
Beyond that, there was really nothing 'cliff-hanging' about the rest of the episode. Cleo being swallowed by Malivore was kind of neat but now she's stuck in the darkness and is going towards some light. Will she end up finding the real Landon? I will say that it's rather funny how they built up the relationship between her and Leonardo DaVinci, making it seem like they were really hot and heavy with each other and had a truly epic kind of love, only to have Cleo see Leonardo a few episodes ago, and the only thing she does is give a basic "Hey, Leo!" kind of greeting and then goes on her merry way to kill Hope. Again, they TALK about their love but they don't actually SHOW it. I'm thinking they will have Cleo meet Leonardo, or a version of him, while she's in Malivore and will go through scenes of their epic love.
As far as the Wonder Twins go, nothing really noteworthy happened. I will say that I had completely forgotten what Josie had done to Ethan and how she had effectively ruined his life. So it made sense that she wanted him as far away from the supernatural as possible. And I have to admit that I laughed when she was looking for Finch after making them both invisible and she was worried that Finch was upset with her for whatever reason. I laughed because already that's become Finch's reputation, that she will get upset over the slightest thing and will hold it against Josie forever. It just speaks to the fact that Josie really has to grow a backbone and learn not to be worried about walking on eggshells when it comes to Finch. If Finch can't accept who Josie is, flaws and all, then they shouldn't be together, end of story!
I guess we shouldn't be surprised by Ethan and Lizzie starting something given the fact that Ethan made an appearance in her fanfic last week. And to be honest, I like this pairing. In so many ways, Ethan is actually perfect for Lizzie! He's physically attractive that you can see why Lizzie would go for him. But he's not an asshole! His personality is such that he's not a doormat like MG was and he's got confidence working for him, but he doesn't come across as the asshole who would just use Lizzie for a good time and then dump her. And to boot, he's a major geek at heart....just like Lizzie! If there's anyone who could bring out the geek part of her and make her feel comfortable about it, it's Ethan! So, I actually do like this pairing a lot. I had not even considered it and I like that Lizzie legitimately was trying to set him up with Hope and took herself out of the running. It's a testament to her growth and I truly believe she's earned some romantic happiness in her life at this point.
As for MG and Kaleb, I could not have cared less about their storyline. Though I liked MG's look, this was just waste of time. I don't fucking care how Kaleb feels about Cleo and what he's going to say to her. Nobody cares! And I have to say, MG and Kaleb working together just isn't the same as MG and Ethan. Kaleb just doesn't have that geek side to him that makes him connect with MG as well as Ethan did. It will be very interesting to see how MG reacts to his former sidekick shacking up with his crush. All I have to say to that though is, you snooze, you lose! Though I applauded MG for standing up for himself and growing a backbone and not allowing Lizzie to take him for granted, I think there were ways he could have pursued a relationship with her without sacrificing the progress he made in terms of of his self confidence. But he didn't and so now it's going to make things all the more awkward between all of them.
And I have to ask this final question because I don't know what the fuck the special effects department keeps thinking of when they do shit like this. What the fuck were those dots in the background when Kaleb and MG were driving? We saw those same dotted lights when Hope and Clarke were driving too. What the fuck are those dots supposed to be? Are they supposed to be stars? If so, why are they right beside the car and not moving? Are they driving in space?!? Are they at a disco?!? Were there a gaggle of people running alongside the car holding up Lite Brites trying to send a message?!?
Much like the yellow and green lights that they overused in that one episode, I couldn't help but be majorly distracted by the light dots in the background and wondering what the hell they were.
I don't know....I don't know what these people are thinking sometimes and how they think that's a good special effect to put in there. It looked stupid!
So beyond the Malandon reveal, there wasn't really anything cliff-hanging about the rest of the episode and that was disappointing. All we're really left with are a bunch of 'will they-won't they' scenarios regarding romantic couplings and, really, that doesn't make me eager to see what happens next season.
That's why I think they could have done with at least one more episode where perhaps Malandon turns the tables on the main characters and perhaps somehow traps them in a prison world and there's a countdown involved. Have it be that perhaps Hope does indeed die and is threatening to become a tribrid but she's unstable and could kill the other main characters while in the prison world because she can't control her blood lust and her powers. And have Malandon take over Salvatore School and start slowly turning the students into his own personal army....OR.....threaten to devour them all as well, making Alaric and the rest's return all the more necessary.
There needs to be some kind of high stakes involved with a cliffhanger, and there weren't any when it came to this episode.
It was just....meh! Definitely not the strong ending I was looking for.
