The 100

[Zeb_Carter]

Well I have just about finished watching the first season. The premise is something that could be believed, so now worries there. The cast is really great, some oldsters a lot new people. The acting isn't bad nor is the writing...except for a couple of glaring and unbelievable holes.

1. If you get a spear in the chest, you're sure as hell aren't up and walking around with in a week.

2. If you get stabbed in the chest, you're not up walking and fighting the next day.

3. There is no virus that runs it's course in less than a day, let alone let you survive after you cough up a pint of blood.

4. Explosions on Space Stations...bad thing...cause great big gaping holes in the side. And Space Stations are not made of concrete.

Other than those holes, it's not all that bad.

One tiny flaw though...

The 100 are all under 18...it said so in the first episode, except for one guy. Now so far, there have been at least three incidents, where these under age juveniles have been shown having sex. Really? Really. Shown? Shown. Not explicit, but they got naked, from the waist up at least...no, no titty shots, but the usual things you would see on TV between 2 adults.

Does it add to the story? Not really. Not in my opinion.

Does it have any redeeming value to the plot? No, none whatsoever, IMHO.

Thoughts?

 

[RhoEpsilonDelta]

1. If you get a spear in the chest, you're sure as hell aren't up and walking around with in a week.

I agree that a spear through the chest takes longer than a week to recover from, I mean it took Agent Coulson months of recovery 'in Tahiti' to get over his chest wound.

2. If you get stabbed in the chest, you're not up walking and fighting the next day.

It can depend on where in the chest you get hit. If you're really, really lucky and your lungs and heart aren't damaged then it'd just be the muscle mass that would be affect. In that case you could possibly be up and running again the next day, with slight loss to motor control and strength in the arm on the side of the knife wound. We are talking a hell of a lot of luck here though.

3. There is no virus that runs it's course in less than a day, let alone let you survive after you cough up a pint of blood.

There's actually several dozen viruses whose lifespans are 24-hrs or less, but all of them tend to be gastroenteric or flu-like illness. I severely doubt that they'd be too worried about feeling a little woozy compared to something which could wipe out all life on Earth though.

4. Explosions on Space Stations...bad thing...cause great big gaping holes in the side. And Space Stations are not made of concrete.

And the biggest problem with explosions on a space station is the loss of air. Any explosion would burn off a lot of the oxygen stored on-board the station, even if the structural damage was only minor, and without resupply the crew would be left sucking vacuum.

The 100 are all under 18...it said so in the first episode, except for one guy. Now so far, there have been at least three incidents, where these under age juveniles have been shown having sex. Really? Really. Shown? Shown. Not explicit, but they got naked, from the waist up at least...no, no titty shots, but the usual things you would see on TV between 2 adults.

Does it add to the story? Not really. Not in my opinion.

Does it have any redeeming value to the plot? No, none whatsoever, IMHO.

I feel a similar way to what was done with Game of Thrones.

In the books there were subtle references to the fact Renly Baratheon might be gay and that Stannis may have had illicit relations with the red priestess Melisandre. These were translated on the TV show to Renly getting a blowjob from another amn and Stannis fucking Melisandre on the map table in his war room.

While it was nice to see Carice van Houten putting such vigour into her portrayal of the priestess I didn't see how the sex scene really added anything to the plot that wasn't already there, and in some ways it weakened some later plot developments as the secrets were already out.

 

[Zeb_Carter]

...

It can depend on where in the chest you get hit. If you're really, really lucky and your lungs and heart aren't damaged then it'd just be the muscle mass that would be affect. In that case you could possibly be up and running again the next day, with slight loss to motor control and strength in the arm on the side of the knife wound. We are talking a hell of a lot of luck here though.

Even if they miss the heart and lungs a chest wound, above the diaphragm, will incapacitate you for a long time. My recovery took a week in the hospital and a week in the barracks on easy duty. And the knife that got me only caught empty space above the lung.

There's actually several dozen viruses whose lifespans are 24-hrs or less, but all of them tend to be gastroenteric or flu-like illness. I severely doubt that they'd be too worried about feeling a little woozy compared to something which could wipe out all life on Earth though.

Even so, to cough up a pint of blood, without the benefit of fluid replacement other that drinking questionable water, you would be in no shape to be up and walking around.

 

[RhoEpsilonDelta]

Just caught the firs two episodes of the show and I'm really not impressed so far.

Apart from the point already raised, I've thought of several more.

1. Slutty bitch girl, the one who went swimming with the snake, was imprisoned for being the second child in her family. These seems to imply that population controls were in place to control the number of children born, but if each family were only allow to have a single child each, wouldn't that mean the station had only a quarter of the original population?

First generation 100. 2 parents have 1 child, population grows to 150. First generation dies, population drops to 50. 2 parents have 1 child each, population grows to 75. Second generation dies, population drops to 25.

2. All the 100 prisoners (or at least 98 who made it to the surface) have spent their entire lives in space, but so fart none of them have suffered any physical problems in the far higher gravity they'd be experiencing on Earth. How did they manage to acclimatise so quickly, especially as they were given no warning that they were going to be dropped on the planet?

3. Standard punishment for all crimes is to be blown out the airlock. When they were going to 'float' the doctor in the first episode she was still wearing all her clothes and carrying the equipment she had with her. Where does the station get all the extra supplies to replace these items from, if they keep chucking valuable equipment out into space?

4. When the Chancellor gets shot they put a call out for blood, but if he's their leader wouldn't they already have blood in storage for him should they need it?

5. Since they know the station's going to fail after either 2 or 5 months (both figures were given at different times during the first episode) why would they bother to cull the population instead of just dropping everyone down on the planet and hoping for the best? Surely giving people the chance to survive below would be better than just shoving everyone out the airlocks?

 

[Zeb_Carter]

Just caught the firs two episodes of the show and I'm really not impressed so far.

Apart from the point already raised, I've thought of several more.

1. Slutty bitch girl, the one who went swimming with the snake, was imprisoned for being the second child in her family. These seems to imply that population controls were in place to control the number of children born, but if each family were only allow to have a single child each, wouldn't that mean the station had only a quarter of the original population?

First generation 100. 2 parents have 1 child, population grows to 150. First generation dies, population drops to 50. 2 parents have 1 child each, population grows to 75. Second generation dies, population drops to 25.

2. All the 100 prisoners (or at least 98 who made it to the surface) have spent their entire lives in space, but so fart none of them have suffered any physical problems in the far higher gravity they'd be experiencing on Earth. How did they manage to acclimatise so quickly, especially as they were given no warning that they were going to be dropped on the planet?

3. Standard punishment for all crimes is to be blown out the airlock. When they were going to 'float' the doctor in the first episode she was still wearing all her clothes and carrying the equipment she had with her. Where does the station get all the extra supplies to replace these items from, if they keep chucking valuable equipment out into space?

4. When the Chancellor gets shot they put a call out for blood, but if he's their leader wouldn't they already have blood in storage for him should they need it?

5. Since they know the station's going to fail after either 2 or 5 months (both figures were given at different times during the first episode) why would they bother to cull the population instead of just dropping everyone down on the planet and hoping for the best? Surely giving people the chance to survive below would be better than just shoving everyone out the airlocks?

Do you want the spoiler or are you going to finish the first season?

As for the gravity thing...on the station everyone was walking as if in earth normal gravity. Think spin...although none of the pieces are spinning in the exterior shots of the station.

Should I continue?

As for population control...the first generation wouldn't die off all at once and the second generation might grow up to have a kid of their own before everyone in the first generation dies. Therefore the population may become stable for a number years, even growing in the process. Although with throwing the bad seeds out the airlock...and doesn't that waste precious air...the population should be reduced instead of growing. Except they don't float children until they reach the age of majority, 18.

 

[RhoEpsilonDelta]

Do you want the spoiler or are you going to finish the first season?

May as well give me spoilers, I haven't enjoyed the first two episodes enough to bother watching the rest of them.

As for population control...the first generation wouldn't die off all at once and the second generation might grow up to have a kid of their own before everyone in the first generation dies.

Slutty bitch girl commented that the humans had been on the station for 97 years at one point in the first episode, which would mean the first generation would most likely have all died off by then.

The second generations would also be in decline, and since most of the key members of the government appear to be in their 40s they're most likely members of the third generation, making the prisoners fourth generation.

This would mean that the population of the station should be around 87.5% of its original capacity, not taking into account people who died before propagating, those who have been 'floated' and others who died earlier than expected within their own generation.

 

[Zeb_Carter]

May as well give me spoilers, I haven't enjoyed the first two episodes enough to bother watching the rest of them.

5. Since they know the station's going to fail after either 2 or 5 months (both figures were given at different times during the first episode) why would they bother to cull the population instead of just dropping everyone down on the planet and hoping for the best? Surely giving people the chance to survive below would be better than just shoving everyone out the airlocks?

There are only enough dropships to get 700 out of 2500 down to earth.

But that doesn't matter in the end as some people upon finding out the truth commandeer a dropship and fuck up the station dying in the process.

Now the plan is to bring the station to the ground.

Oh and slutty girl hooks up with a grounder who saved the spear in the chest guy and several others of the 100.

Meanwhile, the 100 have started a war with the grounders, found a cache of weapons...M4's with questionable ammo, that the dropship has enough rocket fuel in it to make 100 bombs with the explosive power of a mini-nuke, if they only had more gunpowder.

Meanwhile, the grounders army is on the march to wipe them out and Clark is trying to get the 100 to move out and to the east toward the ocean and possible help.

End Season One.

 

[sheablue]

All I can say is it's a CW show so ...

I enjoyed it, despite some of the glaring holes. I thought the writing and acting was better than what you typically get on the CW and other teen shows.

I didn't think the original population was 100, just that the number of prisoners sent to the ground was 100.

It's a good show, for that kind of thing.

 

[Bramblethorn]

And the biggest problem with explosions on a space station is the loss of air. Any explosion would burn off a lot of the oxygen stored on-board the station, even if the structural damage was only minor, and without resupply the crew would be left sucking vacuum.

Depends on the cause of the explosion. A fuel/air or powder explosion will use up a lot of ambient oxygen, something like a gas cylinder explosion won't use any (unless the gas itself ignites). Pre-packaged explosives (TNT, propellant, etc etc) either contain their own oxidiser or don't need it*, so they're not likely to take a lot out of the air themselves. An explosion that sets other things on fire will consume a hell of a lot of oxygen, but I expect avoiding flammable materials would be a high priority in space station design.

If you do get a fire, smoke inhalation might be a bigger problem than O2 depletion/CO2 buildup.

*That bit in Firefly and other SF about guns not working in vacuum because they need the oxygen is rubbish, although vacuum could conceivable cause mechanical problems.

 

[RhoEpsilonDelta]

*That bit in Firefly and other SF about guns not working in vacuum because they need the oxygen is rubbish, although vacuum could conceivable cause mechanical problems.

Jayne never said all guns needed air, only that Vera did. It's possible that the custom-build rifle has special requirements which wouldn't affect most firearms.

 

[Zeb_Carter]

All I can say is it's a CW show so ...

I enjoyed it, despite some of the glaring holes. I thought the writing and acting was better than what you typically get on the CW and other teen shows.

I didn't think the original population was 100, just that the number of prisoners sent to the ground was 100.

It's a good show, for that kind of thing.

Enjoyable, yes, I enjoyed watching the show. Will I now sit by the TV to watch the second season, now playing by the way? No. I'll wait until NetFlix picks it up and watch without commercial interruption.

Depends on the cause of the explosion. A fuel/air or powder explosion will use up a lot of ambient oxygen, something like a gas cylinder explosion won't use any (unless the gas itself ignites). Pre-packaged explosives (TNT, propellant, etc etc) either contain their own oxidiser or don't need it*, so they're not likely to take a lot out of the air themselves. An explosion that sets other things on fire will consume a hell of a lot of oxygen, but I expect avoiding flammable materials would be a high priority in space station design.

If you do get a fire, smoke inhalation might be a bigger problem than O2 depletion/CO2 buildup.

*That bit in Firefly and other SF about guns not working in vacuum because they need the oxygen is rubbish, although vacuum could conceivable cause mechanical problems.

That always irked me when an explosion occurs in a spaceship or space station, with Hollywood, there are always fires and in some cases there is no one in a hurry to put them out.

From what I can remember, I'll have to watch that episode again, there were fires and again, no one seemed in a hurry to put them out. Fire in space should be the number one priority, even before seeing about survivors.

People though the same about gunfire underwater. Sea Hunt put that to rest so long ago I bet there aren't many people around who remember that episode. Mike Nelson was test firing a .38 caliber revolver under water. It was so cool.

 

[RhoEpsilonDelta]

That always irked me when an explosion occurs in a spaceship or space station, with Hollywood, there are always fires and in some cases there is no one in a hurry to put them out.

I was recently involved with developing a computer game based on-board a generational spaceship, and had a great deal of trouble trying to get the others to understand that every resource on the ship had to be treated as essential.

With a ship floating in deep space, light years from any star systems or planets, the crew would be dependent on the materials they were carrying, and anything they may be able to acquire from passing space debris. The others seemed to think that mining passing asteroids would be a full time profession for many of the people involved, rather than a once in a generation event.

Air, water, food, clothing, magazines, toiletries; all these things would be in limited supply, and would need to be carefully rationed and recycled in order to keep a population supplied for even a short time. Without finding some way to replenish these supplies any space mission would soon reach a dead end.

A fire on the station wouldn't just damage the structure, it'd use up air, damaged materials and presumably waste fire-fighting equipment while being extinguished. Your best option is to simply keep any uninhabited sections depressurized and unpowered, not only saving precious air and energy but also minimising the risks of any electrical faults starting random fires, which Hollywood seem to love so much.

 

[Bramblethorn]

Jayne never said all guns needed air, only that Vera did. It's possible that the custom-build rifle has special requirements which wouldn't affect most firearms.

Maaaaybe. I think you're being very generous to the writers there. I'm having trouble thinking of any sci-fi rationale for why Vera would need a constant supply of oxygen from the air. It's described as a "Callahan Full-Bore Auto-Lock with a double cartridge thorough gauge", which doesn't shed any light on that question, but does strongly suggest that the writers were fond of throwing cool-sounding things together without worrying too hard about how it works. (See also: the world-building. I enjoyed Firefly, but I've seen rom-coms that cared more about the science.)

The whole "guns need air to fire" thing is a fairly common misconception, so I wouldn't be terribly surprised if they just didn't know any better.

 

[Zeb_Carter]

Maaaaybe. I think you're being very generous to the writers there. I'm having trouble thinking of any sci-fi rationale for why Vera would need a constant supply of oxygen from the air. It's described as a "Callahan Full-Bore Auto-Lock with a double cartridge thorough gauge", which doesn't shed any light on that question, but does strongly suggest that the writers were fond of throwing cool-sounding things together without worrying too hard about how it works. (See also: the world-building. I enjoyed Firefly, but I've seen rom-coms that cared more about the science.)

The whole "guns need air to fire" thing is a fairly common misconception, so I wouldn't be terribly surprised if they just didn't know any better.

Yeah, but it's air cooled.

 

[Bramblethorn]

Yeah, but it's air cooled.

They only took one shot with it, and as soon as it was fired it didn't have air any more, so not really helpful for cooling.

 

[RhoEpsilonDelta]

They only took one shot with it, and as soon as it was fired it didn't have air any more, so not really helpful for cooling.

Yeah, but Jayne really, really liked that gun and wanted to keep her safe.

 

[Zeb_Carter]

They only took one shot with it, and as soon as it was fired it didn't have air any more, so not really helpful for cooling.

That's why he didn't want to use it in space...no air to cool the thing.

 

[Bramblethorn]

Yeah, but Jayne really, really liked that gun and wanted to keep her safe.

OK, getting more plausible

That's why he didn't want to use it in space...no air to cool the thing.

The gimmick they had for getting around the "needs air" bit was to put the gun inside a space suit of its own, then fire it through the face plate. So whatever it needed oxygen for (and I think they did specifically say oxygen), it's before firing, because as soon as they fired it the air was gone.

Internet tells me the DVD commentary acknowledges it as a goof - they were just misinformed about whether a normal gun would work without oxygen.