'The 100'
What happens when you bring 'The Hunger Games' and 'Lost' together? You create 'The 100'. This post-apocalyptic American drama sees one hundred juvenile prisoners sent back down to Earth to see if they can repopulate and mainly survive. As their ‘Ark’ in space is dying, these prisoners are lab rats - their progress monitored 24/7. As soon as these juvenile prisoners land on Earth, the tension builds with everyone wanting to be the leader.
The main character is Clarke Griffin (Eliza Taylor) who naturally steps up as a leader in this chaos. Clarke is feisty, passionate and will fight for what she believes in - which rumbles a few feathers straight away. Clarke has knowledge that is helpful but is also the same reason that she was imprisoned in the first place. Competing for the leadership crown is Bellamy Blake (Bob Morley), our bad boy and the oldest of the group. Bellamy has illegally snuck his way down to earth to protect his sister Octavia (Marie Avgeropopulos) - however Bellamy has his own agenda on Earth but has also gathered a following with his "On Earth, we do whatever the hell we want" philosophy.
My favourite character on this show is Finn Collins (Thomas McDonell), a free spirit who starts developing feelings for our tough cookie Clarke. I love the fact Finn seems to find a way of saving the day - however his relationship to Clarke might not be a good thing, especially when he is rocked with a bombshell as the series goes on.
'The 100' has already been renewed in the US for a second series so clearly not everyone dies (despite it feeling that way) but it's difficult to become attached to any of these characters as by the next episode they could be dead. A bit like 'Game Of Thrones' but with a quicker killing rate. 'The 100' seems to fit nicely with E4, with 'Revenge' on a break and the end of the '90210' I believe 'The 100' could fill many viewer voids.
Catch 'The 100' on Mondays at 9pm on E4.
'The 90’s: The Last Great Decade?'
Being a 90s baby, I might be slightly biased in saying that the 90s was the best decade to grow up in. This six-part documentary on the National Geographic channel gives us insight into perhaps the last great decade - don’t act like you didn't bust a move to 'Ice, Ice Baby'. With a range of comedians and famous faces from the 90s and now giving us their views on music, television, films and some of the biggest scandals.
So far in this documentary we have touched on ladies man Bill Clinton, who had a string of affairs but his biggest one being with Monica Lewinsky. Everyone who remembers the 90s can not forget Clinton’s famous line "I did not have sexual relations with that woman". Although no one believed him, Clinton went on to be one of the most loved US presidents even if he could not keep his hands off the ladies. He still did a lot better than George W Bush.
Another 90s highlight was the birth of 'The Fresh Prince Of Bel-Air' and 'Roseanne'. 'The Fresh Prince Of Bel-Air' started in 1990, airing for 6 series, and was seen as one of the most groundbreaking shows for the black community. They challenged stereotypes and hard-hitting scenarios, as well being the platform for Will Smith. 'Roseanne' also challenged viewers’ opinion, starting in 1988 at the time when the recession had hit. 'Roseanne' went on for nine series and even claimed to help Bill Clinton get elected as president, which I can actually kind of believe.
Finally, we got to see and hear from Vanilla Ice and listen to his 15 minutes of fame story. When 'Ice Ice Baby' came out in 1989, no-one was ready for a white rapper and not everyone took him seriously. Everyone may have loved the song but this was to be Vanilla Ice’s only major success - his debut movie role flopped, as well as his second single.
If you are a 90s baby, you will love this documentary, even though it is sadly more US-focussed. The remaining parts of the documentary looks like it will cover the main events on pop culture and I for one will be catching up on each episode. As in the title, the 90s was probably the last great decade.
Catch 'The 90s: The Last Great Decade?' Saturday at 9pm on National Geographic.
Read previous Telly Text columns here. Find more from Jordan at @jrory.
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