Plenty of television shows are guilty of overusing the "adults are useless" storytelling trope, but on The 100, we're lucky to be exposed to a nice blend of totally useless adults and adults who are actually very helpful. Since the post-apocalyptic drama is mainly about the lives of teenagers and other characters in their early to mid-twenties, a lot of these adults also double as parents.
As the show many parental plotlines come to a close, à la Abby Griffin and Marcus Kane in Season 6. But which of these parents deserve to be ed for being good role models, and which deserve to be ed for their lack of nurturing skills?
Best: Indra Kom Trikru
Indra debuts as a Trikru warrior and clan chief in Season 2. Soon after meeting Octavia, she takes her on as a second, and trains her to be a warrior. It becomes clear by the end of the season that Indra cares for Octavia like she would a daughter. In Season 4, when we learn that Indra has an estranged daughter, Gaia, it isn't strange to see her as a mother; it fits with the way she's treated and raised Octavia. Though Indra and her daughter are initially estranged, they reform their bond to each other, stronger than ever, and still manage to include Octavia in their family.
Worst: Abby Griffin
In one of Clarke's worst moments, she snaps an electric collar around Madi's neck, and sets it off to prevent Madi from ing a battle against the Eligius crew. Clarke did that at the advice of her mother, who told her to do whatever it takes to protect Madi, after reminding her that she sent one hundred children to the ground to protect Clarke.
In the episode "The Dark Year" we find out that it was Abby who encouraged Octavia to begin farming her people for protein, using the fighting pits as the method of selection. In short, if Abby gives you advice, maybe don't take it.
Best: David Miller
David Miller is hands down the most wholesome character on the show. When he discovers that Mount Weather is holding Nathan and other of The Hundred hostage, David s the front line in the fight against President Wallace. When their plan to blow the door to Mount Weather goes awry, it's David and Lincoln who manage to get the bomb placed properly. Sadly, and fittingly, David ends up sacrificing himself, giving up his place in the bunker lottery during Praimfaya so that his son would have an extra chance. Kane later saves Nathan because of David's request.
Worst: Hannah Green
The world of The 100 is one in which a person needs to be flexible, understanding, and open to new ideas, concepts, and allies. Green failed to do this, backing Pike repeatedly as he attacked the grounders verbally and physically. When Monty rebels against Pike, Hannah turns him in, putting Monty in a situation where his life is at risk.
Later, Hannah takes the chip from Jaha, and corners Monty in an attempt to get him to take the chip as well. When she attacks Octavia, Monty is forced to kill her. Later, A.L.I.E. uses Hannah to stall Monty and Raven while the latter is trying to hit the City of Light kill switch, and Monty is once again forced to kill his mother by deleting her.
Best: Monty & Harper Green
It's hard to say whether or not Monty and Harper meant to get pregnant while manning the Eligius ship for over forty years, but they did. In the Season 5 finale, we meet Jordan Jasper Green, the twentysomething offspring of the Farm Station engineer and Skaikru guard member. Though we don't know much about Jordan's upbringing, we know that Monty and Harper took notes from Clarke, and told Jasper many stories about their time on the Ark and on the Earth. We also know that at some point, they made the ultimate sacrifice, and put Jordan into cryosleep with the rest of Wonkru.
Worst: Aurora Blake
In the books, Aurora Blake is somehow a worse parent than she has been so far in the TV show — but she's not great in the show either. Aurora was quite unstable in the novels, and in one infamous scene, tried to kill Octavia in a panicked attempt to save herself from being floated for breaking the one-child law on the Ark.
In the show, that hasn't come up yet, but Aurora was directly responsible for both Octavia and Bellamy's "kill your demons" mindset, which led to Charlotte's death in Season 1 and much of Blodreina's behavior in Season 5. Aurora's codependent reliance on Bellamy also forced him to grow up more quickly than he should have to help parent Octavia.
Best: Clarke Griffin
After Praimfaya, Clarke thought she was the last person on Earth until she met Madi. Though she was only eighteen, there was no one better equipped to parent an orphaned Nightblood with a penchant for catching people in bear traps, and that isn't just because of Praimfaya. Clarke's wit and artistic ability helped her form a bond with Madi, and though we don't know much about the time they spent together, we know they are two of the closest characters on the show to date.
When we see them again after the six-year time jump, Clarke has taught Madi quite a bit. Though Clarke had to learn a lot about boundaries in Season 5, she shapes up in the season finale just in time to Madi as she takes her place as Commander.
Worst: Queen Nia
Queen Nia is a truly fierce leader. As Queen of Azgeda, she commands her army to directly oppose Lexa's Coalition, stopping short of all-out war. When her plan to undermine and overthrow Lexa fails, Queen Nia uses a Grounder custom to challenge Lexa for her Commander status via a one-on-one battle.
Nia chooses her only son, Roan, knowing that Lexa has been trained by the best Grounder fighters since she was a child. Lexa ends up winning the fight, but she chooses to kill Queen Nia and spare Roan. Later, in Season 6, we see that Queen Nia was also a violent and ruthless mother figure to Echo after a raiding party killed her mother.
Best: Charmaine Diyoza
Charmaine Diyoza is an ex Navy-seal and international terrorist from the 21st century, so it's odd to see her on a list of "best parents," but from the moment she revealed she was pregnant, it's clear to see that Diyoza's main priority has been making the world a better place for her child to live in.
In one intriguing moment, Diyoza reveals to Gabriel (who is pretending to be Xavier at the time) that she doesn't want Octavia to turn out like her, which demonstrates that Diyoza has been reflecting on her violent past. When we see Hope arrive in the Season 6 finale, it's not a surprise that the child survived so many years in the anomaly because we know Diyoza taught her how.
Worst: Thelonius Jaha
Thelonius Jaha was a father for such a short period of time that you may have forgotten about his son, Wells Jaha, altogether. That's because Wells was killed early in the first season by a child who was traumatized by her life on the Ark. After all, her parents were floated by Thelonius.
Wells was Clarke Griffin's childhood best friend, and when Clarke found out about the Ark's life system failure, she told him. After Thelonius arrested Clarke, Abby convinced the Chancellor to send the SkyBox prisoners to the ground to test its survivability. When Wells finds out Clarke will be floated, he attempts to get himself arrested so he could go to the ground as well, and Thelonius goes through with arresting his son, leading directly to his death several weeks later.