This The 100 article contains spoilers.
One of the greatest things about storytelling on TV is the way character growth can be depicted as episodes and seasons go on. Six seasons in, The 100 is a great example of what this can look like. As we’ve reached the midway mark of Season 6, we’ve seen different sides to many of our beloved main characters. However, that doesn’t only go for the main characters, but the recurring characters as well.
Charmaine Diyoza is a great example. The shift in her character this season has really made her stand out in new ways, especially as compared to her Season 5 arc. When the audience was first introduced to Diyoza in Season 5, she was cold, ruthless, and fearless, seemingly only keeping others close as long as they served a purpose to her larger mission. In Sanctum, she was seen as terrifying. Her reputation classified her as a war criminal in history books.
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However, in Season 6, Diyoza seems to be changing. She’s still cold and assertive with some signature sarcasm, but being in completely different surroundings with new people and new threats while also carrying a child has allowed her character to change.
Diyoza is still as calculating and fearless as ever, but you can see the goodness that shines from her, too. Like every flawed character, we tend to understand why she may be the way she is. She sees the bigger picture: to survive and hold onto her strength. She gives that type of tough love that looks good on her. It shines especially now that she wants to see her daughter be born and is spending more time with Octavia. I wouldn’t say she’s displayed a full-on softer side to her personality, but a more empathetic and reasonable one as a whole.
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Diyoza’s dynamic with Octavia this season has been anything but ordinary. In a way, they are more alike than different and Diyoza sees that. If anything, she’s becoming more of a mentor figure to Octavia because she’s been where Octavia is now. With their interactions, Diyoza is playing a role in Octavia’s own redemption arc. She cares for her and doesn’t want her to give up because she knows she has great potential, even when it seems like all hope is lost.
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Diyoza’s character development sticks out in Season 6 because she’s not only trying to survive in this new planet for herself, but for her unborn daughter as well. She’s found a purpose to keep surviving in hopes of allowing her baby to enter a world that is livable and also safe. She’s a warrior, it’s in her DNA. She knows how to fight and she knows how to fight well especially for being over 100 years old and pregnant.
It’s interesting to see this depicted on TV: a woman who’s trained to fight the way that she does while also carrying a child. There is more to her story, of course, and it would be great if some point in this season (or in Season 7) we get to delve into more to Diyoza’s past and her story overall.
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Seeing Diyoza team up with Octavia this season has allowed us to see her character in situations she has never been in before, while also seeing her evolve into a more empathetic person, without leaving out the sweet sarcasm she never fails to exhibit. Organic character growth is appreciated, and Diyoza is becoming one of my favorite characters on The 100.
Have you been enjoying Diyoza’s arc this season? Would you like to see more of her? Let us know in the comments below…
Read more about Season 6 of The 100 here.
Shadia Omer is a total nerd and a lover of all things pop culture. Nerd out with her on Twitter at @shadiawrites.