Welcome to Multiversity’s coverage of Snowpiercer, the television show loosely based on the 1982 graphic novel “Le Transperceneige” and more directly influenced by the 2013 film by Bong Joon-ho. In this fifth episode (and midway point for the season) entitled “Justice Never Boarded,” LJ is put on trial for the murder (and castration) of Third Class passengers aboard Snowpiercer. The results of the trial create more unrest amid growing tensions between the different classes.
1. Losing Control
Today’s episode demonstrates how Melanie tries to balance the interests of all the passengers aboard Snowpiercer in an effort to maintain the peace. How that translates to justice and freewill for the residents is a different matter all together. The pressure to preserve the illusion of Wilford on top of the stress of a train slowly losing power has become all too much for Melanie as we begin to see her crack. Before tonight’s episode, Melanie played three steps ahead of everyone aboard, so it was humanizing seeing Melanie “break character” as the Voice of the Train, even if it was for just a second. Since Melanie is the most visible representation of Wilford and people are starting to lose faith in Wilford, Melanie now has a target on her back.
2. The Revolution is Coming… From First?
The typical “story” of revolution (which was also seen in the Snowpiercer film) mainly involves the oppressed class overthrowing their rulers in an effort to fairly balance the rights of all people. In today’s episode, we see members of First Class openly question Wilford and meet secretly to plot against Melanie and the other members of Hospitality. This was an engaging turn of events, as it added a new group of stakeholders aboard Snowpiercer who want to to overthrow Wilford for their own interests separate from the Tail. More often than not, I believe this situation is more common in real life with members of the elite craving more power and turning against themselves to secure it. It also makes me reconsider how the typical stories of “revolution” seem more like a fairy tale.
3. Keep it Classy
Once again, Snowpiercer shows glimpses of life demonstrating how the different classes must get along as the 1,001 car train makes its revolutions across an uninhabitable Earth. Today see Jinju and Bess effectively get married as Bess receives a new implant giving her all the Second Class privileges her spouse has. Now that Bess is no longer stuck in Third she’s mocked by her Brakeman peers for marrying-up, but she happily invites a co-worker to have dinner with her and Jinju because dessert is served with every Second Class meal. Small moments like these in the greater story help root life in Snowpiercer and the world views of people in the different classes. It’s also interesting seeing another example of upward mobility on the show.
4. Layton in the Drawers
In the previous episode, Melanie locked Layton in the Drawers in suspended animation fearing he knew too much about the true nature of Wilford. This effectively took Layton out of the episode with all of his scenes revolving around a flashback to a story Layton told early on in the series of members of the Tail killing the cannibals at the back of the train and eating their hearts. Although Daveed Diggs is billed as a lead in Snowpiercer, taking him out of this episode made me realize how much I don’t care for the character. I understand the writers of the show are positioning him as the protagonist of the oppressed peoples aboard Snowpiercer, but it’s far more interesting watching Melanie calculate and execute her next moves. Seeing how inconsequential Layton could be in the series made me okay with taking the character off the board.
5. And Justice for All
I was really looking forward to the courtroom drama promised for this episode. Most of the courtroom scenes fell flat. There was a weird focus on the castration elements of LJ’s crimes that was mentioned in previous episodes, but suddenly became the focus of the judicial process (the writers used the word “dickless” one too many times). With LJ convicted and then commuted by Wilford, we see Melanie appease the First Class passengers for now, while giving the Third Class passengers a catalyst to revolt. It’s obvious that Melanie will continue to lose control of the train without making allies in the process.
