Snowpiercer Season Two Early Review

For our review of season one of Snowpiercer, click here.

The first season of Snowpiercer brought the world of the 2013 film to life in an intense, sci-fi action thriller with an impressive bingeable story that focused on world-building than actual character development despite stellar turns from series stars Daveed Diggs and Jennifer Connelly who certainly gave it their all. The prospect of a second season is intriguing considering the source material in that there is only so far that this train could go (pun intended) but it still proved that there was plenty of track left to go. The cliffhanger that wasn’t really a cliffhanger (it was obviously foreshadowed a lot sooner) that ended the first season with the infamous Mr. Wilford (Sean Bean) and his second train, known as Big Alice, making an appearance and promising to stir things up. Meanwhile, another storyline was created by that cliffhanger with Cavill’s long-lost daughter Alexandra (Rowan Blanchard) showing up with Wilford.

Though it seemed like the playing field has changed following Layton’s uprising that broke apart the class system that ruled the train since its departure, the impact of Wilford could still be felt across the train. Having who Cavill built up as the Wizard of Oz of the train appear in person drastically changed the dynamic. After being gone and presumed dead for seven years, his legion continued to grow and his time gone seemed to give him plenty of time to plot his revenge. Over that same amount of time, Wilford and Alex developed a close relationship that we could see play out on screen but we don’t exactly know what happened before their arrival. This left Alex at a crossroads. Though she didn’t have the best relationship with her mother, she also realized that she needed her in her life. Big Alice itself changed the dynamic of the train, creating yet another imbalance. Nevertheless, despite the struggle between Layton and Wilford, the two trains needed each other. Meanwhile. another cliffhanger was Cavill’s discovery of snow, something impossible considering the astronomically low temperatures outside. This season would see her explore that lead to prove that there might well be a future for the human race outside of the train in what was the best subplot of the season.

Allegiances were tested as characters were faced with uncertainty. Not knowing who to trust, they were lost between conflicting powers, Wilford and Layton who had become a Wilford of sorts. As far as Layton was concerned, it was all about maintaining the peace but that would be easier said than done with Wilford tapping into whatever influence he had left on the train as well as the growing dissent with Layton’s leadership. Having to balance a little too much this time around in terms of characters and subplots, the season could never truly approach that aspect with any real depth. It could be frustrating at times when it could be on the precipice of something compelling but could never quite put all that ambition together. From reuniting Wilford with a former love interest in Miss Audrey or giving Till a murder mystery to solve, very little of the subplots beyond the main narrative were all that interesting while just making the season more convoluted and hard to connect with anything on an emotional level. The biggest journey was arguably that of Ruth (Alison Wright), Snowpiercer’s head of hospitality, whose new perspective saw her make a complete 180. Meanwhile, the arrival of Wilford left her at a crossroads and the ensuing internal conflict was another strong point this season.

In the end, whatever else the season may have had going on in terms of its subplots, the main plot was far more interesting. One of the biggest problems with the first season was the lack of character development on Cavill’s part, though she was essentially disconnected from most of the season’s main plot, this season try to fix that with her aforementioned adventure that saw her face her past in order to ensure the future of the human race (while also being a great episode for Jennifer Connelly). She also had her moments with Alex but it’s a shame that the season couldn’t tap into that storyline a little more. The season also saw Layton and Wilford engage in a very slow burn cold war of sorts (pun intended) as Layton was over his head with trying to maintain the peace on Snowpiercer in the midst of Wilford’s plotting to take over the whole train. Wilford certainly had time to plan and whatever it may have been, he kept it close to the vest but he certainly knew what he was doing. He and Layton’s conflict played as a slow burn, inching forward ever so slightly which was kind of disappointing considering all the promotional material. While the end result will probably not come as much of a surprise, only 8 of the season’s 10 episodes were made available prior to the premiere so whatever actually happens remains to be seen.

Technically speaking, the great production value is still there this time around (the addition of Big Alice just meant more of the same) with the outside CGI shots still somewhat lacking. The action may not have been at the same level as the previous season with this season favoring more of a political thriller approach but in the end, the performances continue to be the best part of Snowpiercer with Diggs and Connelly leading the way as Layton and Cavill. While Layton took a step back this season, Diggs did his best with what little he had as Layton’s development was squandered at the expense of the rest of the story as the season failed to go deep enough with the internal conflict he was surely feeling trying to hold the train together as his ability as a leader was put into question which appeared to create moments of self-doubt. Nevertheless, he was still compelling to watch. Cavill, on the other hand, took a step forward as Wilford’s return was a referendum on her past decisions both as the lead engineer of Snowpiercer and as a mother. Connelly was sensational, especially in a solo episode later in the season. As a new addition this season, Bean brought gravitas and was fun to watch as he looked to have a blast chewing scenery as the uber-arrogant and uber-conniving Wilford. Finally, Alison Wright deserves praise for her sensational performance as Ruth, the former Snowpiercer head of hospitality, who saw a redemption arc this season.

When it comes to Snowpiercer, the pieces are definitely there and while this season took a step back, there is still more than enough to warrant a watch. Showing signs of what it can ultimately be, hopefully a recently announced renewal for a third season will see the writers put those pieces together.

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Keith Noakes

The EIC of the coincidentally-named keithlovesmovies.com. A Canadian who prefers to get out of the cold and into the warmth of a movie theatre.