Layton continues to work on the investigation while gathering information for his comrades back in the Tail. Melanie’s insistence on continuing to push the train at speed through dangerous climes has drastic consequences.

I’m never quite sure what this second episode of Snowpiercer is going for, and I think that’s because neither are the writers. It feels at times like a bunch of disparate ideas thrown together on the fly – like a series of little windows into life on various parts of the train rather than a coherent narrative about it, and whereas that may be exactly what the creators are going for, it made it feel a little disjointed for me.

After the events of the pilot, the nominated members of the revolution are put into the boxes, even as the original individual convicted of the previous murder wakes up from her long time in there and isn’t doing terribly well. Layton meanwhile continues to work the case, which involves various trips to other bits of the train and a rather confusing (for me) reunion with his wife again which… doesn’t at all go the way I expect.

He’s also building a sort of grudgingly respectful relationship with Brakeman Till, the ex-rookie cop not entirely happy that she owes her life to him but also aware of his skills and abilities. Of course, while he’s working his way through the brutal details of the case, he’s also gathering information all the time about the layout and operation of the train, that he can pass back to his fellow tailers to enable them to prepare for the revolution. That’s easier said than done of course, and he risks everything he’s achieved so far as well as all future efforts if it goes wrong.

Aside from this main narrative, it’s all a little bitty. We get an example of the brutality of the regime as the Brakemen select a tailer to undergo the amputation of a limb in retribution for the violent uprising, and the choice of target seems calculated just to really ram home how cartoonishly awful those in control are, which sits oddly with Jennifer Connelly’s nuanced portrayal of Cavill. There’s a scene that demonstrates graphically another way in which the crew exploit the disparity in power between themselves and the tailers, and there’s plenty of stuff displaying the vulgarity and awfulness of the first class passengers, but what really makes no sense to me is the inciting event for the episode’s big traumatic event.

This involves the speed of the train causing avalanches to be more frequent as it races through mountainous terrain. Cavill is told that the train should be slowed, but refuses for reasons which remain absolutely unclear. This is one of the biggest tensions in the onscreen action – her insistence on this point generates grave results for the whole train, and it jars massively with her apparent general concern for the whole enterprise.

Verdict: An odd mix of compelling bits of drama and weirdly disjointed elements that leaves me confused. I’m still just about invested, but this needs to get a bit more coherent quick. 6/10

Greg D. Smith