Snowpiercer Season 3 Episode 10 review: And then there were two trains again

4/5

Story: After breaking the news to the citizens of Snowpiercer that the trip to New Eden is not only perilous, but not entirely founded on solid scientific data, Melanie needs to find an ally on the train. Wilford seems the perfect choice, but working it out with Layton may, after all, be the lesser evil. What will Melanie do?

Review: The writers of Snowpiercer redeemed themselves with Episode 10, ‘Original Sinners’ and how. After a set of rather lame episodes in the run-up to the season finale, there’s finally hope on the horizon and something to look forward to when the show returns with Season 4 (it has been renewed already).

This was an episode with just the right amount of twists, some of which were expected, but others that came as pleasant surprises, making Original Sinners one of the most satisfying episodes of Season 3. In the course of three seasons, Snowpiercer has been through its fair share of uprisings and blood shed and while Wilford doesn’t balk at the idea of spilling some more, Melanie may not want that. Her goal has only been to keep the last remnants of humanity alive, within her control, onboard Snowpiercer, even if it may get harder over the years. But she is not ready to take a leap of faith just yet and hope that there is, indeed, a warm spot in New Eden.

After briefly considering to join hands with Wilford, Melanie finally decides to do what’s best for the train – let the people decide what they want to do. Taking the whole train across the treacherous track to the Horn of Africa is not a gamble she is comfortable with, so Melanie and Layton decide that the best course of action for them is to split the train, with enough resources for both parties and to let the people decide which side they want to be on. Oh, and to ensure that there are no problems with this plan, they send Wilford packing, quite literally.

Truth be told, until that moment I was half expecting yet another call to arms, what with Wilford having revived Brakeman Boki with the help of Mrs Headwood’s technology – he’s impervious to cold and sensation of pain now. But averting that and splitting the story two-way was a smart move. Now, as we head into season 4, which is likely to drop a year from now, there’s the group in New Eden and those who stayed back on Snowpiercer. And, as we saw at the end of Season 3, three months after his exile, Wilford may have pulled off some trick to sabotage Snowpiercer after all.

Verdict: Although I’ve been watching Snowpiercer religiously since 2020, I’ve never really been invested in the show, considering its limitation of being set on a train and the story lines that were mostly about power struggles – from Melanie Cavill to Layton, then Layton to Wilford and some of that tension creeping into season 3 as well. The season 3 finale changes things around and, I can’t believe I’m saying this, but I’m actually looking forward to a Season 4 now. Can’t wait!