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I generally like to give a new series at least three episodes for everyone to find their footing, from the cast to the writers to everyone else behind-the-scenes. Snowpiercer had a particularly torturous journey from big screen to small, so I was willing to give the show a little extra wiggle room to impress me. This week, it finally has. And surprisingly, what seemed to be a season-long storyline — the murder Andre Layton was investigating — is wrapped up but Layton’s investigation has opened up a whole new world of problems for him.
When we last left off, the Folger family bodyguard Erik was paying an unscheduled visit to Nikki in sick bay (or whatever they call it). And as we assumed, she did not survive the visit. But Erik made a crucial mistake in that committing a murder right after a fight breaks out at a fight isn’t the best idea as Melanie has closed the ‘borders’ between Third and Second Class. Erik is now trapped and it didn’t take Layton long to get to the bottom of things.
After being roused from his cell, Layton demanded Melanie bring him to First Class to question everyone. None of them were thrilled to have the Tailie in their midst, but Layton saw that not everyone who was at the fight was there, namely the bodyguards. Ruth explained she didn’t invite ‘the help’ but LJ Folger revealed Erik didn’t come home after the fight, and her parents were forced to confirm that information. Which led to Layton asking to visit their quarters to go through Erik’s belongings. Mrs. Folger was not thrilled but finally agreed if Melanie would accompany him.
Officer Till was forced to partner again with Osweiller even though he was on suspension, but the police were shorthanded. Their task now was to track down Erik, and once he was discovered in hiding, he took off and somehow managed to take Till’s girlfriend Jinju as a hostage. Layton, meanwhile, found some sort of weapon LJ identified as a J-hook in Erik’s compartment, and was forced to play a game with her to get her to reveal what the item was used for … but it seems he knew all along, he just needed her to confirm his suspicions: it was the instrument used to castrate the two murder victims.
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With Erik cornered below deck, it didn’t take long for the police to subdue him, and by ‘subdue’ I mean hack at him with their axes because no one on the train has guns … except the bodyguards like Erik. With the news delivered to Melanie and relayed to Layton and the Folgers, LJ put on a good act of grief but Layton announced to everyone that Erik was just a dog doing what he was told, and LJ was the actual murderer. The question Layton has now is will justice be served?
Layton seems to have had his suspicions about Melanie’s role on the train for a while but with his arrival among the First Class passengers, he got to see her in action firsthand when the Folgers demanded to speak with Mr. Wilford prior to allowing Layton into their carriage. Melanie made a very calm but showy phone call to Mr. Wilford — actually Bennett Knox in the engine — that was convincing enough to the Folgers to have them back down without getting on the phone. Melanie knew they’d never have the balls to address Mr. Wilford and put their own status in danger. But Layton knew there was something fishy going on, and after the case was solved Melanie invited him to put politics aside and have a drink to celebrate solving the case. Layton dropped some not-so-subtle hints that he knew she was Wilford, and Melanie even admitted that she knew he’d figured it out. That’s why she laced his saki and had Dr. Klimpt put him in The Drawers with the explicit instruction that Mr. Wilford did not want him harmed.
As we saw last time, the Tailies now have a chip that can help them move from car to car and Josie uses it to make her way to Third Class to try to get a message to Layton. After the protein bars are delivered, as in the movie, the Tailies find a capsule in one bar and inside that capsule is a message for Josie: ‘Layton’s missing.’
So with the murder being solved and Layton knowing more than he’s supposed to know, and that knowledge getting him stored away, the question now is where does Snowpiercer go from here? It’s anyone’s guess but I am now finally intrigued enough to stick around for more.
Snowpiercer airs Sundays at 9:00 PM on TNT.
What did you think of this episode? Tell us in the comments section below!
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