'Snowpiercer' Episode 4: Train's system makes pathology bloom in first class and sends Layton to the Drawers
Spoilers for 'Snowpiercer' Episode 4 'Without Their Maker'
It is yet unclear what the relationship between Wilfred and Melanie Cavill (Jennifer Connelly) was. Was she his daughter, who now has a stake in preserving his legacy? Or is Melanie also a scientist like Jinju Seong (Susan Park), hired by Wilfred, a shrewd businessman? And after he died, did she have to keep the system he put in place running, no matter how unfair, so as to not disturb the delicate ecosystem she had set up within the train?
Jinju's monologue right at the beginning reveals some important things. One, that no matter what the situation humans beings are put in, they adapt and they hack till they get what they need. For the Tailies, this is the right to live as a human. For someone like LJ Folger (Annalise Basso), the teenage "blue-eyed firstie", who has never been denied anything, it is the ability to feel. In the very first episode, she is bummed because she can't go to the third class to experience some excitement. LJ is also fascinated by the stories of cannibalism in the Tail section. Her pathology to torture people develops in the hot-house environment of the first class because it is the only way she can experience any thrill. Her senses have been so deadened by excess that she needs the perversity of murder to feel alive. By not having suffered at all, she has no empathy, even for Eric (Matt Murray), her lover, bodyguard and partner-in-crime.
Instead, she is excited by the process of the murder investigation, of being so close to being discovered by Andre Layton (Daveed Diggs). She also opens the blinds in her car for him to see the sun because she wants to live vicariously through his reaction to it. Having tired of Eric, she wants to move on to new game — instigating a rebellion by helping the Tailies so that there is chaos, which she can revel in. Only, LJ misjudges Layton's commitment to his job as a detective. It is bonafide rage when Layton gives her up as the murderer.
However, given Layton's astuteness, it is a big miss for him not to sense Melanie's intentions after his investigation is over. How could she let him return to the Tail with all the information he has gathered and after he has guessed her secret? Her quandary is that she knows that Layton is important within the ecosystem of the train. His skill set is unique and worth preserving, just like the fish in the aquarium, the plants in greenhouse cars and the cows in the meat cars. His loss means the train's system is disrupted. It is also why she will never unhook the Taillie sections because they too plays a part, whether it be providing apprentices or sanitation workers.
So the same system that develops LJ's pathology is also what sends Layton into the Drawers — to be preserved till his skill set is needed again. Since Melanie knows she can never earn his loyalty, she will cultivate him like a mute plant instead. This is where Jinju's monologue gives us a clue about Melanie's mindset. Jinju describes herself as "just a scientist", whose role is to save the world, not change it.
Since the "world" is now the train, Jinju's way of saving it is following the system that is already set up on the train, no matter how unfair. We hear of Melanie's background too — of not being born with a silver spoon either. And yet, she is absolutely military about keeping the system running as it is — even if it means throwing a first-class passenger in jail or keeping Layton in the Drawers. So chances are that Wilfred was an entrepreneur who saw an opportunity and hired Melanie as his chief scientist. But with him dead, Melanie is only interested in saving what is left of humanity, not changing it.
'Snowpiercer' airs every Sunday at 9 pm ET/PT on TNT. It is also available to stream on Netflix.
