'Snowpiercer' Episode 9: Melanie breaks Layton's idealistic spirit with victory not defeat
Spoilers for 'Snowpiercer' Season 1 Episode 9 'Old Ways, Old Wars'
TNT's 'Snowpiercer' may have started out as murder mystery but the story of Season 1 has now reached its bloody conclusion and it's every bit as poignant as we hoped it would be. Episode 9 'Old Ways, Old Wars' concludes the revolution that has raged from the tail-end of the train the very tip with a devastating moral sacrifice.
Since the very beginning of the show, 'Snowpiercer' has been about two diametrically opposite characters: detective-turned-revolutionary Andre Layton (Daveed Diggs) and the secret ruler of the train Melanie Cavill (Jennifer Connelly). 'Snowpiercer' Season 1 has so far been an ideological battle between the two and now, even as Layton wins his revolution, he has lost the battle to Melanie.
Early on in the season, Melanie had told Layton that they all chose who should live and who should die when they boarded the train leaving behind people they loved. It was a lesson that may not have resonated all that much with Layton then but now he knows what she meant.
In order to defeat the Jackboots, Melanie concocts a plan to disconnect the car that Commander Grey (Timothy V Murphy), the Folgers, and their forces are in but what she doesn't tell Layton is that the captured revolutionary forces, including people dear to Layton, are also in that car.
He doesn't realize this until it's too late to save them and despite his best efforts, Layton is forced to sacrifice his comrades in order to secure victory and survival for the revolution. Whichever route Layton chose would have ended in death but by putting Layton in a position where he has to choose who deserves to live and who deserves to die, Melanie has finally won over Layton's stubborn idealism.
Now Melanie has ensured that Layton will carry the trauma of his choice for the rest of his life, despite winning everything he wanted, and now he will live with that guilt for as long as he rides Snowpiercer, 994 cars long.
'Snowpiercer' airs Sundays at 9 pm ET on TNT.
