Snowpiercer

People are weird. Sometime really ridiculous TV series and movies gets very good reviews and sometime decent series gets bad. This TV series is the example of later. It's not an Emmy winning series but nevertheless quite interesting to watch. The actors are doing good job and the plot has some life to it. I am not sure, how come some science fiction movies and TV series, like Star Wars, gets high ratings, despite being quite away from reality but some get judged based on scientific laws.

First of all lets make one think clear, this is a show in a sci-fi setting and Sci-fi has always been experimenting with cheesy and illogical concepts. I don't know why people forgot that. Of cource the idea of a endlessly running train isn't realistic nor would the class system of the train work in real life, but thats not the point of the show. You wouldn't say that fighting with laser swords or travelling through time in a car is very realistic, but it is definitely fun to watch. That is why (at least for me) Snowpiercer works. Is it a show that would win awards for groundbraking acting or writing? No, probably not. But the story is definitely thrilling, the set pieces are fascinating and I am extremely invested in the show.

I always thought the 2013 movie was too short, so after watching the movie i found myself reading the French graphic novel Le Transperceneige, later re-titled Snowpiercer 1: The Escape, created by Jacques Lob and Jean-Marc Rochette, and published in 1982.

In my enthusiasm, I also read the subsequent sequels, The Explorers and The Terminus.

Then years later i come across this Snowpiercer TV series and right from the start i am into it. The first 2 seasons follow the first book loosely with some additions and omissions.

The show starts strong, especially in the first two seasons, with great world-building and solid storylines. However, by Season 4, it slows down, and some parts feel stretched out. Jennifer Connelly and Sean Bean keep things interesting though, with Connelly adding real depth to her character, even when she disappears from the story at times.

Daveed Diggs doesn't quite fit the role of such a major character; there are several moments where his acting feels awkward and out of place.

Overall its a good and entertaining show, better then the movie but worse then the graphic novel series.

The show has so much potential, but the leading actor is just not as good as the show deserved. He's a rapper that hadn't play anything like this before. He's got the same face under any circumstances, proving he's still an apprentice and should give some steps backwards and start from the bottom. It's such a pity!

Wilford actor and Melanie actress simply overtake the show in order to save it.

Season 1 review. Will update if needed after season 2.

Not too bad of a show, but has some issues that really drag it down.

Acting is a very mixed bag. Jennifer Connelly does a good job as Melanie Cavill and I also enjoyed some of the supporting roles like Ruth and Miss Audrey, even though most of those supporting roles don't add a whole lot of meat to the story and often feel like underdeveloped, missed opportunities.

While not always or necessarily a bad thing, a lot of characters are one-dimensional caricatures, perhaps more fitting for a cartoon. This works well for some, like Ruth, but not too great for most, like LJ.

There's way too much overacting in general, where the performances of the actresses playing Josie and Bess stand out as pretty bad on average in that regard.

The biggest issue with the acting though, is the lead actor, Daveed Diggs. The guy can't act and he has no presence. His eyes are always empty and he is apparently only able to produce one facial expression. His monotonous voice and inflection also don't match the character. I always see the actor trying to play a character, never the character itself. It really breaks immersion. Massive miscast here and easily the weakest link of the show.

Immersion is broken even more by the fact that his character is all over the place and isn't believable at all in most of the contexts he finds himself in. This isn't a revolutionary leader, but a street corner criminal at best.

He's not even likeable, being that self-righteous smart ass know-it-all (while still failing to accomplish anything), with his unfitting nonchalant demeanor and hilariously large wig.

CGI is mostly well done. Music is good, and I do like the overall atmosphere it tries to create.

The general story is interesting enough to keep me wanting to know what's going to happen next. The first three or so episodes don't make a whole lot of sense in hindsight and I feel the story is a bit too shallow in most of what it tries to accomplish.

This could have been an easy 8 or 9 if the casting and acting would have been better, possibly also while burning through the story a bit slower and not focussing on the rather unoriginal and obvious stuff.

I can't really give this more than barely a 6/10 in it's current form, even though I enjoyed some parts more than that rating would suggest. Will update the score after season 2, if needed.