Snowpiercer Season 4 Episode 9 Review: Dominant Traits

Snowpiercer Season 4 Episode 9, “Dominant Traits,” perfectly sets up the last episode of the series and the final battle for humanity. 

Thanks to a bit of help from Melanie, the council of New Eden are able to reboard the snowpiercer just in time for the final stretch in their long-standing fight for humanity.

Meanwhile, throughout Alex’s pursuit to stall Nima’s plans, an unfortunate piece of information is revealed regarding the identity of her father.

Shrouded in Disbelief

“Dominant Traits” works to break down that barrier between villain and accomplice that Nima continues to straddle so tightly.

His actions aren’t those of someone who sincerely hates violence; it’s a sense of deniability allowing Nima to lie to himself and say that he’s a good person. If he isn’t the one directly inflicting harm and asks for it to stop, even with the knowledge of who he helped put in charge, he can say that it wasn’t him. 

Nima to Melanie: You’re wrong, Mel. I’m nothing like these polluters who only concern themselves with their bottom line. That’s not me, and it’s not poison we’re launching into the sky, it’s hope.

What makes Nima’s actions unremarkably unconscionable is his adamance for burying New Eden after acquiring Big Alice and departing. Instead of accepting that he comes out on top and gets what he wants, he’s so laser-focused on defeating those beneath him that he loses sight of the real goal.

Besides, without access to Big Alice, those who aren’t able to make it on to snowpiercer and are left behind in New Eden have virtually no way of surviving anyway.

Melanie’s reminiscing on Nima’s past indicates he wasn’t always this weak, conniving man who hides behind others to do his dirty work, but that’s no longer the case.

The lingering question now is what the defining factor is that made Nima transform from a man with integrity, turning down a job for an energy company polluting the earth, into someone who willingly pumps chemicals into the atmosphere and destroys the earth.

A Father in Disguise

With only two episodes left in the season, there’s no surprise the series would tackle the long-standing question of who Alex’s father is. However, Nima being Alex’s long-lost father almost feels like a reductive, quick-thinking plot point introduced to get past it as fast as it’s introduced.

There have been moments where we’ve seen Nima more lenient toward Alex, but nothing remotely alluding to the two being related. With the series moving in this direction, having them be closer to one another would have been more beneficial and led to a more exciting reveal.

Now, there isn’t much of a bond for Alex to rely on when attempting to persuade Nima to not launch the Gemini strain into the atmosphere.

Honestly, if Alex were always destined to have a ruthless, yet diabolically-smart father, a better reveal would be Wilford as her father. At least in that instance, there’s a reason for Alex to be upset at his death, and would’ve given us an impactful, emotionally moving moment to send him off.

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Snowpiercer‘s penultimate episode isn’t the most entertaining outing of the season, but does well to preview what’s to come in the series finale.

Stray Thoughts:

• Josie’s mental health feels like it’s been on a significant decline, and I’m glad that even in the grand scheme of things, we aren’t shying away from that factor. With her PTSD taking a toll on her this episode, I hope her final moments in the series finale include her taking her vengeance, ensuring Dr. Headwood’s death, and reuniting with Miles for a final time.
• Javi is the real hero of the episode for figuring out a way to jam the bomb receivers and avoid an avalanche over New Eden.

What did you think of this episode of Snowpiercer? Share your thoughts in the comments below!

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Snowpiercer airs Sundays at 10/9c on AMC.

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