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Transperceneige #2-3
The Explorers
Snowpiercer Vol.2 is the second volume of the enthralling and thought-provoking post-apocalyptic graphic novel series that inspired the critically acclaimed movie starring Chris Evans (Captain America/Fantastic Four). Originally published in French, this marks the first time that Snowpiercer will be available in English.
In a harsh, uncompromisingly cold future where Earth has succumbed to treacherously low temperatures, the last remaining members of humanity travel on a train known as Snowpiercer while the outside world remains encased in ice.
The occupants aboard the Snowpiercer believed themselves to be the last humans alive, yet they soon learn that they are not alone. There is another train that could potentially spell destruction for the passengers of the Snowpiercer as it carves a trail through the endlessly freezing terrain.
This second train houses a small band of people that are willing to brave the relentless cold in search of the truth and discover what is left of the world by any means necessary.
In a harsh, uncompromisingly cold future where Earth has succumbed to treacherously low temperatures, the last remaining members of humanity travel on a train known as Snowpiercer while the outside world remains encased in ice.
The occupants aboard the Snowpiercer believed themselves to be the last humans alive, yet they soon learn that they are not alone. There is another train that could potentially spell destruction for the passengers of the Snowpiercer as it carves a trail through the endlessly freezing terrain.
This second train houses a small band of people that are willing to brave the relentless cold in search of the truth and discover what is left of the world by any means necessary.
144 pages, Hardcover
First published July 29, 2000
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1437 people want to read
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Displaying 1 - 30 of 238 reviews
April 16, 2025
The story of Snowpiercer continues...when a message is picked up a decision has to be made: follow the message in the hopes of finding a safe haven or continue to ride the tracks forever. Differing groups force the question to a violent conclusion. A unique dystopian - the movie was pretty good!
April 5, 2016
I was hoping that some time and space would give the Snowpiercer franchise some room to grow into itself, but it anything, things just got worse from volume one. It's essentially the same story - alpha male from the lower class charges into relevancy with a rich, underdeveloped love interest in tow - but more convoluted and implausible. Characters never have motivations, actions happen at random and their ramifications are never explored. If there were any sense of fun in any of this, it could have turned into a pleasant-enough campy adventure. But instead Snowpiercer remains relentlessly serious and dour without having anything remotely interesting to say in the process.
November 1, 2020
There's something irrationally moreish about the Snowpiercer series. This, the second volume, with the same artist and a different writer, doesn't do anything really unexpected or surprising. There is some more exploration (quite literally) of the world. We're now aboard on the Snowpiercer 2, a different post-apocalyptic train, that is in constant fear of crashing into the Snowpiercer of volume 1. The ruling elite of this train plays into those fears, while part of the lowly citizenry has started believing that they're not actually on a train, but on a space ship, and they're being lied to. Then the Snowpiercer 2 starts receiving a signal from across the sea, spurring on hopes of more survivors.
It's a powder keg, ladies and gentlemen! Will it explode? Yes , of course it will. That's where the moreishness comes in - you're basically reading a tragedy, waiting to see how it all goes wrong. And I really want to know how it all collapses in on itself.
If you liked the first volume for its doom-ridden dread, this is the sequel for you. Just don't expect it to surprise you.
(Kindly received a review copy from Titan Comics through Edelweiss)
It's a powder keg, ladies and gentlemen! Will it explode? Yes , of course it will. That's where the moreishness comes in - you're basically reading a tragedy, waiting to see how it all goes wrong. And I really want to know how it all collapses in on itself.
If you liked the first volume for its doom-ridden dread, this is the sequel for you. Just don't expect it to surprise you.
(Kindly received a review copy from Titan Comics through Edelweiss)
June 22, 2015
Have you ever seen a hastily made cash-grab sequel? They are often straight to dvd, have an entirely new cast, and although they seem like a carbon copy of the original characters and plot, they are devoid of the heart and creativity that made the original special. Snowpiercer 2 is that straight to dvd sequel. The story does not pick up where the first one ends, I guess those fictional characters were busy on other projects or where outside the production budget. Instead, the two main characters Proloff and his bald chick are simply referenced with the added bonus of a sound bite that was probably edited together from the first book.
The story was confusing, unnecessary, and completely unbelievable. In true Hollywood fashion, there was less substance and more explosions. we don't need logic we have BOOM!
The characters followed the same formula, with our bad ass male protagonist and his privileged love interest who is pretty much a non-entity. There are the obligatory baddies who deceive the poor just for the fun of it, and rich people who chomp down on caviar while chilling in first class.
What really didn't make sense to me was that this story followed a completely different train also known as the Snowpiercer. Snowpiercer 1 didn't know about 2 but they were on the same track for like over a decade? What!? This isn't making any sense!?
Half of this didn't make sense the other half was too boring to care about it making sense. There might have been something lost in translation but mostly this was just stupid.
Overall, this had no redeeming qualities I wish I didn't waste my time.
The story was confusing, unnecessary, and completely unbelievable. In true Hollywood fashion, there was less substance and more explosions. we don't need logic we have BOOM!
The characters followed the same formula, with our bad ass male protagonist and his privileged love interest who is pretty much a non-entity. There are the obligatory baddies who deceive the poor just for the fun of it, and rich people who chomp down on caviar while chilling in first class.
What really didn't make sense to me was that this story followed a completely different train also known as the Snowpiercer. Snowpiercer 1 didn't know about 2 but they were on the same track for like over a decade? What!? This isn't making any sense!?
Half of this didn't make sense the other half was too boring to care about it making sense. There might have been something lost in translation but mostly this was just stupid.
Overall, this had no redeeming qualities I wish I didn't waste my time.
August 3, 2020
So at the time I read this my order of watching/reading is:
Movie > Graphic novel vol. 1 > Series > Graphic novel vol. 2
And I have to confess my overall impression is confusion!!
Just kidding. My overall judgement is that each medium of Snowpiercer is just unique enough, but also 'true' to the source material to be interesting in its own right. The movie I felt like of like an action version of Gullivers Travels, with Captain American discovering more and more bizarre 'worlds' as he worked up the train. The series was a more serious and skilful combination of political character building which I though was brilliantly done in its own right.
'The Explorers' and 'the Crossing' are something different again. I don't want to do any spoilers for this because who knows what will be incorporated into the series in the future, but vol. 2 of Snowpiercer will be somewhat familiar territory to watchers. The graphic novel takes a more sociological approach, being fairly upfront and less mysterious than its other adaptions, and perhaps more focused on the technicalities of the situation rather than character. Which is probably my only complaint is that the story didn't feel so connected, or the characters very relatable so in a way was much more bleak.
I'll still be keen to catchup with vol. 3 and the prequel, but I confess the TV series remains my favourite adaption
Movie > Graphic novel vol. 1 > Series > Graphic novel vol. 2
And I have to confess my overall impression is confusion!!
Just kidding. My overall judgement is that each medium of Snowpiercer is just unique enough, but also 'true' to the source material to be interesting in its own right. The movie I felt like of like an action version of Gullivers Travels, with Captain American discovering more and more bizarre 'worlds' as he worked up the train. The series was a more serious and skilful combination of political character building which I though was brilliantly done in its own right.
'The Explorers' and 'the Crossing' are something different again. I don't want to do any spoilers for this because who knows what will be incorporated into the series in the future, but vol. 2 of Snowpiercer will be somewhat familiar territory to watchers. The graphic novel takes a more sociological approach, being fairly upfront and less mysterious than its other adaptions, and perhaps more focused on the technicalities of the situation rather than character. Which is probably my only complaint is that the story didn't feel so connected, or the characters very relatable so in a way was much more bleak.
I'll still be keen to catchup with vol. 3 and the prequel, but I confess the TV series remains my favourite adaption
May 12, 2015
If Snowpiercer is nihilist, Snowpiercer 2 is wearing a beret, smoking a Gauloise cigarette.
Legrand does a great job of reminding us that hope is illusory, and no matter what we do, we all die in the end. Thanks, Benjamin, I'm gonna go take a bottle of sleeping pills now.
Legrand does a great job of reminding us that hope is illusory, and no matter what we do, we all die in the end. Thanks, Benjamin, I'm gonna go take a bottle of sleeping pills now.
March 24, 2014
Well. How very, very French.
June 16, 2021
Well goddamnit.
Snowpiercer, Vol. 2: The Explorers by Benjamin Legrand was published damn near 40 years after the first and they still couldn't write a female character that didn't swoon into the arms of Hunky McProtagonist at the first opportunity to take a trip to Bonetown. Fuck this bullshit!
Snowpiercer, Vol. 1 was written by Jacques Lob, who published the thing in like 1982 and died in 1990. I'm honestly curious how this Benjamin Legrand dude ended up writing a sequel after so many years, but I'm guessing it had something to do with the movie.
I don't know, but maybe they should have found a woman to do the job because it's a damn crime that the attitude of misogeny transfered from the first volume to the second despite the 40 years that have passed since such things were misconstrued as normal. Ugh!!
And the thing of it is, this narrative in Vol. 2 is miles better than the one in the original. The characters are more complex, the world building is at least present, and the dialogue is believable and communicates a good amount of information...
But I just can't get over how there is ONE female character in this entire book and she acts like a dumb bitch. Yeah, there is more to her with her "vacation" design stuff, but I'm beyond disappointed that she jumped so quickly into Hunky McProtagonist's bed. I actually thought I skipped a page!
And I get that sex is one of the few pasttimes they have in this dystopian future, but not only does Sex Object Lady jump in to bed with Hunky immediately with no scenes of relationship building, but then she starts calling him her fiance and they are going to get married and shit. What???? Just stop.
What an embarassment to women ffs!
Like I said, as a narrative, this volume is better than the first. I like the world, I like the potential, I like the ideas... but my god do I hate the treatment of women here. I'm going to read the 3rd volume because I actually do want to see where this perpetual train ends up.
But I just can't give this any more than 3 out of 5 stars.
You might like this if you like: misogeny, distopian futures, and trains.
Snowpiercer, Vol. 2: The Explorers by Benjamin Legrand was published damn near 40 years after the first and they still couldn't write a female character that didn't swoon into the arms of Hunky McProtagonist at the first opportunity to take a trip to Bonetown. Fuck this bullshit!
Snowpiercer, Vol. 1 was written by Jacques Lob, who published the thing in like 1982 and died in 1990. I'm honestly curious how this Benjamin Legrand dude ended up writing a sequel after so many years, but I'm guessing it had something to do with the movie.
I don't know, but maybe they should have found a woman to do the job because it's a damn crime that the attitude of misogeny transfered from the first volume to the second despite the 40 years that have passed since such things were misconstrued as normal. Ugh!!
And the thing of it is, this narrative in Vol. 2 is miles better than the one in the original. The characters are more complex, the world building is at least present, and the dialogue is believable and communicates a good amount of information...
But I just can't get over how there is ONE female character in this entire book and she acts like a dumb bitch. Yeah, there is more to her with her "vacation" design stuff, but I'm beyond disappointed that she jumped so quickly into Hunky McProtagonist's bed. I actually thought I skipped a page!
And I get that sex is one of the few pasttimes they have in this dystopian future, but not only does Sex Object Lady jump in to bed with Hunky immediately with no scenes of relationship building, but then she starts calling him her fiance and they are going to get married and shit. What???? Just stop.
What an embarassment to women ffs!
Like I said, as a narrative, this volume is better than the first. I like the world, I like the potential, I like the ideas... but my god do I hate the treatment of women here. I'm going to read the 3rd volume because I actually do want to see where this perpetual train ends up.
But I just can't give this any more than 3 out of 5 stars.
You might like this if you like: misogeny, distopian futures, and trains.
December 15, 2014
It's taken me a night to think about this book.
The black and white depiction of this future world adds to the bleak society that exists on the Snow Piercer.
As a post apocalyptic story it's depiction of this society that depends on staying on the rails and obeying the rules is thought provoking. As usual it falls flat with it's depiction of women, but as a complete story it's quite compelling - in a dark bleak way.
The black and white depiction of this future world adds to the bleak society that exists on the Snow Piercer.
As a post apocalyptic story it's depiction of this society that depends on staying on the rails and obeying the rules is thought provoking. As usual it falls flat with it's depiction of women, but as a complete story it's quite compelling - in a dark bleak way.
July 12, 2014
The two stories in this volume swap the first storyline's existential allegory for more character-driven political parable, with strong relevance to the threat of a return to a "demon-haunted world" that Carl Sagan warned about in his final years. The expansion of the world of the first volume is exactly what a good sequel ought to provide, and what portions of the story lack in cogent storytelling flow is made up for by an indelibly haunting mood. The darker, smudgier art of this volume gave a visceral sense of what it would be like to live in this world, and like THX 1138, it feels more like a text that might be produced in the world it depicts than one that cleanly explicates that world for outsiders.
September 9, 2024
The artwork makes the story hard to follow, very difficult to tell characters apart or understand what's going on.
January 17, 2023
2.5 from one side the events there like a roller coaster, from other side it’s nothing like a story.
February 17, 2014
I am constantly amazed with the impressive concepts authors and filmmakers are coming up with in regard to potential post-apocalyptic societies and how they might play out. From futuristic, peaceful groups to feudal tribes to desolate wasteland scavengers, thousands of different scenarios have been played out in various media. But I can honestly say I never considered the remnants of humanity traveling on a perpetual train. Thus is the premise for SNOWPIERCER, a French graphic novel that has recently been released in English. And while the idea might sound simple, it’s not; there is a lot going on in the storyline, which makes this series an epic must-have for comics fans!
I was hesitant to even read this series at first; the idea of the world’s survivors traveling around the globe on an enormous train almost sounds too far-fetched to even consider. But I was also intrigued. If a film star like Chris Evans liked the material enough to be in a movie version, then there must be something there. I’m glad I gave the series a chance, because it’s excellent!
SNOWPIERCER is written very well and flows at a nice pace. There’s a lot of drama involved in the first volume, but the second picks up the pace even more so. I am very impressed with how the writing moves you so quickly through the story. I finished the books before I even realized it!
The artwork looks great as well. My sole complaint is that I wish it had been done in color. I understand the black-and-white aspect can create more drama, but I would really have liked to have seen the detail. This is certainly nothing that should dissuade you from reading it…just a simple, personal opinion.
SNOWPIERCER is a unique vision of what the future could potentially hold for mankind. It is a solidly original entry into the post-apocalyptic genre, and a welcome one at that. I highly recommend giving it a look. Volume 1 is available now, while Volume 2 will hit store shelves next week.
I was hesitant to even read this series at first; the idea of the world’s survivors traveling around the globe on an enormous train almost sounds too far-fetched to even consider. But I was also intrigued. If a film star like Chris Evans liked the material enough to be in a movie version, then there must be something there. I’m glad I gave the series a chance, because it’s excellent!
SNOWPIERCER is written very well and flows at a nice pace. There’s a lot of drama involved in the first volume, but the second picks up the pace even more so. I am very impressed with how the writing moves you so quickly through the story. I finished the books before I even realized it!
The artwork looks great as well. My sole complaint is that I wish it had been done in color. I understand the black-and-white aspect can create more drama, but I would really have liked to have seen the detail. This is certainly nothing that should dissuade you from reading it…just a simple, personal opinion.
SNOWPIERCER is a unique vision of what the future could potentially hold for mankind. It is a solidly original entry into the post-apocalyptic genre, and a welcome one at that. I highly recommend giving it a look. Volume 1 is available now, while Volume 2 will hit store shelves next week.
May 17, 2017
well that was just awful! So according to this hack of a writer, there was another train with the exact same technology on the exact same tracks, and apparently smashed into the other train. It looks like they fit the old engine into the new train and the mummified remains operate the old engine, while a former explorer keeps the mummified remains company..YEA I'm not making this up...Oh but it gets better! They can apparently put chains on the wheels so it can hop off the tracks and cruise around on the frozen ocean, no explanation of how they actually got the train off the tracks or how they can actually steer a train (most trains run on rails so there is no need for a steering wheel only an acceleration and brake lever). Oh wait it gets even better! So while they are cruising on the ocean, they encounter a ship that just so happens to fire two missiles, no more explanation given and the book ends with the signal they received as just an old systematic recording. Even the artist didn't put much into (same artist as the first book) this book. The most tragic of all this is that I bought the 2nd and 3rd volumes hoping they were as good as the first (I doubt I'll ever read the 3rd volume)..I truly hope Jacques Lob is haunting the sh!t out of Benjamin LeGrand on an hourly basis, for that hack has truly ruined such an amazing story!
This entire review has been hidden because of spoilers.
February 12, 2021
After the propulsive, straight-forward plot of Snowpiercer Vol 1: The Escape, this second volume sprawls unnecessarily. Even more characters, just as little depth for any of them. The narrative again moves quickly, but with glaring gaps. The train can stop? The train can go off rails? The train can contain another train? Okay, sure, this is sci-fi, do whatever.
The gist of The Explorers is that Puig, an explorer on a second, larger Snowpiercer train, becomes too beloved by the middle class trainfolk, so he's raised up to the high council, where he can be more effectively muffled. That's the politics plotline, at least. Otherwise, there are explosions, dramatic scenes of abandonment, exploration, weird reveals, people being stuffed in drawers, etc., etc., etc. The Explorers is just a lot. And the art has an unfinished quality that's a clear step down from the first book.
At least the book is just as bleak as its predecessor. That ending, woof. I still had plenty of fun with The Escape, it was just the type of fun where you shake your head and mutter, "wait, what?"
The gist of The Explorers is that Puig, an explorer on a second, larger Snowpiercer train, becomes too beloved by the middle class trainfolk, so he's raised up to the high council, where he can be more effectively muffled. That's the politics plotline, at least. Otherwise, there are explosions, dramatic scenes of abandonment, exploration, weird reveals, people being stuffed in drawers, etc., etc., etc. The Explorers is just a lot. And the art has an unfinished quality that's a clear step down from the first book.
At least the book is just as bleak as its predecessor. That ending, woof. I still had plenty of fun with The Escape, it was just the type of fun where you shake your head and mutter, "wait, what?"
September 21, 2022
An upgrade from the first Snowpiercer despite being set 15 years after the first volume with no returning characters on an entirety different train and still being a horribly paced and not so well translated sequel. I found the art to be an upgrade as was the general storyline. I really need volume 3 or one of these 2 prequel volumes to explain why no one on Snowpiercer knew there was a second train and how the two never made contact with each other for years. I’m honestly starting to think the TV show is telling this story better than the original creators ever could have. It’s far more cohesive and connected. That being said, there is so much excellent world building done that I confined to find myself engrossed in the story and the characters. I actually found myself liking the characters this time even if there wasn’t much time to fully care about them or show their progression.
September 1, 2014
Pretty bad. Some interesting ideas, but woefully underdeveloped. The art was pretty slapdash. Don't know why someone felt the first volume required a sequel. Honestly, the movie is SO MUCH better than either of these graphic novels.
March 12, 2014
If you're convinced that french literature could not possibly be more dark and dismal, this book will prove you wrong.
March 20, 2020
Cash-grab that obviates the stunning nature of the original.
September 2, 2020
Este pode ser um grande clássico da BD mundial, mas por mim este segundo volume era dispensável.
September 14, 2020
Snowpiercer, Vol. 2: The Explorers, by Benjamin Legrand, is the follow up to the previous Snowpiercer: Volume 1, The Escape. I did not love the first in the series, but this one was of higher quality. This book follows a train that holds the last vestiges of humanity that is plowing through a post-apocalyptic world in a deep ice age. Deep social divisions are rife, and a council of the powerful control the train and its humans fully. Reproduction is banned in the back of the train, food is tightly controlled, and the discourse on the religious discourse on the train is meant for social control. This one was better than the first, the discourse a bit tighter, and the story more interesting. I look forward to the next one.
September 17, 2021
Hard to see where this is all going and for what. Still, I enjoy the ride, the concept is interesting, the story even if not great is good enough to keep me engage and the art is also adding something nice.
August 19, 2025
I liked this a lot better than the first volume and found that the story flowed a lot better as a result of this. I did also like that we are seeing the references which also influenced the tv show as well as it seems more based on this novel than the first one.
August 29, 2025
My interest in this volume ebbed and flowed a lot which was probably not helped by how sporadically I read it. I do think it was much better paced than the prequel I read, and the ending was wildly depressing. I think there’s only one more volume left which I guess I’ll read for the sake of finishing this series but I really need to stop reading books that spark zero joy for me.
January 4, 2018
Actual rating: 2.5 stars
Definitely lacking in comparison to the first volume, but has some interesting ideas. Recommended in order to get to the third volume.
Definitely lacking in comparison to the first volume, but has some interesting ideas. Recommended in order to get to the third volume.
December 10, 2019
I picked up the first volume of Snowpiercer a little while back and enjoyed it, but then funnily enough my girlfriend was talking about the movie and so I figured I ought to get it finished. In particular, we’re both pretty interested in the way that class is represented in the form of the different trains and the way they’re separated.
From what I understand, the first volume was created by a different author, but then he passed away and so the stories was adopted by someone new. It worked pretty cohesively though, and I think there might even be a third volume out there for me to pick up at some point. I’m glad I picked it up for sure.
From what I understand, the first volume was created by a different author, but then he passed away and so the stories was adopted by someone new. It worked pretty cohesively though, and I think there might even be a third volume out there for me to pick up at some point. I’m glad I picked it up for sure.
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February 2, 2023ok deprimerend
February 21, 2023
The Explorers is a solid expansion of the story of Snowpiercer. It was interesting to see which things were introduced this time around. The characters were a little hollow and the story was a touch repetitive after the first volume, but it was still enjoyable. One of my criticisms last time was my discomfort with the amount of sexual violence (and how it was portrayed), especially compared to the number of female characters, but volume two doesn't really portray sexual violence, and that was better for me personally. Also, I feel like Rochette's artwork improved in the time between the first volume and this one, and it was interesting to see that evolution. It's worth reading for anyone curious about the world being built, and there's definitely some interesting things going on, but it didn't really knock my socks off. I'm still planning on reading volume three though.
August 20, 2014
As a fan of heartwarming post-apolocyptic dystopian stories, I recently saw the film Snowpiercer, which left me asking lots of questions about the train and the people on-board. Naturally, then, I came to the source material for answers, operating on the idea that the book is (almost) always better than the movie. Not in this case!
Volume 1 (The Escape) was, incredibly, even more sparse on story and character development than the film. Concepts the graphic novel and the film have in common: a perpetual-motion train, a class system, and lots of snow outside. The Escape is a heavy-handed social criticism given a visual metaphor, and not much else.
Volume 2 includes issues two and three, The Explorers and The Crossing. Honestly, I opened the cover only because I'd gone to the trouble of requesting the Snowpiercer books from the library, and so had it in hand. I wasn't expecting much, but am happy to have had my expectation dashed.
In The Explorers, we learn there is a second train, Icebreaker, housing the remnants of humanity, and of which Snowpiercer is ignorant. Aboard Icebreaker, however, the passengers are all too aware of Snowpiercer, and live in fear of a head-on collision with the other train, an event that seems to become more of a cosmic certainty with every passing year.
In this atmosphere of paranoia and eternal boredom, we meet Puig. The several panels devoted to his backstory help make him a much more richly developed protagonist than Proloff from The Escape. Puig is an Explorer, someone who ventures outside the train to evaluate conditions and hunt for artifacts from humanity's past. One mission leads him to a startling discovery about those who lead Icebreaker's society, and the fate of Snowpiercer.
The Explorers delivers a tight, fast-paced story that maintains the original installment's gritty class struggle, while dialing back the existentialism in favor of telling a cohesive tale.
Part 3, The Crossing, goes a little off the rails, both figuratively and literally. While no solid time frame is given, The Crossing seems to take place several years after the events of The Explorers. In this issue, the philosophical and sociological issues raised in The Escape return to the forefront. What would (or should) we sacrifice in the name of not being alone in the universe? When Puig and the other leaders of Icebreaker discover a signal that might indicate the existence of other survivors of Earth's cataclysm, they decide to track down the source of the signal. This choice creates a schism in Icebreaker's society, between those who wish to continue their safe, predictable existence, and those who yearn for a brighter future.
It should be noted that there are two different authors in the Snowpiercer series. The Escape was written by Jacques Lob. He passed away in 1990, and Benjamin Legrand is the author behind The Explorers and The Crossing. While Lob must be credited for devising Snowpiercer's world, Legrand is the author who, in my opinion, realized the true potential of the concept.
Volume 1 (The Escape) was, incredibly, even more sparse on story and character development than the film. Concepts the graphic novel and the film have in common: a perpetual-motion train, a class system, and lots of snow outside. The Escape is a heavy-handed social criticism given a visual metaphor, and not much else.
Volume 2 includes issues two and three, The Explorers and The Crossing. Honestly, I opened the cover only because I'd gone to the trouble of requesting the Snowpiercer books from the library, and so had it in hand. I wasn't expecting much, but am happy to have had my expectation dashed.
In The Explorers, we learn there is a second train, Icebreaker, housing the remnants of humanity, and of which Snowpiercer is ignorant. Aboard Icebreaker, however, the passengers are all too aware of Snowpiercer, and live in fear of a head-on collision with the other train, an event that seems to become more of a cosmic certainty with every passing year.
In this atmosphere of paranoia and eternal boredom, we meet Puig. The several panels devoted to his backstory help make him a much more richly developed protagonist than Proloff from The Escape. Puig is an Explorer, someone who ventures outside the train to evaluate conditions and hunt for artifacts from humanity's past. One mission leads him to a startling discovery about those who lead Icebreaker's society, and the fate of Snowpiercer.
The Explorers delivers a tight, fast-paced story that maintains the original installment's gritty class struggle, while dialing back the existentialism in favor of telling a cohesive tale.
Part 3, The Crossing, goes a little off the rails, both figuratively and literally. While no solid time frame is given, The Crossing seems to take place several years after the events of The Explorers. In this issue, the philosophical and sociological issues raised in The Escape return to the forefront. What would (or should) we sacrifice in the name of not being alone in the universe? When Puig and the other leaders of Icebreaker discover a signal that might indicate the existence of other survivors of Earth's cataclysm, they decide to track down the source of the signal. This choice creates a schism in Icebreaker's society, between those who wish to continue their safe, predictable existence, and those who yearn for a brighter future.
It should be noted that there are two different authors in the Snowpiercer series. The Escape was written by Jacques Lob. He passed away in 1990, and Benjamin Legrand is the author behind The Explorers and The Crossing. While Lob must be credited for devising Snowpiercer's world, Legrand is the author who, in my opinion, realized the true potential of the concept.
November 30, 2015
After seeing the movie, I decided to read Jacques Lob's Transperceneige (Snowpiercer). It took me a while to get hold of the graphic novel, but I was excited to read about this dystopian setting: following a climate disaster, after which all of the earth froze, we are following the adventures of the few survivors riding an eternally moving train. Humans being humans, onboard the train emerges a strongly stratified society. The adventure follows the fight for equality of the most opressed group, the people at the tail of the train. Or so I thought, from the movie. In fact, the movie seems to be either a prequel or a sequel of the tamer scenario in this book. Overall, this second and third installments of the graphic novel were very disappointing, from storyline to characters, from background story to graphics.
We are now past the first installment of the series, so the background story already includes many examples of "this happened... because Zanzibar". These cannot be fixed easily, as any builder of a rich universe has figured in the past, but at least the authors should try to not err again. Instead, we learn that the train government is under-reporting the sustainability related achievements; in particular, the ability of the train to produce its own food. We don't learn why, and since when. Similarly, the government is letting even its own people get bored to death, by denying the creatives in the broadcasting business the power to create new movies and scenes; but... why?!
The main story line has some more interesting parts, especially when the engine slows down - drop the tail and kill the people there, or slow down so all would freeze to death? -, when the train picks up a radio signal - are there other survivors? -, and in a few other reasonable plot twists. Unfortunately, again the plot progresses in jerks, with little thought the characters (or the authors) seem to put into aolvong their own problems, and much given to incredible new tech or simply to randomness.
The characters remain simpletons, but are better contoured than in the first installment of the series. The hero starts having doubts about his role, to be a rich bastard or to remain in touch with the people, but that's about it.
The graphics remain modern comics style, thick contours, little detail, somewhat realistic faces and environment features. Nothing spectacular, albeit better than the first volume.
We are now past the first installment of the series, so the background story already includes many examples of "this happened... because Zanzibar". These cannot be fixed easily, as any builder of a rich universe has figured in the past, but at least the authors should try to not err again. Instead, we learn that the train government is under-reporting the sustainability related achievements; in particular, the ability of the train to produce its own food. We don't learn why, and since when. Similarly, the government is letting even its own people get bored to death, by denying the creatives in the broadcasting business the power to create new movies and scenes; but... why?!
The main story line has some more interesting parts, especially when the engine slows down - drop the tail and kill the people there, or slow down so all would freeze to death? -, when the train picks up a radio signal - are there other survivors? -, and in a few other reasonable plot twists. Unfortunately, again the plot progresses in jerks, with little thought the characters (or the authors) seem to put into aolvong their own problems, and much given to incredible new tech or simply to randomness.
The characters remain simpletons, but are better contoured than in the first installment of the series. The hero starts having doubts about his role, to be a rich bastard or to remain in touch with the people, but that's about it.
The graphics remain modern comics style, thick contours, little detail, somewhat realistic faces and environment features. Nothing spectacular, albeit better than the first volume.
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