40-Episode Sci-Fi Series Delivers Flawless Post-Apocalyptic Worldbuilding

Post-apocalyptic sci-fi shows are fun, but they are almost always set in familiar worlds. In most, humans struggle to survive while nature gradually reclaims decaying urban landscapes. After social structures collapse, surviving humans attempt to rebuild and reclaim everything that remains. One epic post-apocalyptic sci-fi show with 40 episodes does not necessarily defy the norm.

The show in question, Snowpiercer, is also set in the ruins of a completely frozen world. However, what makes it feel incredibly novel and distinct among the vast array of post-apocalyptic sci-fi shows is how it confines itself to a train. Each passenger car on the central train represents a social class, with the last one accommodated by those with the least amount of privilege.

Interestingly, Snowpiercer expands the world portrayed in Bong Joon Ho’s movie of the same name. While borrowing the foundational story elements from the original movie, the Snowpiercer TV series carefully sets up its own world in its 40-episode runtime. While it isn’t arguably as perfect as the movie, its worldbuilding almost feels flawless.

Snowpiercer’s Post-Apocalyptic Worldbuilding Is Phenomenal

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In its two-hour runtime, Bong Joon Ho’s Snowpiercer does an incredible job of establishing everything from the different classes that exist in its world to setting up the high stakes for the overarching survival drama. The show, in contrast, is not as quick-paced and gripping throughout its runtime as the movie. What drives it, though, is its ability to turn the movie’s central allegory into a full-fledged world.

Instead of merely walking through a story about class warfare, the show unfolds as a procedural and political drama. While it does reveal how different cultural biomes separate each class in the central train, it also dives deep into the logistics of the setting. The series heavily focuses on how anything and everything is effectively preserved and reused in the large steel tube.

There are dedicated cars for agriculture and even the smallest losses in any of these can trigger famine across all classes. Since the dead cannot be buried in the limited space inside the train, they, too, are recycled into compost. This even becomes a solid metaphor for how the desire to survive has turned humans into cannibals.

The Snowpiercer TV show treats the train itself as a separate deity. Regardless of who they are and which class they belong to, all passengers unknowingly follow a religion that has gradually taken shape under the train’s steel roof. Unlike the movie, the show even expands its vision beyond the central train and explores whether survival was ever possible outside the train.

How The Snowpiercer Show Compares To The Bong Joon Ho Movie

Bong Joon Ho’s Snowpiercer unfolds at a breakneck speed and is packed with one action set piece after another. The movie also has some brilliantly timed twists and boasts incredible performances, explaining why it has an impressive Rotten Tomatoes score of 94%. Compared to the movie, the show’s reception was mixed.

While it does have a decent Rotten Tomatoes score of 75% after four seasons, it seemingly lacked the narrative highs and emotional stakes that drove the movie. Even the central allegory about real-world class divides is not a primary driver of many primary story beats in the series. Unlike the movie, the show even has moments where it seems more like a mystery-box thriller than a political apocalyptic drama.

Still, it is hard not to appreciate how the sci-fi series attempts to bring something new to the table. Instead of merely emulating the things that worked for the movie, the Snowpiercer series attempts to bend its predecessor’s tone and expand its world. Owing to this, it remains engaging throughout its 40-episode runtime and proves to be a worthy extension of Bong Joon Ho’s masterpiece.