Warning! The following contains spoilers for the Snowpiercer episode "These Are His Revolutions." Read at your own risk!
There were many surprises to enjoy in the latest Snowpiercer, though no twists or turns were quite as thrilling as the one at the very end. The mission to save the Tailees in the drawers was successful, but when the team went to free the former rebellion-leader Pike from his Kronole-induced slumber, his drawer was already empty. The scene then cut to Steven Ogg's character enjoying a chunk of cake in First Class, surrounded by others who are now wishing to use him as an agent, presumably against the rebellion.
It was an exciting return for viewers who had been eagerly waiting for Steven Ogg's character to reappear, though him being back now is potentially devastating news, considering he could now be working for the wrong side. I got a chance to speak to Ogg about coming back into the Snowpiercer fold, and he shared his thoughts about Pike re-entering the narrative, and as well as his take on Pike's decision to eat cake and hear what First Class has to say. In Ogg's words:
Yeah, it was a quick, quick indication of what Pike's gonna do to survive, you know? I mean, that's the story of the train. Bess with her scene in the train where they all sort of take that moment, she even says, ‘I made my choice switching teams.’ That's the story of the show, right? I was excited because I got to have a new adventure, which was exciting.
Considering where Pike's mental state was at towards the beginning of the series, this most recent scene felt quite odd. Layton couldn't even talk Pike down from carrying out the disastrous original Tail attack, which got him and other Tailees sent to the drawers. Now, the revolutionary is all of a sudden teaming with the other side over sugary desserts, so it's easy to question his motivations going forward. Hearing Ogg's thought process, however, makes it a bit clearer and perhaps signals that the character's intentions are wholly self-motivated and aren't necessarily personal against anyone else.
Regardless of his intentions, Snowpiercer fans may have the vibe now that Steven Ogg's Pike is the type of shady character that the actor has often played in other shows such as The Walking Dead and Westworld. I asked Ogg if that's the type of vibe he gets off Pike and, despite what we saw from his return, the actor said he doesn't think things are quite so nefarious.
Like I said, I think it’s just survival. He’s doing what he has to do to survive. The show starts seven years into the journey of this train. We don’t know what happened in those seven years. I mean, Pike might have just been a lovable, fun-loving guy in the beginning, and then you become hardened and you try different things.So I think Pike is just a sort of an opportunist more than someone who can't be trusted or is flip-flopping. And even if that's not true, I like to say it because then it just makes me feel better.
We can only speculate on what the First Class will use Pike for, and whether or not the end result will be worth the cake they have to keep feeding him for it. Pike seems to have a pretty accurate read on Layton's stomach for revolution judging from the final scene, so hopefully Pike isn't yet fully committed to doing whatever First Class wants requests in order to squash the rebellion and maintain the status quo.
Snowpiercer airs on TNT Sundays at 8:00 p.m. ET. Continue to stick with CinemaBlend for more on the series, and stay tuned for more from our interviews with Steven Ogg and other Snowpiercer stars.
