The Drawers

“	They're not a prison. They're a lifeboat. We're hanging by our nails. Layton, we're hanging by our nails. The whole goddamn human experiment, it can be undone by a bloom of mold. Four hundred people. They were selected for diversity, for health, for skills. To give us a fighting chance on the other side.	”
	— Melanie Cavill

History[edit | edit source]

The Drawers were experimental technology even before Snowpiercer departed. As there would be no use for this kind of technology on a Luxury Liner, they must have been added to the train when it underwent the refit to become the Great Ark. The lead scientist of the project was Dr. Henry Klimpt.

It is revealed by Melanie Cavill that The Drawers should serve as humanity's lifeboat, it's last hope for survival. Each Drawers Car is equipped with three rows of eleven Drawers, making it a total of thirty-three Drawers by car. The twelve Drawers Car have been designed to save 396 pre-selected persons based on their genetic profile or aptitudes. They would be put into suspended animation if resource crash or other issues became inevitable.^[1] Many individuals speculated about the purpose of The Drawers, ranging from extrajudicial imprisonment to medical experiments.

Throughout the Series[edit | edit source]

Season 1[edit | edit source]

The first time we were introduced to the Drawers is when Melanie and Roche shows Layton sleeping Nikki Genêt.^[2]
The Notary oversees Pike, Z-Wreck and Strong Boy getting put in the drawers as a punishment.^[3]
After Henry Klimpt admitted that he sold some of the suspension drug to the outsiders, Layton, Till, Melanie and Klimpt arrived at the Drawer Car to talk about the situation, Layton also recognized Miles' hair and demand to see him.^[4]
Melanie oversees Layton being put in one of the drawers and told Klimpt to keep him off the list.^[5]
Melanie and Jinju visited Klimpt, the three discussed about why Nikki remained unconscious for so long after waking up.^[6]
Annie stole the keys to the drawers from Klimpt, she and Terence arrived and stole suspension drugs. Josie was left alone to find Layton and discovered Mia Kai-Sheck by accident. After she finally found Layton, Till and Osweiller arrived. Till is shocked to see Layton in one of the drawers and not sent back to the Tail, so she hit Osweiller unconscious and help Josie.^[6]

After the revolution, everyone was freed from The Drawers.

When Wilford returned, it was revealed that he had Drawers on board Big Alice and he started imprisoning people once again, including Sam Roche and his family. After the return of the Pirate Train, Roche and his family were rescued by Bess Till and Doctor Pelton, but while Roche and his daughter Carly were in stable condition, Anne Roche had died at some point. Her desiccated corpse suggested that Anne had been dead in the Drawers for some time before her death was discovered rather than it being a recent development.

Technology[edit | edit source]

Little is known about how the technology of The Drawers works. All that is known is that its some kind of drug-induced suspended animation.^[3] While presumably the "frozen" bodies age much slower, they still grow hair and nails. The Suspension Drug is a yellow liquid kept in plastic bags and is used in the creation of Kronole. Patients frozen in The Drawers require a lengthy "waking up" procedure before they fully recover. The longest occupant was Nikki Genêt who was frozen for over two years. Waking her up from the suspended animation proved difficult, as she suffered many side effects that appear similar to Kronole withdrawal effects. Jinju Seong also speculated that unfrozen patients may suffer locked-in-syndrome.

Interior[edit | edit source]

Known occupants:[edit | edit source]

Appearances[edit | edit source]

Appearance	EP1	EP2	EP3	EP4	EP5	EP7	EP8
Season 1	✔	✔	✔	✔	✔		✔
Season 2
Season 3
Season 4
✔ = Appeared			Did Not Appear			F = Flashback
Note: Appearances for the interior of the car only.

Trivia[edit | edit source]

Many fans speculated that Joseph Wilford would ultimately be in the Drawers.
Dr. Klimpt sold the suspension drug on the Black Market to acquire aftercare products for his sleepers, vegetable balms to prevent bedsores.
Doctor Pelton stated that "it's her own little North Korea, tucked away in Second Class."
Big Alice also has Drawers.
Lead Brakeman Sam Roche attempted to kill Joseph Wilford with the suspension drug for the death of his wife.
The suspension drug appears to be the main component while the Drawers presumably monitor the person and possibly administer the drug over time. As seen with Melanie Cavill and Wilford, just use of the drug alone is enough to put a person into suspension.
The lab at the Rocky Mountain shed is possibly where the research was conducted that created the suspension drug and Drawer technology.
Despite a lengthy "waking up" procedure before they fully recover, Melanie was able to sleep and wake up, multiple times, for 6 months in the Track scaler and wake up 3 days later (after being rescued), with no side effects. She probably learned from the Drawers and the patients, how to do this.