Big Alice

“	She's low-torqued. We can outrun her.	”
	— Melanie Cavill

Big Alice is a prototype^[1] of the Eternal Engine used as the locomotive for a secondary supply train. It carries a 40-cars long train (initially 43-cars long), containing supplies and parts for Snowpiercer. It was built by Wilford Industries.

History

Very little is known about Big Alice, other than that it was a prototype. It served as a testbed for the "Perpetual Motion Engine" used by the Wilford Industries Global Express, later Snowpiercer. Before The Freeze, it was connected to a 43-car long supply train, that was intended to carry out supply runs to Snowpiercer should it need them along its journey. However, because it was a prototype, the Engine didn't work and because they didn't have time to fix it, the train was abandoned.

When Melanie Cavill carried out her coup against Wilford, she abandoned him at boarding. Leaving Wilford no other alternative than retrofitting Big Alice to survive. Wilford also appears to have gathered many Wilford Industries staff to crew Big Alice. Alexandra Cavill was with her grandparents and was meant to arrive at Snowpiercer at boarding, but did not arrive, she then somehow found her way to Big Alice and survived.

Wilford got Big Alice to low idle and managed to hunker down in a shed for a couple of months. By the time Snowpiercer was on the other side of the world, out of satellite view, Big Alice was outfitted. According to Alex, Big Alice started with 200 passengers but Wilford culled half of them in order to save resources. In the first year after the Freeze, Big Alice had departed with 43 cars, however, 3 cars (one of which was a Lemon) were disconnected on a secondary track in Southeast Asia, near Thailand, when Wilford had made the decision to lose weight, cut down on resource usage and culled half of Big Alice's population at night, when the passengers were sleeping. The ones he saved he deemed The Essentials.

Big Alice then followed Snowpiercer on the mainline (and secondary line shortcuts) for almost seven years, before taking a shortcut over the old Rocky Mountain test track, nicknamed Neckbreaker, to get to Snowpiercer.

Snowpiercer was then chased down by Big Alice, which connected through a 'Jack' system, and brought Snowpiercer to a stop. Melanie then cut the uplink, planted a bomb, and got Snowpiercer moving again.

Snowpiercer later invaded Big Alice and captured Kevin, in an attempt to free Melanie from Wilford, but was stopped by Icy Bob. Wilford then stopped the trains again and attempted to disconnect from Snowpiercer, leave the passengers to die, and then return to retrieve the train afterward. However, the bomb that Melanie had planted earlier, destroyed Big Alice's connecting mechanism, as Wilford had overbuilt it, something that Melanie had warned him about before. As a result, Snowpiercer and Big Alice were left permanently connected. With no other choice, Wilford reluctantly started the trains moving again.

Big Alice later helped Snowpiercer get over Neckbreaker, by using its booster, to get Melanie to the Breslauer Weather Station.

Wilford then had Icy Bob walk atop Big Alice and Snowpiercer, to sabotage the Engine, by jamming a giant spike in one of the Engines port intakes (as part of his plan). However, the plan went south, when Wilford could not fix the Engine, because of Melanie's hack. Big Alice was then forced to push Snowpiercer powered down, in order to restart the boogie motors.

When Wilford learned that Snowpiercer was trying to rescue Melanie, he used Big Alice's torque and the momentum to push Snowpiercer over the crest of Neckbreaker, preventing them from rescuing her and presumably killing her.

After Josie Wellstead destroyed The Aquarium and the Pirate train was created to rescue Melanie, Big Alice was forced to push and pull Snowpiercer without the support of its Engine, until the Pirate train returned. The train was hobbled and slow as a result. According to Bojan Boscovic, "Big Alice has enough juice for systems to survive...", which meant it was powering Snowpiercer. Big Alice then switched to reverse and began chasing the Pirate train for 6 months.

At the start of Season 3, it was shown that the engine of Big Alice alone powered the remaining 1,023 cars. However, without Snowpiercer's engine output, the energy it provided was only enough to run essential systems on the train. As a result, it was minus degrees inside the train and all resources were rationed. First Class on Snowpiercer was even decommissioned by Wilford to save energy.

After detecting an EMP from Big Alice, the Pirate train returned and engaged in a game of cat and mouse in a rail yard (located in north-east China) where the much smaller and more nimble Pirate train had the advantage. The Pirate train attempted to use debris on the track to slow down Big Alice, after passing Big Alice at speed, but it got through. Despite having the upper hand at first due to damaging the other train with a harpoon, resulting in the loss of 4 cars from the Pirate train, Big Alice's lack of power proved to be a major weakness for Wilford as the train lacked the power to escape on its own, literally crawling up a hill and coming to a stop mere feet away from the parked Pirate train. Simply bumping Big Alice with Snowpiercer's Engine sent the other train rolling back down the tracks until Wilford applied the brakes and powered down in order to force the Pirate train to reconnect.

After defeating Wilford and the reconnection of the Pirate train, Big Alice fell under Andre Layton's control along with Snowpiercer. Wilford himself was imprisoned in a cell in the Engine of Big Alice, while a Brakeman stood guard.

Snowpiercer later came across the 3 abandoned cars disconnected as part of Wilford's cull and dropped off Bennett and Alex to release the clamps, while the train reversed, came back and pushed the cars out of the way. At the same time, Brakemen Michael was guarding Wilford, when Lead Brakemen Sam Roche relived him, attempting to kill Wilford in revenge for the death of his wife, who died in the Drawers.

Population

Estimated to be around 100 as said by Kevin, Head of Hospitality on Big Alice, as of Smolder to Life. According to Alexandra Cavill, the train started with 200 people but Wilford culled half of the population (men, women and children) in order to save resources.

Joseph Wilford - CEO of Wilford Industries. Head Engineer. Conductor (of both trains formerly, Prisoner on Snowpiercer)
Jupiter - Wilford's dog
Unknown number of Jackboots (both trains)
Mrs. Headwood - Scientist
Oiler Bob
Damien Ho - Galley Worker
Hannah - friend of Josie, has a prosthetic left arm

Cargo

According to Bennett Knox, as of 994 Cars Long, Snowpiercer is coming apart; there are no perpetual motion parts and Big Alice is packed with parts, such as bogie-motors, bovine cultures, a full genetics lab, enough to keep them going. It is unknown exactly how much Wilford retrofitted Big Alice and how different it is from its original form. Big Alice also has Goop, Amazing Alice, Protein Bars and Spam. 27 of its cars currently carry supplies.

Technology

The "Docking Car" of Big Alice opening up shortly before connecting to Snowpiercer.

Despite having only 40 cars, Melanie believed Snowpiercer could outrun the prototype if all power was pushed to the motors. Eventually, though, Big Alice chased Snowpiercer down and managed to attach itself to the Docking Car of Snowpiercer using a massive connection mechanism concealed within its car. This mechanism also possesses some form of a welder, as it almost immediately began cutting through the Tail hatch once connected. Wilford, however, overbuilt the mechanism which Melanie warned him about. By blowing up the central lock, Melanie ensured that Wilford could never disconnect the two trains, forever linking Big Alice and Snowpiercer.

The car also has some form of 'jack' system, which was used to connect to Snowpiercer and began shutting down individual systems before finally gaining control of the Engine, and engaged the emergency brakes, bringing the train to a screeching halt. Melanie later managed to cut the uplink with a small axe.

According to Head of Hospitality (Kevin), if agriculture on Snowpiercer dies, Wilford can restart everything.

Big Alice has a Booster that increases its speed and has Drawers onboard.

Exterior

While built on the same rail gauge as Snowpiercer, Big Alice is much larger and taller than Snowpiercer itself. It is also significantly darker in coloration, and adorned with bright orange caution stripes, in contrast with Snowpiercer's shiny all-chrome finish. She has two cockpits, one facing the front of the Engine, the other facing the back.

Its cars seem to be similar in design to Snowpiercer's albeit more utilitarian rather than designed for form. However, unlike Snowpiercer, Big Alice's locomotive is large and boxy, more similar to a modern diesel locomotive, and is still extremely powerful while pushing the train to connect with Snowpiercer. It is also ridiculously large compared to its train cars, rather than being flush to the profile like Snowpiercer. Like Snowpiercer, she is also adorned with the large 'W' logo of Wilford Industries in various places.

The Big Alice concept art by Alex Nice, which serves as a basis for the CGI model.

Based on the concept art by Alex Nice, the train is even larger than Snowpiercer, being 10.8 meters wide, 13.3 meters tall (18.1 at the engine), and 88.2 meters long per car (70.8 meters at the engine). This would make the 40 car train exceed a length of 2.2 miles or 3.5 km. This is probably the closest to the actual dimensions however, the scale used during the set is downscaled.

Appearances

Season One

994 Cars Long

Season Two

Season Three

Trivia

Big Alice may be analogous to Icebreaker from the graphic novels, though this is unconfirmed.
The name of the train may be a reference to Lewis Carroll's novel, "Alice in Wonderland".
The Engineers were aware of Big Alice's existence (Javier was in the cockpit once) but were surprised to see it moving.
When trying to escape from Big Alice in 994 Cars Long, Bennett says 40 cars are nothing for her. However, as reveled in Bound by One Track, 3 cars were separated before connecting to Snowpiercer. Which means Bennett (and possibly the other engineers) must have counted the cars.
Carrying 40 carriages (27 supply cars, 13 non-supply cars), Big Alice has 949 fewer carriages than Snowpiercer. The cars have a second floor used to traverse the train.
The cars of Big Alice are equipped with rail clamps, powered by hydraulic ferrofluid line, which essentially bolt the cars to the track. Bennett called it, "They’ve dropped anchor."
Big Alice was retrofitted by Mr. Wilford sometime during Snowpiercer's first revolution.
Unlike Snowpiercer, Big Alice’s Engine car is at the rear of the train and the Docking Car is at the front.
In the Season 2 credits, Big Alice is called a Secondary Supply Train.
At least 4 Crewmen were killed in the failed invasion.
After Melanie Cavill blew up the Connecting Mechanism, Alex and Wilford said, "We can apply the brakes, slow to a crawl. Choke out your power, and shut down your systems." […] "My crew know life below zero. We’ve run a lot of rough miles together. Snowpiercer will tear herself apart. It’s a hell of a test for a leader, when the lights go out and the food stops flowing."
The Compost on Big Alice is called the Swamp.
Big Alice has Drawers and Protein Bars like Snowpiercer.
43 people of one or both trains died in their sleep because of the cold, without Snowpiercer’s Engine.
During the Pirate train's time away, the train left behind was generally not referred to by name. However, multiple characters called the Pirate train Snowpiercer, suggesting that Big Alice came to be considered to be the entire train, including the cars of Snowpiercer that were left behind, while Snowpiercer was the Pirate train alone.
A harpoon was created to attack the Pirate train.
The public address system was connected to Snowpiercer’s at some point, presumably after Wilford took control.
With the return of the Pirate train, the train is now 1029 cars long.