Snowfall Review
- Apr 26, 2023
- 5 min read
Updated: Jul 11, 2023
“I realized you either join the system and become what you hate or fight it and let it destroy you…now I don’t have to choose. I found the best of both worlds, their system, my way.”
Last week, one of the most poignant TV series had a bittersweet ending that left every fan with gut-wrenching emotions. Spanning six seasons from 2017-2023, Snowfall has held high ratings on FX and good reviews on Rotten Tomatoes since its debut, but unfortunately, all good shows must end.
Based in the 1980s, Snowfall is a crime drama about the start of the crack cocaine epidemic in South Central. It tells how an intelligent young teenager builds a million-dollar drug empire from the ground up with the assistance of his family and the government.
Franklin Saint is an ambitious teenager who wants financial freedom and a better system than the average 9-5 life. He starts as a charismatic kid who doesn't fully comprehend the drug game's danger until he's beaten, robbed, and betrayed. As he goes through each tragic experience, he becomes more ruthless, prideful, and cunning. Finally, there is a dramatic shift from him wanting to avoid violence to him wanting to protect his empire no matter the cost.
Damson Idris plays the role of Franklin Saint and successfully masters the art of shifting from a calm, collected character into an unstable and unpredictable one. Idris deserves an Emmy or an Oscar for his astounding performance throughout the series. His acting style and mannerism compare to a younger Denzel Washington.
Alongside Damson Idris, his co-stars also raise the bar as they each have their storyline with their portrayal of his family members, Louie, Leon, Cissy, and Jerome.
Cissy Saint is Franklin's mother, struggling financially and initially reluctant to accept help from her drug-dealing son. Jerome Saint is Franklin's uncle and Cissy's brother; he doesn't want to become a part of the business but falls into it as he strives to protect his girlfriend and nephew.
Louie is Jerome's girlfriend and Franklin's aunt, who helps Franklin build his empire, but she has ulterior motives. Leon Simmons is Franklin's best friend who stands by him no matter what and also strives to give back to his community.
Directed by the late John Singleton, who is known for legendary films such as Boyz N The Hood, Baby Boy, Four Brothers, and Poetic Justice. Snowfall has remarkable character developments, compelling performances, and phenomenal cinematography that will make this show go down in television history as one of the best.
If you pay close attention to everything in the series, you will notice the symbolism and foreshadowing. There are also powerful messages in the show regarding family, racism, and the government's involvement in the birth of the crack cocaine epidemic in black communities.
Some people compare this show to The Wire and Power, but because I have not finished either series yet, I cannot say it is. However, I do know that Snowfall is not your average crime series as it tells an impactful story with multiple layers.
Therefore, I recommend binge-watching this creative, award-winning masterpiece on Hulu. Below, I go in-depth about my thoughts on the series finale, but you should stop reading here if you don't like spoilers.
In the comments or contact form below, let me know your thoughts on the show or if you have any show recommendations. You can click the link here to sign up for the blog email list and submit suggestions for shows :)
Series Finale Thoughts (Spoiler)
Although it was brilliant for the writers to end the series in an unpredictable way that made it come full circle, I'm still not happy with Franklin Saint's ending. Yes, Franklin committed terrible actions, and ultimately, his pride and ego contributed to his demise. I wasn't expecting him to walk off into the sunset, but I would have preferred if he was in prison, dead, or on the run.
It is insane that he never drank or smoked anything throughout the seasons as he always wanted to be in a steady state of mind and watched what substances did to his father and Melody. So for him to finally drink in the series finale after taking one too many failures and then become an alcoholic who loses everything for the remainder of the episode is mind-blowing to me.
It is a full circle moment for Franklin to become exactly like his father, someone he despised and resented initially. Ultimately, he loses everything - his family, money, power, respect, and sanity. What exactly is considered the ultimate price for your freedom?
As for Cissy, she doesn't deserve to be in prison for the rest of her life, but she did decide to shoot a CIA agent in broad daylight, so there wasn't much hope for her after that. Also, she killed Teddy out of vengeance and vindictiveness before he could transfer the money to Franklin. If Franklin had received that money, he could have used it to get out of his debt, take care of his family, and have a better outcome for his character. However, I am shocked that Cissy and Franklin's relationship deteriorated towards the end, as they had such a solid mother-son bond throughout most of the series.
As for Louie, she got what she deserved. She cold-bloodedly betrayed Franklin during critical moments when he needed her the most. She also continued a family feud that forced her husband, Jerome, to choose a side, and that contributed to his death when all he wanted was to be out of the game and for her to be by his side. Despite everything the family went through together, Louie let her lust for money and power become a priority over her husband and nephew. I am unsurprised that she is still on the run, although I wonder why she never asked Skully for assistance, as they had become good allies.
As for the others, I am happy that Leon and Gustavo have happy endings. Leon cares for the community, and Gustavo is wrestling again while potentially reuniting with his family. However, one question that remains for me is what happened to Lucia, and why did she disappear on Gustavo without a trace the way she did?
The other questions I have are:
What happened to Skully? Does he become a more prominent leader once the Saint family is out of the picture? Are we going to see him thriving in the rumored spinoff?
Why didn't they bring back Melody? I was half expecting her to return with a vengeance and be a part of Franklin's demise. Did she ever return home and see what Franklin became, or does she still live in Texas?
PS: I did love the reference to John Singleton and how it ended with the beginning production of "Boyz N The Hood" in 1990. The series finale was genuinely poetic, and although I'm not a fan of Franklin's ending, the writers did a brilliant job of shocking viewers.
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