by Charles Kirkland, Jr.
A Berlin Train Becomes the Next Battleground
In the second season of Hijack, the crisis shifts from the skies to the streets of Berlin. A packed underground train becomes the setting for a rapidly escalating hostage situation, with Sam Nelson once again at the center of unfolding chaos.
Sam Nelson Tracks a New Target
The episode opens at a Berlin train terminal, where Sam Nelson (Idris Elba) scans the crowd with purpose. He is clearly searching for someone specific and soon locks onto a man carrying a large red backpack. Sam begins following him through the station, maintaining distance but never losing sight.
As he tails the suspect, Sam receives a call from Olivia. He ignores it, but she leaves a voicemail reminding him not to be late for their scheduled meeting before entering the building herself.
Police Miss Their Suspect
Elsewhere in the city, a police task force raids an apartment believed to house a key suspect. The unit finds the space empty, music blaring throughout. Just as the detective assumes they have arrived too late, he discovers a circuit board and several fake IDs. The conclusion is clear. The suspect has slipped through their hands by minutes.
The U5 Train Toward Hönow
Back at the station, the man with the red backpack boards the U5 train toward Hönow. Sam follows. Inside the train, Sam is briefly interrupted by a woman who recognizes him from a professional conference. He engages politely but keeps his attention fixed on the suspect as the man moves between cars.
Sam’s behavior does not go unnoticed. Two police officers onboard begin watching him closely.
Olivia Connects the Dots
At the police station, Olivia meets with a detective Sam was supposed to see. Instead of Sam, she presents surveillance footage of him inside the underground station. She then produces a photograph and explains that Sam is actively searching for the man responsible for the Kingdom Airlines hijacking. The implication is troubling. Sam is acting independently and without authorization.
A False Alarm and a Missed Stop
On the train, the man with the backpack exits at the next station to take a phone call. Sam watches as the man becomes visibly agitated before reboarding. A group of teenage schoolchildren and two chaperones also board at the stop. One child hesitates and resists getting on, but a chaperone pulls the student inside just as the doors close.
Sam finally confronts the suspect, first quietly, then with increasing urgency, demanding to see inside the backpack. The man refuses. The police officers intervene and escort him off the train at the next stop, ordering him to open the bag. The train departs during the confrontation. The backpack is revealed to be harmless.
Something Is Wrong in the Control Room
Meanwhile, train conductor Otto requests permission for a bathroom break. A new control center employee grants approval. Alone, Otto makes a distressed phone call to a construction worker in the tunnels, but no one answers.
After an extended absence, a co-worker confronts Otto, pointing out that he is supposed to be on suspension. Despite this, Otto resumes operating the train. The co-worker alerts control, and a decision is made to replace Otto at the next stop.
Otto ignores the order.
Instead, he keeps the doors locked and accelerates away from the platform.
The Train Disappears
In the tunnels, the construction worker is revealed to be actively sabotaging the emergency braking system. He physically diverts the train onto another track, causing it to vanish entirely from control center monitoring.
Back onboard, Sam breaks into the control car using a key. He confronts Otto and forcibly stops the train, preventing him from leaving the cabin. Otto panics, insisting that something much larger is underway and that the train is only one piece of a broader plan.
Sam cuts him off.
Coldly.
He tells Otto that he already knows.
The Twist
Then Sam delivers the chilling truth.
Sam Nelson is hijacking the train.
Final Thoughts
The episode sharply reframes Hijack’s central tension. Sam is no longer reacting to a crisis. He is initiating one. By shifting the setting to a confined urban space and revealing Sam as an active agent rather than a reluctant negotiator, Season 2 establishes a darker, more complex psychological game.
The question is no longer whether Sam can stop a hijacking.
It is why he has chosen to start one.
