Review of 'Dark Matter' 1.5-1.6

Well, Jason 1 appears to have learned a crucial lesson in the fifth episode Dark Matter, up on Apple TV+.

And that lesson is--

[Spoilers ahead ... ]

What he needs to do in his original world -- World 1 -- is block the box off, so no one can use it.

He found this out the hard way, in which he and Amanda were treated to a succession of differing horrendous realities, as they tried to wish/will the world they were going into, into being -- which was the lesson that they and we thought we learned back in episode 1.4.

But as the two applied that logic -- the world-creating power of a feeling (B. J. Thomas's "Hooked on a Feeling" would have worked well here, though his "Rock 'n' Roll Lullaby" is such an outstanding record) -- Jason 1 and Amanda found the worlds they entered were flooded, wracked by a deadly plague, and last but not least a world in which the analog of Jason 1 was in prison, presumably convicted for some kind of terrible crime. So Jason 1, now -- presumably -- back in World 1, says he needs to wall it off.

This of course will prevent far more than Jason 1 and Amanda not being able to use the box in the alternate realities any more. It will mean that everyone currently in World 1 will be stuck there. Including Jason 2. Which means that Jason 1 will have to share his bed with Daniela 1 and Jason 2?

That would be a pretty rough world for both Jasons, right? Which means, what? That once Jason 2 got through the box/corridor into World 1, everyone's life in the infinity of worlds was in one way or another worse than it was before?

I'm not sure. But I certainly don't hold out much prospect for a happy ending in this fascinating, complex story.

***

And I thought the best line in Dark Matter 1.6 on Apple TV+ came from Jason 1 to Amanda 2 about their having visited "a bunch of Chicagos" so far, and none of them were too good.

But that was only one of many good lines in this episode, and the series has now progressed, in my opinion, from excellent to outstanding.

I'll bullet some of the best moments:

• Jason 2 gets Charlie 1 some ice cream with nuts, and he has to be rushed to the emergency room where he's saved. I'm hoping this was just an accident and not something much worse, and I wouldn't put much past Jason 2. He does give his son who's not his son an Epinephrine shot, and that more than the hospital was actually key to saving him. But Daniela 1 is hit hard by this in any case, the worst in a list of events and characteristics including flossing his teethh and leaving keys in the wrong place that's feeding her suspicion.

• To top off Daniela's misgivings about Jason 2, he takes her to an art show where one of her paintings is hanging, and she's moved to tears -- of fury, because she wasn't finished with the painting yet, and the last thing she wanted was to show it to the public.

• But lest you think Jason 2 is a good guy, he strands poor Ryan in one of those infinite Chicagos.

• And here's a thing I really liked in this episode: lots of time for Amanda 2 and Amanda 1. She's a pivotal character, and Jason 1 may be falling in love with her (he's certainly a consummate gentleman, asking Amanda to leave their bed, though he'd certainly like to sleep with her, in both meanings of the word).

• And last but not least, an at-once high and low scene at the end of this episode has Jason 2 following through on his vow to seal off or lock up his box/corridor to alternate realities.

So I thought this was a top-notch episode indeed, and I'm looking forward to its consequences in what's to come!