Dark Matter Season 2 Episode 1 Review: Finding “A Quiet Life” Isn’t As Easy as It Sounds

Critic’s Rating: 4 / 5.0

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We are entering new territory in the Blake Crouch-created worlds of Dark Matter.

If you read the book, you know that it was left open when, at the end, Jason1, Daniela1, and Charlie1 stepped into the box and took their chances if it meant escaping an ever-growing crowd of Jasons and responsibility for the gaggle of Jasons they left behind.

Crouch is still involved and writing the series, and I like to think his books are often somewhat unfinished because they’re so darn perfect for TV.

See: Wayward Pines. RIP, most excellent story. I still wouldn’t mind seeing more of it.

But, thankfully, we have Dark Matter, and Crouch is going deeper this season. He’s got a lot more to say about the possibilities he’s created with the box, and Season 2 delivers on all of them.

But we begin the reality that now surrounds Jason1, Daniela1, and Charlie1, not to mention Ryan1 and all the other 1s, who we will forevermore call plain ol’ Jason, Daniela, Charlie, etc. If they aren’t our number 1, they’ll get a 2 (more than that, and we’ll probably lose count. Might as well be honest!).

There are a whole lot of Jasons left behind after Dark Matter Season 1 Episode 9, and the Dessen family has made a new start. That doesn’t mean they’re entirely on their own, that they won’t be tracked down, or that no new threat is coming for them.

Because of course there are more Jasons, and of course we’ve got a new “bad” on tap to fuel the Dessen family to keep running for a while.

That’s a shame because Dark Matter could thrive rather well without outside agitators. The fact that the box exists and with it every choice you make can spawn another version of yourself as long as you interact with it is plenty.

Well, the good news is that the annoying agent played by (the admittedly handsome) Chris Diamantopoulos won’t be as present this season as he seems, given he was the first person we saw in Dark Matter Season 2 Episode 1.

But we will continue seeing Jasons spawning all over the damn place. Just like our Jason couldn’t let go of his wife, others just like him are looking for their Daniela. That they keep happening upon our Daniela is just part of the process.

When I talked with Joel Edgerton and Jennifer Connelly, I just wanted to get a feel for how they view their characters and their unique predicaments. I’ve seen this season in its entirety, and it’s much more introspective than the last.

Now that the most immediate thread of dozens of Jasons is gone, they will get to slow down a bit and find a rhythm.

Their family needs peace. They need to trust one another again. They need to remember who they are to themselves and each other without other versions of themselves always breaking down the door.

Just like the safeword Daniela was waiting to hear when Jason returned to their new home, this will take patience. But patience is one thing; processing grief is another.

And regardless of how they feel about these interloping Jasons and others, the fact is that they know these Jasons as well as they know themselves. They are themselves.

Killing a Jason who was just searching for the version of her he loved will be hard for Daniela to process.

Something I hate about all the Jasons’ unending search for Daniela is how few of them stop to think about what it does to her, or how frightening it is for her. They know they’re not just walking into the home they left, but it doesn’t stop them.

Why would any version of Jason think it’s OK to walk up and belly hug her? Yes, their hunger for her is real, and the pain they feel from losing her is too, but their inability to give her space, to take things slow, annoys the hell out of me.

Every time a Jason does this, it pushes our Dessen family to do things they regret. Another Jason is dead, and now an innocent cop is, too. None of it needed to happen. But it also shows that inside the Jason we know is a very volatile man, and a love that strong has its downsides.

So they set out to find a new world, one that would be welcoming and give them some time to breathe.

Until they find a place to settle, they’ll be battling the reignited adrenaline racing through them. For seven months, they were allowed to reconnect. Now all of that has been upended again. That will have lasting consequences throughout the season.

The Dessen family isn’t the only presence in the Dark Matter Season 2 premiere, though.

After Jason2 left him behind in Dark Matter Season 1, Ryan found Amanda (who, technically, is not of our World1, but since she’s our main Amanda, she’s not getting stuck with the Amanda2 moniker. Not sorry.), and the two have so much promise.

It’s hard enough to think about Ryan being left behind like he was, but it was harder that he was pinning it all on his best friend. It’s hard to wrap your head around that kind of betrayal.

By connecting with Amanda, he gets the whole story and understands his own friend is as much of a pawn in Jason2’s shitty game as he was.

But kudos to him for figuring things out so quickly and making a life for himself with Camilla2, who lost her own Ryan years earlier. Our essence never changes. Since we are all the same in our core, relationships like these can be beneficial and life-changing.

I love that, other than Amanda, who made a specific choice to stop the madness and settle in a world of her own creation, everyone wants what they lost. Not just versions of them, but the actual souls.

It says a lot about who we are, which ties right into this season’s journey for almost every character we encounter.

That includes the latest incarnation of Leighton Vance we met in the premiere, as well.

Again, our Leighton didn’t come from Jason’s world, but Jason2’s, but we’re just calling him Leighton because he’s the Leighton we know. Now, Leighton2 will be the fella who fancies himself a spiritual guru, who just got pulled into the madness, much like Jason did with Jason2.

And hey, if you want me to switch up any of these, if you disagree that Amanda and Leightson from Velocity in World 2 should be without the 2s on their names, just say so.

I didn’t cover the show for its first season, but this is how I’ve embraced them. I’m happy to make modifications if it’s easier for you to follow.

Another thing that I absolutely love about Dark Matter is the possibilities. Creating or discovering your own world with a positive thought? Who wouldn’t want to do that?

But there are always downsides, too. Amanda and Ryan laughed together about just how difficult it can be to be amidst such emotionally aware, positive, annoyingly patient people, clearly having polite sex, can really be.

The bright colors alone would turn some people off. We are a spectrum. Without the truly bad, we wouldn’t have the incredibly good people we encounter. Only with extremes can we really appreciate the alternative.

But when you’re on the run, you need to be careful what you wish for. That was apparent when the Dessens stepped into a world with even more tech than we have now.

As we struggle with the idea of Flock cameras, the world they stepped into had cartoon billboards speaking to them directly, fully aware of their life history. Uh, no. We do not want that. Privacy is a treasure, and Dark Matter gives us just a hint of what giving that up can mean.

Our Dessens will ultimately find a world that I wouldn’t mind living in. And once they do that, Jason will destroy the box. Can he, though? He’s got the smarts to do it, but he’s not its creator.

He might need to team with some people from other worlds to make it happen. That’s what Leighton is doing. He knows his limitations in the box. His mind is his enemy. So he found a version of himself that can help him retrain it.

Ryan managed to create Lilac Wings, his own version of Lavender Wings. Jason still has some left, but if they find a home planet, he won’t need it.

But is it as simple as destroying the box? Is there always a box on every world before someone gets there, or do they spawn when someone visits?

I’d also hate to think that destroying one box destroys all the others too, as it would leave Ryan and Amanda in the sickeningly sweet world. Together is better than not, but still not home for either of them.

That world, while a little too perfect, is what you find when you want perfection.

Jason inadvertently asked for it too, before closing the door, knowing Amanda was there.

I was kind of shocked he did that, even for a night. But I guess when their supply of Lavender Wings is short, decisions need to be made.

Later in the season, when I’m not chewing your ear off, we need to discuss why they all stay in Chicago. Is it to be close to the box? Because the talking street sign shows the danger of that.

But, for now, I’ll bid you adieu. Please, tell me you’re watching! Are you as excited for this season as I am? Drop a comment below.