HTG 555: Dark Matter - What I'm Watching

Hey there, Scott Wilkinson here, the home theater geek.

In this installment of What I'm Watching, I'm going to talk about a show on Apple TV Plus called Dark Matter.

The first season aired in 2024, and now we're into season two.

This is one of the things I object to in streaming platforms and TV series is the long wait between seasons.

But this one was worth the wait, let me tell you.

Season one is based on a novel of the same name by Blake Crouch, who is now the showrunner and head writer for the series.

Season two goes beyond the novel.

Season one was essentially the novel.

Season two now extends the story beyond that and Crouch is writing this new material as well.

So there is quite a bit of continuity.

The story is based in Chicago.

Jason Dessen, played by Joel Edgerton, is a physicist leading a fairly uneventful life as a college professor with his wife, Daniela, played by Jennifer Connelly, and his son, Charlie, played by Oaks Fegley.

One night, Jason is coming home from his favorite bar.

And he's abducted by a stranger who turns out to be himself from a different universe.

He's known in the story as Jason 2.

In his universe, Jason 2 did not marry Daniela.

but instead became a world famous physicist who invented a technology whereby a person can travel between universes when they step inside of a large concrete box.

Now this is based on the real world concept of quantum superposition.

which in the real world only applies to subatomic particles.

And so this is where the fiction of science fiction comes in.

When someone is in the box, they see an infinite series of doors, and opening a door leads to a particular universe.

And it turns out that the person's state of mind helps determine which universe it is.

So the characters try to imagine the universe they want to enter.

Now, this hints at the concept in quantum physics that an observer determines the outcome of an experiment with their conscious intent.

And that's a real thing.