Jason1 (original Jason Dessen) can’t catch a break, can he?
But at least he was still alive at the end of Dark Matter Season 1 Episode 3 (2024), as bodies continued to fall around him.
And the secret was out, at least in one dimension.
Does this series have even more meaning for anyone?
You must feel for Jason1. He was dropped into a world that is not his own in Dark Matter Season 1 Episode 1.
Since his arrival, he has maintained, to anyone who will listen, that he did not belong there. And the result was, at first, that he was considered crazy.
Things improved slightly in this episode when his colleagues at Velocity Labs decided that he was suffering from amnesia or some other form of brain damage.
It’s so much better than being crazy.
Jason1 was right to be wary of Leighton and Velocity after seeing the dimensional version of the love of his life, Gabriela, gunned down by Dawn without provocation.
There was little blowback for Dawn’s act beyond Amanda’s “I told you so.”
So Jason1 took a different tactic, playing on their illusions to learn more about how Jason2 used The Box to land in Jason1’s dimension.
He convinced Leighton and Amanda to give him access to Jason2’s research, which made sense since Jason2 had clearly solved the problems plaguing Jason1.
What wasn’t clear was whether Jason1 was starting to believe what everyone was telling him.
In his conversation with Amanda, he seemed to lean into the fact that his life with Gabriela and Charlie was the result of brain damage and being in this dimension.
But Amanda came away from that same conversation thinking that Jason1 didn’t belong there.
So how did Ryan2’s knowledge end up in Leighton’s possession?
It is unlikely that Amanda revealed her intuition. It’s more likely that Velocity’s security team was sniffing out Jason’s “return” and stumbled upon what Ryan knew. Maybe Ryan came just to get paid.
Regardless, Ryan’s confession brought Jason’s fishing expedition to a premature end.
Him being an impostor fit well with Leighton’s paranoia, even if Jason1 was the only one who could make sense of Jason2’s research.
Still, asking Dawn to attempt to defeat knowledge that Jason1 didn’t possess was certainly counterproductive.
Jason1’s research at least allowed him to determine that one essential ingredient was missing, which turned out to be the drug Ryan2 had created.
But Ryan was taken away before they could fully connect the dots, never to be seen again.
Luckily, Amanda decided to resign from Velocity by eliminating her love interest’s doppelganger, Jason2.
What’s inexplicable is how Leighton locked Amanda out of the storage room so quickly, when Jason’s voiceprint and password still worked after a year of absence.
And where did Jason1 and Amanda end up? Was it a connection between all the different dimensions? And how do they get out of there?
A better question is whether Jason1 will have a home to return to, since Jason2 successfully replaced him.
Since landing, Jason2 has seemed like an upgraded version of the boring, sedentary Professor Jason1. He is just as intelligent and yet much more motivated.
After all, he gets a second chance with Gabriela, the artist who escaped to his home dimension.
The fact that their breakup was his idea only makes this opportunity more critical.
So far he’s freaked her out, mostly in a good way.
Taking her to a fancy restaurant and buying a second bottle of expensive wine seemed out of character for Jason.
Charlie wasn’t complaining about his dad splurging for him at a skateboard store.
But he had to wonder why Jason2 was asking him about family friends he’d known for years.
The dinner was a real challenge for Jason2, one he overcame through social media research, learning about each guest and their family. He made all these people he didn’t know feel welcome.
What remains unexplained is how Blair Caplan, sent from The Box before Jason2, landed on Jason1’s world.
And why couldn’t she return to her dimension?
The Box appears to be defective because it only goes in one direction. If it can’t be controlled, what good is it?
Does Blair have any experience that could help him with this form of interdimensional travel? And does she pose a threat to Jason2’s plans?
Leighton’s big explanation for The Box was that its representatives could provide solutions to his world’s problems.
But that certainly doesn’t seem to be happening.
However, Jason2 went to Jason1’s dimension and sent Jason1 back to his world. So he discovered something that no one else did.
Jason2’s performance as host impressed Gabriela so much that she was almost dizzy.
And yet, she still felt the need to confront him about his recent behavior.
Did she really believe his story about the near miss and after assessing what is important to him? Did this dispel his doubts?
Why was Jason2 playing with these birth certificates?
This is definitely something that will get Jason1 in trouble, if he ever finds his way home.
Were you surprised that Jason1 was discovered?
Where did they end up with Amanda?
Did Jason2 snow Gabriela?
Comments below.
Dale McGarrigle is a staff writer for TV Fanatic. Follow him on.
