Diksha Sundriyal
Multiple realities open up infinite possibilities in Apple TV+’s ‘Dark Matter.’ It starts with a physics professor named Jason Dessen ending up in a world to which he doesn’t belong, and his own life is hijacked by an alternate version of himself. As the original Jason tries to make his way back to his family, while the fake Jason tries to ingratiate himself with them, several other people fall into their orbit and have to face the brunt of the decisions made by these Jasons. The people who are most notably affected by this are Amanda and Ryan.
Versions of Amanda and Ryan exist throughout the alternate universes, and they more often than not don’t cross paths, which is why, when they meet in the final scene of ‘Dark Matter,’ the scene gains significance and ties up a few threads that may have been left hanging otherwise. SPOILERS AHEAD
Dark Matter Finale Proves That Amanda and Ryan Are in the Same Reality
Amanda left her world with Jason I to save and help him find his family. But along the way, she realized she was floating about meaninglessly while there was meaning to Jason’s journey. What happens when Jason I reaches his destination? Where would Amanda go? Instead of waiting to find out, Amanda makes a decision that helps her and Jason I. Realising that their collective consciousness might be hindering Jason’s ability to find his world, Amanda decides to part ways with him, but not before finding a suitable world for herself.
She imagines an ideal world where she would like to spend the rest of her life—a world that is better than her original world and Jason’s. This desire leads her to a completely unrecognizable Chicago; it feels like something out of the future, where humanity thrives on all that is good, kind, and environment-friendly. Having left her world behind with no possibility of a return, she decides to stay there.
Meanwhile, Jason II ends up being confronted by Ryan from Jason I’s world. To stop Ryan from helping Daniela find anything, he takes Ryan to an ideal world he would like to live in and abandons him there. This is Jason II’s way of soothing his conscience after atrociously pulling a man out of his life and throwing him somewhere he doesn’t belong. Jason II tells himself that his scale is balanced because if he kidnapped and abandoned Ryan, he at least threw Ryan into a world that is much better than his original one.
Unwittingly, what happens here is that Jason II and Amanda end up thinking along the same lines. It doesn’t feel so far-fetched because they know each other. Amanda was in love with him, and he, too, had some feelings for her, even though he didn’t feel entirely happy in his life with her. Because they know each other so well, they end up cooking up the same world when they think about an ideal world. Moreover, Jason II says he “thought of the world his friend would like to see” when he tells Ryan about how he brought into an alternate version of Chicago. It is possible that subconsciously, he was thinking about Amanda, not Ryan, as the “friend,” which is why the box led him to where Amanda would eventually find herself.
Amanda and Ryan’s Meeting Paves the Path for Ryan’s Return Home
Because Ryan arrives in that world before Amanda, it makes sense that he would keep an eye on the box and its movements. First, however, he must find his way around the new world. Who is Ryan in this alternate reality, and what does the arrival of a new Ryan mean? While he figures all this out, Jason I and Amanda arrive there, and Amanda decides to stay, while Jason I leaves by himself. It is possible that while Ryan was busy figuring things out, he stepped up a camera near the box to catch Jason II in case he returned. Meanwhile, he busied himself with making the drug Lavender Fairy, which is the only way he can make it back to his world. However, he couldn’t figure it out in his own world, which means he will need some help to get it right.
After a while, it would have come to Ryan’s notice that Jason I and Amanda walked into this world, but only Jason I left. While Ryan missed the opportunity to reunite with his friend, he still had a solid lead, and Amanda stayed back. If she is here, she must have an ampoule or two left. Even if she doesn’t have that, then she must have some insight into the drug that could help Ryan crack its code and make enough of it to get himself home. So, he starts looking for Amanda and, after a while, ends up finding her. This is where the show catches us up with his journey.
There are still many questions. What are the chances that this is the same Amanda and not the Amanda of an alternate world that looks a lot like the world that the real Amanda chose for herself? Yes, that is a very real possibility, but in the context of the show, it’s clear that the Ryan and Amanda we see are the ones who have been separated from their original worlds. It is also a more hopeful way to end things because we know that Jason I left two ampoules in Amanda’s purse. Because she doesn’t have any need for them, it wouldn’t be difficult for her to give it to Ryan, who can use the two ampoules to create more and set out on his way to find his reality.
Having spent a lot of time in the box and knowing exactly how it works, Amanda could also guide Ryan in navigating the mechanism and reaching his destination much faster. The meeting between them confirms that Ryan will not be stranded in a foreign world forever. Moreover, his ending also gives hope for Ryan, the Mechanic, who was forced to take his place. The poor guy can also be sent on his way home. It also creates hope for the many Jasons who are currently stuck in their original world but have nothing left there, so to speak. Ryan’s return might open the door for them to access the box again and maybe, like Amanda, find a world where they might feel like they belong again. The same goes for Jason II, who, having lost the one thing he started all this trouble for, might finally accept that he belongs in his old world and return for good.
Read More: Dark Matter: How Does the Interdimensional Travel Box Work, Explained
