Diksha Sundriyal
Netflix’s ‘They Cloned Tyrone’ begins with Fontaine, a drug dealer living in a low-income neighborhood, discovering that the world is not as it seems. The day his life changed began as just another day. He did all the usual things, from scaring a rival gang member to stay off his turf to tracking down a client who owed him money. The night, however, ends quite differently. The rival gang’s leader finds him and shoots him down, ending their spate once and for all. Or so it would happened had they been living in the real world.
Fontaine is shocked to discover that he should have been dead but isn’t. How did that happen? It wasn’t a dream because there are witnesses of the shootout and the ones who confirm they saw him die. The search for the truth leads Fontaine to a house with a secret lab for a basement. Here he discovers a dead body, which looks just like him and has the bullet wounds he was supposed to have. This means either the body was a clone, or he is. What does it say about the people around him? Let’s find out. SPOILERS AHEAD
Fontaine, Slick, and Yo-yo Clones Status
When Fontaine finds the body in the secret lab, he is rattled. But it is nothing compared to what he feels when he discovers this is not the only copy. There are several other clones that look just like him. They can be decanted and used to replace him whenever the need arises. In fact, he is one of the clones that were decanted when his predecessor died.
What’s more shocking is that Fontaine is not the only clone. Slick Charles is also a clone, and so are many other people in the neighborhood, especially the ones who are indulged in the work that keeps the law and order situation in the area difficult, stopping anyone willing to come there and try to shake things up. This is highly unwanted by the people conducting the experiment because the entire neighborhood is a control group that is kept balanced with the use of clones of pimps and drug dealers.
The truth about this comes out when Fontaine, Slick, and Yo-yo escape the facility but are tracked down by Nixon. He speaks a codeword that puts him in control of all the clones. He makes Fontaine aim a gun at Yo-yo, even though he doesn’t want to. At this time, Fontaine has no control over his body, which shows that he has been created to follow orders. He has been designed to serve a specific purpose.
While many people in the Glen are clones, some are still human. Yo-yo is one of them. Her humanity is confirmed when she doesn’t respond to Nixon’s codeword that controls all clones. She is entirely in control of herself, but that makes her disposable. Nixon points out that the clones are important because they are very costly. However, humans like her have no value and can be easily discarded. Nixon’s words prove that many people in the Glen are still human, and only the ones needed to keep everything as is are clones.
Another thing that Fontaine, Yo-yo, and Slick Charles discover is that the Glen is not the only place where clones and control groups are being kept under watch. More such places are spread throughout the country, where clones have been placed to create and maintain the perfect environment needed to carry on the secret experiments. In the end, the lead trio destroys the lab in the Glen with the help of everyone in the neighborhood, even the people they considered enemies before. They free everyone that was being held captive and experimented upon.
They also free all the clones, no matter how many copies there are. The clones, decanted before their time, with no input of memories or anything else, are confused about being thrust into the world. However, they will receive help from a community that doesn’t discriminate between humans and clones. This is good news for all the Fontaines and Slick Charles coming out of the lab without knowing what went down before they were awoken. Ultimately, the trio decides to do it all over the country and free all the clones from the trap they don’t even know they are in.
Read More: What Happens to Fontaine’s Mom? Is She Real?
