In mid-April, Apple TV+ unveiled the trailer for its new sci-fi thriller “Dark Matter,” starring Joel Edgerton alongside Academy Award winner Jennifer Connelly, Alice Braga, Jimmi Simpson, Dayo Okeniyi and Oakes Fegley.
Based on the blockbuster book by New York Times bestselling author Blake Crouch, the new nine-episode Apple Original series premiered globally on Apple TV+ with the first two episodes on May 8th, and will be followed by one new episode every Wednesday through June 26, 2024.
Hailed as one of the best sci-fi novels of the decade, “Dark Matter” is a story about the road not taken. The series follows Jason Dessen (played by Edgerton), a physicist, professor and family man who — one night while walking home on the streets of Chicago — is abducted into an alternate version of his life. Wonder quickly turns to nightmare when he tries to return to his reality amid the mind-bending landscape of lives he could have lived. In this labyrinth of realities, he embarks on a harrowing journey to get back to his true family and save them from the most terrifying, unbeatable foe imaginable: himself.
From sprawling epics like Foundation to intimate shows like Severance, Apple TV+ has recently become something of a sci-fi TV bastion…
Enter Dark Matter, a nine-episode series based on the blockbuster novel of the same name, written by Blake Crouch. In a rare move, Crouch is also the showrunner for the TV version of his own story, which is probably why this TV series is faithful to the source material, while also expanding beyond the limitations of the book. Dark Matter is easily the best Apple TV+ sci-fi series of 2024 (so far), but also one of the most satisfying new series in general because it perfectly balances a high concept with emotional stakes that feel very real. A lot of sci-fi asks the question: “What if?” But sometimes those answers don’t feel rooted in the human experience, but rather the TV experience. Dark Matter works because it brings that basic sci-fi question back down to Earth.
[O]ne truth generally emerges from all quality sci-fi: we have to care. And it’s here where Dark Matter emerges as a great sci-fi series; we care about this conceit because it feels like it could happen to any of us.
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I’m going to watch that when I get back home. MDN’s take hits home where so many shows (sci-fi and otherwise) fail today – “we care about this conceit because it feels like it could happen to any of us.”
The problem with many modern shows is that the box ticking and ideological tropes often don’t match reality so the majority of the audience aren’t able to connect or they have too many eye rolls that causes disengagement.
I’m liking this quite a bit. The business about superposition is a little tough to take but I’ll grant them artistic license. I’m also really liking Sugar on Apple TV+. No spoilers but a surprise twist. I went back rewatched Bogart and Bacall in The Big Sleep to help add to the mood of Sugar.