Dark Matter: All the time in the world
June 25, 2017 4:22 PM - Season 3, Episode 4 - Subscribe

Three finds himself in a temporal loop. The rest of the crew is more than skeptical about what he's experiencing, so Three goes to some extreme measures to prove what he's saying is true.
posted by sardonyx (13 comments total) 2 users marked this as a favorite
 
In Star Trek: The Next Generation the Enterprise got stuck in a temporal loop and the clue that enabled them to figure it out was repeated instances of... the number three!

Boom.
posted by under_petticoat_rule at 5:21 PM on June 25, 2017 [2 favorites]


I remember that episode being really annoying. Actually I find a lot of temporal loop/groundhog day episodes annoying, but this one didn't bother me at all. The most troubling thing was the "previously" segments. I could have sworn some of those weren't actually shown in past episodes. I really thought I had skipped an earlier episode, even though I was pretty sure that hadn't happened.
posted by sardonyx at 5:26 PM on June 25, 2017


Let me clarify, I didn't think it was flawless, the time machine MacGuffin seemed like it was pulled out of the air at the last minute, and I could have done the Android's journey to the future, but I really liked watching Three try to figure out how to resolve the situation.

I was a bit surprised that he decided to carry on his relationship with cyber girlfriend. I thought that speech about not getting stuck in the past was foreshadowing that he was going to say good-bye to her as a partner and move on. Apparently not. Not I'm dreading the episode where she downloads her consciousness into the Android (through some glitch in the Android-ship interface) and seeks to rekindle the physical aspects of their romance.
posted by sardonyx at 5:31 PM on June 25, 2017


I enjoyed this episode even though I usually find Groundhog Day episodes to be annoying. It was fun to watch Three have such a hard time getting everyone to believe him. The French bit was good too -- Anthony Lemke is bilingual and has had a bunch of roles in French Canadian teevee shows.
posted by fimbulvetr at 11:45 AM on June 26, 2017 [2 favorites]


The most troubling thing was the "previously" segments. I could have sworn some of those weren't actually shown in past episodes.

My brother commented that "previously" montages on Dark Matter reminded him of the "in next week's episode" montages from Mad Men: while teeeeechnically yes they are all things that happened, they seem very random and tell you absolutely nothing.

I did enjoy this episode's take on the temporal loop trope (Three was the ideal character to have it happen to!), the only part where I cringed hard was when they got all future-foreshadowy at the end. But that's probably because this past season of The Flash has taught me to believe that time travel + prophecy = absolutely shitshow in the writer's room. If they never mention one shred of that prophetic future stuff again that'd be more than fine with me.
posted by mstokes650 at 10:07 PM on June 26, 2017 [1 favorite]


The entire sequence where he was learning French was hilarious, but I actually laughed out loud at him singing with the Android. (1:13 in that clip). Executive Producer Joseph Malozzi has posted a couple of takes on YouTube.

18 years ago, Stargate SG-1 aired an episode called "Window of Opportunity," which showed Jack O'Neill and Teal'C stuck in a time loop. The episode became a fan favorite, in part because it included a scene that launched a thousand ships in which Jack hands General Hammond his resignation "So I can do... this!" and dips and kisses Major Sam Carter. Also, because this is possibly one of the funniest gags Stargate ever did:

O'Neill: "How far is Alaris anyway?"
Teal'C: "Several billion miles, O'Neill."
O'Neill: "That's got to be a record!
General Hammond: "COLONEL O'NEILL WHAT THE HELL ARE YOU DOING??!!"
O'Neill: "IN THE MIDDLE OF MY BACK SWING?!"

One of the co-writers for "A Window of Opportunity" was the aforementioned Joseph Malozzi. Here's his blog post about it.

---

The ending of this episode blew me completely away. Love the foreshadowing, which sketches out in broad strokes what we can expect to happen in future episodes and seasons. The scene between Future Five and the Android was excellent. I'm looking forward to seeing what happens next.
posted by zarq at 8:38 AM on June 27, 2017 [4 favorites]


Also, here are all the things Future Five listed to the Android:

* Dwarf Star’s conspiracy
* The double deception
* Krydon
* Corina
* The Accelerated
* The fall of the house of Ishida
* A meeting with the Android’s creator
* The black ships
posted by zarq at 8:45 AM on June 27, 2017 [3 favorites]


I had to look up to see which of the two was the native francophone - and I'm pretty sure Three is, I can't tell about the Android.
posted by Kyol at 2:54 PM on June 27, 2017


In After Dark segment, the actor who plays Three said he lived in Montreal for ten years, picked up the language and sends his kids for French immersion. The actor who plays the Android said she doesn't speak it, but did say she learned the meaning of what she was reciting. (I've never watched the After Dark shows before, but the related one came on right after one of the clips zarq linked to above. Thanks for those, zark.)
posted by sardonyx at 4:37 PM on June 27, 2017 [2 favorites]


No problem! Thanks for pointing it out! I didn't know about After Dark.
posted by zarq at 8:20 PM on June 27, 2017 [1 favorite]


My biggest scare with the time malfunction was that maybe Space Ross would come back. Old five... she's always been the smartest, after two. This was a big Three episode though, where we get to see he's human.

I know we've all lost someone we love, but what would it take to accept a copy? People used to hold seances and things just to talk to people they miss. Three's strength in denying her existence when she's right in front of him.

This episode restored my affection for this show.
posted by adept256 at 11:03 PM on July 1, 2017


Also,

We need you back in your quarters.

But what about her? [point at three]

SUPER MASSIVE EYEROLL

She'll be fine
posted by adept256 at 11:33 PM on July 1, 2017 [1 favorite]


I loved this episode!

Time loop episodes are my favorite thing ever, from Groundhog day to Star Trek TNG to Red Dwarf ("So, what is it?") so I'm glad they were able to exceed my high expectations.

I like how they just skipped all of the usual "before the time loop started" stuff. They just started with Three walking in and knowing exactly what was going to happen.

They also managed to throw in some character development for the two new people, tons of emotional development for Three (learning how to comfort Five and how to face his dead girlfriend's virtual copy). And that absolutely bizarre future flash sequence with the android was just perfect ridiculous sci-fi and I loved it.

I also loved how Three's not the most conventionally smart character, and not the most trustworthy, and that was the whole challenge for him. Instead of learning how to be a better person (Groundhog Day) or learning what caused the time loop (TNG) his entire challenge on loop after loop is to memorize something well enough to convince everyone he's telling the truth but they're skeptical because he's a liar and he's really bad at memorizing. It turns out it's easier to learn it in French!

My only criticism is that Ryu Ishida / Four is kind of a cliche villain at this point. But for a show I started watching entirely as a guilty pleasure, I'm pleased it's grown to the point where I can have only one thing to complain about...
posted by mmoncur at 5:04 AM on July 2, 2017 [2 favorites]


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