I’m convinced that Apple TV+’s new sci-fi series is the most amazing show since Netflix’s Dark

Although I have watched many science fiction series since Netflix, DarkI don’t think any of them, except a new AppleTV+ Show, are nowhere near as twisted and confusing as the German show. The show, created jointly by the couple Baran bo Odar and Jantje Friese, Dark premiered on Netflix in December 2017 as the streaming platform’s first German-language original series. Although it took some time to find its audience and did not immediately attract the attention of the masses like Stranger Thingsit gradually rose in the ranks as one of the best science fiction series on the streaming platform.

Due to the ambition and complexity of the overarching narrative, Dark kept me hooked throughout its entire run and I wanted more after each season. Unfortunately, the series ended after three seasons, leaving a bittersweet void for viewers like me who constantly crave complex sci-fi series that don’t shy away from taking on convoluted but compelling narratives. Not many sci-fi series have come out since then. Dark have left me sitting and thinking about their stories long after the credits rolled, but Apple TV+’s new series is starting to have a similar impact.

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Dark Matter’s confusing exploration of the multiverse is as complex as Dark Matter’s timeline

What Dark achieves with its timelines, Dark Matter presents with its parallel worlds

Although Apple TV+ Dark matter and Netflix Dark Although they use some similar scientific concepts, the two series are quite different in terms of their plot and character arcs. However, both take their time to first lay the foundation for their science fiction ideas and then go all out with the exploration of confusing alternate timelines, parallel realities, and paradoxes. Like any science fiction series and film, both take a lot of scientific latitude and are not without plot holes. But the fact that they even attempt to pull off something so conceptually mind-blowing sets them apart from other science fiction series.

Although many aspects of the DarkThe overarching story is enigmatic, but what makes it incredibly exciting and thrilling is its complex depiction of timelines and the distorted family trees they ultimately create. From a thematic point of view, Dark is no less complex. It shows how its characters travel through time to end their repeating cycles of death and destruction only to find out that they were maintaining it in the first placeA box that allows travel to parallel worlds is used as a narrative device. Dark matteralso takes many paths that his characters did not take.

As the story progresses, it becomes more and more mysterious as alternate versions of the same character appear and start destroying each other’s lives. How Dark constantly switches back and forth between several timelines, Dark matter constantly switches between countless parallel universes. With these complex ideas around parallel universes and time travel, both series often gave me headaches, but also made me think about philosophical questions about free will, determination and the long-term effects of even the most trivial decisions I make.

How Apple TV+’s Dark Matter compares to Netflix’s Dark (based on Rotten Tomatoes)

Dark’s ratings from audiences and critics are almost perfect

Dark had an incredible run on Netflix and still has an impressive average Rotten Tomatoes score of 95% across all seasonsThe second season even achieved a perfect critics rating of 100%, which it rightly deserves. Dark matterThe value of 81% is relatively low. However, it still ranks among the best science fiction series of 2024. Since both series are incredible in their own way, it would be unfair to compare them based on their critics’ ratings. DarkThe ratings from audiences and critics on RT clearly indicate that the series was unique and that hardly any other science fiction series comes even close to its quality.

Even for me, Dark matterat least after season 1, is still far from the perfect Dark Substitute. However, I cannot help but appreciate how Dark, Dark matter brings back pure science fiction by enchanting viewers with its imagination and daring to explore some complicated scientific concepts like quantum superposition and entanglement. Hopefully, like Netflix’s Dark, AppleTV+‘S Dark matter will expand on its ideas and, despite the limitations of the source material, will be able to run for at least two more seasons.

Dark Matter (2024)

Based on his novel of the same name, Dark Matter is a science fiction drama thriller television series developed by Blake Crouch for Apple TV+. The series follows a physicist who is kidnapped and thrown into an alternate reality where he experiences one possible path his life could have taken. However, he learns that his family’s lives are in danger from another version of himself.

Pour

Joel Edgerton, Jennifer Connelly, Alice Braga, Jimmi Simpson, Oakes Fegley, Dayo Okeniyi

Release date

May 8, 2024

Seasons

1

Authors

Blake Crouch

Directors

Jacob Verbruggen

Creator

Blake Crouch

Where can you watch?

AppleTV+

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