Dark Matter Episode 3 Ending Explained: Where The Box Takes Jason & Amanda

Summary Amanda and Jason's escape plan takes an unexpected turn, leading them to the mysterious room with "the box."

Ryan2's drug allows perception of superposition, opening doors to countless parallel realities for Amanda and Jason.

Jason and Amanda must navigate through multiple alternate realities to find their way back to Jason's original universe.

Dark Matter episode 3 maintains an air of ambiguity surrounding what happens to Amanda and Jason after they enter the box, making it hard not to wonder where they will end up in episode 4. Although Apple TV+'s Dark Matter has been quick-paced since the beginning, the show further speeds up its narrative progression in episode 4. Apart from revealing all the malicious methods Jason2 implements to fit into his new world, the episode also highlights how the original Jason gets closer to solving the mystery behind his multiversal travels.

As the episode reaches its closing arc, Amanda starts empathizing with Jason and decides to help him escape before Leighton and Dawn harm him. However, as fate would have it, their escape plan takes a turn, and they find themselves in the room where "the box" has been stored. In their quest to run from Leighton and Dawn and find answers to what happened to Jason, the two characters end up inside the box. What happens next completely catches them off-guard.

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Where Are Jason & Amanda In Dark Matter Episode 3’s Ending

Amanda & Jason Are Still Inside The Box

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Towards the end of Dark Matter episode 3, Amanda helps Jason escape Velocity Labs. However, before they know it, they find themselves trapped inside the office building and decide to head to the room that accommodates the central box. Leighton and Dawn nearly catch them, but they manage to shut themselves inside the box in the nick of time. After finding themselves in the box, the two initially struggle to figure out what they must do next to jump from one universe to another. However, they begin the process by first injecting them with Ryan's drug and then waiting for the effects to take hold.

Each door in the endless corridor can lead them to a distinct parallel world, where they may or may not find alternate versions of themselves.

To their surprise, they soon find themselves in a seemingly endless corridor with doors on either side. Although the episode's credits start rolling after this moment, it seems evident that they now have access to multiple realities. Each door in the endless corridor can lead them to a distinct parallel world, where they may or may not find alternate versions of themselves. Since the two characters find an infinite number of doorways to alternate realities, they will likely have a hard time finding their way back to Jason's original world.

How Ryan2’s Drug Works In Dark Matter

The Drug Allows One To Observe Superposition

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Leighton and Dawn torture Jason throughout Dark Matter episode 3, hoping he will tell them about the inner workings of the box. However, since Jason belongs to the parallel universe, where he did not invent the box, he struggles to understand what makes it work. In an early moment of the episode, Leighton tells Jason that the box is made up of a concoction of alloys that prevent anything from entering it. From external noises to radiation, nothing can seep through the central box's walls.

...Ryan2 explains that his drug temporarily shuts down one's prefrontal cortex.

Since no external forces influence what happens inside the box, the box, theoretically, is in a state of quantum superposition. This means that it simultaneously exists in multiple states. Owing to this, when Amanda and Jason enter the box and cut themselves off from the outside world, they, too, are in a state of "potentiality," existing in a multitude of possible outcomes. However, in quantum mechanics, superposition is only visible when it is neither being observed nor measured. This is why Amanda and Jason's sense of perception collapses the superposition and prevents them from observing their alternate realities.

This is where Ryan2's drug comes into play. In a previous scene from the episode, Ryan2 explains that his drug temporarily shuts down one's prefrontal cortex. Since a human's sense of observation is primarily linked with the prefrontal cortex, shutting it down allows one to observe superposition. Therefore, when Amanda and Jason inject themselves with the drug, they are technically still inside the box but only observe all the multiple states it exists in.

Upcoming Dark Matter Episodes' Release Schedule Ep. Number Ep. Title Release Date 4 The Corridor May 22 5 Dark Velocity May 29 6 F*cking Married People June 5 7 In the Fires of Dead Stars June 12 8 Jupiter June 19 9 Entanglement June 26

Will Jason & Amanda Return To Jason’s Original Universe After Episode 3

They Will Explore Multiple Alternate Paths Before Finding The One They Seek

Image via AppleTv+

Since Jason and Amanda have figured out how to make the box work, they are now one step closer to returning to Jason's original universe. However, finding their way back may be far more complex than it seems. As the episode's ending establishes, Jason and Amanda now have access to an infinite number of realities but have no clue which doorway leads to Jason's original world. Owing to this, they will have to try and enter each reality systematically before they are sure they have found the right one.

What further complicates their quest is that every time they open the door to a new reality, their decision branches off into countless other possibilities.

Given how Leighton and Dawn will likely kill them if they return to Jason2's original world, turning back is not an option anymore. Exploring alternate worlds is their only option. However, what further complicates their quest is that every time they open the door to a new reality, their decision branches off into countless other possibilities.

Ryan2's Fate In Dark Matter Episode 3's Ending Explained

Ryan2 Was Likely Murdered

Image via Apple TV+

After Ryan2 opens up about his drug to Jason in Dark Matter's episode 3, Leighton escorts him out of Jason's room. Moments later in the episode, Amanda attempts to get Jason out of Velocity's building and implies Ryan2 is dead. Although Ryan2 dies off-screen, it seems likely that Leighton and Dawn forced him to show them how the box works. Since he, too, knew only bits and pieces about its inner workings, he was probably unable to reveal Jason2's secrets. Dawn has previously been established as an erratic character who impulsively kills others when she does not know what to do.

New Dark Matter episodes are released every Wednesday on Apple TV+.

She likely shot Ryan2 dead after he failed to tell them how the box works. However, since alternate versions of the same characters exist in several parallel realities, Jason and Amanda will likely meet another version of him in a different universe. If all goes well, they might even run into the Ryan from Jason's original universe by the time Dark Matter's season 1 ends.