10 Biggest Unanswered Questions & Mysteries Outer Range Season 3 Needs To Solve

May 20, 2024, 8 p.m.

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10 Biggest Unanswered Questions & Mysteries Outer Range Season 3 Needs To Solve

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Warning: This article contains SPOILERS for Outer Range season 2.

Summary Amy went to the future at the end of Outer Range season 2, setting up her transformation into Autumn.

Autumn is tied to a cult from the future, related to the black mineral's powers and the Hole.

Perry saved Trevor in the past, perhaps creating a new universe with significant changes to the show's timeline.

Outer Range season 2 solved some of the show’s biggest mysteries but also raised new questions that season 3 must answer. Although Outer Range season 3 has yet to be confirmed, the end of season 2 left the door open for the series to continue. Outer Range season 2, episode 7 included two major twists that could change the entire show in hindsight: Amy going to the future and Perry changing the past by preventing himself from killing Trevor.

Outer Range has also confirmed that Autumn is Amy from the future, which had been strongly hinted at during season 1’s finale. Compared to the first season, Outer Range’s newest episodes brought a lot of answers and wrapped up important storylines. Still, the show is full of mystery boxes, which creates a lot of interesting possibilities for a potential season 3.

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10 When Did Amy Go To At The End Of Outer Range Season 2?

Amy went to the future, but when exactly?

Autumn pushed Amy through the Hole at the end of Outer Range season 2, assuring the girl’s life would play out the way it was supposed to for “Autumn” to exist. Autumn is Amy from the future, yet the former had no memories of her life before the age of nine. Amy was nine years old when she fell through the Hole, meaning it has all come full circle. It is well established that Autumn came from the future, but it is unclear in which decade or century she was raised.

Related Outer Range Season 2 Makes 2024 An Even Bigger Year For Josh Brolin Outer Range season 2, Amazon Prime Video's sci-fi neo-Western hit, is slated to hit the streamer soon, making 2024 a big year for star Josh Brolin.

When Amy woke up on the “other side” of the Hole, the ranch was now a desert. When asked what her name was by a pair of strangers, Amy couldn’t remember and wrongfully assumed that it was “Autumn.” It can be assumed that this is exactly how Autumn’s story begins and that Amy now grows to become the version of Autumn viewers were introduced to in Outer Range season 1.

9 What Exactly Is Autumn’s Cult In Outer Range?

Autumn is part of a cult from the future

Outer Range season 2 established that Autumn was part of a cult, presumably from the future where she came from. This cult appears to be tied to the Hole and its powers, especially because Autumn’s memories of it are triggered whenever she comes in contact with the black mineral. Autumn’s storyline in Outer Range season 2 saw her getting closer to the Abbotts and even attending church with her grandmother. When asked by the pastor if she had ever been part of a church, Autumn said she was once “in a cult," causing some tension between them.

Autumn only realized she was Amy in Outer Range season 2, episode 5, after seeing her reflection in the mirror turn into Amy.

Although Outer Range teased that Autumn’s cult could have something to do with Rebecca’s disappearance, it was all just a red herring. Outer Range season 2 revealed what happened to Rebecca, and it had nothing to do with time travel or supernatural minerals. Rebecca was cheating on Perry and was confronted by Cecilia about it. Interestingly, when Autumn scrubbed the mineral into her mother’s mouth, Rebecca had a vision of Autumn walking alongside other women in some sort of cult.

8 What Does The Black Mineral Actually Do In Outer Range?

The Hole’s mysteries extend to the black mineral

The black mineral that comes from the Hole has been one of Outer Range’s biggest mysteries since season 1. Presumably, the mineral has similar properties to the Hole, meaning it is tied to the flow of time in some way. However, this mineral has some other features that go beyond time travel. For example, when Luke scrubbed the mineral on Wayne Tillerson’s mouth, the latter recovered from a stroke. The mineral also can spark visions, as if it connects the mind of a person to time itself.

Whereas the Hole can be interpreted as a door that leads right into the river of time, the black mineral may be a physical manifestation of it. The biggest question, however, is whether Outer Range’s time travel storyline is sci-fi or supernatural. Although Dr. Nia Bintu is investigating the Hole’s properties, there are also hints that this mysterious power cannot be explained by science and has supernatural origins. Outer Range season 3 can choose to maintain the mystery or reveal more about the Hole’s nature.

7 Is Perry In An Alternate Universe At The End Of Outer Range Season 2?

Perry saved Trevor and rewrote history

Perry went back in time to before he was even born at the end of Outer Range season 1 and spent most of the season interacting with younger versions of his parents. He eventually jumped through the Hole again, yet instead of returning to his “present,” he showed up a few weeks earlier. After looking through the window and seeing Amy with her grandmother waiting for him, Perry realized he was back the night he killed Trevor. Hoping to stop himself from killing a man, Perry drove to the bar and arrived just in time.

By changing the past, Perry may have created a new universe where seasons 1 and 2 played out completely differently.

“Season 2” Perry stopped “season 1 Perry” from killing Trevor, yet “season 1 Perry” ended up dying in the fight instead. In other words, Perry has drastically changed the past. Not only is the original Perry of that timeline dead, but Trevore is alive. This means none of the events of Outer Range season 1 can happen in this particular timeline, which could now be a brand-new universe. By changing the past, Perry may have created a new universe where seasons 1 and 2 played out completely differently.

6 Did Perry’s Changes To The Past Rewrote The Show’s Timeline?

If not a new universe, did the timeline change?

Time travel stories usually adhere to one of two rules. Either changing the past creates a new universe, or it rewrites history in the same timeline. If Outer Ranger goes with the latter, this means history has been rewritten after Perry saved Trevor. This version of Perry never went to Josh Brolin's Outer Range character asking for his help to disappear with Trevor’s body, meaning Royal never ran into Autumn near the Hole. Joy never began to investigate Trevor’s death either. As such, the events featured in Outer Range’s seasons 1 and 2 cannot have happened after the changes Perry made.

If “time is a river,” everything happens in a continuous line and cannot be stopped.

If Perry’s actions in the past did indeed change the timeline through a butterfly effect without creating a new universe, it can be assumed none of the characters remember what the original timeline looked like. The only exceptions would be Royal, Autumn, and Perry, the three of whom have come in contact with the Hole. This would explain why Autumn, who was dead at the end of season 2, came back to life. Perhaps in this altered timeline, Autumn was not shot, and now the changes are slowly catching up with the present.

5 What Caused Royal’s Headache In Outer Range Season 2’s Finale?

Royal passed out in season 2’s finale

Assuming Perry saving Trevor created a butterfly effect that is slowly catching up with the present, this may be why Royal was heaving a headache at the end of season 2. As someone who is deeply connected to the Hole and has traveled through time more than once, Royal would likely be able to feel that the timeline was changing. His mind could be struggling to comprehend a new timeline being written over the previous one, hence the headache. Royal almost had a stroke at the end of Outer Range season 2 but eventually woke up feeling better.

If “time is a river,” everything happens in a continuous line and cannot be stopped. That said, the flow of time can be altered, and one change at any point in the timeline can cause a ripple effect that extends through the entirety of it. Outer Range season 3 could explore Royal’s struggle to understand his memories of a timeline that no longer exists.

4 How Does Time Travel Actually Work In Outer Range?

Season 2 showed different types of time travel

There have been at least two types of time travel in Outer Range. One is through the Hole, which has so far been a portal that can take someone to either the past or the future. Although the Hole appears to be random – there is no navigation system after all – it seems to take the person to a point in time that is crucial to their journeys. Perry, for example, was sent back to the night when his younger self killed Trevor, allowing him to prevent his biggest regret from ever happening.

Royal's backstory was first revealed in Outer Range season 1, episode 6.

The other form of time travel is what Joy went through at the end of season 2. Joy did not jump through the role and yet saw herself in 1886 while walking through the woods. It’s also unclear what Outer Range’s time travel rules are. There was a picture from the late 19th century in Joy’s archives where she stood alongside members of the local Native American tribe, yet this picture was only taken after Joy went back in time.

3 Did Joy Change Royal’s Past By Going Back In Time?

Royal’s past appears to have been retconned

If Joy was always in the black-and-white picture her daughter found, this could mean it’s all a closed loop and history cannot be changed. If, however, Joy only appeared in the picture after she went back in time, this means the timeline can be changed due to alterations made in the past. The same question applies to whether Royal’s backstory was changed after Joy went to 1886, or if the death of his father always happened that way.

In Outer Range season 1, Royal told Perry that he accidentally shot his father while on a hunt. Ashamed and in panic, Royal ran and fell through the Hole, which brought him to the late 20th century. However, in Outer Range season 2, episode 4, Royal shoots his father to prevent him from killing Joy. Either Royal was lying to Perry in season 1, or the timeline has been changed because Joy went back in time.

2 Will Amy Ever Return To The Present?

Does Amy live Autumn’s life, or does she change things?

Everything that happened to Amy in Prime Video's time travel Western brought her closer to becoming Autumn. In fact, by the end of season 2, Amy’s memories were scrambled, and she believed her name was Autumn. Considering Autumn had no memories of her life from before she was nine and was raised in “the future,” Amy is exactly where she is supposed to be to grow into the Autumn viewers have followed for two seasons.

Therefore, Outer Range season 3 could show more of how Amy became the person Autumn is today. The show could see how she joined a cult, and how she re-discovered the Hole. Another option, however, is that Amy’s journey in the future does not play out the way it was supposed to. Perhaps this younger Autumn can break the cycle and return to her original time before she becomes part of the cult. Amy could also be rescued by Royal or Perry, both of whom are no strangers to traveling through time.

1 What Does “Time Is A River” Mean For Royal In Outer Range?

What’s next for Royal in Outer Range?

Outer Range season 2 ends with Royal getting out of the hospital bed and having a vision where everyone important to him, from all members of his family to younger versions of him, are reunited and saying the phrase “Time is a river, Royal.” One possibility is that this means Royal can’t fight against the flow of time, and that everything that must happen will happen. Interestingly, despite everything that happened, Royal still believes things will be okay.

What Outer Range season 3 will look like depends on whether Perry switching places with a dead version of him after saving Trevor will create a new reality or not. If Perry is still in the same timeline, Outer Range season 3 could be a completely different show, with the characters having memories of a story that viewers didn’t watch. If so, Royal will have to make sense of all the changes if he wants to win the fight against time and save his family.

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