Dark S1 E3 Explained

The storyline gets really captivating in this episode. If you aren’t already, this episode will definitely hook you into the Dark universe. Let’s breakdown what happens in this episode called ‘Past and Present’ –

1986 Timeline:

Mikkel from 2019 visits Winden of 1986:

Mikkel goes back to 1986 and meets his future grandmother in his own house. His future grandmother mistakes him for Mads. Then Mikkel runs to the police station and tells the police officer that he is looking for Police Chief Ulrich. The police chief thinks it’s a prank by young Ulrich to get back at him for not being able to find his missing brother Mads yet.

At this point, Mikkel realizes that he has somehow time-traveled back to 1986 and says this to the hospital nurse. Like everyone else, the nurse thinks Mikkel is lying.

Midnight arises, and the possible apocalypse begins. Having understood that no one will believe him, Mikkel tries to escape the timeline by running towards the opening of the cave. Meanwhile, his father Ulrich from 2019 is trying to break into a secret door through the cave. He hears a distant scream from Mikkel. They are both on the same side of the cave but in different timelines.

Mikkel is stuck in 1986, and his dad Ulrich is in 2019.

Characters:

There are so many characters that it can be tough to keep track of who is who. To make it easier, here’s a checklist of the main characters.

New Characters Introduced in this Episode:

• Mr. Tiedemann – Police Chief in 1986

• Claudia Tiedemann – Head of the Nuclear Plant in 1986 (Daughter of Mr. Tiedemann)

• Young Helge – A cleaner at the Plant in 1986 (The elderly man in 2019 who keeps screaming, “It’s gonna happen again”)

• Tronte Nielsen – Someone from the Nielsen family who is cheating on his wife with Claudia in 1986 (Just like Ulrich Nielsen in 2019)

Innes – The nurse who adopts Mikkel in 1986. We could predict from 2019 scene that she is the same woman who was waiting to open the letter of Michael (Jonas’ Dad who committed suicide)

Similarities Between 1986 and 2019:

• Birds and other animals are dying with their eardrums exploded.

• Missing children (Mads in 1986 and Mikkel in 2019).

• Someone from the Nielsen family is cheating on their wife.

• The nuclear plant is involved in shady work.

• Everything is repeating every 33 years in Winden, from 1953 to 1986 to 2019.

We also get to see how Hannah and Ulrich had a bond since their teenage years. Later on, Ulrich develops an extramarital relationship with Hannah, possibly after her husband died.

Something is brewing. I’m going to make a wild guess that Mads has gone back to 1953, just like Mikkel is stuck in 1986.

The aesthetic of this episode is retro-ish. The plot that a boy from the future is visiting the past is very interesting.I personally loved the overall ambience in this episode.

Now I am heavily invested in Dark. Can’t wait to see what episode 4 unfolds.

IMDb Rating: 8.5

FGM Rating: 8.5