“We’re back at Square One.” Indeed you are, Two, but viewers—and every member of the Raza—have some important pieces to the puzzle. If only they’d trust each other enough to share what they’ve learned.

Instead, One, Two, Three, Four and Five are keeping secrets while Six—the big, lovable oaf that he is—failed to clue in to what could be the key to what’s happened to them. Written by Joseph Mallozzi and directed by Amanda Tapping, Six’s major gaffe in Episode 4 occurred while he sat in the doctor’s office, waiting to have his burn looked at. An ad on the waiting room TV explained pods much like the one the Raza crew emerged from are used as a new way of vacationing. A person had a clone made of themselves and the clone went off on adventures in far-flung locations. Once the trip was done, the clone’s memories were uploaded into your own memory and the clone was sent to the scrap pile.

“Cool!” Six exclaimed to everyone in the waiting room, unaware One—and possibly more—of the crew are likely some advanced form of clone able to exist past the usual 72 hours.

One and Three learned a little more backstory from the man who identified himself as Jace Corso. Jace regaled his captives with his own story, explaining he was supposed to go on the mercenary run to the mining planet aboard the Raza but was waylaid by a raid and missed the boat. Jace saw someone just like him board the ship on his behalf so he dropped by the space station to wait for the Raza to re-supply. And while Three is convinced One is the only clone around, I’m thinking there are more to be revealed in the coming weeks.

Four also got a personal peek into his own life, learning the ring in his bedside table was apparently taken off his dead father, Emperor Ishida, after he was murdered by his son … a son identified as Four.

Meanwhile, ladies’ night out with Two and Five turned deadly when their success at gambling (Two has a gift for cards and Five for the shell game) led to the pair being pulled aside a threatened by the casino boss. In a flurry of arms and legs, Two killed everyone in the room and the gals fled back to the ship.

So, to recap: One and Three are keeping the Jace Corso info to themselves, Two and Five aren’t talking about the casino murders, Four murdered his father and Six is a lovable lug.

The plot thickens.

Notes and quotes

• Nice to see that, even in the future, we still have to take a number to see a doctor.
• “Stupid is catching.” — Three
• Who else thinks One and Three should star in their own buddy comedy?
• In Three’s defence, I don’t know what mercurial means either.

Dark Matter airs Fridays at 10 p.m. ET on Space.

Dark Matter just messed with my brain. After making a bunch of notes during Friday’s third episode, I basically had to throw everything I thought I knew out the window thanks to that final scene aboard the space station.

Yes, apparently, that was Jace Corso looking for the Raza and its crew members, causing me to sit forward and exclaim, ‘What the hell?!” This was, of course, moments after Five discovered the gun that killed the young man she found in the storage room earlier.

Written by Martin Gero, Episode 3 had the hallmarks of an Agatha Christie murder mystery, with a dead body found and the murderer among the folks trapped on the ship with no connection to the outside world. There were plenty of lingering camera shots at various team members, causing viewers to wonder which one was the culprit. It was easy to assume Three was the man responsible for killing the kid and even wiping their minds because he avoided the Android’s lie detector test until One literally put a gun to his head.

I’m still holding out hope the Android is somehow controlling everything on the Raza; every time Five came close to outing who had done the mind wipe something went wrong with the ship. I can’t help but feel the Android is controlling the situation no matter how innocent her face appears to be. (Remember Ash from Alien??) My assumption the faulty sensor was fake wasn’t true, but the gamma radiation scare certainly could have been.

Did Five program the Android? Is Three really single-minded, or is he an evil genius? Does One really have feelings for Two, or did he kiss her to gain her trust?

That’s the thing with Dark Matter. Just when I think I know what’s going to happen, a curve ball is thrown to make me reassess my assumptions.

In my opinion, that’s the mark of a great TV show.

Notes and quotes

• Four’s martial arts skills are kick ass.
• “Have a good time playing with your stick.” — Three
• “It’s chocolate protein pudding day!” — Five
• I wish I could initiate magnetic boots.
• The Dark Matter set has really become an effective part of the cast, thanks to dark corners, fluorescent lighting, steam and that grimy and scuffed look.

Dark Matter airs Fridays at 10 p.m. ET on Space.

Call it Canada’s summer of sci-fi. That’s certainly how it’s shaping up, with Space’s newbies Dark Matter and Killjoys and Showcase’s returning Defiance all gliding across our screens for the upcoming couple of months.

The first out of the gate is Dark Matter, a space opera created by Joseph Mallozzi and Paul Mullie, the duo behind the Stargate franchise. Starring Anthony Lemke (19-2), Roger Cross (Continuum) and Zoie Palmer (Lost Girl), Friday’s debut catches up with a group of people who awaken from a deep sleep to find themselves on a space ship and with no memory of how they got there … or who they are. The idea for Dark Matter first came to Mallozzi back when he and Mullie were deeply entrenched in Stargate: Atlantis; they turned the idea into a graphic novel first before shopping it to networks as a series.

Mollozzi is quick to highlight a feature of Dark Matter that kept him enthralled in projects like Farscape and Firefly: humour.

“There is a lot of dark sci-fi out there that is great,” he explains. “But a lot of fans are missing a fun sci-fi series and there hasn’t been one on a ship-based show for awhile. We set out to make a fun show with a sense of humour while at the same time putting viewers on the edge of their seat every week.”

It doesn’t take long for either of those plot points to appear in Friday’s debut. After awakening from sleep, the crew—One (Marc Bendavid, Bitten), Two (O’Neil, Broadway’s Les Misérables), Three (Lemke), Four (Alex Mallari Jr., Robocop), Five (Jodelle Ferland, The Cabin in the Woods) and Six (Cross)—begin to investigate their surroundings. Three is a sarcastic lover of weaponry who likes to shoot first and ask questions later, a rogue Mallozzi likens to Han Solo, Five is energetic and full of snark and One provides the leadership the squad so badly needs. The ragtag group uncover a seventh individual aboard: the ship’s android (Palmer), who makes a memorable first impression.

Who are they? Where are they? Where are they going and what the heck is locked behind a massive steel door in the bowels of the ship? The answer to the first question is delivered by the end of the debut while leaving things open for character evolution.

“Going back over my writing over the years is this idea of redemption,” Mallozzi says. “Nature vs. nurture. Are you born bad or are you a product of your environment? People form the strongest of friendships with their former enemies and the strongest of enemies with their former friends. It’s fascinating to me.”

As for what’s lurking behind that massive door? Mallozzi promises that will be resolved halfway through the season.

“We’re not going to string you guys along,” he says with a laugh. “There are setups and payoffs along the way. We’re going to find out the answers to two mysteries this season: who wiped their memories and what is behind that big metal door.”

Let the summer of sci-fi commence.

Dark Matter airs Fridays at 10 p.m. ET on Space.