Unfortunately, most movies and shows that use time travel as a storytelling device struggle to tell original stories. They are either too similar to feel-good time travel blockbusters like Back to the Future or a little too complex, often riddled with plot holes and inconsistencies. However, every once in a while, a time travel movie or show comes along and changes how we perceive the genre.
Prime Video's Undone is one of the few sci-fi shows that accomplishes this rare feat. It is not entirely bereft of the paradoxes and logical leaps typically associated with time-travel stories. However, the emotional core that it gives to its time travel narrative is what makes it incredibly memorable. The show also does not outstay its welcome and tells a complete and well-rounded story in two seasons.
Undone Is One Of The Greatest Time Travel Shows
Created by Kate Purdy and Raphael Bob-Waksberg, Undone cares little about the strict mechanics of time travel and the causalities and bootstrap paradoxes that come with it. Instead, it focuses on a character's inward journey where an almost shamanistic ability to travel through time allows the protagonist to confront buried trauma and understand her fractured relationship with herself.
The show centers on 28-year-old Alma who nearly dies in a car accident. The near-death experience allows her to have a strange relationship with time, allowing her to perceive it non-linearly. With what follows, she uses her newfound power to learn the truth about some mysteries from her past.
As Undone progresses, it becomes more and more wildly imaginative, with its hyperrealistic rotoscoping animation style being reminiscent of movies like A Scanner Darkly and The Waking Life. What truly makes the series compelling is that it uses time travel as a metaphor to explore the central character's repressed grief and trauma.
Undone also cleverly maintains an air of ambiguity surrounding whether its time travel is real or just a projection of a fractured mind. As a viewer, you keep wondering whether Alma is actually jumping across timelines or merely living in her head to gradually heal herself. Regardless of how one interprets its story, Undone ensures there are no dull moments in its story.
It is further elevated by the brilliant performances of its cast, which includes many familiar names like Roza Salazar, Daveed Diggs, Bob Odenkirk, and Angelique Cabral.
Undone Tells A Complete Sci-Fi Story In 2 Seasons
Some of the best sci-fi shows end up outstaying their welcome and eventually losing the initial charm and promise that made them special. Several others do not get to tell complete stories and are canceled long before they reach their natural conclusions. Fortunately, Undone does not fall into either category. It seems to have a deliberate two-act story arc that perfectly walks through the stages of healing and acceptance.
In season 1, its story is primarily built around the main character's grief and denial where she struggles to hold on to her illusion of control. This chapter closes with a massive cliffhanger that perfectly sets the stage for season 2.
As season 2 progresses, Alma's story becomes more about acceptance and letting go of generational trauma. Before its final credits start rolling, the Prime Video series leaves viewers with some profound messages surrounding the power of forgiveness and the importance of embracing uncertainty. As Undone wraps its run after two seasons, it feels perfectly well-rounded as it brings a full-circle closure to every story thread.
Release Date
2019 - 2022-00-00
English (US) ·