The following contains spoilers for Season 1 of 1899, now streaming on Netflix, and a mention of sexual assault.
One of the most intriguing aspects of Netflix's 1899 is how cryptic it is, stitching together another large puzzle like creators Jantje Friese and Baran bo Odar did with Dark. In this case, there are a lot more unsolved mysteries and missing people, leaving viewers parsing through episodes for clues.
The thing is it's rather uncertain if the event is supernatural, something religious, or people's imaginations playing off, just like The Devil's Hour mind-bending space-time conspiracy. But in this case, due to everyone being stuck at sea in a Bermuda Triangle-like story, it's even more difficult to comprehend who's the puppet master behind it all. What is certain is that all these dominoes being kicked over involve many deaths. Let's dissect who bites the dust.
1899's Young Ada Is Deactivated
Ada is one of the Danish immigrant children in the lower holds. She ends up following a green scarab and meeting the mysterious Daniel, who sneaks aboard with his son, Elliot. Sadly, she's found pale and dead, which fans learn later is due to Daniel deactivating her mind. He's hacking this world, which is a situation similar to The Matrix or the digital construct in Don't Worry Darling, but it's never revealed why the child and other random victims have to go.
1899's Krester and Yuk Je Jump Overboard
As Daniel works with Maura (his wife) and Elliot to get her to wake up in the real world, her father, Henry, is also manipulating the situation to stop them. He activates a sound trigger -- a ticking clock -- that gets most people to jump overboard and drown. Sadly, Ada's older brother, Krester, and Ling Yi's mom, Yuk Je, die this way. Krester is a sympathetic soul, as his religious mother, Iben, abused him for being queer. Yuk Je's passing, however, feels like karma after forcing her daughter into prostitution.
1899's Flashbacks Hold Many Deaths
As Season 1 gives insight into the characters' backstories, fans learn Eyk (the ship's captain) lost his family when his depressed wife burned their house down. Ramiro and Ángel murdered a priest and fled Spain, hiding they're a gay couple on board. Tove (Ada's older sister) killed her rapist after he beat Krester up for being gay. Lastly, Ling Yi accidentally killed Mei Mei by over-sedating her tea, which allowed her to steal the teen's identity and board.
1899's Storm is a Deadly Wave
In the final episodes, the ship is hit by a storm, which leads to dark fates for many survivors. Olek -- the Polish furnace worker who fell for Ling Yi -- is washed off the deck by powerful waves. As the waters flood the cabins, Tove's father Anker stays with Iben, realizing he can't abandon his wife, despite her bigotry. They drown, as well as one of the first mates, Franz, who sacrifices himself to get Tove to safety.
1899's Furnace Room is Blighted, Too
As the storm ravages the ship, Lucien goes into shock and dies, getting the seizures he was hoping to treatment for in America. It's hard to empathize with him, however, as he did abandon his buddy, Jérôme, who snuck onboard and is left to care for Lucien's wife. Additionally, as the hull is battered, pieces of the ship fall off and crush Ángel.
1899's Reset Kills Eyk and Everyone Else
Henry had a spy on the ship all this time in another first mate, Sebastian. He uses a similar device Daniel has, deactivating Eyk as the captain tries to help Maura. However, when Henry and Sebastian think they have Maura's key to resetting the world the way they want, they discover Daniel's hack gives her the power to reboot differently. Maura flees and resets the simulation, killing everyone including Daniel and Elliot, but this wakes her up in the real world. As Maura unplugs her Total Recall-esque headset, it sets the stage for her to find who's physically alive for in Season 2 and free them as well.
Season 1 of 1899 is streaming on Netflix.