Black Mirror

We finally got around to watch this series after having heard so much about it. Every episode had us sat like what the fuck, but in a good way, and we could never watch an episode without talking about it first.

So every episode starts out deceptively normal, but the viewer soon realises that it takes place in some not so distant future, becuse the tech they're using doesn't exist yet. 

My favourite episodess are usually connected to social media or personal tech that can only be described as cybernetics. And what I also really like is that a lot of those episodes have small hints that suggest they all take place in the same world. Like that one song.

In season 1 my favourite episode was Fifteen Million Merits, which is about people living closed off from the world spending their days cycling and earning merits and constantly consuming content. The cycling powers... something, and the merits can be used to buy your way out of cycling. But it doesn't really go the way you plan. This episode is the first time that song shows up, and then it just keeps popping up in several episodes throughout the series. 

Season 2 was incredible all around and I can't pick a favourite. Be Right Back is heart-breaking and we're still talking about it. White Bear created a discussion on morals and ethics and none of us saw that twist coming. The Waldo Moment could be contemporary for how it portrays politics, and it's scary how possible, even probable, it all seems. White Christmas is etched into my mind and the tech used for the interrogation comes back in another episode. Jon Hamm is in this one and he's just as amazing as usual. The eye-camera tech in this episode is pretty terrifying. 

Season 3 is also incredible all around, but if I have to pick favourites I'd go with Playtest and Hated in the Nation. Playtest is the most horror-ish episode of them all and that twist at the end is perfect. Hate in the Nation is pretty much a crime thriller, but with a tech twist and some environmental disaster warnings in it. That said... The social media aspect of Nosedive was really interesting and also kind of scary. Shut Up and Dance could be completely contemporary, probably the weakest story this season but still so good. The digital afterlife of San Junipero was a really cool concept. And finally, that twist in Men Against Fire was on point. 

In season 4 my favourite was hands-down Black Museum. Mainly because it takes elements from a whole lot of episodes and makes something new with it and I love when they do that. USS Callister is a pretty terrifying mix of online-gaming and digital cloning with a Star Trek twist. I laughed so much. Arkangel and Crocodile were both really on point with the scary future tech. Hang the DJ was cool and we talked about that one for a couple days. Metalhead was probably the weakest story of the season, but it was by no means bad. 

In season 5 they dropped the ball. Smithereens was probably my favourite episode, but all three stories in this season were pretty weak. Striking Vipers puts a future tech twist to VR gaming that didn't do it for either of us. Rachel, Jack and Ashley Too felt like a Disney Channel movie from 15 years ago. Smithereens deals with the attention-span deficit everyone suffers from due to social media, and it got a bit preachy. 

There seems to be a new season in the works, which I'm looking forward to. I just hope they can get back to the brilliance that was season 2-4.