Current Events > ITT: I review the episodes of Black Mirror, worst to first *spoilers*

(+) Yeah! (+)

The old topic purged... whoops. I'll repost and get it up to current, as this is also being done on Cable & Satellite
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13. The Waldo Moment

As I mentioned at the beginning of the topic, this show really does a great job talking about so many different messages and delivering on so many unique concepts that I could see a hundred different rankings being viable. I could also see the argument for any individual episode of Black Mirror to be someone's favorite.

Any episode, that is, except The Waldo Moment.

I do wonder what happened with this episode. I'm sympathetic to the notion that, in an anthology series, when you've got three shots to tell an amazing story per season, it feels weightier when one is a dud and it may be hard to identify when it's just not coming together until it's already too late. However, Waldo is, for me, the only objectively mediocre episode of the show's entire run. No other episode of the show left me feeling quite so immediately underwhelmed in virtually every capacity.

For starters, we should address the core concept of the whole story. I've heard lots of people compare Waldo to Trump, but let's be fair and objective in our analysis -- they are not very good parallels. Trump might be crass, he might have rallied the cynics and people who wanted to say "fuck the system," but Waldo is not Trump. Waldo is Cartman. Actually, worse, Waldo is Cartman if Cartman wasn't remotely funny. I don't think a single Waldo line actually made me laugh in the episode. The greatest issue with Waldo Moment stems from this -- it is already a tall task asking us to believe that Waldo was even popular, let alone that he could somehow ascend to some Big Brother-esque figurehead as we see by the end of the episode. Waldo running for election in real life would net a little attention, but in the end, he was an unfunny, uncharismatic comedian and a rebel-without-a-cause as a politician. I never once bought he could've made anywhere near the impact he made, and to me, that undercuts the whole thing. What makes Black Mirror so deadly and effective is that it always calls us to picture a terrifying scenario that unsettles us because we know it isn't THAT outlandish. Waldo Moment doesn't pass that test. In order to pull off the concept as something I could buy into, they'd have needed to make Waldo something less than completely obnoxious. I didn't even think his second place election finish was "earned" by the show, let alone the absolute asspull finale.

I could forgive the failure of execution in making Waldo a funny character in the first place if I found the rest of the characters surrounding him compelling, though. However, that really wasn't the case. Jamie is unlikable and miserable, and while some of my favorite Black Mirror stories feature those types of characters, in Jamie's case, less was not more -- we needed either a little more context for why he was so dejected, or he needed more of an arc. I can run with "unsatisfied failed artist" as an archetype, but he felt pretty 2D to me. His comically stereotypical greasy manager falls into the same trap of being a walking trope. The scene with the two of them and the guy from the oh-so-mysterious "Agency" just left me rolling my eyes. How many cliches can we jam into one scene?

Anyway, I've railed on the episode enough -- a couple positives were the charming (and unfortunately underused) Gwendolyn, and a particularly nice performance by Tobias Menzies as Liam Monroe. The best scene in the episode by far was that talk show debate where Monroe ripped into Waldo and Waldo ripped back. I thought that was excellent, and hoped the episode would go further in that direction with the Waldo character. Oh well.

Luckily, the worst episode of Black Mirror was still a decent watch. I didn't hate it. It just falls sadly short of standards.
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12. Hated in the Nation

I suspect this one is lower than most people would have it, but for me... well, the best way to put it is that it is the worst good episode of Black Mirror. It's far beyond Waldo, but Hated in the Nation felt like a mess of cliches that ultimately didn't really end up leaving any sort of impact with me.

The base concept behind the episode's tech is wonderfully twisted -- we've driven bees to the point of extinction, replaced them with robots, and now we're feeling the consequences in wholly unexpected ways. That's some vintage Black Mirror shit right there; right in that sweet spot of bizarre but a little close to home. I also think the ease with which we express vitriol and hatred online under the guise of anonymity was very ripe for the Black Mirror treatment. So, all that said, consider me disappointed that the execution was so wanting.

A big issue with the whole episode lies in the fact that, despite its unique technological premise, the episode still managed to be the only episode of the show I'd felt like I'd basically entirely seen before. An homage is one thing, but if you've seen Se7en, Silence of the Lambs, and, well, basically any variation of CSI/24/etc, you've seen Hated in the Nation. I really wanted to like this episode, but as it progressed, it fell more and more into cliche. Like... the jaded older cop teams up with the young and spunky new kid with a lot of drive, and together, they overcome a little initial animosity to become partners and sniff out a serial killer with a secret past and a manifesto... how many times in one episode can we get Blue staring at her computer, brow furrowed behind her glasses, when she makes a shocking discovery and lets out a breathless "fuck" before running in to tell everyone what she found? Had to have happened at least three or four times. Essentially, my issue is that Hated in the Nation takes a very cool and inventive concept, then confines it into the parameters of a series of paint-by-numbers cliches and oddly familiar scenes, right down to the ending scene which was almost directly lifted from Silence of the Lambs.

(cont)
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(cont)

The greatest sin of the episode, though, lies in the unfortunate choice to ultimately put so much focus on the villain. By giving Scholes so much focus in the back part of the episode, and so heavily emphasizing his super-genius plan and the hunt to bring him down, I felt the episode lost its focus and betrayed the core principles of Black Mirror. When I sit down to watch this show, yes, I anticipate a story about technology that pushes something ethical boundaries, but more than anything, I expect a story that makes me do a little introspection on a part of society I see or even partake in that makes me uncomfortable. To be fair, they headed squarely that direction with the #DeathTo concept of the whole episode, but by making the ultimate punishment SO disproportionate to the crime, I felt the lesson was less "don't be a cyberbully because it's shitty" and more "don't be a cyberbully because a supergenius 'nice guy' might kill you and 380,000 others with robot bees." It ended up making the chase for a terrorist more important than the societal critique, right down to the "we got him" ending. I think the episode would've been better served if Scholes was never revealed/revealed after the events of the story, ala Shut up and Dance or The National Anthem, the latter of which more deftly incorporated a terrorist threat without overshadowing the societal critique.

All in all, it may sound like I hated the episode. I didn't. I found it enjoyable, and the house scene was one of the most tense setpieces in the entire run of Black Mirror. The problem isn't that it isn't good -- it's that so many fascinating and interesting pieces were in place, but the finished puzzle was ultimately unfocused and overly familiar. As a result, the relative waste of a great premise ended up disappointing me, but there was still plenty of fun to be a had and I'll certainly rewatch it at some point in the future.
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11. Nosedive

I had a tough time figuring out where to put Nosedive in my list of rankings. When I view the episode objectively, I see a lot of great traits -- a plausible technological premise that hits close to home, good acting, a satisfying ending that brings something new to the series, and a scathing critique of modern society. However, in the end, I personally believe we're already into "pretty darn good or better" territory, and as such I have to rank just based off of my own enjoyment. Through that lens, Nosedive comes next.

My biggest issue with the episode is that it is, bluntly, extremely grating. That might not be a fair critique to level at it, because the entire point is the absolute skewering of Instagram culture, but every staged shriek and giggle was just nails on a chalkboard. Again, I get that's the point, but from a simple enjoyment perspective, every conversation between Lacie and "Nay-Nay" *insert violent gagging* had me contemplating sticking the remote through my brain. The sick part is that some relationships/"friendships," especially teenage/twenty-something women, are essentially already like this and the technology only barely added any additional context. I give it high marks as a satire of a big complication in our modern culture, but that doesn't mean I actually liked watching it.

As for the technology itself, I thought it was, again, very plausible, but maybe a bit "easy" for Black Mirror. Part of it is that, while I acknowledge there was a chunk of time between when these episodes aired, White Christmas had JUST done an episode where the tech brought a potentially problematic aspect of social media into our own eyesight. Whether it's blocking or liking, the concept felt a bit like a continuation rather than a fresh idea for the show.

The above negatives aside, I do still think it was a good episode. The ending was the most uplifting "fuck you" of all time, and seeing those two people finally be free while in prison was a great contrast. Extremely rewarding conclusion. I also want to give props to Bryce Dallas Howard for a great, convincing performance, and a brief shout-out to the scene where she's buying the house and sees the projection of herself with a man. The longing look in her eyes and the subtle wistfulness in her face betrayed a LOT about the character in a show-don't-tell masterclass moment. The conversations with Susan regarding the ranking system might have been a bit on the nose, but I thought added a nice element to the episode as well.

All told, Nosedive is an entertaining episode with a heartfelt ending, a great point to make about our society, some genuinely funny moments, and some nice acting. However, an episode leaving me feeling like "that was pretty good!" falls short of the bar Black Mirror has set at "damn... I'm gonna have to think about that for a while." Objectively good, subjectively not-quite-great.
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Bump, gonna try to get in another review tonight
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Tagging this topic cause its the only one I really care about on the board and because the old one purged.

tag
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BlazeJordan648 posted...

Tagging this topic cause its the only one I really care about on the board.

Flattered af fam
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10. Fifteen Million Merits

Disclaimer: I do believe this is where some of you will start throwing rotten tomatoes at me, but I'll begin by again saying that I believe every episode remaining on this list is at worst a very good episode of television, so I'm kinda splitting hairs.

I give Fifteen Million Merits a lot of credit. What's interesting to me is that, after watching The National Anthem, this was the episode that truly got me hooked. Going in, I'd thought the show was more about 1984-esque technological dystopia stuff (true to an extent), so this episode was the one that first scratched that itch for me. Yet when I went to make this list, and after revisions upon revisions of said list, I kept finding this one slipping down and it took a little bit to figure out why.

Starting with the things I love, I found this episode extremely well-acted. Bing was a great character, and I bought him completely throughout. I also think this might feature Black Mirror's most creative world-building. The world of the merits, the show, the bikes, everything was laid out extremely well and painted a clear dystopian picture. Bing and Abi are cute and relatable, and everything about the setup works. The first half of this episode is some of the best Black Mirror has to offer. In fact, even the back half of the episode is still pretty great -- Bing's rant at the end is captivating, the American Idol parody is searingly hilarious, and Bing's ultimate decision to sell out (though with the nicer penguin sculpture as a reminder of Abi) is heartbreaking. I really like this episode.

So, if I liked it so much, how does Fifteen Million Merits end up in 10th place? After giving it some thought, I think the answer is twofold. Firstly, as I've mentioned already, I had to reconcile with myself that I think there are ten very, very, very good episodes of Black Mirror, a notch above the three I've ranked lower (I'm looking forward to putting my rankings into "tiers" of sorts to further illustrate how I separate them, but I don't want to spoil that in advance). Secondly, I think the episode has fallen down my rankings solely because Black Mirror has topped itself. When I watched this episode for the first time, I thought it was phenomenal, and liked it better than The National Anthem. However, having watched the whole show, this particular episode feels about as subtle as a sledgehammer, in retrospect. Subtlety isn't always one of the show's strong suits, but the fact that it seemed like Bing and only a VERY small handful of others had the slightest problem with the proceedings feels a little bit like a stretch. The points the episode makes about fifteen minutes of fame, reality shows, avatars, other-shaming, and pornography are all valid, but I do feel that Black Mirror would go on to develop a little more finesse in its delivery.

The most interesting part about when you first start watching this series is the process of figuring out exactly what this show even is. I watched the first episode and thought "ah, it's a cynical critique on societal flaws! 10/10." I watched this episode and thought "ah, no, it's a fever-dream satire of different aspects of our culture! 10/10." But as you go along, you find that the show is TRULY, at its core, about technology's capacity to highlight our worst impulses, and our ability (or lack thereof) to overcome. Armed with that contextual knowledge and looking back, Fifteen Million Merits loses half a step compared to some of the episodes that followed. It is a great episode of television on its own merits (pun intended); within the context of the whole series, I think a defter touch would've made it feel more cohesive with the rest of the episodes.
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Solid topic and insight good sir.

I'm actually amazing that the trolly face one isn't in last place. That's the one episode I hated, like, legit hated.
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As for the tiers I mentioned... I don't want to say in advance how I'm grouping the REST of the episodes, but so far I think there's been a little gulf between every episode.

Merits is a full step above Nosedive, which is a full step above Hated in the Nation, which is probably two full steps above Waldo, IMO. Going forward, however, the gaps by and large get MUCH narrower.
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Eat More Beef posted...

Solid topic and insight good sir.

I'm actually amazing that the trolly face one isn't in last place. That's the one episode I hated, like, legit hated.

See, that's what I love about discussing this show. I won't say where I've got it, but you're the first person I've seen ever put Shut Up and Dance as a clear cut last place.

So many diverse opinions and takes on episodes.
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Up, another review coming later
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9. Men Against Fire

This episode, from what I've seen, seems to get an unfairly bad rap. Upon finishing it, I thought it was pretty damn good and was surprised to see so many people didn't care for it, but all that being said, I don't think there's another episode on this list that would be fair to rank lower than it. I find it considerably better than I've heard from others, yet agree it is imperfect, so in ninth place, here comes Men Against Fire.

Most analysis of seen of this episode revolves around the big twist that the MASS implant was twisting the soldiers' perception, and whether or not the admitted predictability of said twist undermines the episode. For me, sensing a big twist coming can occasionally be just as fun as being caught off-guard, and this was one of those cases. I watched through this series with my wife, and she has not watched consumed nearly as much media as my nerd ass has over the years and is more susceptible to twists. So, when the first scene with the roaches came up, and you saw the I Am Legend-esque creatures behind the curtain, she said "phew, I was so sure they were just gonna be real people!", and funnily enough, her saying that is what made it click for me, very early on. The ability to suss out the big twist about ten minutes in does betray a bit of heavy-handedness to the twist that is worth critiquing, but I don't believe that ultimately hurts the episode too much. I don't think the episode set out to blow your mind with an earth-shattering revelation like White Bear or even the twists and turns of Playtest or Shut Up and Dance.

To me, that is why Men Against Fire still works. It's not about the "big twist," it's about Stripe and our military practices. The episode strikes a resonant chord not because it blows your mind, but because it drives at a hard, ugly truth about war and about the stratagems of both military and society when it comes to perceiving our enemy, a truth we already know and are often content to ignore. The MASS tricking the mind into seeing monsters is sadly not far from not just current reality, but the history of mankind. We always perceive enemies as "the other." We demonize each other, we dehumanize each other, and convince ourselves that killing each other is the greater good. One of the most subtly unsettling parts of the episode is that the villagers, who have no implant in their heads, have also been convinced that these people are monsters, criminals, thieves who must be put down. Men Against Fire succeeds because "it turns out they were people all along" is, devastatingly, the "plot twist" for essentially every conflict in human history.

I'd be remiss if I failed to mention the supremely eerie dream sequences, as well. The concept of rewarding our soldiers with sex dreams is freaky enough, but freakier still is the reveal that this woman he dreams of doesn't even exist. As we learn, he's not married, there's no "girl back home worth fighting for," he's just some kid. Plus, the scene where his dream sequence malfunctions with a bunch of clones of the girl is my new textbook example of:

https://media1.giphy.com/media/iZYcyJ02eny4o/200_s.gif

(cont).
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(cont.)

And of course, the ending is devastating as well, with the implication that he took the deal to reset his MASS, then returned "home" from service as a decorated war hero... to nothing. A strong message indeed for the way we sometimes can treat our veterans, which is another quarter-twist of the knife. The episode is also carried by some very strong acting from Malachi Kirby and Michael Kelly.

Of course, it isn't all roses. I'll gladly stand up for the episode, but certain aspects do fall a bit flat. For starters, as mentioned above, the twist IS more than a little obvious, which shouldn't define the episode's success but should be noted. Additionally, the secondary theme of "don't trust the government!!!!" complete with bad-guy-monologue is a bit obvious by Black Mirror standards, even if it was a bit of necessary context for the story they wanted to tell. I also thought Hunter (Madeline Brewer) was a bit cringey throughout. Not the best performance, but she also didn't have the best material. We get it, she's a tough girl. She also had the unfortunate task of shoehorning in another rendition of "Anyone Who Knows What Love Is," which was chilling in Fifteen Million Merits, an eerie throwback in White Christmas, and, well, supremely unnecessary here. It felt like someone said "hey, we should put that song in this season somewhere!" and just kinda slotted it in (I feel like it could've more effectively been used in the dream sequences here, or perhaps in Playtest, San Junipero, or, if you really wanted to get unsettling, Shut Up and Dance).

Overall, Men Against Fire seems to me to be underrated, but it does come with a couple warts that keep it from going any higher. That said, I still definitely enjoyed it and think it brings a lot to the table when it comes to introspection on our society and universal truths about mankind, which is what Black Mirror does best.
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Up
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Blackstar110 posted...

Up

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Another review today
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Blackstar110 posted...

Additionally, the secondary theme of "don't trust the government!!!!"

I don't think that's a theme in this episode because I'm pretty sure that he works for a mercenary corporation not as an enlisted member of the military. If anything the theme is more along the lines of bad things will happen when the government allows for the privatization of the military.
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Waldo is god awful lol.
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lilORANG posted...

Waldo is god awful lol.

Agreed, it's the worst episode by a wide margin.
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Hated in the nation that low.

*topic list*
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Howl posted...

Blackstar110 posted...

Additionally, the secondary theme of "don't trust the government!!!!"

I don't think that's a theme in this episode because I'm pretty sure that he works for a mercenary corporation not as an enlisted member of the military. If anything the theme is more along the lines of bad things will happen when the government allows for the privatization of the military.

Maybe so, good point if accurate.

Doesn't overall change my review, though.
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Mark_DeRosa posted...

Hated in the nation that low.

*topic list*

I've never seen it higher than 9. Where do you have it? Genuinely curious for your thoughts.

@Mark_DeRosa
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I can't remember many episodes names but

1. San junipero
2. Christmas
3. Playtest
4. Hated in the nation
5. White bear
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Mark_DeRosa posted...

I can't remember many episodes names but

1. San junipero
2. Christmas
3. Playtest
4. Hated in the nation
5. White bear

Huh. Well, we're at #8 and all of those are still alive for me too except Hated in the Nation.
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Mark_DeRosa posted...

Hated in the nation that low.

*topic list*

nothing in season 3 should be above anything in seasons 1 or 2, except for Waldo
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lilORANG posted...

Mark_DeRosa posted...

Hated in the nation that low.

*topic list*

nothing in season 3 should be above anything in seasons 1 or 2, except for Waldo

I know I sound like a broken record but I love hearing all these varied opinions.

I've got people upset that Nosedive wasn't top three, people who didn't like any of S3, people who think Junipero is clear #1, people that think Merits is the masterpiece of the series, people who didn't like it much at all, etc.

It's a fun show to review because very little can be agreed upon except Waldo being the worst. Even that I've gotten some contention on. I know every review from here on out is gonna piss someone off, which is also funny because I think every episode in my top ten are all in the same ballpark of greatness
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lilORANG posted...

Mark_DeRosa posted...

Hated in the nation that low.

*topic list*

nothing in season 3 should be above anything in seasons 1 or 2, except for Waldo

Really idk about that. Aside from an episode here or there, it was basically I have glasses I know you cheated . The first episode while good just felt like an episode csi lol
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Mark_DeRosa posted...

lilORANG posted...

Mark_DeRosa posted...

Hated in the nation that low.

*topic list*

nothing in season 3 should be above anything in seasons 1 or 2, except for Waldo

Really idk about that. Aside from an episode here or there, it was basically I have glasses I know you cheated . The first episode while good just felt like an episode csi lol

CSI: Pig Fuckers was my favorite spinoff

But seriously, I'm confused how you criticize an episode for feeling like CSI but loved Hated in the Nation >_> That episode is a straight up police procedural, love it or hate it.
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It felt like a thriller movie to me. Could have been in the theater
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Tag
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Mark_DeRosa posted...

It felt like a thriller movie to me. Could have been in the theater

That's fair. Part of why I didn't like it is because it felt too much like Se7en and Silence of the Lambs, which are both great.

I didn't think it was a bad episode, just not as unique as I hold Black Mirror to.
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this show is really really average imo
if you take every episode for they really are...full blown movies

then they really dont compare to actual movies that come out in cinema (interstellar, edge of tomorrow, etc) especially in terms of budget and acting quality

the only episodes that stood out to me were san junipero (or however you spell it) and white christmas



British TV is campy, and at worst just not very intelligent (doctor who, sherlock, broadchurch, downtown abbey)


most characters are caricatures encompassed in political agendas. in almost all the episodes there are ONLY White and black characters and they are often romantically involved. if there is a LGBT character, instead of exploring it an a nuanced way the character is introduced holding hands or doing something PDA to 'shock' the viewer. "LOOK HOW PROGRESSIVE THE FUTURE IS EVERYONE" Look how progressive we the writers are!

At all times, the show trying to make some statement instead of delving into actual interesting character development.
there is wrong with having LGBT characters, but if you are going to make a point to include their sexual orientation then delve into the implications of it. how does this effect them and their motivations? instead, every character is a hollow shell serving as a walking political statement.


outside of the maincharacters, everyone is brainwashed. everyone is exhibiting X negative trait (too obsessed with the upvoting downvoting, everyone in fifteen million merits is ok with forcing the poor girl to get nude when she just wants to sing and commercializing everything, EVERYONE Is ok with a society where you can block people)

how did the general populace get to where they are. SHOW ME HOW society got to where it is in each episode, dont have me follow a main character who is the only sober soul. the trope is lazy and derivative and the writing exploits pop culture fears
"the environment is bad, kids/people spend too much time on social media upvoting and downvoting, society is too commercialized sucking the humanity out of everything"

tag

i also agree that junipero was #1, shifted the tone in an interesting way
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San junipero was mad boring
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8. San Junipero

I wrestled with this one for a while. San Junipero is so nearly perfect. It is exquisitely acted, the concept is phenomenal, and the setting is unique, fun, and believable. By all rights, the episode was fully on track to be a top three finisher. So, what happened? Why is it in the middle of the pack? The answer, for me, lies in my opinion that, regrettably, San Junipero executes the perfect vault but fails to quite stick the landing.

I really have to start with the positives here, because man, so much about this episode is great. I loved trying to figure out what exactly was going on for the first half of the episode... I was originally thinking it would be a flashback sequence, but as it wore on and on and it became more abundantly clear that something weird happens at midnight, my mind was racing trying to nail down the twist. In no way did I see it coming that they were both practically on their deathbeds. The setting itself was also profound, with these garish, cartoonish representations of an era the denizens of the city probably only barely remember, and the Quagmire demonstrating the danger of letting go completely.

Additionally, I adored the performances from Mackenzie Davis and especially from Gugu Mbatha-Raw. Davis brought a perfect tragically adorkable air to Yorkie, befitting a confused lesbian discovering herself after having been trapped in a quadriplegic body for most of her life. For my money, one of the most impressively acted scenes in the entire series is the argument between Yorkie and Kelly where Kelly reads her the riot act, tearing up while explaining that she had been married for 49 years, and that Yorkie could not begin to understand what that was like. Gugu Mbatha-Raw infused that scene with as much heartbreak and power as you would expect from someone who actually HAD lost a husband of 49 years, when she herself is only 34, so I thought that was just absolutely breathtaking.

However, that scene which elevated San Junipero beyond its already lofty standing and set the stage for a great ending, was undercut what is in my mind a tragically rushed finale. That scene, that revelation about her daughter and her fear of the unknown after death, was SO powerful that I found it profoundly jarring that 30 seconds later, it's revealed that she decided to stay after all and they lived (?) happily ever after. I am not saying Black Mirror made the wrong call by going for a happy ending. That's fine, have Kelly stay. The way it was handled, however, felt to me like they suddenly ran out of budget for an additional five minutes of the episode that seemed to be missing. It is fair to say we can surmise that, in her final days, Kelly decided that she would allow herself to enjoy her new life with Yorkie (sort of like remarrying, in a sense), and that maybe she decided it was okay to let go of her husband forever or that it was better not to know what came next. I think that is a perfectly valid direction for the episode to go, but I frankly found it extremely disappointing that the last time we see the two leading ladies talking, they are having an extremely heated argument about the most important aspect of Kelly's entire life, and the next time we see them, Yorkie's just picking up a giggling Kelly from the beach house to go party. An entire scene seems to be missing. It felt entirely unearned, the way it was handled.

So, there you have it. It's been interesting seeing some review San Junipero as top three (which I can totally understand) while some call it boring or similarly criticize the ending. To me, the episode isn't boring at all. It was so close to being almost perfect, and it's still great. However, Black Mirror episodes have a tendency to end on notes that linger for a long time, and this one sadly left me craving just a little more explanation.
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armandro posted...

San junipero was mad boring

Yeah, and it wasn't really an original or interesting idea either. Plus the ending just... ended. Madly overrated.
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Up
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7. Shut Up and Dance

Now that we are at roughly the midpoint of this list, we have arrived in the territory of episodes that get a "man, that was great" with no reservations. No more "that was great, but"s, aside from perhaps a few nitpicks here and there that differentiate them. Kicking off this section of the list is, for my money, the funniest episode of the show, Shut Up and Dance.

As an anthology, one would not say Black Mirror is known for its laughs, and this episode comes packed with many, many grim moments of its own, but I have to say the strongest aspect of the whole thing to me comes from the absolutely bizarre and profoundly uncomfortable buddy-cop dynamic between Ser Bronn of the Blackwater and a pedophile CEman. An already promising set-up really jumped up another level with Jerome Flynn's entrance as Hector. and the absolute horrors he and Kenny went through were always underscored by the grimmest (yet funniest) shades of black comedy. Some personal favorite scenes are the awkward car ride with the woman and, even more so, the absolute skewering that Hector gives Kenny prior to the bank robbery. "Your hot little face, blurred fist, dick burping fucking spunk everywhere? Your mom's gonna love that on Facebook" has to rank towards the top of excellent Black Mirror quotes.

On a less humorous note, the premise of the whole thing, particularly with the reveal that the hackers were only after vigilante justice, is eerily realistic and one of the few Black Mirror concepts that could absolutely happen tomorrow. I had no idea the show was going for the social critique of Anonymous and similar groups, so I thought that was a great touch. For whatever reason, the revelation that Kenny had looked at child pornography didn't particularly shock me -- I figured it had to be at best some kind of severely weird fetish shit for him to be worked up about it to the point of robbing a bank -- and the endgame being a fight to the death between two pedophiles before ratting everyone out anyway makes a whole lot of sense from the vantage point of holier-than-thou vigilantes.

Though, that said, perhaps the vigilantes actually ARE "holier" than the people they victimized. That is the most interesting question that Shut Up and Dance asks you... is your sympathy for Kenny greatly reduced when you find out the full extent of his indiscretions? Do you instantly shift from "this poor kid" to "well... I guess he kinda had it coming." It's admittedly a similar question to one White Bear has already asked, but worth revisiting through this different lens. To me, the person who actually seemed to have been the most unfairly punished was Hector -- dragging him through all that and exposing him anyway for the crime of hiring a hooker one time seemed pretty harsh, as despicable as doing that to his family was. Even as I type, I find myself questioning "well, did he deserve to be found out and lose his family?" The answer may be yes, but did that give the hackers the right to play judge, jury, and executioner?..

Down the rabbit hole we go.

These is compelling stuff, and gets right to what Black Mirror does so well at its best -- making us question ourselves as opposed to just wagging a finger at others. Perhaps the trollface at the end was a bit dated, but when that jumps out as one of the only things I can think to actively criticize, you know you've got a good episode of television on your hands. The sole reason it doesn't rank higher is because it didn't really fuck me up afterwards and linger quite as much as the remaining episodes did, but make no mistake, Shut Up and Dance is pretty darn great.
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bump
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how did that kid even overpower that adult pedo? Dumb.
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lilORANG posted...

how did that kid even overpower that adult pedo? Dumb.

Could have easily just been a trip and fall, or one good bash on the head with any rock or nearby object.
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I like when people go into detail.

These are my rankings, BTW:
2>1>11>13>8>12>7>5>9>6>4>10>3

You and I differ A LOT
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So far my issue is that you seem adverse to pointedness. 15 million merits hit hard because it hit hard. I can not think of a more intellectually dark moment than the guy being forced to watch a porn preview where the dreamer girl sings her hopeful song as she has sex, looking drugged up and dead inside that was just so fucking dark.

Why undercut that by just alluding to it. The cinematography on the episode was so beautiful why not show it in all it's full intensity?

By criticizing a show for being effective as being "too unnuanced" it's like criticizing a boxer for punching too hard. That it hits it's marks so well is what makes this such a great episode, same point about San Junipero
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joe40001 posted...

So far my issue is that you seem adverse to pointedness. 15 million merits hit hard because it hit hard. I can not think of a more intellectually dark moment than the guy being forced to watch a porn preview where the dreamer girl sings her hopeful song as she has sex, looking drugged up and dead inside that was just so fucking dark.

Why undercut that by just alluding to it. The cinematography on the episode was so beautiful why not show it in all it's full intensity?

By criticizing a show for being effective as being "too unnuanced" it's like criticizing a boxer for punching too hard. That it hits it's marks so well is what makes this such a great episode, same point about San Junipero

I think you're misinterpreting what I'm saying. The scene you mentioned in 15 Million Merits is perhaps my favorite scene from the episode.

When I say I prefer episodes with a little more subtlety, I don't mean "just imply stuff!!!!" Oftentimes, showing is the most brutal and effective way. I'm talking grand scheme; overarching, conceptual subtlety. The foundation of the episode being "the world has turned into American Idol and only like two people have any sort of problem with it whatsoever" still makes for awesome dystopia, but I wouldn't say it makes for the most thoroughly believable episode. It's almost more like an extremely, extremely dark satire.

If there's an aspect with my perspective for you to take issue with, I think it'd be that I (mostly) favor episodes that strike deep at things I genuinely fear could or will come to pass in the relatively short term. That's not a sweeping rule, but it's why Merits wasn't my favorite despite it being objectively great.

I'm not sure what you're getting at about San Junipero, though -- my main critique there was that the ending skipped a step. I wanted MORE pointedness, not less.
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Blackstar110 posted...

joe40001 posted...

So far my issue is that you seem adverse to pointedness. 15 million merits hit hard because it hit hard. I can not think of a more intellectually dark moment than the guy being forced to watch a porn preview where the dreamer girl sings her hopeful song as she has sex, looking drugged up and dead inside that was just so fucking dark.

Why undercut that by just alluding to it. The cinematography on the episode was so beautiful why not show it in all it's full intensity?

By criticizing a show for being effective as being "too unnuanced" it's like criticizing a boxer for punching too hard. That it hits it's marks so well is what makes this such a great episode, same point about San Junipero

I think you're misinterpreting what I'm saying. The scene you mentioned in 15 Million Merits is perhaps my favorite scene from the episode.

When I say I prefer episodes with a little more subtlety, I don't mean "just imply stuff!!!!" Oftentimes, showing is the most brutal and effective way. I'm talking grand scheme; overarching, conceptual subtlety. The foundation of the episode being "the world has turned into American Idol and only like two people have any sort of problem with it whatsoever" still makes for awesome dystopia, but I wouldn't say it makes for the most thoroughly believable episode. It's almost more like an extremely, extremely dark satire.

If there's an aspect with my perspective for you to take issue with, I think it'd be that I (mostly) favor episodes that strike deep at things I genuinely fear could or will come to pass in the relatively short term. That's not a sweeping rule, but it's why Merits wasn't my favorite despite it being objectively great.

I'm not sure what you're getting at about San Junipero, though -- my main critique there was that the ending skipped a step. I wanted MORE pointedness, not less.

Yeah I'm off on San Junipero, I shouldn't have mentioned that.

The World Hasn't Turned into American Idol though, that was just 1 show, they have the fat people show too, it was more about the separation between humanity and entertainment. How you can have oppression when you commodify dissent. The Avatars being able to buy broken glass was another brilliant moment.

And while the endgame didn't necessarily seem plausible (This BM episode was probably the most "In The Future" of any episode) never in the episode did they not take the world they built or premise they established seriously, namely "The greatest danger of Commodification is it's ability to absorb the things that should stand against it": Innocence, Dreamers, Dissent, Free-Thought, etc.

The episode made it's point so fucking well. It was the most perfect episode IMO.

Are you saying that "yes it might be most perfect, but it just was not to my taste"? Because I guess I understand that, but for me most of the 9 episodes above it have actual flaws that should outweigh they being tonally preferable in your ranking.
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I'm not necessarily saying it was "most perfect," I'm saying that I think the top ten episodes of Black Mirror are varying levels of 9/10-10/10 TV, so our mileage may vary in pure and simple preferences. I could see any of them moving up or down a little bit within that top ten.
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Blackstar110 posted...

I'm not necessarily saying it was "most perfect," I'm saying that I think the top ten episodes of Black Mirror are varying levels of 9/10-10/10 TV, so our mileage may vary in pure and simple preferences. I could see any of them moving up or down a little bit within that top ten.

But like "Shut Up And Dance", the horror game one, and "Entire History of You" are so clearly worse
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