Hey!
Are you bored?
Do you have a lot of free time on your hands?
Do you like TV shows?
Do you regularly pay your Netflix subscription fee?
Are you a fan of sick plot twists?
Do you feel like getting your mind blown into tiny little pieces of utter confusion?
And - most of all - do you feel like staring into a wall for half an hour asking yourself "what the hell did I just watch"?
This one doesn't have the sweeping perspective of "National Anthem", but it still can kick you right in the gut.
It revolves around something way smaller in scope: the effect of advanced technology on human relationships.
This episode takes place in a world where most people have been equipped with "grains": little implants located under the ear which record everything one sees. Those marvelous things allow their owners to replay their memories. People implanted with a "grain" can either watch their memories themselves (with a rather eerie shroud veiling their eyes while they do that) or they can... hook themselves up to a TV screen and show it to others.
That's a pretty messed up concept, I know.
This episode ENDED ME.
It made me bawl my eyes out.
And not because it's sad.
Oh no.
Oh no.
Kenny, a seemingly normal teenager, decides one day to crank one out to porn on his laptop. Kinda gross? Yeah, but perfectly... erm, natural?
The thing is, his laptop has been infected with a virus... as a result of which a malicious, anonymous party gets a hold of a recording of Kenny jacking his beanstalk to naughty stuff on the internet. Whoever it is, they decide to blackmail the poor kid. He starts getting text messages with orders he has to carry out or... the disgraceful video will end up on the internet for everyone Kenny knows to see.
The kid has no choice. He fulfills hacker's every wish to keep his reputation intact. On his way, he meets other people who seemingly have fallen victim to the cruel ploy as well.
What unfolds later... will leave you with a parched wasteland for a soul.
There's a song by Radiohead involved. If you have ever listened to Radiohead in your life, you know this stuff hits you hard on its own, without being featured on a heart-wrenching episode of a brilliantly dark TV show.
I'm still reeling from this episode, I swear. I still catch myself thinking about it throughout most days.
DAMN. JUST... DAMN.
These are only the three episodes that hit me the hardest, punched me right in the feels and wrung my mind into a pathetic, tear-drenched yet emotionally scorched rug.
The rest of the episodes (with maybe two exceptions) is just as good.
What can I say? This show is absolutely f a n t a s t i c . It deserves every bit of the hype it's received so far.
If you're willing to plunge headlong into a maze of heavy-hitting insanity that has the potential to rid you of your last sparks of faith in humanity and its future, you can't miss it.
Are you bored?
Do you have a lot of free time on your hands?
Do you like TV shows?
Do you regularly pay your Netflix subscription fee?
Are you a fan of sick plot twists?
Do you feel like getting your mind blown into tiny little pieces of utter confusion?
And - most of all - do you feel like staring into a wall for half an hour asking yourself "what the hell did I just watch"?
Is that you right now?
If you answered "yes" to most of these questions, I have something for you.
The intro alone brings shivers down my spine.
Unless you have lived under a rock over the past five years, this title should ring a bell.
Black Mirror is a British anthology TV series created by Charlie Brooker. The show takes on the topic of the murky area where the futuristic solutions meet the deepest, darkest, most terrifying aspects of humanity.
It's not a TV show like anything you've ever seen before. Black Mirror certainly has made waves all over the world due to its unique writing, brilliant acting and... exquisite morbidity.
If only you knew what was trending on Twitter in that episode...
It's hard to put into words what you're about to witness if you decide to spend some time exploring the dark Universe of BM. The plot twists will turn your stomach, the employed ideas will make you brood for hours on end, and you'll find yourself in the sudden realization that you've become THAT annoying person who tells everyone around you:
"HAVE YOU SEEN BLACK MIRROR? NO, SERIOUSLY DUDE, YOU HAVE TO WATCH IT."
If that's what they tell you, you might have been a tad too persistent.
Also, if you're a person of 0 self-control like me, you'll probably end up like this after binge-watching all available four seasons.
One of the things that make Black Mirror so great is the fact that each episode is a story on its own. Although many "easter eggs" and clues point to a conclusion the episodes share a Universe and a timeline, every episode can be watched separately. Such a unique approach has created a breeding ground for multiple fan theories and sparked countless on-line discussions about links between the characters and events of different episodes.
But enough with gushing.
Let me show you my favourite episodes (and by favourite I mean those which have shaken me to the very core of my existence) with short synopses.
Don't worry, I won't spoil anything. Who do you think I am?
1) National Anthem S01E01
The show doesn't play around from the very first episode. In fact, many Black Mirror fans believe "National Anthem" to this day keeps the title of the most shocking, emotionally harrowing episode in the history of Black Mirror.
In the episode, the British PM Michael Callow wakes up one dreary morning to the Home Secretary Alex Cairns informing him that a popular member of the Royal Family, Princess Susannah, has been kidnapped. Doesn't sound too freaky so far, does it?
Well, buckle up.
There appears to be a video with the kidnapper's demands, making waves on the Internet. Apparently, Princess Susannah will be killed unless Callow performs an indecent act with a pig on national TV for everyone curious enough to see.
And if you know anything about human nature, you'll realize "everyone curious enough to see" is... basically everyone.
If you decide to have a go at the first episode, it will most likely send you down into a nauseating spiral of empathy for the poor Prime Minister, desperate hope it all will turn out to be a cruel prank played on the guy, and... burning revulsion.
I had to watch this one in bits. It's not even the fact having an intercourse with a pig is absolutely revolting... It's how achingly accurate the grim portrayal of mankind presented in the episode is.
Social media is dangerous. We keep saying that... but few among us truly understand how dangerous it can be.
This episode scarred me.
2) The Entire History of You S01E03
In the episode, the British PM Michael Callow wakes up one dreary morning to the Home Secretary Alex Cairns informing him that a popular member of the Royal Family, Princess Susannah, has been kidnapped. Doesn't sound too freaky so far, does it?
Well, buckle up.
There appears to be a video with the kidnapper's demands, making waves on the Internet. Apparently, Princess Susannah will be killed unless Callow performs an indecent act with a pig on national TV for everyone curious enough to see.
And if you know anything about human nature, you'll realize "everyone curious enough to see" is... basically everyone.
If you decide to have a go at the first episode, it will most likely send you down into a nauseating spiral of empathy for the poor Prime Minister, desperate hope it all will turn out to be a cruel prank played on the guy, and... burning revulsion.
I had to watch this one in bits. It's not even the fact having an intercourse with a pig is absolutely revolting... It's how achingly accurate the grim portrayal of mankind presented in the episode is.
Social media is dangerous. We keep saying that... but few among us truly understand how dangerous it can be.
This episode scarred me.
2) The Entire History of You S01E03
This one doesn't have the sweeping perspective of "National Anthem", but it still can kick you right in the gut.
It revolves around something way smaller in scope: the effect of advanced technology on human relationships.
This episode takes place in a world where most people have been equipped with "grains": little implants located under the ear which record everything one sees. Those marvelous things allow their owners to replay their memories. People implanted with a "grain" can either watch their memories themselves (with a rather eerie shroud veiling their eyes while they do that) or they can... hook themselves up to a TV screen and show it to others.
That's a pretty messed up concept, I know.
It doesn't take much thinking to realize the possible repercussions of such technology, does it?
We follow Liam as he becomes more and more paranoid about his wife, Ffion, cheating on him with her old acquaintance. As the plot unveils in front of our very eyes, that cold queasy sensation keeps coiling in our stomachs...
What may seem to be a wonderful invention at first turns out to be...
Well, watch it and see for yourself.
One thing I know for sure. The last scenes of this episode will haunt me forever.
3) Shut Up and Dance
No, I don't mean the upbeat yet rather tired song by Walk the Moon. A part of me really wishes I did, though.
This episode ENDED ME.
It made me bawl my eyes out.
And not because it's sad.
Oh no.
Oh no.
Me at the end of that episode: a visual representation.
Kenny, a seemingly normal teenager, decides one day to crank one out to porn on his laptop. Kinda gross? Yeah, but perfectly... erm, natural?
The thing is, his laptop has been infected with a virus... as a result of which a malicious, anonymous party gets a hold of a recording of Kenny jacking his beanstalk to naughty stuff on the internet. Whoever it is, they decide to blackmail the poor kid. He starts getting text messages with orders he has to carry out or... the disgraceful video will end up on the internet for everyone Kenny knows to see.
The kid has no choice. He fulfills hacker's every wish to keep his reputation intact. On his way, he meets other people who seemingly have fallen victim to the cruel ploy as well.
What unfolds later... will leave you with a parched wasteland for a soul.
There's a song by Radiohead involved. If you have ever listened to Radiohead in your life, you know this stuff hits you hard on its own, without being featured on a heart-wrenching episode of a brilliantly dark TV show.
I'm still reeling from this episode, I swear. I still catch myself thinking about it throughout most days.
DAMN. JUST... DAMN.
These are only the three episodes that hit me the hardest, punched me right in the feels and wrung my mind into a pathetic, tear-drenched yet emotionally scorched rug.
The rest of the episodes (with maybe two exceptions) is just as good.
What can I say? This show is absolutely f a n t a s t i c . It deserves every bit of the hype it's received so far.
It'll shake you to your core, but it's worth it.
If you're willing to plunge headlong into a maze of heavy-hitting insanity that has the potential to rid you of your last sparks of faith in humanity and its future, you can't miss it.
Okay, so... what are you waiting for???
GO WATCH IT!
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