Television Black Mirror | Season 6 out June 15th

[Mockney]

Heard S1 might not be the best one to start with (i.e. it's not the best season)?

From whom? I personally think S1 is the best season, and I’m sure a few would agree. If you combine the first 7 eps (inc the Xmas spesh) into one, to match the length of 3 & 4, then it’s by far and away the best.

Though as a few have discussed, there’s a chance it’s impact at the time plays a part, and what feel like repetitive episodes now might seem less so if viewed out of order.

Everyone’s favs are different, but I certainly feel the best satire was early on though.

 

[Silva]

Everyone’s favs are different, but I certainly feel the best satire was early on though.

Tbf that's because there's been no satire in the latest seasons. It's more dystopian sci-fi.

 

[Mockney]

Tbf that's because there's been no satire in the latest seasons. It's more dystopian sci-fi.

I’d say Nosedive, Hatred in the Nation, Callister and Arkangel are all satirey to some degree. (And that’s without claiming Black Museum as satire of Black Mirror itself!)

Trouble is apart from Callister, with its fanboy/power fantasy angle, they were all things the show had already satirised. Slavsih devotion to social media, real world effects of our online interactions, access to too much personal information, etc etc etc. Chazzer still rung some good stories from them, but they packed less of a punch.

 

[BusbyMalone]

I just finished watching White Christmas.

Feck me, i need a lie down. Shit was bleak.

Edit: Oh, and feck Beth

 

[Cheesy]

Finished it. Would rank them this season:

Hang the DJ
Black Museum
USS Callister
Arkangel
Metalhead
Crocodile

 

[Zen]

I generally thought it was a massive mix on what the consensus best are - and it kind of is, but googling random lists. Seems Be Right Back is quite dominant as in terms of getting top votes - followed by a few for Entire History(the one I thought would have the most votes at one).

I think after those 2 episodes generally always being high, the rankings are generally all over the place - so yeah, it's exceptionally hard to recommend anything since it's massively subjective. Though you can notice the difference in US/UK rankings, US clearly loves San Junipero and even Shut Up and Dance(bit surprising giving it's a very British episode)...UK lists seemingly mostly have the first 7 quite high. As touched upon by Mock, obviously influenced by what people probably watched first.

But for me, the first 4 episodes is most consistent stretch....then 2 slightly off the mark, then White Christmas. 5/7 hits for me. Netflix takeover....I'm not sure I'd say it has a 50% conversion rate. I like pretty much every episode, but when I say hit, I mean, yeah, top stuff.

 

[Nickosaur]

Finished it. Would rank them this season:

Hang the DJ
Black Museum
USS Callister
Arkangel
Metalhead
Crocodile

Same here mate. I'd maybe rank Metalhead over Arkangel, but I just really dug the style and the lack of knowledge of the world/previous events, which I know some people disagree with.

 

[Adebesi]

I actually have Be Right Back as one of my least favourites - but I dont think Ive ever watched it a second time, whereas some ive watched 3 or 4 times. (Which is to say its possible if I watched it again maybe itd be better than I remember.)

 

[Andy_Cole]

Same here mate. I'd maybe rank Metalhead over Arkangel, but I just really dug the style and the lack of knowledge of the world/previous events, which I know some people disagree with.

My order is

Metalhead
USS
Black Museum
Hang the DJ
Arkangel
Crocodile

Loved Metalhead exactly for that reason. Reminded me very much of Mad Max.

 

[wr8_utd]

I know it's not everyone's favorite but I loved Metalhead. Such a bleak episode.

 

[Kraftwerker]

Finished it. Would rank them this season:

Hang the DJ
Black Museum
USS Callister
Arkangel
Metalhead
Crocodile

Seems about right, though it does seem a little like a rank order of happiest ending to bleakest.

 

[Cheesy]

Seems about right, though it does seem a little like a rank order of happiest ending to bleakest.

Suppose, but then 'Black Museum' encompassed multiple stories, and the end one only had a semi-satisfying ending insofar as the girl still ultimately did lose both her parents but got revenge and got to put him out his misery in the process.

The first story of the guy who could feel pain etc was incredibly grim and the second one with the woman inside her husband's conscience was incredibly grim too.

 

[Kraftwerker]

Suppose, but then 'Black Museum' encompassed multiple stories, and the end one only had a semi-satisfying ending insofar as the girl still ultimately did lose both her parents but got revenge and got to put him out his misery in the process.

The first story of the guy who could feel pain etc was incredibly grim and the second one with the woman inside her husband's conscience was incredibly grim too.

True.

And I think Crocodile suffered for being needlessly bleak. It didn’t add anything to the story to have her bash the family's brains in with a hammer (including a baby, really?). Usually Black Mirror find more clever or subtle ways to weave that feeling of bleakness into the episode, rather than just gratuitous violence.

 

[SalfordRed18]

Overall the season was good, maybe a bit boring a times (did not take to metalhead at all). I think the issue with it, is black mirror for me, took aspects of modern day life, completely flip it upside down to the point you question the direction we as a people are going. The episodes exaggerate, but you still question certain aspects of modern day society. Since Netflix has taken over, budget has gotten bigger but arguably it's less about modern day society and more about telling bleak, interesting stories in their own right. Uss callister is the best example of that actually.

A shame, but I definitely prefer it pre-netflix, with a lower budget.

 

[Cheesy]

True.

And I think Crocodile suffered for being needlessly bleak. It didn’t add anything to the story to have her bash the family's brains in with a hammer (including a baby, really?). Usually Black Mirror find more clever or subtle ways to weave that feeling of bleakness into the episode, rather than just gratuitous violence.

Think I've already said it in this thread but I just found the killer hard to believe. Her motives were incredibly flawed anyway - did she think the family would have no external friends or family who'd noticed they were all dead/had gone missing, and did she not realise the police would piece it all together after discovering the woman with the device had been to visit her? But even when you take that out of the equation I found her transformation from normal woman with a secret to brutal killer to be very sudden. And if the idea was supposed to be that she was this type of person all along then I don't think it was particularly well-conveyed.

 

[Kraftwerker]

Think I've already said it in this thread but I just found the killer hard to believe. Her motives were incredibly flawed anyway - did she think the family would have no external friends or family who'd noticed they were all dead/had gone missing, and did she not realise the police would piece it all together after discovering the woman with the device had been to visit her? But even when you take that out of the equation I found her transformation from normal woman with a secret to brutal killer to be very sudden. And if the idea was supposed to be that she was this type of person all along then I don't think it was particularly well-conveyed.

Yeah completely agree. I think they sort of tried to cover the first point by making the investigator girl out to be a bit of a one-man band freelancer. That maybe no one would have a track on her except those she’d told (her family). But far-fetched of course.

The transformation into brutal sadistic killer wasn’t handled well true. And the car engine not starting scene. Agree with whoever said above that it was cliched in the extreme. As soon as it panned to the side window you knew what was coming.

Still, that was the weakest episode but in the grand pantheon of tv shows it would still hold up well to most out there!

 

[VeevaVee]

I wasn't sure about Hang the DJ, despite many rating it. Ending felt a little rushed and bit like 'wait, so what was it?' before realising what had happened after it finished.

Spoiler

Although it kinda made sense, considering the alternative was that it was all real and people were taking years away from their working lives to find their partner. It implied everyone had to run away together in this simulation to be matched though....what if those people simply weren't the confident type and would be too scared to suggest that?

 

[SalfordRed18]

I wasn't sure about Hang the DJ, despite many rating it. Ending felt a little rushed and bit like 'wait, so what was it?' before realising what had happened after it finished.

Spoiler

Although it kinda made sense, considering the alternative was that it was all real and people were taking years away from their working lives to find their partner. It implied everyone had to run away together in this simulation to be matched though....what if those people simply weren't the confident type and would be too scared to suggest that?

Not to be soppy but I think it's a true love conquers all type simulation.

 

[Annihilate Now!]

I've seen Hang the DJ (excellent) and ArkAngel (good) so far.

 

[Nickosaur]

I've seen Hang the DJ (excellent) and ArkAngel (good) so far.

Do you watch them in a random order, i.e. not in the order they are on netflix?
Not criticising (and as an anthology you can watch them in whatever order you like!) but I don't think my ocd would allow me to do that

 

[Adebesi]

Do you watch them in a random order, i.e. not in the order they are on netflix?
Not criticising (and as an anthology you can watch them in whatever order you like!) but I don't think my ocd would allow me to do that

Me neither. Especially as I can't see any advantage to it.

 

[Annihilate Now!]

Do you watch them in a random order, i.e. not in the order they are on netflix?
Not criticising (and as an anthology you can watch them in whatever order you like!) but I don't think my ocd would allow me to do that

Yeah, we watch whichever takes our fancy.

For this reason, i've still not seen Man Against Fire or The Waldo Moment...

 

[Massive Spanner]

I'd go

Hang the DJ - 9/10
Callister/Black Museum - 8/10
Arkangel - 6/10
Crocodile/Metalhead - 5/10

 

[CassiusClaymore]

I wasn't sure about Hang the DJ, despite many rating it. Ending felt a little rushed and bit like 'wait, so what was it?' before realising what had happened after it finished.

Spoiler

Although it kinda made sense, considering the alternative was that it was all real and people were taking years away from their working lives to find their partner. It implied everyone had to run away together in this simulation to be matched though....what if those people simply weren't the confident type and would be too scared to suggest that?

Did it imply that? I just read it as those that did would come out as a stronger match %wise.

 

[Massive Spanner]

I assumed there were 1,000 different simulations and they could all "rebel" in different ways, not necessarily by running off together.

 

[CassiusClaymore]

And if we're doing lists...(in order of how much I enjoyed this season) I'd go

USS Callister
Black Museum
Hang the DJ
Metalhead
Crocodile
Arkangel

 

[robinamicrowave]

Watched just three of the new ones so far.

USS Callister - 8.5
Arkangel - 8.0
Crocodile - 7.5

 

[crappycraperson]

Yeah, we watch whichever takes our fancy.

For this reason, i've still not seen Man Against Fire or The Waldo Moment...

Man against Fire is worth a watch, Waldo moment absolutely is not

 

[crappycraperson]

I assumed there were 1,000 different simulations and they could all "rebel" in different ways, not necessarily by running off together.

My interpretation of it was that there were 1000 simulation of them being in the same world with same constraints and end goal was for them to rebel against the system which imposed these rules without giving a definitive reason for doing so. Ending did not work completely for me since it was partly driven by the discovery of it being a simulated world by the female lead which somewhat diminishes the purpose of a dating match algorithm. Meaning you are trying to find out that 2 people are meant for one another, not that they would have intelligence to differentiate between virtual and real world.

 

[Massive Spanner]

My interpretation of it was that there were 1000 simulation of them being in the same world with same constraints and end goal was for them to rebel against the system which imposed these rules without giving a definitive reason for doing so. Ending did not work completely for me since it was partly driven by the discovery of it being a simulated world by the female lead which somewhat diminishes the purpose of a dating match algorithm. Meaning you are trying to find out that 2 people are meant for one another, not that they would have intelligence to differentiate between virtual and real world.

Hmm I don't think so. When it showed all the different versions of them at the end they were clearly all dressed very differently which implies it was different scenarios.

 

[Pogue Mahone]

I've enjoyed every episode I've watched so far (Crocodile, USS, Arkangel and Metalhead)

A few questions about the latter. I know it's deliberately light on exposition but would be interested in theories all the same.

Spoiler

What was the apocalypse? Was it Terminator style uprising of the machines?
Why did they need the teddy bears? She said something about making someone happy, even though they don't have long left to live. A dying child? (feck that's bleak)
How did your man "hack" the van? What were the numbers he was using from his notebook? How did he get them?
In the fancy house where she got the shotgun, the previous owner had obviously killed himself. Why tho? If killer robots are roaming around wiping every human out, how does someone end up living in his posh house long enough to decide that he was so bored of life he blew his brains out?

 

[Adebesi]

I've enjoyed every episode I've watched so far (Crocodile, USS, Arkangel and Metalhead)

A few questions about the latter. I know it's deliberately light on exposition but would be interested in theories all the same.

Spoiler

What was the apocalypse? Was it Terminator style uprising of the machines?
Why did they need the teddy bears? She said something about making someone happy, even though they don't have long left to live. A dying child? (feck that's bleak)
How did your man "hack" the van? What were the numbers he was using from his notebook? How did he get them?
In the fancy house where she got the shotgun, the previous owner had obviously killed himself. Why tho? If killer robots are roaming around wiping every human out, how does someone end up living in his posh house long enough to decide that he was so bored of life he blew his brains out?

Can't be bothered to check back but someone had a theory that Amazon delivery robots went rogue.

 

[Maagge]

Spoiler

In the fancy house where she got the shotgun, the previous owner had obviously killed himself. Why tho? If killer robots are roaming around wiping every human out, how does someone end up living in his posh house long enough to decide that he was so bored of life he blew his brains out?

Re your last question:

Spoiler

I took it he just realised apocalypse was coming and decided to end it on his own terms instead of waiting for the dogs. He had obviously been dead for a while given his state when the protagonist found him.
Of course we have no idea how many years the world has been fecked for.

 

[crappycraperson]

Hmm I don't think so. When it showed all the different versions of them at the end they were clearly all dressed very differently which implies it was different scenarios.

Different scenarios as to how they met up, but did it imply different conditions around the rebel as well?

 

[Massive Spanner]

Different scenarios as to how they met up, but did it imply different conditions around the rebel as well?

Not sure. I guess it's open to interpretation.

 

[CassiusClaymore]

Re your last question:

Spoiler

I took it he just realised apocalypse was coming and decided to end it on his own terms instead of waiting for the dogs. He had obviously been dead for a while given his state when the protagonist found him.
Of course we have no idea how many years the world has been fecked for.

Or maybe it was just totally unrelated. Could've been a Star Wars fan topping himself after the latest movie.

 

[Kapardin]

In the middle of season 3, binge-watching. Its' a fantastic show, just the kind of dark psychological stuff I love. The National Anthem and White Christmas are my absolute favorites, and everything else was also great bar The Waldo Moment which was kinda meh.

Brilliant mind, that Charlie Brooker.

 

[Verminator]

Just started last night. Enjoyed the first one, but fell asleep in the middle of the second, due to sleep deprivation.
I look forward to catching up on this. It's right up my street.

 

[VeevaVee]

Think I've already said it in this thread but I just found the killer hard to believe. Her motives were incredibly flawed anyway - did she think the family would have no external friends or family who'd noticed they were all dead/had gone missing, and did she not realise the police would piece it all together after discovering the woman with the device had been to visit her? But even when you take that out of the equation I found her transformation from normal woman with a secret to brutal killer to be very sudden. And if the idea was supposed to be that she was this type of person all along then I don't think it was particularly well-conveyed.

She didn't need them to not notice though really did she?
She just needed someone to not have seen anything.
I'd assume at that stage all cars would have trackers though, making the visit from the inspector an obvious flaw.
I think the point was that the technology meant she had to kill more than she would've otherwise to cover her tracks, and has therefore caused more crime and suffering rather than helping deter it. And in this case it's all stemmed from unnecessary greed like suing a company for a larger amount.

A more complete episode than Hang the DJ, for me, but obviously swinging towards the grim rather than fun side.

 

[pauldyson1uk]

In the middle of season 3, binge-watching. Its' a fantastic show, just the kind of dark psychological stuff I love. The National Anthem and White Christmas are my absolute favorites, and everything else was also great bar The Waldo Moment which was kinda meh.

Brilliant mind, that Charlie Brooker.

I like Waldo.