The deeply enthralling Netflix anthology series is back! Black Mirror just debuted season 7 of the British sci-fi dystopian show, and if you haven’t been hooked on it, don’t worry. We’ve rounded up our ten favorite episodes from the series so that you can get the hang of the complicated themes.
Created by Charlie Brooker, each episode of Black Mirror is a standalone— meaning that you don’t have to watch episodes beforehand to understand what’s happening. Technically, there are some episodes that take place in the same universe like the movie Bandersnatch and the episode “Plaything” and the sci-fi tribute USS Callister. A lot of the Black Mirror episodes have been critically acclaimed by TV sites since they all have such witty commentary on the use of technology. (The name is derived from the empty screen we’re left staring at when our devices are switched off.)
So, which episodes are worth streaming? Take a look at our picks below.
A rare happy ending at that one! “Hang the DJ” shows the love story between two lovers Frank (Joe Cole) and Amy (Georgina Campbell), who apply to a dating app simulation called The System. Despite the whole world trying to rip them apart, they persevere with true love. The ending is giving a bit of The Truman Show, but the two make it out of the virtual world alive.
Probably one of the most harrowing endings one could imagine and one that shocked viewers for ages to come. “Shut Up & Dance” follows the desperate Kenny (Alex Lawther), who was caught masturbating and is blackmailed to do bizarre illegal things so that the video doesn’t get out to the public. It’s a nailbiter, that’s for sure.
An eerie insight into how social media affects our daily lives. When Chris (Andrew Scott) finds out that his ride-share passenger is an employee (Damson Idris) at social media company Smithereen, he holds him hostage and demands to talk to the CEO. After several negotiations, all Chris wants is closure about how everything affected his wife’s death, but it ends up being a showdown for the ages.
What would you do when the Princess is in danger and the kidnapper demands you to have sex with a pig? We don’t know either. But “The National Anthem” is one hell of a series opener and questions the lengths of what a Prime Minister (Rory Kinnear) would do for his country.
A choose-your-own-adventure type of media presented by Black Mirror that’s truly a unique brand of storytelling. The story revolves around a a young programmer Stefan Butler who tries to make his dream of making a game come true. The story has five different endings, but which one will you ultimately choose?
A sapphic love story that revolves around themes of death? Count us in. San Junipero is highly regarded as one of the best and talked about episodes of Black Mirror. When shy girl Yorkie (Mackenzie Davis) meets the more outgoing Kelly (Gugu Mbatha-Raw) at the extravagant city of night clubs San Junipero, they delve into a love story that is brilliant and poignant til the end.
We cannot not compare this episode and the sequel to Star Trek. What happens when your co-worker uploads your consciousness to play a sci-fi game without your consent? After Robert Daly (Jesse Plemons) copies his co-workers to play a game of Space Fleet, a bunch of chaos enters as newly hired Nanette Cole (Cristin Milioti) plans to get the team to revolt. The story continues in season 7 with a brand new twist with the same avatars returning.
It’s like Uber Ratings, but if everyone can see it. “Nosedive” stars Bryce Dallas Howard as the happy go lucky Lacie who is a people pleaser and has a mission to attend her friend’s wedding. Everyone in this world has a star rating and if you’re rating is low, then people frown upon you and you lower in social ranking. Should you care what other people think? Maybe not, maybe so.
The other side of Hannah Montana. Miley Cyrus makes a roaring appearance as the popstar Ashley O and her mini toy Ashley Too. After Rachel (Angourie Rice) receives Ashley Too as a birthday gift, they discover that stardom isn’t what it appears on the surface, and a mission to expose the torture of what happens to someone when they reach for fame.
