Black Mirror Is Frustrating

[@RossMcIntyre]

Re: the "cautionary tale" part. I meant it more in a general sense, and I probably should have said "warning" or "hypothetical" along with it. Sorry for the confusion.

[@angeldanielquintohernandez2223]

Tho i dont agree with opinion i think yes i see how the show is slowly geting shitier and shitier

[@pauldacon828]

Ross McIntyre Striking Vipers is a commentary on the shackles of the physical realm and an exploration of intimacy beyond the narrow scope of the flesh. I love it, I love the abstract take on the male psyche and the heartache of being with the one you love only in body while being unfaithful in your heart and mind. In many regards the physical world is more superficial and hollow than your own internal world you manifest in your mind, so in the end what is more real, the love that you can touch or the love that you can feel?

[@Tillyard86]

I'm currently writing a video response to this which looks like it's going to be very VERY long, way longer than the original video. But let me just say right now, I think you are a cool guy and you seem pretty smart. I just don't understand your thoughts on Black Mirror, and I'm looking forward to explaining why.

[@pauldacon828]

Buc Reviewer I don’t understand your disapproval of Striking Vipers, the rest of season five I can absolutely see your reason for criticism, though I could easily say “I’d like to see you do better.”, but that would be petty and accomplish nothing. SV is clearly making a case that physical love is superficial and that gender roles are archaic. It is embracing the nonlinear path to emotional fulfillment that each individual must find for themselves. It is heartbreakingly sad and a poignant tale of the pitfalls of a wandering heart. If you can’t appreciate that, then I feel sorry for you.

[@Tillyard86]

Paul Dacon I really don’t get how he can say “the episode doesn’t explore” these kinds of things, if he’s talking about them after seeing the episode, it must have at least got him thinking about those things.

[@WobblesandBean]

Here's the thing: Black Mirror isn't meant to be a "cautionary tale" about our reliance on technology. It's a modern-day Twilight Zone based around the _central motif of technology._ That's how I always saw it. I mean, what cautionary tale is there in White Bear or Bandersnatch? They show a Kafka-esque scenario where a central figure cannot escape their convoluted, enigmatic predicament. You know...again, just like Twilight Zone. That's why I like the show so much. I actually consider Arkangel to be my favorite episode; as someone who was raised by a VERY overbearing, overprotective mother, it really got to me. But yeah, I never really saw the show as trying to teach any kind of lesson, no more than Westworld is. It's just an entertaining show that likes to straddle the sci-fi and horror genres. I still loved your video, though. It's always nice to hear your perspective and your reasoning behind your take on these shows.

[@michealvega1373]

@Aman Smith-martin that's straight up one of the best episodes

[@pewnit]

Honestly, 15,000,000 merits, The National Anthem, White Christmas, and Arkangel are my favorite episodes

[@marcomeme4875]

White Bear partly has the cautionary tale on the hunger for retribution. The viewers knew she’s a horrible, shitty person, but she straight up doesn’t know that, so if she doesn’t know what she did then can she really be held morally responsible? But it also seem to play around a lot with the idea of people filming horrible accidents instead of doing anything.

[@anonymousnobody2259]

Aman Smith-martin Holy hell I wasn’t expecting such a closed minded trashy response to an otherwise calm discussion. Honestly I was gonna do the whole “Everyone has their own tastes” argument but honestly that doesn’t matter for someone like you. You just can’t handle complicated plots or take the time to understand shit. Congrats on being a stuck up prick of a person.

[@sammigirl66]

It really isnt the best episode to watch for a 1st timer , i watched white bear as my first episode and it fucked me up. In my opinion, every season has its really shitty boring episodes, then episodes that blew my fucking mind. Please dont let people tell you Shut up and Dance is the best episode, cause its not. lol Try white bear, national anthem, nosedive, be right back , or White Christmas. But if you dont wanna thats cool to i guess lol

[@gustavoulguim]

Uss callister is great wtf, the characters aren’t flat

[@yellurbandana]

That episode scared the absolute shit out of me, I hate the idea of being stuck in my mind forever.

[@LWoodGaming]

@@yellurbandana you do know he die in that episode right

[@Tillyard86]

I'm currently writing a video response to this which looks like it's going to be very VERY long, way longer than the original video.

[@than217]

Honestly that's one of my top 3 favorite episodes. I was shocked too when this guy said he thought that about that episode.

[@justmart4455]

Yeah it's actually pretty awesome. Some faded diamond.

[@nicoledenel]

Shut up and dance was my favorite episode... the story, acting and the little clues they give you through the episode about the characters secret 👏🏽👏🏽👏🏽👏🏽👏🏽

[@zmlkni9842]

same here!! another reason i really loved that episode was how realistic it was; it was based off something that could definitely happen today & i was really affected by it as a result

[@Papada00]

Yup. Shut up and dance is the best episode of black mirror.

[@mosespf]

that and entire history of u are by far the best episodes

[@LABoutaBagDoe]

Denel Dumont + I Favorite Episodes was Black Museum and San Junipero

[@officialbanana7038]

acting is so good

[@andrewkohler3707]

2:15 - I actually have to say that "White Bear" strikes me as entirely plausible in our society, which has a great deal of trouble distinguishing justice from bloodlust. "The Waldo Moment," in contrast, was just Trump getting into office but clumsier.

[@christianporter4638]

Honestly same

[@levischorpioen]

“The purpose of the show has always struck me as cautionary tales about where technology might be leading us.” No. That is not the show. The show is not an anti-tech show, it’s an anti-human behaviour show. Let’s go over some key episodes: The National Anthem (because if the first episode of a show doesn’t give us a good example of what a show is about, I don’t know what will): An episode about sensationalism, people being distracted by the obscene and their own role in it to realize the real-life stakes and consequences of a tragedy. This is a message that will be repeated in The Waldo Moment, another episode where the viewers themselves got too distracted by the ridiculous to understand the meaning, proving this episode’s point. You see that the only role tech played in these episodes is the spreading of sensationalist information, which could also be done via word of mouth. These episodes could be set in a pre-technology era and no significant changes would have to be made. Oh, and no, the question of The National Anthem isn’t “would you watch?”. We all know the answer is yes, Brooker knows the answer is yes because that’s how his episode plays out. The question is “Why would we watch? What about such an obscene thing makes it more relevant, more interesting, more worthy of exposure than the endangerment of the life of a human being?” Hated in the Nation: Aside from being an homage to environmental horror of the older variety like The Birds, this is a tale about mob mentality and shifting the blame to save your own ass. Hiding in a crowd in an attempt to eliminate individual responsibility is not reliant upon tech. The bee drones could’ve been eagles with GoPros attached to them (or indeed telepathic birds) and the episode would play the same. Be Right Back: Would you really be comfortable with your loved one returning from the dead? Again, didn’t need to be about tech. Switch out the synthetic body for a reanimated corpse with the memories intact, or a biological human clone or hell, an identical twin from a parallel world and it would be the exact same story. Men Against Fire: Xenophobia. No tech or explanation needed. Just a straight up xenophobia tale. Now, not every episode could be rewritten as a tech-free episode. Sometimes, the tech is necessary. However, that still doesn’t mean the tech is the point of the episode. Playtest isn’t about a really realistic killer video game (watch Stay Alive if you’re into that kind of thing), it’s about not losing sight of your loved ones. Rick, Jack and Ashley Too isn’t about a Chucky-esque robot, it’s an allegory about the music industry and celebrity culture, chasing your dreams and not letting vultures try and profit off a dream that was never yours. Conclusion: Black Mirror did change once Netflix took over. The tech became more blatant, or better put, its role became more of the focus to help marketing. However, this didn’t change the premise of the show. It never was and still is not about “phones are bad”, as the meme goes. That’s never been the show and that is still not what the show is today. The show is still about human behaviour and all the ways we distract ourselves from our individual obligations, responsibilities and identities in order to live a carefree, selfish life. Has technology made this a hell of a lot easier? Hell to the yes. But we cannot, not now and not ever, blame a few lines of code on behaviour we were going to exploit regardless. Xenophobia is in us, tech or not. The urge to cheat rather than be honest is in us, tech or not. Running away from our individuality, loving sensationalism, falling in and out of love without owning up to it, we’re all guilty of these things. Tech has nothing to do with that. If you think Black Mirror is about tech fucking us up, you don’t understand Black Mirror. We are already fucked up, tech just allows us to enhance our crazy. Also, sci-fi is just a great genre if you want to explore humanity, it always has been.

[@letstalktea2688]

Incredible analysis.

[@meris8486]

Well said. Though I'd argue that the point of Be Right Back was that a person cant be recreated from their online interactions.

[@levischorpioen]

Meris Yeah, that’s totally fair. I saw it more as a general “no matter how much you try to replace the thing that you miss, it’ll never be the same, so the best thing is to try and move on” message, personally. I don’t think I’d go for such a grief-focused plot if it was about recreating online interactions. I think I’d write an episode about a long-distance relationship instead, but that’s just me though.

[@TheMorganVEVO]

Thank you so much for the explanation! 👏🏾

[@msschenck84]

Levi Everaerts 👏🏾👏🏾👏🏾👏🏾👏🏾👏🏾

[@grandbean9031]

I absolutely disagree with the idea that the characters are at the core of black mirror. This show is about the horrors of technology dependance and the lack of ethics and care when creating that technology, not about the humans that suffer the consequences. The consequences are important, but who receives that consequence doesn't matter as long as the audience can identify them as human.

[@LWoodGaming]

if that was true what about that ep call Rachel, Jack and Ashley Too

[@Tillyard86]

I'm currently writing a video response to this which looks like it's going to be very VERY long, way longer than the original video.

[@meris8486]

Bandersnatch was the real season 5

[@breedent4668]

You don’t like black mirror because you have your own ideas on how it should be. Your not appreciating it for what it is. Not every episode is going to be deep or something we have to watch out for in the future. At the end of the day it is to entertain.

[@rhino5250]

Perfect point underrated comment

[@Tillyard86]

I made a video response to this video if you want to check it out.

[@teamstersmusicunion]

THANK YOU!!!!

[@ramonjohnson669]

Notice how it was good when the British did it but when the Americans ruined it

[@Tickerchicken]

It's probably because a lot of people in England are very cynical and pessimistic me being one of them which works in black mirror but wouldn't work in something like Wayne's world

[@DBG-fh7io]

Half the episodes still take place in the UK dipshit

[@snowboardfulya]

@@DBG-fh7io doesn't mean anything, the production itself now is predominantly American.

[@drearydaydreamer.4706]

I mean, there are some really good American shows..... just saying

[@pogchamp3846]

Pastel tears yeah but for this specific show, it’s been ruined by the americans

[@544001]

Why the hate for Black Museum? I thought it was great.

[@JewTube001]

only problem i had with black museum is that they didn't actually use penn jillette as the curator.

[@TheMorganVEVO]

Same here. I loved it! But oh well, I guess it doesn’t resonate with everyone. 🤷🏽‍♀️

[@sharkazoo]

I don’t think I’ve ever disagreed more with a black mirror video, ever

[@Tillyard86]

I'm currently writing a video response to this which looks like it's going to be very VERY long, way longer than the original video.

[@sharkazoo]

nice !

[@divinaxito]

@@Tillyard86 im waiting, please comment that here

[@justmart4455]

@@Tillyard86 I'll he waiting too

[@Tillyard86]

nachosniegenserio video is done, it should be up later today.

[@iamunknownperiod3355]

> wants to put the characters at the core > hates smithereens

[@Papada00]

Yup. He contradicted himself. I dont think he knows what he's talking about.

[@arthurkemp4494]

Smithereens is brilliant. The performances are phenomenal. The writing is slick. It creates a character which you genuinely feel empathy for even though in any other tv show they would be the bad guy. It’s my favourite episode. Idk fully understand his criticism, it feels overly analytical and maybe doesn’t just appreciate what it is. It’s a collection of short stories that always find different ways to engage with you on a human level.

[@samjane3500]

I'm surprised you didn't talk about Bandersnatch

[@alaskansalmon8666]

Sam Jane what was your opinion on it? To be honest I watched it with a bunch of my friends and I was genuinely getting bored. A lot of people considered that innovative but I even remember back in 8th grade when a “Puss in Boots” show for kids came out and it had the same concept of choosing the story. I honestly did not enjoy Bandersnatch.

[@pewnit]

The way I saw it, Bandersnatch was just a commercial for the Netflix choose your own adventure mode and I honestly didn't get it... There was nothing there imo, at least compared to something like 15,000,000 merits

[@JewTube001]

he may not have seen it. i think you only 'watch' it if you have netflix, as it's kind of a video game that only works on the netflix app. i haven't seen it either for this reason.

[@bucwhovian8305]

He probably didn't like it because it was DIFFERENT!

[@than217]

When I first showed San Junipero to my mom she was like "it didn't have a happy ending though, they both died" and I was like "Jesus Christ mom! You're the only one of the two of us that believes in an afterlife and somehow I took the episode as happy and you didn't?!?!" lol

[@icemanlj2k7]

“Each episode should be viewed individually” Well...not really. The whole show is interconnected. News reports and websites will frequently mention old characters and events, Black Museum showed that its all part of one story too. The episodes that stick out such as ‘14 Million Merits’ and ‘metalhead’ are supposedly based on comic books from the main Black Mirror universe.

[@raveenaappadoo1801]

There are Easter eggs in the show however the writer himself has said the episodes are not connected.

[@paradoxinraindrops141]

Just because the universe is interconnected doesn’t mean you shouldn’t be able to view the series individually & take each episode on its own merits. The inter-connectivity of Black Mirror, to me, isn’t the reason to watch the show and it doesn’t redeem it either. I treat it as a novelty, there to award eagle eyed viewers.

[@baishihua]

If there isn't over arching theme that links the episodes, as well as causal links, there is no point viewing them as a whole.

[@brooke.t.g.r5646]

TheIcemanLJ they are connected nonetheless, but I think he’s trying to say we shouldn’t compare every episode to each other, but we should treat it as it’s own episode.

[@paradoxinraindrops141]

@@brooke.t.g.r5646 As Charlie Brooker himself has said, Black Mirror is less of a standard universe and more so a multiverse of stories branching off from each other.

[@TheLewinator902]

Look man your awesome but black mirror is not a “cautionary tale” it’s a modern day twilight zone.

[@aaronwilson7947]

This guy listed so many great episodes guy i starting to think you dont even like the show

[@uriah6266]

You’re complaining about things that are clearly intended by the writers. Did you ever stop to think maybe each episode isn’t meant to fit an algorithm?

[@azariyelvarro6271]

Student of creative writing here: just because a piece of fiction "doesn't fit the algorithm" and is intentionally subversive doesn't make said subversion automatically any more clever or deep or whatever than something written with a formula in mind. The conventions of writing, the so called algorithms, exist for a very good reason. Trying to swerve on a straight road tends to lead to disastrous results unless done with exceptional care and skill, in which case the efforts are often worth the headache of satisfying implementation. The only black mirror content I ever saw was that interactive movie thing they did, and from that I got a feeling that the writers in general at least have the skill to pull off their subversions. Tldr just because something was intentional doesn't make it good or even well thought out slash executed. Otherwise I'd have finally managed to get all A's after two damn semesters of missing by a single B.

[@Naomi-gr7fm]

You didn't like Black Museum? D: To me Metalhead was the most out of place episode. I didn't like it.

[@CalyMichigan]

Nah the museum one, I felt that.

[@myoceans1312]

who ever said black mirror was supposed to be cautionary tales? it seems like that complaint is built off of a false assumption

[@levischorpioen]

Muffy Crosswire Most of people’s complaints about newer Black Mirror seasons are. Somehow, people are convinced it’s an anti-technology show, when it’s actually an anti-human behaviour show. People who complain about the show are way more obsessed with tech than Charlie Brooker and Annabel Jones are.

[@therealdeal3439]

Levi Everaerts I feel like you hit it on the head.

[@TheMorganVEVO]

I agree.

[@AtenaHena]

Big joel is that you

[@sweezy_inman]

I enjoyed your perspective, but gotta say - White Bear, for me, was one of the most plausible, realistic and morally troubling episodes for me! That’s what made it so great

[@Dragonblaster1]

Black Mirror isn't about the tech. It's about how humans might use the tech. Consider The Entire History of You. Everybody has these grains, and they're not inherently bad. Only Liam's jealous nature and extreme dislike of Jonas make it bad. In Shut Up and Dance, the "troll-faced" _eminences grises_ don't have to be manipulative sadists. Sure, with some, you're just along for the ride, like White Bear and 15 Million Merits, but I like those too.

[@Cage1408]

Smithereens is awesome imo. Mostly due to Andrew Scott's performance though.

[@jacobsmith8518]

For me best ep is white bear

[@JewTube001]

I enjoyed Smithereens more than I expected. it may not do the horror thing at all and could have done more with the gender thing but it was enjoyable overall, especially if you're into VR tech.

[@providence160]

JewTube what

[@Cage1408]

@@JewTube001 yeah huh?

[@ChrisArnold1975]

Smithereens is a terrible episode, saved only by Andrew Scott. He's fast becoming one of my favourite antagonist actors, akin to Robert Carlyle.

[@americanninja1200]

You never mentioned Hang The DJ, one of my favorites

[@mduncl]

You mean San Junipero Lite?

[@pewnit]

What season?

[@alaskansalmon8666]

Punit Daga 4

[@alaskansalmon8666]

U so right

[@meris8486]

One of the best

[@nihalgosala6145]

Left the video when you said Black museum sucked, it's one of my favourite

[@wishingwwell]

honestly, you lost your credibility with me when you said white bear didn’t fit your criteria. i feel like it is the epitome of a cautionary tale about humanity and technology

[@emlauriel]

I agree so much. It's sad that it feels the complexity of the show which made it interesting seems to be stripped away in later seasons, I was disappointed by season 5 but also not surprised :( great video!

[@mosespf]

finally someone talks about the flaws with Black Mirror...at its peak,BM is a masterpiece with great characters,plot and leaves you questioning so many things,but at its worse its really fuckin bad.I couldnt agree more with when you pointed out how some episodes feel like a chore

[@TheBolondron]

It sounds like you want Black Mirror to be what you want it to be instead of what it is. It's Twilight Zone show dude. That means all types of episodes, including the "moral warning" ones you like but also including the other types you don't like. You sound like you want the show to limit itself to only one type of episode, which isn't what they are doing at all, they are about variety and experimentation first, otherwise Bandersnatch wouldn't be a thing.

[@_ivy_1313]

My thoughts exactly! Thank you so much for putting my exact feelings about the show into such well constructed words!

[@lacintag5482]

You need to use more references. Like a lot more. You just say an episode is bad or "a mess of ideas", or that a character is thin, without proving it.

[@joehawkiins8712]

An underrated episode is the season 3 finale "Hated in the Nation". It was really engaging and full of suspense and cool characters. I have to agree that Season 3 was the last great season of Black Mirror. Most of the episodes were GRAND with "San Junipero" being the gold standard. I found season 4 to be cringe worthy while Season 5 just lacked real gravitas of earlier (first three seasons). It was entertaining and better than season 4 but not up to the standards of "White Christmans" , "White Bear" and much of season 3.

[@Chiggins_]

Just throwing it out there, I recommend everyone check out Inside No. 9, another British anthology show which is structurally way more ambitious than Black Mirror, and also drops the pretentious self-importance. Also, Charlie Brooker's earlier show Dead Set. It's a five part Black Mirror story, once again about human behaviour and morality and suchlike

[@JewTube001]

you're definitely the first guy I've heard that had anthem as their number one. good enough reasoning though, i think the most fans just think BM is about near future tech or at least >2010s tech. where as anthem only needs TV and radio to work.

[@MaxRovensky]

The good episodes in my book: - The White Christmas - Hang the DJ - The star trek episode - The blackmail trollface episode - The uber rating episode (3x1) That's pretty much it, I can't remember the other ones Also Bandersnatch is just a crappy Telltale game. Change my mind

[@LianleoC]

I'd also add the pig one but that's because I like to see other's reaction

[@kikietc]

lol, the star trek episode? the BlAsPhEmY... it's USS Callister, how can you forget the name? haha

[@MaxRovensky]

Knona Akumia i prefer the sound of "the star trek episode" 😎

[@TheMorganVEVO]

I agree with your list.

[@sumitshresth]

i would add few: history of you, national anthem, hated in the nation. that star trek was definitely low compared to others to me

[@Tickerchicken]

Black mirror went from tense as fuck in shut up and dance to dudes banging in VR

[@keepwhiningtankies3594]

“It’s so plausible!” These are just so depressing.

[@4kkjwkaz]

I don’t understand why you dislike white bear. Although it would be unrealistic for every criminal to have their own theme park the story is about society enforcing their own moral laws on others and not treating criminals like humans. You could even resonate that with cancel culture gone wild so I think it has a lot of relevance. I agree that the last episodes were pretty poor though.

[@CalyMichigan]

Hold tf up. He really said “I fucked a polar bear?”

[@kaylahjackson1970]

We need a whole season of black mirrors but interactive like bandersnatch. I don’t care how long it takes 3 or 4+ years as long as is isn’t halfed Ass , has good story, is a good length, and maybe a few with multiple endings.

[@meris8486]

Black Museum was good lol, it had problems, mainly the final part but it was entertaining as a whole

[@TheMorganVEVO]

Meris Yeah. I think he’s judging the episode with completely different metrics.

[@herikaniugu]

some youtubers are stupid

[@Matty002]

ppl need to stop confusing hate with apathy. just because you dont like something doesnt mean you dont care

[@bucwhovian8305]

I don't really understand why you think the charters in this show are more important than the world concepts or ideas it presents. The characters in each episode only exist in that episode for the sole purpose of serving the story, it's about as far away for a character-driven show as you can get. 1:35 I'd argue that it pushes them into the realm of FANTASY, fictional technology that's based around real ideas and opens up a massive range of possibilities. Why would the story lose you just because it has things in it that couldn't really happen? "If I lose the feeling this story could ever really happen the story loses me" and yet you praise San Junipero later. You really think that could ever happen? Why does the presence of fictional technology prevents you from asking questions about the roles of technology in your life? The technology may be fictional, but the ideas and concepts it opens up are still going to make you ask questions about the real technology that it is based on. If the concepts do overshadow the characters I don't see how that's a bad thing. This has always been a show driven more by concepts than by the characters. He can still care about the characters even when the story is not character-driven. "I want more for an episode than just, "wouldn't it be crazy if this happened?" And yet later you praise The National Anthem for basically doing exactly that. 3:58 So you don't want the show to evolve in other words. This ties in with your "Why did they make Black Museum" rant that you do later on. You seem to just take issue with that fact things seem different now. Why shouldn't they be allowed to try different things from time to time? 4:18 What's wrong with any of these concepts? Also, there is a heck of a lot more to those episodes than just those things. 4:45 I would argue the episode does explore those ideas, that fact you are asking those questions should be proof enough of that. 4:58 What a weird complaint! Maybe because they are GOOD ACTORS! 5:44 I had the pause the video there to process that. I know it's a joke but seriously WTF!? So someone pitched a Super Mario game as saving Peach by having sex with a pig, how would that work as a video game? Oh, wait was that a reference to Striking Vipers? Boy, that's a real stretch! So you liked The National Anthem because it makes you ask questions and got you thinking for a long time after, ok fine. But then when you talk about Rachel, Jack and Ashley Too, you don't really talk about how it fails to do any of those things, you just pick at minor story issues that probably wouldn't have noticed if you were more engaged in the episode. "This is the show I'm supposed to take seriously?!" oh but the prime minister having sex with a pig is just fine is it? I liked The National Anthem as well, but don't act like it has some high-end premise, the premise is pretty dumb TBH. "I really love it well shows yell their point at me" The National Anthem did that too mate. That's been one clear shortcoming of this show since the start, the messages are way too preachy, this isn't an issue that emerged in the last season or so, it's been a problem since the start. Also, there is more to the point of Smithereens than just that, its also making the point that however distracting social media might be, we still only have ourselves to blame for allowing ourselves to be distracted by it. 10:52 That seems unlikely since he took over a year to make season five, which had only three episodes. "I want the real Black Mirror back" Or more precisely you want episodes of Black Mirror that you personally like. You seem to just be against that show doing anything different, case-in-point your rant and Black Museum, which is an odd problem to have with an anthology show. This whole video feels like one big statement of "this sucks because they did x and I wanted them to do y" have you ever heard of the idea that critique of what isn't attempted, isn't really critiquing at all?

[@kayladaly756]

yeah they spend a lot of time focusing on the tech but the show is not meant to be character-driven. It's how humans interact with the technology that's the main point.

[@kiwichlofro3733]

I want your analysis of every single episode now hahaha. You had some very interesting views and I want to hear more!!!

[@andrewkohler3707]

An important point with "National Anthem" that is seldom noted is that the prime minister is forced into a sex act-that is to say, the nation is watching a rape. Yikes. His wife's inability to see only herself, and not him, as a victim is one of the most troubling things to me about this terrifying episode. And yes, it is hardly comparable to the Disney movie with swearing (i.e. the Miley Cyrus episode).

[@alaskansalmon8666]

Your perspective on the show is really interesting. Some of these things I never really considered and I completely understand where you coming from but at the same time I partially disagree. While I completely see how you believe the episode quality has gone, down I think that they’ve been delving more into the entertainment aspect of it and less on the, “real world,” aspect. And while for the past two seasons they have been producing mainly entertainment, it doesn’t necessarily result in the episode being bad. Less believable yes but that’s what movies are for. Would you ever believe that a massive purple alien was going to collect a bunch of crystals and snap away half the population? And while I do understand that you believe Black mirrors main purpose is to pursue that aspect of the, “world not too far from our own,” I definitely think that some entertainment ones can fit in. Now notice how I said entertainment can fit in, and that’s because they really should include some more of those real world episodes. A happy balance of the two would honestly be best. But remember that you can’t have the sweet without the sour. So not all episodes will be amazing, but those bad ones will make the great ones stand out even more. (Side note: I honestly loved Striking Vipers and they definitely could have gone down the real world aspect like you said but I still loved the way they took it with that episode. In that situation I just had no idea what I would do and putting myself in those shoes just makes me uncomfortable, which was what they were going for and they did a really great job.)

[@flashmanairgood9426]

Black mirror sounds like it would work better as a video game

[@drearydaydreamer.4706]

omg I've been waiting for an upload for so long!!

[@Nillerboy95]

Given some of your points on the episodes you don't like, i really don't get how you see 15 million merits as one of the better ones.. That episode is so on the nose and in your face i can't take it seriously at all.

[@MrTheevilmage]

Striking vipers though was actually about 2 epic gamer dude bros who come to the conclusion that they're gamersexuals. Personally its the best >coming out as a gamer< story ever and am Glad Charlie Brooker has drawn attention to fellow gamersexuals.

[@avarina8418]

idk what it’s called but the episode where the uber driver kidnaps a man and calls a company ceo for no apparent reason- hit me hard (S5) the texting and driving one, made me cry

[@gr2909]

I agree with most of the critiques on the narrative as a whole, but a large part of satire is being outlandish so I don’t know if it’s a fair to critique a work for not being close enough to reality when it’s point is to stretch it.

[@mohdshow]

I get what you’re saying about the characters but playtest was one of the best episodes of the whole series. USS Callister on the other hand ...

[@yellurbandana]

Of course Playtest is amazing, and so is USS Callister. For me, both resonate the idea of being stuck in your own mind due to faulty technology. Both fuck me up.

[@eujeanto]

After black mirror watches this season 6 is gonna pop out at your party

[@scrambled5948]

I saw this video on how black mirror lost its edge and how inside no. 9 stole that edge in almost every way. (Seriously, anyone reading this should go watch inside no. 9, it’s incredible)

[@Fjedov]

Excellent rundown that captures most of what I feel about the show. My "favourite" (i.e. what I consider to be the best) episode is also The National Anthem and just hearing you talking filled me with that exact unease I felt when watching it. I do want to defend both Playtest and Metalhead, though. To me, these are genre films and not necessarily of the Black Mirror oeuvre, if you will. As a Horror fan, Playtest was a welcome surprise, but I think it has more to do with exploring fear rather than the dangers of modern technology. Sure, it was a bit schlocky with the old "ending explaining what happened in the movie" but I like that stuff so hey, wasn't mad about it. Metalhead had great tempo and I liked how dangerous the pursuer was. Cat and mouse with high stakes. I never watched the last season. It didn't look appealing. But, like you, I am hopeful.

[@FinntheAutumn]

Dude... I LOVED black museum

[@mattbrown946]

Ross Mclntyre do you think ur going to watch Arrow season 8 because there is no Felicity and all the episodes are a tribute to different seasons

[@joelmole3157]

I think what this show needs (as soon as Charlie Brooker is willing to bring it back because right now the world is just too depressing for Black Mirror) is more guest writers. Two of my favourite episodes are 'The Entire History of You' and 'Nosedive' and these are the episodes with the least amount of input from Charlie Brooker. 'Nosedive' was Brooker's idea but was written by Michael Schur and Rashida Jones whilst 'The Entire History of You' was written entirely by Jesse Armstrong. If Charlie Brooker just took a break and recruited other writers for series 6, it would probably feel fresh again because it feels like Charlie Brooker is running out of steam. Also, I think series 5 sucked because Brooker put all of his energy into the interactive Black Mirror film, 'Bandersnatch'.

[@depressedbreakfast2614]

Can you please do something relating to your fav horror films and things that scared you as a kid for Halloween

[@losstdani]

I think my favorite episode is either ‘hang the dj’ or ‘the entire history of you’ Besides that, yes, I do feel like the newer black mirror seasons have been lacking in depth and impact

[@Benzyl_Penoxide]

I feel like you missed the point of the episode Rachel jack and Ashley too... the episode is structured like a basic Disney movie. It’s their way of getting back at Disney... I do have to agree that the villain ending would’ve been much better.

[@Mattchupichue]

National anthem is my favorite episode too I never really like the American episodes

[@OmoruyiOmofonmwan]

I hate how people try to put extra meaning to this show and maybe it does have deeper themes. To me it's just Twilight Zone or The Outer Limits.

[@af98]

One thing that really bothers me is that I feel like they're sometimes patronizing to the audience and they take themselves to seriously. I also think when they market the series and they get the actors to do PR, these actors put on the most smug faces and act like they're changing the world, when they speak about BM. It really bothers me. It's why I didnt watch it when it was first on channel four, it always felt very pretentious.

[@PodtrashRadio]

The twilight zone reboot with Jordan peele had some decent episodes. A lot were stupid just the same as black mirror but some were good. Like the one with the child president which was similar to the Waldo episode. Both are a pretty obvious idea of “if a child becomes president that’s bad”. But the way the twiglight zone episode turns into a crazy show really quick made it pretty good

[@benalton4471]

I do like the different types of genres and types of stories they tell from story to story even though I don’t like some of those genres. But I think we can all admit season 5 has a pretty big drop off from the others

[@franklinbadge1215]

I liked striking vipers a lot, and im honestly just happy you didn't act like smithereens was the best or the only good one from the season.

[@attackofthecopyrightbots]

but what about the bees episode

[@imomimotv]

I've always felt that the show isn't so much "technology bad" but more-so a study of people and that the best episodes are examples of this. The National Anthem is a great example of this, you even touch on it! The point isn't to sit there and say "oh man this would have never happened if tv wasn't a thing", it's to literally go "what the fuck". We as the viewers continue to watch, as does the public, because how can we not? I think the characters are important, yes, but I don't think they should be the main drivers. Rather... a means to a potential conversation? Would we watch the PM fuck a pig? Is a theme park of eternal mental torture ok if they're murderers? At what point will the public recognise they're being manipulated for political gain? It would be nice if all episodes were that but you can't win them all I suppose. Anyway... Don't mind this mess of a comment. Some of your "worst picks" were surprising tbh but other than that I get what you're saying. Season 5 was ass for a plethora of reasons but none of which felt truly fleshed out in this video.

[@Tillyard86]

I'm currently writing a video response to this which looks like it's going to be very VERY long, way longer than the original video. But let me just say right now, I think you are a cool guy and you seem pretty smart. I just don't understand your thoughts on Black Mirror, and I'm looking forward to explaining why. Edit: it’s up on my channel now.

[@Tillyard86]

My video response is up now.

[@eriktruchinskas3747]

Was it taken off Netflix? I couldn't find it anywhere

[@sian2337]

The National Anthem episode was great, but horrific, and that’s what made it great. Like, it was hard to sit through. I’m happy to say I’d never watch that in real life... I’m English! I think a lot of people would be the same honestly. And the PM would get a lot of support afterwards. I prefer the older ones, I can’t remember much about the recent ones, even though I only watched them last month. The White Bear one was scary because we all see those paedo hunter groups... some are professional, many are not so much! But where does it end?

[@dadiggaman]

The show peaked in season 4. Metal head had me afraid to watch alone.

[@MisterUnknown707]

At least he acknowledged that he was being a jerk here.

[@mischake]

Shame there hasn't been an episode since they released bendersnatch

[@justwannafreefx9419]

National Anthem was... Lowkey dumb lmao

[@meris8486]

Was San Juniperos happy ending really earned? I love the episode but Black Girl goes from "I'd rather die than live forever in VR" to "ah fuck it nvm" without development.

[@manhattanvi]

THANK YOU! I NOTICED SOMETHING WAS OFF. I FUCKING KNEW IT! LOL

[@Flipitmixit]

Black museum was great sir

[@kingzoda3487]

I don't think you like black mirror overall I think you like elements but I don't think you can call yourself a fan

[@i.t.t.]

this video is confusing me bc the ones that appealed to me, the ones that spoke to me the most are the ones you say sucked and as i'm watching the rest of this video, i expect you'll be praising the ones i felt were pretty meh... i'm somewhat relieved that you did like some of the episodes i did and bring valid criticism to the silly miley cyrus episode but it's difficult for me to agree with all your points because i don't think i get what you're saying at all one thing that's clear to me is that each episode seems to affect people differently, no matter how shallow it might have felt to me, and i don't think it's fair to dismiss so many (great) episodes the way you did just because you couldn't relate to them

[@randritzhopper632]

The best one was when he could rewind memories

[@1994moviebuff]

i loved black museum

[@sernoddicusthegallant6986]

The virgin Black Mirror vs The chad Inside No 9

[@TheAntiSanta]

From the future. There isn't another good episode until 8. Just, lower your expectations, til then.

[@mr.eeggbert1340]

Love ya content 2/10 didn't contain enough eggs and cute dogs

[@sdprz7893]

Even the worst of black mirror is far better than any other show

[@blasphemous9693]

Yeah.. I don't know about that buddy.

[@kingofmince]

I love black mirror been watching it since the first episode when it aired on channel 4 and was disappointed with series 5 not only because of the lack of episodes and they weren’t as hard hitting as other episodes have been (national anthem, white bear, shut up and dance etc) I also loved black museum for the same reason as I loved White Christmas, they’re probably my favourite episodes.

[@heatherboward2779]

I think a lot of your problem is thinking that every episode of black mirror is separate when they are all actually connected in one way or another. Many episodes contain easter eggs and references to other episodes in the series, the time lines differ for the technologies, but they all intertwine in one way or another. Black museum isn't a mess, it compounds the many technologies at their starting points while showing us the potential horrors of their different uses and it gives a nod to past episodes by housing many of the technologies the series has familiarized us with. I understand your need for real life relevance, but some of these futuristic ideas can't really be presented in a realistic scenario that we can fully connect with in our day and age because by the time any of these technologies would come around society would be vastly different. The point of black mirror is to show us that while we think technology will advance society in many ways, it can also be the downfall of humanity...in more than a Terminator type of scenario. I'll agree that season 5 wasn't ideal, I watched each episode a few times and came to understand their message and point, but it was lacking. I blame this on the interactive bandersnatch episode they released earlier in the year though, that was a great great episode that held true to the black mirror universe, and it had a ton of time, thought, and work put into it..so the fact that they released anything else at all this year was pretty amazing, and they did have good ideas with these stories but it felt a bit rushed and the character development was a bit lacking. I get the need to be critical, but compared to many other shows out today there's really nothing quite like black mirror. And while they may have dropped the ball in season 5, that's doesn't negate all of the good work from previous seasons. I'm genuinely surprised that you didn't like season 4. Playtest wasn't my favorite, but that doesn't ruin the entire season for me. I have no doubts they'll get it back with the next season, and I really hope they keep going.

[@cerberusxt7012]

The bear episode predicted Trump though.

[@ferdyy5290]

who else thought that black museum was a great episode? :

[@sarahcox1197]

I genuinely enjoyed Bandersnatch. It may have been more of a mental trip than a cautionary tale involving modern technology, but I really liked the existential ideas it presented. But I agree that season 5 was certainly a let down :)

[@willdavis1597]

I think the show helps bring up discussion, so they don’t need to explore it to have it brought up in some way.

[@SoulanaaBeautyy]

What does meta mean??

[@TheMorganVEVO]

Via is A Beauty Something is “meta” if it is self-referential.

[@SoulanaaBeautyy]

Morgan Carroll thanks!! 😊

[@TheMorganVEVO]

Via is A Beauty No problem! ☺️

[@timothymoskal2001]

You're clearly missing the hidden meaning with some of the episode's... Just because it's not realistic doesn't mean it doesn't posses a realistic and plausible concept of a distopian future 🤷