I was recommended to watch the series ‘Black Mirror’ on Netflix by two of my best friends who know my taste in television series. ‘Black Mirror’ is like ‘The Twilight Zone’ meets ‘Mr. Robot.’ This series is non-continuous, so every episode is of a different plot with different characters—and this is what I love most about ‘Black Mirror.’ The plots all have to do with the new age media and how futuristic technologies have an impact in these other universes, which are just twists of our 21st century. It is so easy to find the significances of these plots and how it relates to our society, with major plot twists included. For some reason, Netflix automatically starts you on season 3—so here is my ranking of the 5* episodes the latest season. (No spoilers, I promise!).
5. “Nosedive”
I did not particularly care for this episode—and it is misfortunate that this is what the season started off with. I was ready to give up on the entire series after watching the first 20 minutes, however it does get better. In this other world where it is possible to rank people, Lacie gets caught up in all the implications this has. I loved the aesthetic of the way the directors filmed this.
4. “Shut Up and Dance”
This episode was definitely a thriller. Kenny is blackmailed into doing ridiculous things after being hacked from downloading a malware cleaner. This episode reminded me most of ‘Mr. Robot’, with a plot twist at the end. You feel sympathetic for the teenager Kenny and cannot help but think, “What are you doing Kenny, you have a million options here, why are you following your blackmailer’s instructions?!” for the entirety of the episode.
3. “San Junipero”
I admit, I had really high expectations for this episode, just because this was my best friend’s favorite episode and she could not stop raving about it. But alas, this episode did not live up to my expectations. I really loved the 80s vibe of the whole thing—plus there is massive plot twist at the end that wraps up the entire episode together nicely. It was like a ‘The Usual Suspects’ kind of deal, where after learning the plot twist at the end, you want to re-watch the entire episode again just to pick up anything you missed the first time.
2. “Men Against Fire”
This episode sends a very eerie, depressing message of our perspectives and perception of the world, which is controlled through “Big Brother.” Or at least that is the message I got from this episode. I am impressed at the very interesting concept of this science-fiction-like episode.
1. “Playtest”
An entirely engrossing and on-the-edge-of-your-seat episode. This episode starts off slow, however picks up really quick—so quick that you need to pause the episode and think, “WHAT IS HAPPENING?” This is the kind of episode when after finishing, you have to contemplate everything that just happened. It really messes with your head and makes you think about people’s perceptions of reality, (and how scary technology can be, which is basically the theme of this entire season).
* There is one more episode of season 3 that I did not rank, the final episode, “Hated in the Nation.” This is because it was recommended to me to watch this final episode last, after finishing seasons 1 and 2. Not sure why, but we will find out!