Black Mirror is one of those shows where we say, “This is weird,” from the very first minute. Not a bad kind of weird though!
Tech For Bad
It depicts a highly technological future with some disturbing technologies and applications. In that sense, it often feels like a modern continuation of The Twilight Zone, which also wrapped social critique inside strange and unsettling scenarios.
Some of these pieces of technology are clearly an upgrade to existing things; others are new, but we can see where the author drew inspiration to conceive of them.
However, this show isn’t just about technology; it’s much deeper than that.
The Monster Is Us
What you’ll see on the screen is the technology being used in the service of the darkest side of humanity. This is reminiscent of Westworld, where human cruelty finds a playground in artificial beings, or even Ex Machina, where the line between progress and manipulation becomes disturbingly thin.
Sometimes, it appears to be a good thing, with plenty of potential, but somewhere along the way, it will undergo a transformation. Something you’ll learn is that there’s always a way of using it for the worst.
Cautionary Tale?
The show can be seen as a warning sign, some kind of prediction of what may happen to us in the future. Humanity condemns itself by its own inventions and ambitions.
I didn’t see it that way.
What I saw was a purposely exaggerated image of what we’re already doing to ourselves. Much like Don’t Look Up used satire to mirror our collective blindness to crisis, Black Mirror pushes reality just far enough to expose its absurdity. I chose the word exaggerated on purpose because sometimes the situations in the episodes are as evil as they are ludicrous.
In the end, I think it’s a very interesting show, standing in the same lineage as The Twilight Zone but updated for a digital age, and it’s totally worth your time.
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