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Robert Zeglinski

Every Black Mirror episode ranked by real-life plausibility, from Fifteen Million Merits to Mazey Day

Black Mirror Netflix

WARNING: DO NOT READ FURTHER IF YOU HAVEN’T WATCHED SEASON 6 OF BLACK MIRROR. BETTER YET, DO NOT READ IF YOU HAVEN’T SEEN MOST OF BLACK MIRROR. HEAVY SPOILERS AHEAD. 

Ready?

OK. Here we go.

Even more than a decade since its inception, Black Mirror’s simple title always gets me. It refers to the reflective (and empty) black screen when we’re not using our computer, phone or television. And as a result, the show reflects the flaws of advanced human technology and the worst impulses of our nature that it feeds and cultivates.

But not every Black Mirror episode is necessarily about the foibles of technology. Nor is every piece of technology plausible in our present reality. This isn’t to say it couldn’t come about in the future, but some episodes’ conceits feel like they’re decades away rather than years.

More often than not, Black Mirror admonishes us for tearing our world apart together because of our primal selfishness, egos and need to be unique. It resonates expressly because you can absolutely envision the dark side of humanity rearing its ugly head in these stories. Rod Serling and his spiritual predecessor in The Twilight Zone must be so proud.

With the sixth season of Black Mirror now on Netflix, here’s For The Win’s ranking how believable the horror of every episode is. Even if most of these stories are enthralling, not every concept is believable for the time being.

I want to stress that my criteria for plausibility evaluation are rooted in three factors:

  • How believable/how far away are we from the central technology or element?
  • Is the human destructiveness premise itself, technology or element or not, believable or transferable?
  • If both sentiments apply, the plausibility rises accordingly. If it’s one or the other, it’s probably lower on the list.

Warning: Some of these “fictions” have kind of already come to pass off our screens, and coming to terms with that is NOT for the faint of heart.

28
Bandersnatch (Interactive film, 2018)

Premise: A video game creator’s life is an “interactive” video game, and they don’t know it.

As cool as this interactive streaming experience was, I hate to break it to everyone: Any technology that lets us control another person’s life like a choose-your-own-adventure is beyond the pale.

Plus, like: How does this scenario even apply? Are streaming companies constructing a completely different reality with sentient life unaware of our world? Humanity has come so far. There’s just no way we could play puppeteer like an omniscient god within the confines of a television screen. This is beyond meta and dystopian.

27
Mazey Day (Season 6, Episode 4, 2023)

Premise: The paparazzi have a mentality akin to the hunting instincts of animals. Also, werewolves are real.

“Mazey Day” goes from zero to 100 miles per hour in the blink of an eye. Not that that is an inherently new concept for Black Mirror, it’s just that the twist of a celebrity photo hunt actually turning into an uproarious werewolf carnage fest is so jarring.

I can buy the idea of the paparazzi being relentless to a gross and insulting degree. That already happens with famous stars. As absurd as the second half of this tale is, people who transform into monstrous canines when the moon is full don’t exist. Moving on.

26
Joan Is Awful (Season 6, Episode 1, 2023)

Premise: A terms and conditions agreement that a woman signed entitles a fictional streaming organization to broadcast every detail of her life as entertainment and as it happens.

There are seemingly few things Netflix loves doing more than “joking” about itself. “Joan Is Awful” is a prime example as it walks us through the horrifying potential dangers of clicking through those terms and conditions contracts we mindlessly sign so we can play with our phones.

However, the idea that any streaming giant would be able to:

1. Take your life wholly as its intellectual property, and

2. Flip it into coherent programming within one typical white-collar work shift (at most), thanks to A.I., is patently ridiculous. I feel for Annie Murphy and Salma Hayek’s plight here, er, their characters, I mean. But this is a level of technological advancement and a complete lack of a rule of law in digital media that I don’t think we’ll ever reach.

25
Demon 79 (Season 6, Episode 5, 2023)

Premise: A demon from Hell goads an impressionable young British woman into murdering three people to prevent the end of the world.

This isn’t going to be me denying the existence of a higher power. Who am I to make any definitive statement there? This is an expression of healthy skepticism. I’m not convinced that our heroine Nida actually sees Gaap, her fiery friend from Hell, dressed like a dancing man from the musical group Boney M. But to deny that some measure of a “Gaap” endures at all would be to deny the occult entirely. I won’t surrender to my nightmares that easily, but I’ll give them some credit!

It’s just that… you know…  where’s the tangible proof beyond charming anecdotes. Please leave me alone for my skepticism, demons. Thanks in advance!

24
San Junipero (Season 3, Episode 4, 2016)

Premise: A simulated reality lets dead people live in a remarkable artificial afterlife and, in some cases, start a new life entirely in the prime of their youth.

Most people would probably consider San Junipero the pinnacle of Black Mirror’s pantheon. It doesn’t get much better than a beautiful, desperate love story of longing that connects two lovers destined to be together in a very different world.

There’s the rub. That “different” world. I don’t doubt there are scientists and engineers working around the clock to conceive an ideal like this — a second, virtual place for life, a guaranteed afterlife. But, quite frankly, it feels as if we’re more likely a century away from a social concept like this even being fathomable. It’s a wonderful thought and one most of us probably won’t see in our lifetimes.

23
White Christmas (Season 2, Episode 4, 2014)

Premise: People have the ability to literally block others from their personal perspective in the event of a transgression. Plus, we can be digitally cloned into smaller virtual copies of ourselves.

“White Christmas” is a whirlwind all around. We get declarative monologues from Jon Hamm. Meanwhile, Rafe Spall enchants us with despairing “woe-is-me” diatribes. In the end, we learn that they live in a world where the idea of a social media block can be transferred over to real social interactions. And, in the event that they cross a criminal line, technology that makes smaller clones of us can help build cases against their defense.

But, for this to happen in the near future, we’d need to be soooo advanced as a society to create clones and seamlessly cut people out of our lives with a harsh algorithm. It’s just not happening.

22
Beyond The Sea (Season 6, Episode 3, 2023)

Premise: Two astronauts on a long-term climactic mission can switch back and forth from their bodies in space to android replicas on Earth.

There’s no need to beat around the bush. We do have enough capacity to send astronauts into space for years at a time, but they still have to eat disgusting space food, and they certainly can’t walk, run and stand normally in the absence of gravity. To take it to a point where we’d give them the comfortable ability to be with their families simultaneously — or their minds, anyway — as if they’re working a typical 9-5 is ludicrous. That feels like a world most of us breathing right now will never see, let alone anyone in an alternative 1969.

21
USS Callister (Season 4, Episode 1, 2017)

Premise: A hermit programmer uses his coworkers’ DNA to create replicas of them that he can play with, like they’re dolls and action figures.

Once again, we have clones. Once again, we have recreated peoples’ consciousness on a different plane of existence, this time with a geeky aesthetic. Once again, this is the stuff of complete fairy tales. Though, don’t get me wrong: Jesse Plemons is a terrifying and entitled “nerd” villain who still deserves what comes to him. The entitled nerd part with a scary edge is very, very believable.

20
Be Right Back (Season 2, Episode 1, 2013)

Premise: A woman’s husband dies in a car accident only to return as an artificial intelligence in his same exact body.

I cannot even begin to describe how far away we are from fully-formed physical clones of loved ones. We might be able to “speak” to those dear to us who have passed away, but that is a far cry from getting a sentient being in our midst.

19
Black Museum (Season 4, Episode 6, 2017)

Premise: A museum features different high-level pieces of technology that harmed people, with the centerpiece being a “living” hologram.

“Black Museum” is a unique Black Mirror episode because it features three separate pieces of newfangled technology:

  • An implant that lets a man feel people’s pain.
  • An implant that lets people embed others’ complete consciousness into their brains.
  • A loophole that allows folks to transfer their consciousness to holograms.

The first pain piece doesn’t necessarily feel so outlandish. Neither does anything where we can heighten peoples’ suffering. But I can’t even begin to consider carrying around someone else’s mind in my own or seeing a living thing’s “soul,” so to speak, in a hologram or inanimate object. Next.

18
Crocodile (Season 4, Episode 3, 2017)

Premise: A killer trying to cover her tracks with more murders is done in by insurance technology that records living things’ memories.

Honestly, I don’t find this that far-fetched! This seems like technology our world would totally invent — more ways for insurance companies to figure out how to not cover treatment for someone’s ailments. But the idea of seeing a living thing’s memories as they happened, phew, yeah — we’ll probably need a few decades.

17
The Entire History of You (Season 1, Episode 3, 2011)

Premise: People’s memories are recorded meticulously, and they can replay them as they please, up to the exact detail. Others can also view these memories.

Technically, we kind of already have this development. Think about what the proliferation of smartphones allows in terms of “recording” individual moments from our lives. However, an expansion to see everything up to the finest features first-hand, in our eyes, is a massive leap forward.

But it does make you think, doesn’t it?

16
The National Anthem (Season 1, Episode 1, 2011)

Premise: A kidnapper uses the media and the way-too-rapid spread of information to manipulate the fictional British prime minister into having intercourse with a pig on live national television.

Another episode synopsis that feels plausible… in a sense. A criminal who captures an important political figure and uses the spread of misinformation into a humbling (and destructive) publicity stunt? There is something to be said about how mass public opinion can recklessly drive our society. In a way, I’m admittedly kind of surprised evil folks haven’t tried this strategy more.

That said, I don’t think we’ll be seeing a leader of a country paying this sort of bestial price, thanks to Twitter, TikTok and what have you, any time soon. And on live national television, no less!

15
White Bear (Season 2, Episode 2, 2013)

Premise: A woman desperately flees killers as bystanders do nothing to intervene. She later learns this is a punishment for a heinous crime she no longer remembers.

“White Bear” is a quintessential Black Mirror story.  It is a commentary on how we view people who “must” be punished for breaking the social contract at all costs. It asks how exposure to violence desensitizes us through technology and even snatches away our collective empathy for others. It’s even a biting critique of vigilantism against criminals.

From this perspective, I don’t think “White Bear” is impossible. I think, and terrifyingly so, we’re already on the verge of this kind of world with a limited concept of forgiveness as we ostracize people in our vicinity. However, we remain one final massive jump away: Turning a killer’s plight into live entertainment everyone can participate in, so to speak.

To say the least: I don’t doubt the near-future possibility, and I don’t think there’s much of a “society” left if it occurs.

14
Hated in the Nation (Season 3, Episode 6, 2016)

Premise: A viral Twitter game tasks users with picking murders at the hands of electronic bees created to fill the gap between the extinction of their biological cousins.

If there’s one thing Black Mirror loves doing, it’s asking us how bloodthirsty we can be as a species. In “Hated in the Nation,” it takes this concept to the umpteenth agree — our united hate of someone who happens to come into our short news cycle crosshairs is now acted upon. With violent, life-ending intent.

How willingly people express their disdain for others on the internet — most often complete and innocent strangers with no direct impact on their lives — is a discussion we need to have. However, we’re probably aways away from someone using technology that replaces a pollinating animal to weaponize our hatred.

13
Metalhead (Season 4, Episode 5, 2017)

Premise: A robot dog hunts humans after the unexplained end of the world.

Inspired by Boston Dynamics‘ “mobile robots,” Metalhead doesn’t seem so outlandish, even if we never receive a concrete explanation. Humans have written, filmed and talked about stories where hyper-intelligent robots turn on us (or are even programmed to turn on us) for years.

Just imagine some super-scientific company taking the wrong step in intelligence development. Uh… don’t write this possibility off now or in the medium-distant future. Your scientists thought about whether they could but didn’t consider whether they should, etc., etc.

12
Arkangel (Season 4, Episode 2, 2017)

Premise: A mother fearful for her child’s safety installs an invasive implant that lets her know exactly what her daughter is up to at any moment.

I cannot personally speak to the ever-present anxiety of wondering whether my child is OK when I don’t have my eyes on them. I can only express this — extremely loosely — through dog ownership when I’m away somewhere on vacation. But I am aware of the discussion on “helicopter parenting” and whether such a mindset is conducive to a young human being’s upbringing.

Arkangel takes this thought process and runs with it — letting a helicopter parent quite literally hover in the background everywhere their kid is. The technology feels far away, but a scared parent taking quick advantage when/if it exists isn’t bonkers. It seems inevitable.

11
Playtest (Season 3, Episode 2, 2016)

Premise: A man makes himself the subject of an all-too-real experimental virtual reality video game as a last-ditch attempt for money.

In a world rife with the explosion of VR games, “Playtest” seems like the next logical step: a VR game that accents itself far too much to a person’s mind. The protagonist of “Playtest” in Cooper pays a dear price when none of this technology is fine-tuned to account for every interference like… a dial-up phone call. Provided VR games continue to advance in capability, it doesn’t feel like a stretch to hear about someone someday paying a similar cost down the line.

10
Striking Vipers (Season 5, Episode 1, 2019)

Premise: Two heterosexual best friends unearth romantic feelings for each other within the confines of a fighting video game.

“Striking Vipers” is Black Mirror’s “Can you fall in love with someone you primarily spend time online with?” story, and it nails every chord. The question of whether the love is still there when it’s not virtual. The affect it has on actual interpersonal relationships — in this scenario, one of the characters’ wives. If virtual applications can make someone’s gender identity and sexuality fluid. And, of course, whether any experienced “love” itself is even tangible.

I don’t think “Striking Vipers” is all that wild from a distanced perspective. I think people fall in love like this all the time, through whatever their preferred platform is. But the technology our two leading gentlemen utilize is a virtual reality video game where you can actually “feel everything,” and that’s something our current society is nowhere near capable of.

9
The Waldo Moment (Season 2, Episode 3, 2013)

Premise: A comedian playing a blue bear character (Waldo) becomes a political candidate and influences the disastrous results of an election.

Honestly, this is kind of a daily reality now, isn’t it? From my vantage point, a political party using an anti-government thought process of the masses to its advantage hits close to home. The icing on the cake is a cartoon blue bear who derides the establishment, but anything and anyone can stand in for our dear friend Waldo.

8
Men Against Fire (Season 3, Episode 5, 2016)

Premise: A soldier from a militaristic nation learns the horrifying truth — the monstrous roach-like enemies his superiors have successfully othered are humans. This is hidden by an implant that changes optical perception in real time.

“Men Against Fire” is rather elementary once you learn the twist. A critique of imperialism, it explores how invading nations warp the minds of their soldiers in order to do their violent bidding. The easiest means is to dehumanize the “enemy,” eliminating core empathy. The mind-shaping technology in itself doesn’t feel all that ridiculous — the transformation of the enemy into looking like roaches, notwithstanding — and the thesis is sound.

7
Shut Up and Dance (Season 3, Episode 3, 2016)

Premise: A teenager caught masturbating on his computer’s webcam is blackmailed by an unknown hacker into performing increasingly risky crimes.

The shocking ending aside, “Shut Up and Dance” is grounded in reality. In the 2020s, the concept of privacy and what’s shared about our inner lives feels more like a lost ideal than something still tenable. And the more we share about ourselves in our online data — whether willfully or not — the more susceptible we likely are to dangers from malicious forces.

6
Nosedive (Season 3, Episode 1, 2016)

Premise: People have the ability to instantly rate each other based on every single interpersonal reaction in their lives. To adapt, most truly genuine reactions and interactions that aren’t people-pleasing and overly saccharine are a thing of the past. This naturally creates a social hierarchy — rooted in wealth first — and a colossal gap in inequality.

Woof. Watch “Nosedive” once and try and tell me your stomach doesn’t churn. Just remember the people fishing for likes and shares on Twitter and Instagram and TikTok. Consider the influencers who make a living off of it. Then note who most often has the greatest outreach on these platforms.

Mhm. Mhm. Now think of a reality where we give our smartphones the capacity to rate people in real-time — like, say, in a ride share, but that’s expanded everywhere. Oh. Oh, goodness.

5
Rachel, Jack and Ashley Too (Season 5, Episode 3, 2019)

Premise: A celebrity singer’s handler (her aunt) exploits the star by any means necessary — in this case, with a small A.I. robot. She is unsuccessful, but the point remains.

As the conversation around the “ethical” use of A.I. comes into greater focus, “Rachel, Jack and Ashley Too” feels like a very prescient tale. While Ashley Too (a.k.a. Miley Cyrus) is able to fight back against her management and a tool designed to neuter her creativity and agency for profit, she probably hasn’t won the war. This idea of celebrity and artist exploitation is already so prevalent. Insert any noteworthy advancement in A.I. in the real world soon, and we’ve probably got a huge problem on our hands.

4
Fifteen Million Merits (Season 1, Episode 2, 2011)

Premise: The majority of society is forced to ride a stationary bike every day to earn enough credits to exist in any fashion — entertainment, personal hygiene and even eating. The only real way off the bike is attaining once-in-a-lifetime fame, selling misery and hope to the masses, or even using one’s body in pornography. People are also constantly exposed to commercials and things to purchase.

There’s something darkly depressing about “Fifteen Million Merits” — not just in the heartbreaking performance from a young Daniel Kaluuya, but also in how the whole world, while stripped down, feels so… real? If you give this dystopian society a little more color and some streets and cities to roam around in, it’s hard to distinguish from what we’ve got cooking on the other side of the screen. And it clicks relatively easily within the contexts of our jobs, set routines and what stimulates us to keep “going.”

It’s very eerie, is all.

3
Hang the DJ (Season 4, Episode 4, 2017)

Premise: Dating and relationships are commodified to the point of exact data science, which almost resembles more of an exhausting job.

“Hang The DJ” has a lot to say about how seemingly everyone goes through the motions in modern love because of online dating apps. Plus, it critiques how those same applications quash potential opportunities at genuine connection because of a rigid matchmaking algorithm that feels more high-tech and selective than it really is.

Folks: All of this is already the case! “Hang the DJ” just personifies the interiors of a dating app and its algorithm through quality acting and storytelling. We live this right now!

2
Loch Henry (Season 6, Episode 2, 2023)

Premise: A young couple attempts to exploit an unsolved grisly murder in a small Scottish town in the form of a buzzy true-crime documentary.

Once you learn what “Loch Henry” is about, it’s hard to view the genre of true crime in the same prism. There’s the sleepy central town — made desolate by a high-profile torture story — coming to life the moment that same torture becomes a trending entertainment product. You have the subsequent filmmakers and artists talking about real tragedies that occurred in real people’s lives with such disdain and contempt; it’s almost comedic.

This happens in our world, and there’s no technology we need to reach it. We already have it. Ironically, the main characters of “Loch Henry” even discover their horrifying truth through outdated cassette tapes.

Take one good look at the true crime category in any of your streaming services the next time you sit down to watch TV. Watch the reaction to the next massive “hit” over social media. Then, please try not to vomit.

1
Smithereens (Season 5, Episode 2, 2019)

Premise: A rideshare driver takes his passenger hostage, who happens to be the intern of a major social media company he believes is destroying our attention spans and connection to tangible reality.

Poor Chris, our rideshare-driving “hero,” who tragically lost his fiancée in a drunk-driving accident years prior. While there was ultimately little that he could’ve done to change the outcome, Chris blames himself for checking Smithereen — this episode’s stand-in for Twitter — at the time of the crash.

Chris, of course, takes this out on the world, trying to change it for the better, when he realizes one of his passengers has a connection to Smithereen. After his experience, Chris believes we spend entirely too much time on our phones, disconnected from what’s happening in front of us, much to our mental and physical detriment.

While Chris takes his plight and ensuing hostage demands entirely too far, his primary contention is correct: We probably do spend too much on our phones away from the real world. And we’re probably fortunate it hasn’t cost us dearly — unless you count the amount of time we spend on our phones as a dire price. On that note, if you disagree that this is a problem, please tell me why you track your screen time so diligently now and how many hours you looked at your phone last week.

Don’t worry, I’ll wait. I can handle embarrassing answers.

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