S03E01 was good. Fun to watch how quickly our "like" obsessed culture could turn, and come quickly crashing down in the right circumstances.
Just finished the 4th episode. I don't want to spoiler anything for people who haven't seen it as it's one of those episodes where you don't really know what's going on until about halfway through. The twist ending isn't really surprising, but leaves you in a weird place emotionally. This is the best show being made right now. No contest. I didn't think they would top seasons 1 and 2, but so far they have.
I find that this show is one of the few that I can't binge watch... I can only do two at a time, at most... it's so fucking dark it has a serious effect on my state of mind.
Is this show worth getting into? I see it being raved about but I've never seen it. What is it, anthology shit like a deeper version of Outer Limits or something?
"Twilight Zone for the Digital Age" is how I refer to it. And like that show (which I think is the best show ever made) it REALLY gets under your skin at times. I can't guarantee you'll like it. But you probably will.
Beyond the writing, which is the closest thing to the Twilight Zone in terms of quality sci fi writing Ive yet seen, it does just about everything right. It actually does personal drama better than the Twilight Zone as that show was great at large morality/ethical ideas it lacked personal human emotion (something Serling regretted not being able to do better, particularly write for/as women). It's why I always suggest "The Entire History of You" as people's first episode. Very raw human emotions on display done very well. For the people with limited time, there are only 13ish episodes depending on how you count the Christmas special they did a year or so ago. I really wish there were more but it is much easier to digest than say The X Files, which has thousands of hours of episodes over 8 seasons.
No, it's a complete waste of time. Seriously, watch a couple episodes. They're only related by the social/digital technology theme so you don't have to make much of an investment to see if you'll like it. Thus far I haven't met anyone who didn't think it was great.
Got through the National Anthem one. I couldnt take the idea of the Prime Minister fucking a pig on TV seriously. Thats kind of funny. But the second one of where they rewind and project their memories and the guy from RocknRolla finds out his wife cheated on him bummed me out. That was a tough one.
Finished the 3rd season. The full show is up on netflix now. The last episode was the longest and also my least favorite. It had crossover themes with the 3rd episode, but it was better done earlier in the season. Even the worst episode of the season was still well worth the time. Episode 4 was my favorite. Spoiler: episode 4 When I was in my late teens I was somewhat religion obsessed. No religion in particular, I just devoured information about all of them. At this point in my life I've mostly abandoned taking any religious beliefs seriously, but the life and death questions raised in this episode hit home in a really uncomfortable way. It seems like the reaction to this episode was that it was a happy ending, but I didn't see it as uplifting or negative. Just having an option like that irks me in a visceral way. Part of moving away from religion is accepting the nothingness of death, for yourself and for loved ones you've seen pass away. People don't move towards deism and atheism because it makes them feel good. Freeing maybe, but I think there's a hollowness that accompanies most people. But is there anything to life if everything that matters is ripped away and you're just left with carnal pleasures and superficial friendships? I know the episode doesn't necessary portray the virtual afterlife as merely superficial, but that was how I saw it. That said, if I'm going to be honest with myself, I'm still not totally sure what I would do if I was in the same spot as the two characters in the episode.
I agree. That's my favorite as well. I kept waiting for the other shoe to drop like someone accidentally wiping the San Junipero server or something, but it ended nicely for both protagonists. Plus the soundtrack was killer.
So what's everyone's thoughts on the new season? Spoiler USS Callister: Very fun executed concept for an episode. One part super dark, one part slapstick fun. Too me the only fault is the salty sweet ending that is ruined completely by a last-second voice cameo of Aaron "YES BITCH!" Paul. It was a super misplaced punchline that went over worse for me because it was obviously Paul. It would have been a solid 9 if the ending had been darker but doesn't crack a 5 with A-aron Paul yes bitching pre credits. Arkangel: Probably the biggest let down since Jodie Foster directed. Honestly, it's just a rehash of The Entire History of You (one of the series absolute best) with an overly protective mom in place of a jealous boyfriend. It lacks the character development between the mom and her daughter that could have made it a decent episode. It skips parts of the teenage experience, the progression of acting out, lying, partying etc, and basically has the plot revolve around what seems like the first time she's lied to her mom, loses her virginity, and tries coke in a few day span. Felt lazy and unfleshed out. Crocodile: Beautifully shot, very nihilistic, another last minute plot twist that seemed way over the top and ultimately unneeded since it was clear the main character was already in the mindset to kill a baby in the first place. Hang The DJ: The feel good episode of the season where love conquers the technology. Fairly simple concept and I enjoyed the female character's and the actress' role quite a bit. Metalhead: I can watch any story that involves human ingenuity being used to overcome harsh situations. Not in love with the teddy bear twist ending. Black Museum: An anthology story within an anthology story. I honestly wish the backseat driver segment and the final segment with the convicted killer had had their own full episodes. So many great themes and ideas that could have made terrific episodes. Still overall a good episode.
I agree with your assessment of pretty much every episode, except I didn't notice an Aaron Paul "yes bitch"'ing at the end, of the first one, so it's a 9 for me.
I can't believe I waited so long to watch this. I mean, I only watched Season 1 so far, but damn. It's like reading a collection of Philip K. Dick short stories.
I finally got around to finishing this season. I don't think it was as good as season 3, but still had a few very solid episodes to make it worthwhile. Spoiler: Episodes... USS Callister: I watched this episode way before the rest of the season, then got sidetracked, totally forgot about it and watched the next 5 over the last couple of days. This episode is by far the most talked about of the season so I'm just going to skip it. I'll throw in another "me too" that it's a good episode. Arkangel: Worst episode of the series thus far. It's a rehash of a technology explored multiple times already by the series, except this episode has all the life sucked out of it. It goes for an emotional punch at the end, but there's nothing particularly interesting or compelling about the characters. It's not like there's anything overtly wrong with this episode, there's just nothing right about it. Crocodile: Have to agree with commentary on here and other places that the backdrop is beautiful and sets the tone perfectly. For such an original show I felt like I had seen this story play itself out several times before. Still entertaining when it's well done though, and it was. Maybe what was missing from making this episode truly great was the protagonist having a more fleshed out connection to what she was so afraid of losing. It was her motive for murders, after all. Including this one, 3 of the last 4 episodes of the season were essentially horror genre. Hang The DJ: Meh, was just ok. I just never felt for the main characters in this episode. Don't get me wrong; it was a nice, fun episode. Kind of a cool concept. That said it was here that I started thinking What happened to episodes like 15 Million Merits when this show was bombarding you with dark humor from all sides and so many crazy twists? Metalhead: My favorite of the season. The episode was very atypical of the show. There's no overarching plot whatsoever. This episode is pure thrill and terror. The robodog is incredibly creepy, ruthlessly efficient, and nigh impossible to shake. You never find out what caused the robots to start targeting people, what the survival community looks like, what the protagonist's background is, or anything normally necessary for this show. I feel like this was a good decision. It wouldn't have been the same episode with those elements. It's just the woman, the robodog, her struggle to survive, and it's fucking awesome. It never lets up and barely gives you a moment to breathe. The part where the robodog attaches the knife is one of the greatest moments in television history[even if this isn't technically television anymore, being netflix and all --- you get the point]. Black Museum: My second favorite of the season. The first two stories are too narrated and too short to ever get close enough to the characters to truly suck you in, but they are a ton of fun to watch. I agree with Kubla, but I think even the first one could have been a standalone episode. If they had slowed it down while you watched the doctor slowly getting more and more addicted to pain it would have been a great episode to make viewers squirm instead of just really amusing. The conclusion of this episode where you find out the 'main attraction' is reduced to a vegetable, the final shreds of humanity being wiped as he's tortured by sadists and white supremacists is the closest this season ever gets to a gut punch like in earlier episodes of the series. Again though, without an entire episode to focus on the rest of the story about these characters it doesn't have quite the same impact. Still eerie and disheartening. There was no episode like San Junipero or The Entire History of You that totally floored me. While the show didn't abandon its roots it felt like a lot of the episodes were more horror driven, and the plot twists/reveals were just that rather than summing up the episode in a morality tale like in past seasons. Regardless, for those of you that haven't caught up yet I'd recommend to keep watching. It's still really good.
Anyone else catch Bandersnatch? I thought it was good, but the idea was better than the execution. The story started cool but didn’t go anywhere and wasn’t really a parable on technology or society. The choice aspect didn’t feel like a gimmick except when they didn’t really matter (his cereal, etc). I also didn’t get why the other developer so willingly killed himself or allowed himself to get killed, but whatever.
Giving this thread a bump in case anyone else didn't know season 5 came out a couple weeks ago. It's only 3 episodes, unfortunately. I was really hoping they would stick with 6 consistently going forward. I've only watched the Ashley Too episode. It's... different for this series. It's like a Lindsay Lohan teenie type movie before she got on cocaine and started stripping for playboy. Or at least, what I would imagine a Mary-Kate&Ashley or Lindsay Lohan type movie would be like if I ever watched one. Even still, I fucking loved it. I really like the way this series is staying fresh, and it's not just rehashing the same concepts, even if some of the branched out episodes aren't as satirical, or poignant. I don't think this episode will be as well liked by the fan base, but I enjoyed it. This show should be as big as Game of Thrones was. I'm really surprised how it seems to stay under the radar.
I had been meaning to review these episodes. Ill spoiler. Spoiler Sorry but I thought the Miley Cyrus episode sucked a fat dick. Obviously the Hannah Montana tone of the episode was terrible but the over all tech theme(s) were unfocused and disjointed. Too broadly written it had too many storylines that none ended up being fleshed out well. The pop song written for the episode was probably the biggest "what the fuck were they thinking?" moment Ive seen in recent memory. Every. single. time. it was played it took me out of the show because the chorus sounded so much like the Nine Inch Nails song. Then they dickslap you in the face at the very end and the new emo Miley plays Head Like a Hole and you realize they did the whole thing on purpose. They actually gave Reznor a writing credit for the song. It wasn't creative idea it was just terrible writing and decision making by Charlie Brooker. Worst. Episode. Ever. The video game virtual reality episode was probably the most interesting thematically since it dealt with LGBT issues in a very Black Mirror way (though it ended up as one of the few happy ending episodes). Still felt like they were rehashing ideas for this episode. I liked Smithereens the most. Instead of taking current technology to the extreme ends it just gives a picture of how bad our current tech is affecting our lives already. Then they cast Topher Grace as the new age hippy tech company owner caricature and just takes you right out of the episode again. Short season just seemed so watered down. Maybe a 6/10.