Black Mirror Season 5 Discussion

[Asbo Zaprudder]

Your loss.

Meh, not really, it's just a TV show.

 

[Awesome Possum]

Meh, not really, it's just a TV show.

So is Star Trek.

 

[Asbo Zaprudder]

So is Star Trek.

Quite so. I don't much like modern Trek and its imitators. Pretty much all the TV sci-fi shows I make time to watch now are The Expanse and Doctor Who -- so about a day's worth of new content per year. The new Lost in Space is also watchable but it's not must watch for me. Like Dark Matter, I wouldn't be that bothered if it were to be no longer produced.

There is also a mere handful of decent new movies, SF or otherwise, per year at best and I wait until I can stream them legally. I've given up on most mainstream drama and comedy. Most of the time, I'd rather watch a documentary or a relatively highbrow quiz show.

Reality TV is usually a no-no, although I find Strictly Come Dancing fascinating for some weird reason even though I've never heard of many of the supposed "celebrities".

Personal preference -- there is no wrong or right. Some people eschew the goggle box altogether but I'm not quite prepared to do that yet.

 

[Terok Nor]

Innovative concept as far as TV goes and there was some good stuff in there but I didn't care for the storyline or the characters. Black Mirror has had a lot of better episodes.

The fight scene in the psychiatrist's office was awesome though.

 

[MadeIndescribable]

So I just got round to watching/playing it....

 

[MadeIndescribable]

You're missing out then. I found the experience wonderful, I got all the bad endings and finally got to the toy ending. Made it seem like it was Stefan escaping the story.

Seems weird to need spoiler warnings for something I've already seen, but to be fair I presumed there would be a toy ending somewhere...

Spoiler

I FUCKING HATE DRUG ADDLED CONSPIRACY CHARACTERS IN ANY FORM OF MEDIA. I almost chucked by remote at the screen when the blonde shithead started ranting about Pac-Man. You can tell that the assholes who wrote this thought that they were really clever, when in reality it just comes off as people who have ruined their minds with drugs got paid by Netflix to fuck up a cool sounding gimmick and waste a decent amount of money. Also, the main character was the most cringe worthy character I've seen on TV in awhile, he's like Newt Scamander from Fantastic Beasts but without an ounce of charm.

I hope a good show on Netflix uses a "choose your own adventure" gimmick (and I don't mean kids shows, since there are a few things like that already), because the people with their heads up their own asses who already make one of the more unpleasant sci fi shows with Black Mirror really just wasted the idea.

I was just glad that this was used in a context where it really fits and is actually relevant.

 

[Forbin]

The wife and I were excited to see there was a Black Mirror movie, so we sat down with our snacks Saturday night and qued it up. It opens explaining that it's interactive and you have to choose what's going to happen at key points. Okay, look, we're 61 years old and we just wanna sit and watch a movie. Screw this. We ended up watching Jesus Christ, Superstar.

 

[daedalus5]

Excellent experience. Engaging plot lines. Loved the 1980s computing references and the TV review kid commenting on the games....... very enjoyable, especially with all the different endings. Impressive that Netflix software can handle the options. Perhaps this is the new, interactive future of TV!

 

[The Nth Doctor]

Regardless of the ultimate paths chosen in "Bandersnatch," the episode/film is an automatic win simply because I could choose Tangerine Dream's Phaedra. Not only is it my favorite Tangerine Dream album, it's one of my favorite albums period. Having the music periodic play throughout the whole thing was icing on the top.

I grew up loving the Choose Your Own Adventure books so naturally "Bandersnatch" was right up my alley. I really enjoyed choosing different paths, occasionally having to restart (and relieved that I didn't have to rewatch everything each time), and discovering the various endings. I loved the bittersweet ending where Stefan climbs through the mirror and travels back in time to die alongside his mother on the train. I also really enjoyed the darker, more paranoid endings, and of course, the Netflix ending.

I do wish the story went a bit deeper down the rabbit hole regarding the story tree symbol and the possibility of his father experimenting on him (regardless of whether it was true or not), but that's my only criticism.

I think I covered most of the iterations except when Stefan tells Kitty he hadn't seen Colin and the presumably different paths from the phone number. I know there's at least one easter egg I've missed (the one that leads to the playable video game), but I had to take a break after spending a few hours on the thing. I might dive back in again if I can find somewhere online that clearly shows some of the iterations I missed.

Spoiler: Flow Chart

Ah, there we go! Thanks for providing that. I mapped out some of the paths I followed but it got a little messy towards the end (of my viewing experience). I'll have to go over that flow chart more closely when I'm ready to dive back in and fill in the gaps I missed.

 

[Asbo Zaprudder]

Ooh, it's got a Tangerine Dream soundtrack -- it's suddenly become a must-watch for me!

 

[Terok Nor]

Watched it again to see the different options. This is really not a very good storyline at all. If not for the interactive function it would go down as one of the worst episodes.

 

[The Nth Doctor]

Ooh, it's got a Tangerine Dream soundtrack -- it's suddenly become a must-watch for me!

Most of the selections are from Phaedra, and that alone would be amazing, but "Love on a Real Train" is also featured during a key scene.

 

[Tom]

Well that was interesting. I need to go through it again to get the other options, the flowchart helps.