Long Awaited Black Mirror: Season 5 Could’ve Stalled A Little More…

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By: Vanessa Herrera

July 2, 2019

BLACK MIRROR SEASON 5

Creator Charlie Brooker, alongside his executive producer, Annabel Jones had their audience waiting an entire year for the next installment of Black Mirror. The fifth season of the Sci-Fi TV show, premiered this past June 5. But producers could have kept fans waiting a little longer, if that was what they were going to release. 

The mature audience TV show took an unexpected route this season, filled with unusual romances and connections; yet the show maintained the theme of scientific advancements gone wrong. After producers had fans waiting for over a year for the next season, it only consisted of three episodes.

The first episode of season 5, Striking Vipers, focused on a married man who runs into a college friend, played by famous actors (Avengers “Falcon,” Anthony Mackie and Aquaman‘s “Black Manta,” Yahya Abdul-Mateen II). Anthony is gifted one of their favorite fighting games him and Mateen used to play, but now they have a virtual reality session. 

At first, the plot of this episode was quite straightforward. If you have watched many black mirror episodes, it seems as if you can predict how things will go wrong. This was not the case for this episode. Throughout the events that transpired, viewers were left quite surprised from the unexpected romance that emerged.

The acting by Mackie was impeccable, as he took on such an unusual role as he was accustomed to, in this Sci-Fi thriller. Sadly, the ending of the episode had many loose ends, because many questions were left unanswered. 

The following episode, Smithereens, was quite the thriller as it starts off very strong. The beginning scenes seemed as if it began right at the climax of the plot. A London-based driver captured a social media mogul, which sparked an unforeseen chain of events.

WARNING! SPOIL ALERT AHEAD!

 The underlying meaning of the episode is much deeper and relatable to today’s society, as an aspect of social media addiction and how it affects society played a role in this episode. Yet the overall understanding of all of the events was quite confusing for the viewers, which did not make this episode one of the most favored ones among peers. The quality of acting is what essentially saved this episode from complete disarray. The plot was not as clear throughout, and technology was not as pervasive as expected from the show.

The long awaited Miley episode, as it seemed that is what people will only remember, “Rachel, Jack and Ashley Too” episode by. This episode featured famous singer Miley Cyrus, as the character, Ashley O. Ironically, Cyrus played a famous singer and songwriter. The character was a young singer, controlled by her aunt who was also her manager.  Ashley O had AI dolls named “Ashley 2” being sold internationally. 

The last episode also focused on two other characters, Rachel and Jack, who played sisters. Somehow these sisters and famous artist crossed paths in the most disturbing and shocking manner.

The episode began in a manner which lead viewers to think the main protagonist is Rachel, but the character growth was not enough to give her that title. Rachel remained a lonely high schooler in the shadows, throughout most of the episode. Meanwhile Rachel’s moody sister, Jack, brought quite the action with her sarcastic remarks and bravery throughout the episode.

WARNING! ENDING SCENE REVEALED…

The AI doll, Ashley 2, has an interesting role in their meeting and eventual friendship, which you will see unravel in a strange, yet twisted way only Black Mirror could.

The overall flow of this season was quite shaky and rushed. It felt as if the writers were hurried to a deadline, because of the hype and reputation “Black Mirror” has held. Unfortunately, releasing this season just to keep up with consistently putting out a season every year, was not the right move. 

Save yourself the 3 hours and 18 minutes you’ll waste on the three episodes, because it’s not worth it.

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