Mr. Hands

@mrhands

Sexy game(s) maker

he/him

I do UI programming for AAA games and I have opinions about adult games

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Mr. Hands @mrhands9/21/2023, 7:55 AM

My review of Black Mirror S6 that nobody asked for

Our favorite show that asks us to consider "what if phone bad" is back! And this time, it's all about alternate history. And I think that's my main problem with these episodes: They're fun (mostly), but they don't really feel like "Black Mirror".

S6.E1 ∙ Joan Is Awful

Joan Is Awful

An excellent return to form for the show. It's about people! It's about technology! It's about capitalism fucking everything up at the intersection, and the episode came out before the ongoing writer's strike about AI in Hollywood!

8/10

S6.E2 ∙ Loch Henry

Loch Henry

What if true crime... bad? But also, what if it was good for tourism?? Think about it.

5/10

S6.E3 ∙ Beyond the Sea

Beyond the Sea

Phenomenal acting by Aaron "Yeah, bitch!" Paul that was ruined by a story that makes absolutely no sense whatsoever.

4/10

S6.E4 ∙ Mazey Day

Mazey Day

It's... a werewolf story. And... that's it? I keep turning it over, but there's nothing on the back. It's just, "What if there was a werewolf." It's the worst episode of the season, possibly the series, and I recommend you skip it entirely.

2/10

S6.E5 ∙ Demon 79

Demon 79

Ohhh, I had so much fun with this one! A newbie demon has to entice an innocent shoe saleswoman to commit three murders in three days, or the world will turn to Armageddon. But why would a demon (taking the form of the singer from Boney M) be telling the truth about any of this?

9/10

#black mirror

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in reply to @mrhands's post:

Amy Dentata @amydentata9/21/2023, 8:22 AM

I spent all of Beyond the Sea pointing out why various details and plot points don’t fucking work, it’s incredible how much you have to not think about the setting to get through it.

It seems like, this season, they thought, “What if we do like 30 seconds at the end of each ep that we intend to be a mindfuck twist but it’s basic as hell.”

That first one was pretty good though

Mr. Hands @mrhands9/21/2023, 8:38 AM

Why would NASA even set up a program of body doubles on Earth?
So wait, they've found a way to make neural connections over large distances faster than light and they're using it to... distract astronauts from the monotony of their journey?
After the murders, they don't shut the whole thing down?
In fact, there's no follow-up from NASA at all after the murders?
The whole plot only works because the people in charge are like "dem astronauts can do whatever lmao"

Amy Dentata @amydentata9/21/2023, 9:03 AM

Faster than light communication! Would be! Civilization-changing!

Body doubles would probably be expensive government property, with the appropriate security!

They could’ve created a body from someone else on earth and had him use it! Or a generic body!

At no point do they ever speak with ground control in a meaningful way!

Unless they have perfect E2E encryption, without silly fed backdoors, the government would be spying on the feed!

Heinlein is overrated!

Any one plot hole, if addressed, would’ve made for a better story lol

willow @Willow9/21/2023, 9:13 AM

i was a little higher on mazey day (call it a 7/10 cause i like the turn to werewolf stuff when it’s mostly been about fucked media exploiting famous people up til then but still kinda ehhhhh) but otherwise i completely agree. i was BAFFLED by the reaction to the aaron paul one by friends and coworkers

Hatsune Michael @DeCosterMakesThings9/21/2023, 2:59 PM

Demon 79 really was something in an otherwise mostly forgettable season. It was also so out there from the rest of the show that it almost felt like a backdoor pilot. Like the writers room asking to do a throwback horror anthology instead of thinking of more ways that iphone apps could kill you.

mabbees @mabbees9/22/2023, 3:05 AM

I really enjoyed Joan is Awful on my first watch through, but I've been gradually growing more annoyed with it the more I reflect on it.

(Spoilers ahead:)

First, what I liked. Above all, the episode told a compelling story. The black mirror-y themes were really well incorporated into the narrative, without coming off as preachy (heavy-handed) or reachy (bringing nothing to the story). It covered a lot of ground for a single episode. It's also one of the rare episodes that has an optimistic ending.

But then there's the whole quantum computer thing...

To be clear, I'm not a sci-fi stickler. I'm perfectly happy to give them a pass on using "quantum" to mean "plot magic". My issue with it is how it frames the narrative.

If you work backwards from "eerily targeted personal call-outs", you can eventually make your way to "simulated realities" as a plot device to justify it. But if you work forwards from "computer simulation that can make mostly-accurate predictions about reality," then "creepy Netflix show" feels really non-sequitur. The writers introduced an unfathomably powerful technology with all sorts of ethical implications and then... spend the episode asking "what if this was really personally inconvenient to a middle-class white woman?"

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