I watched them out of order 1, 3 then 2 due to some recording issues (blasted technology ay? Seems to fit the theme) and I wish I hadn't.
It's not that I wish I hadn't watched them out of order, I just wish I hadn't watched them, or better still I wish they hadn't been made by Charlie Brooker. Unfortunately for me I follow everything the man has done. Black Mirror though?
I enjoyed the first one, it was horrifying but I was actually caught up in the search for Kate...I mean the princess. I wanted the Prime Minister to find her because, and let's be honest, I wouldn't even wish his fate on David Cameron.
Number 3 was interesting, there was a believable world with human emotion and drive. There was the whole thing about the paedophile baby sitter joke, when they didn't check on the baby the whole time they were home, I became convinced the babysitter was a paedophile, we'll never know. That would have been a twist at least, the parents being so self obsessed that they didn't even notice their baby being abused. Anyway.
My REAL beef was with episode 2. So it's a future where people work a dead end job all day and then have to sit around and watch TV or play games all night just to go to work the next day...wait a minute, that sounds like my life (at least before I broke my leg). The world didn't seem fully formed enough for a start, I had to rewind a few times to see if their actions were losing or gaining money (washing his hands made Bing gain and lose money apparently) and it wasn't entirely clear if people could have a relationship or not, you have to assume they can't because Bing was so upset about nothing being real, but how would the human race keep going? Also the twist was just a little too obvious, it was more a plot development than a twist, and overall there was absolutely no hope.
When a person works a dead end job they don't want to come home from their job and watch a show about someone with a dead end job and no hope for the future. We watch television to escape the world we're in, not to watch it mirrored on the screen. We want to think there IS hope, and watch a show where someone escapes there dead end job for their dream job; childminding whilst knitting. (No? Just me?)
I think what annoys me the most, was the way in which it was advertised. "Darkly Comic". But where was the comedy? There was a sincere lack of comedy across the board, I didn't laugh once for the whole series. So why was it branded as comedy? The only thing I can think is Charlie Brooker wanted the British public to watch it, so he said it was comedy. The truth is I would have watched it anyway because it was a Brooker production. I wouldn't have enjoyed it, but I would have seen it. If he wanted the rest of the public to watch it, the public that don't read the Guardian, just be honest about it. If someone wants a dystopian future with absolutely no hope then they will watch it. Mediaphobes everywhere would love to see a future where media has ruined the world. Maybe he wanted us to watch it because he thought it would be "good for us" to see. I know what's good and bad for me: Bananas - good, Chocolate - bad, Exercise - good, Meth -bad. See?
Ultimately I think people are innately better than the people in Black Mirror. Everyone has a little bit of good in them, and the majority of people would reject a world that was so limited. Technology is serving people to learn more and grow more, not to box us in. People wouldn't just embrace a change like that, people are crying out for freedom all around the world and technology is helping change to happen.
Perhaps I'm biased because I work with children, so I see the beauty in life. I've not been made bitter by being fired from The Xtra Factor. I don't have editors telling me I'm too extreme or too negative, or whatever journalists get told off for. I see children thriving to learn all they can every day, finding out as much as they can from every resource available to them, if those children are the future then the bleak future of Black Mirror can't be even a possibility.
I really don't want to be one of those bloggers sitting at home and winging about someone with talent but I'm dressed at least. I really do admire Brooker so I guess I'm not angry, I'm just disappointed. I'm mostly disappointed that Charlie Brooker has a job that a lot of people in mundane jobs would love, so why is he telling us we're stuck in a hopeless cycle and no matter what we do we can't make a difference to the system? It doesn't seem fair really.
I'll be working with children, most probably, for the rest of my life maybe one day someone I care for will become a prime minister and bring about world peace. I like to think that. I could make a difference to 1 child who could make a difference to millions of people. That would be nice. Now it's time to think about nice things like rainbows and kittens and panda cubs and forget about nasty things like porn and exercise bikes.
