? The seventh season of Black Mirror is as unsettling as ever — perhaps because it hits closer to home than ever before. The newest six episodes signal an evolution in the show’s approach to our complicated relationship with technology. While the concerns remain heritage Black Mirror — consciousness transfers, digital clones, AI, subscription-based capitalism — this season offers a more nuanced and mature experience than its predecessors, focusing on the flawed but sympathetic characters trying to navigate challenging technological landscapes.

(Tap or click the headline above to read this story with all of the links to external sources.)

Where earlier seasons might have pushed concepts to their bleakest extremes, season seven surprised us with glimmers of hope. Instead of implying that technological advancement inevitably leads to exploitation and moral rot, season seven presents a more balanced — if not just ambivalent instead of pessimistic — view: Technology can be both destructive and potential redemptive, or simply act as a lens through which we can better understand ourselves. This tonal shift feels well-timed — Black Mirror’s past catalogue of sociopathic bn’aires gaining more and more power over our daily lives and genAI becoming a pressing existential threat is no longer simple dystopian sci-fi.

Our first sequel: What stands out most about this season is a more overt willingness to engage with its own history. While some episodes had previously alluded to elements of others within the Black Mirror universe — nothing beyond an easter egg — for the first time, the anthology directly connects to previous episodes through a sequel to USS Callister and a spinoff of the interactive Bandersnatch. This may feel worryingly final to some, but we choose to optimistically believe that showrunner Charlie Brooker is simply taking stock of Black Mirror’s journey while pushing into new emotional territory.

Mostly hits: Mild spoilers ahead. Bête Noire and Plaything — episodes two and four respectively — seem to have missed the mark for most of the audience. The former had us on the edge of our seat until the last scene, where Black Mirror’s new optimism proved green. Plaything had a similar underdeveloped feel, but with Peter Capaldi at the helm of the cast, we can’t count it as a skip. We hesitated to be optimistic about USS Callister’s sequel Into Infinity — the first installment is an easy series-wide fan favorite — but the sequel proved just as good, marking this season’s most entertaining entry.

WHERE TO WATCH- Season 7 of Black Mirror is available on Netflix, and you can watch the trailer on YouTube (runtime: 2:58).

Tags: