"Black Mirror," Year Five-ish

Only three episodes have been released for the 2019 series of "Black Mirror," which is in line with what the first two series of the show did, back when it was being broadcast on the UK's Channel 4. And frankly, I'm all for it. If fewer episodes mean higher quality, and avoiding the show being watered down and Charlie Brooker getting burned out, great. I don't think the move made this fifth series, or season, or grouping of episodes, any better than the previous ones, but it's not any worse. "Black Mirror" has always had its ups and downs since the beginning. This year, we got a great episode, a mediocre episode, and an episode I'm having trouble quantifying. The nice thing about the small episode count is that I can spend this post going into all three of them in some detail.

First, the great episode. "Striking Vipers" stars Anthony Mackie and Nicole Beharie as Danny and Theo, a couple getting bored in their marriage. Danny reconnects with an old gaming buddy, Karl (Yahya Abdul-Mateen II), through a VR game and the relationship takes an unexpected turn. The episode is a fascinating, mature look at a trio of people navigating changing sexual dynamics that have been brought about by new technology. This is one of those episodes where the technology is not the enemy - it wasn't designed for the purpose that the characters find for it - but that nonetheless opens up a whole can of worms as it creates new ways for people to interact and relate to each other. The performances, especially Nicole Beharie's, go a long way toward elevating the hour above a typical genre "what if" story. I especially like the complicated, but hopeful resolution.

On to "Smithereens," which sees a hostage situation play out with added complications from social media. The episode stars Andrew Scott as Chris, a rideshare driver, who abducts Jaden (Damson Idris), an employee of the social media company, in order to get to Billy Bauer (Topher Grace), the CEO. The story takes place in the present day, more or less, with current technology, and the tone is largely satirical. The episode takes a lot of current trends, such as distracted driving, ridesharing, online account memorialization, and privacy concerns, and tries to make a compelling narrative out of them. The result isn't bad, but it's not very strong either. "Smithereens" feels very derivative of other media about these topics, and there's not much bite to the humor or the commentary. Still, I like the performances of Andrew Scott and Topher Grace, and there are a couple of good zingers.

Finally, there's "Rachel, Jack, and Ashley Too," which has drawn some ire for being a very atypical "Black Mirror" episode. Sure, it has scary new technology like mind-reading tech and toys that contain copies of a real person's personality, but it's all in the context of what is essentially a Disney Channel adventure, the kind that its star Miley Cyrus rose to fame with. The plotting initially suggests darker designs: shy teenager Rachel (Angourie Rice) is a fan of wholesome pop star Ashley O (Miley Cyrus). She's gifted a high tech new doll, the Ashley Too, who becomes her only friend, to the disapproval of Rachel's older sister Jack (Madison Davenport). However, the way things play out is very kid-friendly. It isn't just that the episode has a happy ending, but that its entire tone and attitude feel watered down. No matter the pointed jabs at the entertainment industry, Miley Cyrus getting meta, or Ashley's penchant for cursing like a sailor, it's hard to get away from the episode being a lot lighter and more positive in its handling of some of "Black Mirror's" favorite dystopian concepts than other installments have been.

In short, "Rachel, Jack, and Ashley Too" plays like baby's first "Black Mirror" episode. It's watchable as an edgy tween caper, and even as a "Hannah Montana" spoof. On the other hand, it sticks out like a sore thumb when you put it next to the rest of the series. Charlie Brooker has talked about wanting "Black Mirror" to not only be disturbing and fearmongering stories about technology. I have to wonder if this might be course correcting a little too hard, however. "Cute" is not a descriptor I normally associate with "Black Mirror," and a little goes a long way.

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