From Romance To Horror, Netflix’s ‘Black Mirror’ Explores More Extremes Than Ever Before

It’s not very hard to find a great show in 2016. No matter what your vice is — subversive comedies, thematic dramas, complicated genre fusions — you’re covered. However, every now and then, you stumble upon a watch that is so great, so innovative, well constructed, and emotionally beautiful, that it reconstructs the definition of good TV. That’s what Black Mirror has always done, and that’s the legacy the series’ third season continues.

If you’re not aware, Black Mirror is a British sci-fi anthology series that explores our dependance on technology and what it means to be human. Created by satirist, broadcaster, and journalist Charlie Brooker, each hourlong episode of the series watches as its own mini moralistic tale. Black Mirror has explored everything from the dangers of electing a political official as a joke (“The Waldo Moment”) to the horrors of using technology to purposefully mute someone (“White Christmas”) to the psychological damage of using technology and social media to replace human connections (“Be Right Back”). It’s an immensely smart and complicated series that’s difficult to explain to the uninitiated. Much like most of the technology that haunts Black Mirror’s many universes, this series can only be fully explained after it’s been watched, and even them it alludes definite explanations. Those are the standards Netflix’s new season of the series had to live up to, and Black Mirror Season Three succeeds in that goal.

Currently, there are only seven episodes of Black Mirror available — three in both Seasons One and Two and the show’s Christmas special. Keeping this in mind, Netflix’s announcement that it would be releasing six new Black Mirror episodes this fall — practically doubling the series — was equally met with excitement and guarded skepticism. Also contributing to optimistic hesitation was the series’ switch from the British based Channel 4 to the American Netflix. Black Mirror is so subtly and delicately great sci-fi, it seems like it would be easy to warp its balance. However, fans don’t need to worry. Season Three is everything you would expect from the series and so much more.

RELATED: We Now Know What ‘Black Mirror’ Season Three Is About

Without giving away any spoilers, Black Mirror Season Three is worth your time. For this review, I watched all six of Season Three’s Part One, and out of the many intricate stories and concepts, there was not one that could be described as bad. That being said, some episodes were less exciting and more predictable than others. In particular, “Men Against Fire,” which was revealed in an interview with EW to be about a group of soldiers, can be a little slow and predictable at times. Likewise, the much-anticipated 90-minute episode “Hated in the Nation” doesn’t land quite as many punches as I was hoping. But with six episodes, some inconsistencies are to be expected, and when Season Three finds its stride, it takes off.

“San Junipero” and “Playtest” are emotionally, thematically, and tonally unlike anything Black Mirror has ever created. They’re equally powerful and terrifying, painfully human and unlike anything you’ve ever seen. Of the season’s six episodes, these will be the two that will leave you gaping at you TV. Likewise, “Nosedive” and “Shut Up and Dance” are also incredibly strong episodes, but they watch more like delightful but typical Black Mirror explorations of technology. As with everything having to do with Black Mirror, the series is at its strongest when it’s pushing the boundaries of character development, story structure, and television as a whole, and that’s what this season does, mostly successfully.

However, Season Three of Black Mirror at its lowest is still better than most great shows and sci-fi currently on 2016 TV. The only opponent  this amazing series really has is its past self, and when framed through that match up, Season Three certainly wins. It’s riskier Black Mirror, but it’s better Black Mirror. The missteps are a little clumsier, but the highs are unbelievably higher. Be sure to clear out your schedule at the end of October. You have six and a half hours of pristine sci-fi to watch.

Season Three of Black Mirror will premiere on Netflix Friday, October 21 at 3 a.m. ET / 12 a.m. PT.

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