Season 1-
The infamous episode that had the Prime Minister making the bacon. Linking sausages. Smacking the salami. All bangers and mash. Dare we say, pearls before swine? But the moral of the story can be a bit hard to grasp. It feels like it's in there somewhere in how everyone disseminates the news feeds, but it's all a bit muddled.
The Point: Interpretive art sucks. Seriously, it's generally convoluted and as tortuous as a man !@#$ing a pig.
Episode 2: Fifteen Million Merits
Classic tale of boy meets girl, girl goes all porno in a society that trades work for entertainment, boy goes on TV, rants and raves about how broke society is and becomes a star cog in the machinations. It's an excellent episode but, say what-what? Here's the what-what.
The Point: You miss 100% of the shots you don't take. Whether it's a reality show host ranting about the evils of society and sipping on juice, or beating "that bitch Debbie" in the bake off, get out there and grab your opportunity.
Human DVR implants set the stage for a tale of paranoia, jealousy and big ol' drama. Pretty much what you'd expect in a world where you can rewind and rewatch your own memories. But what's the whole deal about?
The Point: If you've been considering laser eye surgery, just go for it. It's safe, easy, and very successful. Just don't try and DIY this one. Leave this one to the professionals.
Season 2-
Episode 1: Be Right Back
A husband dies and his pregnant wife all moody and grief-y uses a service that recreates him based on old conversations and social media. The end result is a version similar to the original but lacking his soul (not just because he's a ginger). It would be tempting to see this as a piece about the human grieving process or even on the subject of how much we share online, but the message is deeper.The Point: A guy who does what you want, when you want, satisfies you tirelessly, and can be put away in the attic? Sounds likethe perfect man. Am I right, ladies? Up top.
A women awakes to a violent world that ends up being an elaborate play by a justice system to punish her. They also erase her memory every night so she awakes to a hellish Groundhog's Day every morning. And somehow as messy as that sounds, it makes sense when you're watching. But what is it saying about our society (other than Lenora Crichlow is talented and gorgeous and should be cast in more things)?
The Point: Judge Judy makes $47 million dollars a year. 47! Million! $47 million dollars a year... Mind boggling.
Episode 3: The Waldo Moment
An obscene cartoon character (and the man who created him), enter the political landscape to quickly become a legitimate candidate in the public's eyes due to his lack of self censorship. Trump's run has been compared many times to this episode, even by Charlie Brooker himself. But it wasn't about Trump, as he came later. So what is it all about?
The Point: I lied. It is about Trump and his presidency is going to be so horrible it'll reverberate back through time to when Charlie Brooker is writing the episode.
Two dudes in a house discuss the past that ultimately led to their imprisonment. One guy had a club that allowed men to watch other men have sex without their partner's knowledge. The other man stalked his ex girlfriend and was responsible for the death of her daughter. It's 90 minutes of fun that sets up a virtual hell.
The Point: No man is an island. Except for the Isle of Man.
Season 3-
Episode 1: Nosedive
Basically that one episode of Community where people rate each other through a phone app. Centered around one social climbing woman who seeks to better her status by attending an old friend's wedding. The more she seeks to go up, the more she spirals out of control.
The Point: It might be tempting to see this as a critique of how we perceive each other, but in reality it's all about Uber. My guess is the writers all have low customer ratings.
A son estranged from his mom after his father dies, goes abroad. He never answers his phone when his mom calls which naturally leads to an ironic ending. Largely set in a virtual horror game inside the son's mind, it all gets very Inception-y.
The Point: You can never trust an employer.
Episode 3: Shut Up And Dance
A group of people are blackmailed into an elaborate scheme as a means of punishing them for their sins.
The Point: Cake is bad for you. No matter how enticing it is --sitting there, with it's perfect frosting all delicious like-- it's just not healthy. This is actually one of the overall themes of the entire show.
A virtual world for people who are old or incapacitated to party and if they so choose, move to permanently after death, having their mind uploaded to a server.
The Point: When are you going to back-up those old VHS tapes onto digital media, Bill? It's a dead medium, Bill. Your kids memories, your Pop-pop's last baseball game with you. All gone if you don't take care of it now, Bill.
Episode 5: Men Against Fire
Military dispatched to clear out "roaches" who appear to be monsters. When one soldier has his brain implant shorted out by a device, he sees the roaches for what they really are; human.
The Point: War... what is good for? Ab. so. lute. ly. Nothing. Say it again? Ah.... but seriously it's about labor law reform.
Bear with me on this... It's about a hacker, using twitter to control electronic bees to make them kill people. Yeah, that's right.
The Point: Don't make electronic bees. Just don't do it. It's not a good idea. Also, Kelly Macdonald should have her own spin off show from this episode.
That's it for now. I hope it was helpful and enlightening. I'll try and update this post the next time we get new episodes.
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