Black Mirror: 6 Best & 6 Worst Inventions
If you held a mirror up to society, what would you want to see reflected?
Black Mirror exists to hold... I dunno, something shiny that slips my mind at the moment. Anyway, the show exists to hold whatever that shiny thing is up to humanity and the way we use technology, and ask three simple questions:
1) Are you sure you want to be doing that?
2) No, really, are you sure?
3) Have you thought through what could happen?
Sometimes the technology shown in the episodes is wonderous, something to aspire to in this world. It's a game-changer, either on a small and more personal level or, oftentimes, in wide-ranging ways that solve many of the problems that face society at the moment.
But then there are the times when the tech itself is terrifying. That can be as simple as something getting into the wrong hands (regularly, what is good in one episode is portrayed as bad in another, simply due to who is using it and for what) or because the technology itself has terrifying implications for our future.
Let's take a look at the 6 best and 6 worst...
12. BEST - Dating Simulations
They say there's someone out there for everyone and, with seven billion people on the planet, chances are they're right. But that doesn't make dating any easier. How do you know if you've found the person for you or if it's just someone close enough? How well will this person who seems perfect cope with the bad times if they come? Will they be there for you even when someone seemingly better comes along? A quagmire of what if questions can hold back even the best relationships with uncertainty.
Which is why Hang The DJ has such a good piece of technology. Using the same sort of soul copying technology shown in San Junipero and U.S.S Callister, versions of the people are linked up and put through multiple scenarios in a virtual world where they can date and come apart. Thousands upon thousands of different scenarios play out in a millisecond, as the dating application finds these two in the local area.
When the virtual version of the characters fight against the odds to stay together, these results are turned into a percentage match that really shows whether it's worth giving your time to this person across the bar.