Critics Are Saying The Return Of “Black Mirror: Will Be Your Next Binge-Watch

“If Netflix deserves a pat on the back for anything, it’s nurturing Charlie Brooker’s Black Mirror. Ever since the streamer liberated it from Channel 4 after season two, the episodes for this twisted near-future look at our interactions with technology have gotten increasingly more complex, daring and loopy. With season seven, they deliver six more slick outings that run the gamut from poignant drama to paranoid fantasy.”

“Season seven marks a return to form, in that most of its six episodes are premised on some near-future technological phenomenon. Yet it retains the previous season’s mix of tones and genres – not just effectively saving viewers who are already marinating in the AI dread of the present from an anxiety spiral, but also teasing out subtler kinds of responses to the relentless march of progress.”

“While a couple of the six new episodes are as good as the best of Black Mirror and feature all the elements we have come to expect (including some terrific casting choices), it’s actually USS Callister: Into Infinity that is the biggest disappointment.”

“The pot-luck nature of the show has given way to an overabundance of bilge. Too many episodes rely on logic-straining mechanics, too few have the emotional sucker punch of San Junipero or Be Right Back. The horror too, of episodes like Shut Up And Dance or White Christmas, has given way to a repetitive fear of digital imprisonment. In short, this latest season of Black Mirror just doesn’t carry the same punch that it used to.”

All seven episodes of Black Mirror are available to stream now on Netflix.