Black Mirror season 7 is the latest instalment of the superbly thrilling anthology series from creator, Charlie Brooker. Each season brings tales of mind-bogglingly futuristic dystopian concepts told through the captivating words of Brooker, Annabel Jones, and many other writers and portrayed by some equally incredible actors.
From speculative AI to sentient beings, each episode is entirely unique, meaning you don’t have to watch them in 'order' to enjoy them. And that’s why we’ve decided to rank them. But, we have to caveat here, that while we’ve ranked the six episodes below from worst to best, it’s a subjective endeavour that, if it made any sense at all, we’d rank from best to even better. And that is to say that Black Mirror season 7 as a whole is a sensational watch.
It’s also important to note that while each episode is independent in nature (aside from a few Black Mirror easter eggs), there is, for the first time ever, a sequel episode. For this, you’ll need to hyper warp back to season 4, episode 1 beforehand.
So, whether you’re a hardcore fan that’s been here since Black Mirror days of yore, or you’re a newbie to the show’s twisted ideas, take each episode as an invitation to experience exactly what the show does so well to emulate - in a rapidly changing world, it’s not so wild to believe that one day, any of these scenarios could become true.
Fair warning, there’s spoilers ahead for each episode of Black Mirror season 7.
6. Bête Noire
Bête Noire is all about Maria, a woman who is well-skilled in innovating new sweet treats and she does so with confidence in her job as Head of Flavours. That is, until Verity, someone from her school days, turns up at her work and suddenly, life isn’t so easy. Maria knows that Verity has a tendency to be unusual, yet no one else seems to think so. And, it quickly becomes clear that their shared school history isn’t one of friendship and beloved memories.
The episode does well to captivate as the twisted events unravel and you'll be left questioning where exactly your belief should lie. But, then you might be left thinking something like this couldn’t possibly be happening. Yet, in true Black Mirror style, in fact pretty much anything is possible. While it brings a new futuristic concept to the fore, it borders on farfetched to the point you're wondering why this would ever happy to anyone, anywhere. And so, it also begs the question, why would it?
5. Eulogy
Eulogy is a rollercoaster ride of emotion. Befitting to its title, protagonist Phillip is asked to recall memories of a woman he once knew, Carol, to help create a digital memorial for her funeral. In a wildly imaginative twist, Phillip is able to, with the help of a guide speaking to him via a disc on his temple, step inside his old photos to try and pull out more detail. But, for Phillip, it’s an psychological journey that pulls up memories he’d fought wholeheartedly to leave behind.
Viewers watch on as Phillip digs into his past relationship with Carol and, in turn, dredges up his old feelings that are entirely relatable. That is until you begin to wonder how you should really be feeling towards him about what he went through. Or, more importantly, what Carol went through.
This Black Mirror episode feels less about the technology and far more about the human experience that goes alongside it, which is a beautiful switch. It’s raw and, at times, heartbreaking - and not, necessarily, for Phillip at all. The disc here also features in two more episodes of Black Mirror season 7, but with entirely different uses.
4. Plaything
When Black Mirror brings in the theme of video games, it's where it shines the brightest. Historically, they've created some of the best episodes across the entire seven seasons. And the Netflix interactive film, Black Mirror: Bandersnatch, is the inspiration for this one, without having to have watched Bandersnatch at all. In Plaything, Cameron recalls his time in the 90s as a games journalist, and how that somehow led him to exactly where he was in the modern day - at a police station accused of murder.
He recounts how he met Colin Ritman, of Bandersnatch fame, who invited him to try out a new game. Only it isn’t really a game at all. From this point on, Cameron's world revolves and evolves alongside a program of sentient lifeforms that make requests of Cameron, both physically and mentally.
It’s a genius idea that feels so fantastically yet so disturbingly real, until what the lifeforms end up requesting Cameron does in the end that throws it completely out of proportion. This feels like OG Black Mirror.
3. Hotel Reverie
The second appearance of the disc appears in Hotel Reverie. Here, a failing movie studio finds new life when a company offers to remake one of their finest films, Hotel Reverie, with a new method that is incredibly affordable. And while, like most Black Mirror episodes, it feels like technology is an excellent advancement here, it also feels like everything can’t be that simple.
Actor, Brandy Friday, is invited to the studio to act out the lead role, but what she doesn’t realise is that to do so, she’ll be entered into a tech-built reality of the actual movie where she’ll perform alongside characters who believe they are real. But what happens within the movie isn’t quite what you’d expect at all. It’s really, so much more.
For Brandy, playing Dr Alex Palmer, and Clara, her love interest, their roles as in the romance movie begin to blur the lines of reality and shows how complicated AI can become when learning from us.
2. Common People
I’m not sure what this says about us, but for Black Mirror season 7, Common People feels like the darkest, most gut-wrenching and weirdly real episode of the series and that’s why, it’s by far one of the best.
Amanda (Rashida Jones) and Mike (Chris O’Dowd) are a young couple enjoying their lives and celebrating their wedding anniversary. Until, Amanda becomes unwell and the only thing to save her is a tech startup that sells Mike a dream. And, while Amanda’s life is saved, it isn’t that simple. In fact, it becomes increasingly complicated and that’s thanks to the technology itself.
Through a deep look at the fragility of our own mortality and what desperation can quickly draw us to become, you'll be left feeling incredibly unsettled, yet fascinated and thoughtful for days afterwards.. And that's the beauty of Black Mirror.
1. USS Callister: Into Infinity
If you’re a fan of Black Mirror, you’ll know about USS Callister. The brilliant first episode premiered in season 4 and returns for a full circle moment to conclude a tale that, in typical Black Mirror, isn’t usually given the chance to be told. But if you’re after happy rainbows and riding off into the sunset, don’t be mistaken.
USS Callister: Into Infinity is the first-ever sequel from Black Mirror and as such, it has a lot riding on it to be as good as the first episode. And arguably, it’s even better. It’s the longest episode of the season, clocking in at 88 minutes and picks up right where you’d want it to, after Daly’s death. And it's a cinematic, tense and captivating watch.
Here, the crew of the USS Callister have escaped their torturer but instead have entered a new state of hell stuck within Infinity and battling to stay alive. It's hard for a show spanning seven seasons with such far-reaching and mind-bending ideas to keep delivering time and time again. And while the first few seasons of Black Mirror are some of the greatest, season 7 feels like a 'welcome home'. And what better way to enjoy that first night back than with a theatrical and intense sequel.
For more on Black Mirror season 7 listen to our Bingewatch podcast.
