Mazey Day

Basically, this episode would fit in much better in the Twilight Zone universe than in the Black Mirror universe. When you watch it, keep an open mind and think of the Twilight Zone instead.

The concept is an interesting one that reminds me of Nope and capturing the spectacle, and the supernatural element is FUN! It's just that Black Mirror has not been a supernatural show and so when the *thing* happens your immediate reaction is something along the lines of "whaaat is going on?!?!" When you step back and look at the episode by itself, it's fun and entertaining with a great twist that I certainly didn't expect! It's not the greatest episode of Black Mirror (or Twilight Zone, for that matter) but in my opinion, it's worth more than the ratings it's getting, and is worth the watch.

If you have enjoyed black mirror thus far and you like the themes of whole show, then you will be very disappointed because this almost feels like separate show.

It doesn't have any "Black Mirror type" sci-fi element to it, It tries to tell us some message, like every other episode, in this case about how bad and unempathetic paparazzis are. However, again, it's done in a way that's not what black mirror is supposed to be.

To not spoil anything, I will just add that, the ending is very childish... The paparazzi concept is good, easy to tell good message about society, but the execution isn't good, they chose "shock value" over story telling. Sure message got across but, again, could have been done way better.

Mazey Day along with Demon 79 are Red Mirror episodes. Red Mirror are horror based episodes that are not based on technology. As Black Mirror represents a turned off screen, Red Mirror represents a blood stain, symbolizing murderous, gory, gruesome, elements. Black Mirror shows elements of ourselves, once you "turned off" the episode, you can see yourself in the black screen. The same with Red Mirror. These random acts of murder, mayhem, we can see a reflection of ourselves in the bloods of bloodshed. I liked this episode because it connects to the idea of horror. Upon rewatch, the title sequence switches from Black Mirror to Red Mirror. We can reflect in both the paparazzi and the monster. We harm the lives of others with our selfish acts of seeking to capitalize off of the misfortune of others, but we also are the monsters who are unearth from the exploitation of others.

Black Mirror has always been a startling commentary on technology. This season has been drifting away from that and bordering on some kind of horror/fantasy. Why can't the writers pause and remember that San Junipero was their best episode and realize that we don't need to feel scared, we need to be mesmerized and surprised by new concepts surrounding technological advancements. And if those concepts happen to excite us or just freak us out, cool. But the goal doesn't need to simply be to freak us out. Loch Henry & Demon 79 had the same problem. While these kinds of episodes are entertaining on their own, they aren't Black Mirror.

"Mazey Day" is controversial and problematic. On one hand, I appreciate the attempt at symbolism compared to the more straightforward approach of classic Black Mirror episodes. On the other hand, the entire episode feels like an ordinary B-horror flick taken from a completely different series, with uninteresting characters and a plot that barely fills 30 minutes... -------------------------------------------------- SPOILER Either way, my weakness for werewolf horrors and the straightforward gore ending elevates this episode a notch in my eyes. P. S. The Czech police officers were oddly amusing.