Loch Henry

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. Mazey Day & Demon 79 had the same problem. While these kinds of episodes are entertaining on their own, they aren't Black Mirror.

Black Mirror came back after a long time. I started off with this episode and I don't know, I remember the essence of Black Mirror to be portraying the negative influence and manipulating nature of cutting edge technology. If it's anything, this episode strayed far from the prime essence but the episode in a stand alone sense was good. Well-written characters, the twist was a tad obvious but the actors that played the role was really convincing. The menace part was the twist itself and it did send a chill down the spine.

But again, the essence of Black Mirror was absent and that is what disappointed me in this episode.

This episode of Black Mirror left me absolutely spellbound. It was an exceptional blend of brilliance and darkness, making it one of the best episodes I've ever watched in the entire series. From start to finish, it gripped me with its sinister atmosphere, taking me on a journey that grew increasingly unsettling and dark as the plot unfolded.

I found myself pausing the episode multiple times. Scenes left me with a wave of shock, surpassing even my most horrifying expectations. Just when I thought I had a grasp on what was going to happen, the episode took a twisted turn, leaving me in a state of - well I would say unease but I loved it.

The last 20 minutes were an absolute rollercoaster. The intensity kept building, and I couldn't tear my eyes away from the screen. But it was the final 30 seconds that make me love black mirror. In that moment, I sat there in complete silence, I didn't even bring myself to notice the next episode playing. I had a smile on my face and a tear running down my eye.

I can't stress enough how much I recommend watching this episode.

Evidently, creator Charlie Brooker's turned his existential anxiety inwards for this latest batch of episodes (immediately solidifying the installment as one of the most creatively audacious seasons since its inception) & so rather than expressing worry about the exterior world around him, he's inventively found a way to evolve "Black Mirror" in to something far more introspective so it's able to perfectly communicate his justifiable concerns regarding the cynicism of the content he's expected to continually make for prospective audiences in the film / TV industries.

It's a valid point, well made (in his defence) - considering the constant production of macabre material does likely contribute to societies' gradual desensitisation to inconsolable misery (something we should understandably never become accustomed to, for good reason, nor witness as frequently as we do, on screen) & therefore, I appreciate the self-aware, emotional maturity shown - in acknowledging the inadvertent detrimental consequences to feeding a particular (arguably unethical) demand, for the sole purpose of commodification & profit in a dystopian system that wrongly rewards those acts of inconsiderate selfishness.

Plus, rather than attempting to wondrously predict the future (admittedly, a reliable foresight which has transformed in to a bit of a gimmick, these days), it's also refreshing to see the executive producer gift us with something new, reflectively looking back at his own legacy with hindsight instead - to question if the price paid for success has truly been worth it.

We don't normally get that hesitation in response to mean-spiritedness... Though as this asks; maybe we should?

Hence, with "Loch Henry", he & director Sam Miller dig deep, using one genre we heavily tend to associate with controversy as a basis on which to form their argument (acting as a general example of the well-intentioned, indulging in immorality), delivering a scathing commentary, analysing the theoretically senseless damage done to every-day people by the commercialisation of exploitative true crime documentaries - in easily one of the darkest, most disturbing features ever included in the show.

A young couple return to his family home in a remote, sleepy Scottish village, a village that hides a secret, a secret his girlfriend is keen to expose in a documentary.

I'll go so far as to say this is best thing I've seen so far this year, this was classic Black Mirror. Initially you may be thinking you're watching a straight up mystery thriller, wondering exactly where The Black Mirror element is, but trust me it comes, and just to remember that Black Mirror has always been about a terrifying insight into the future, and for Davis, that's exactly what it is.

The story was so wonderfully macabre and twisted, the first half is measured, but builds well, the last twenty minutes were off the scale, that was some climax.

The music was great, it was well produced as you'd expect. It really did have a sort of classic feel to it.

The acting was so good, Myha'la Herrold, Samuel Blenkin and John Hannah were spot on, Monica Dolan however, whenever I see her name appear, I know what I'm about to watch will be good. Trouble is I'm so accustomed to her stealing the show, and I now except it, and guess what, that's exactly what she does, again, she is phenomenal.

I absolutely loved it, the best for a while.

10/10.