The Best Episodes Of 'Black Mirror,' Ranked
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Created by Charlie Brooker, the British anthology series Black Mirror engages viewers with its thought-provoking narratives that examine the complexities of modern technology and its impact on human life. Premiering in 2011 in the UK on Channel 4 before moving to Netflix in 2016, the program consists of standalone episodes set in dystopian near-futures. Among its ensemble cast members are Bryce Dallas Howard, Gugu Mbatha-Raw, Jon Hamm, Daniel Lapaine, and Mackenzie Davis. The show has been lauded for its innovative storytelling and unique exploration of speculative fiction, earning multiple awards, including nine Emmys and four BAFTAs.
Black Mirror stands out for its ability to reflect societal issues through a futuristic lens, resonating with viewers worldwide. Which episodes from it on this crowd-ranked list do the best job of combining science fiction elements with engrossing drama? Vote up your favorites!
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1White Christmas
In a mysterious and remote snowy outpost, Matt and Potter share an interesting Christmas meal together, swapping creepy tales of their earlier lives in the outside world...
International Emmy Award Nomination: Best Performance by an Actor (Rafe Spell) 2015
- Original Airing: Dec 16, 2014
- Season: 2
- Episode Number: Christmas Special
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2USS Callister
Robert Daly is a sad sack CTO at a virtual reality company who's created a fantasy world for himself aboard the fictional USS Callister, a ship modeled after Space Fleet - a Star Trek stand in. In his real life Daly may be a put upon dork, but while captaining the Callister he's a tyrannical throwback to '60s sci-fi male chauvinism. His imaginary world runs smoothly until his creation starts to fight back against him.
BAFTA Award Nomination: Best Supporting Actor (Jimmi Simpson) 2018
Black Reel Award Nominations - Best Supporting Actress in a TV Movie or Limited Series (Michaela Coel) 2018
Emmy Award Nominations: Best TV Movie - WON, Best Actor in a Limited Series or Movie (Jesse Plemons), Best Writing - WON, Best Cinematography, Best Music Composition, Best Single-Camera Picture Editing - WON, Best Sound Editing - WON
Saturn Award Nomination: Best Guest Performance in a TV Series (Jesse Plemons)
Costume Designer Guild Award Nomination - Excellence in Fantasy TV Series
MTV Movie & TV Awards Nomination - Most Frightened Performance (Cristin Milioti)- Original Airing: December 29, 2017
- Season: 4
- Episode Number: 1
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3Shut Up and Dance
A woman (Susannah Doyle) parks a car into a driving lot, nervously leaving the keys in one of the wheel arches, before being texted and leaving.
Kenny (Alex Lawther), a teenager, needs to install a malware remover on his laptop after having it stolen by his sister. Using the first search link, a website called "Shrive", he manages to clean up the virus...
- Original Airing: Oct 21, 2016
- Season: 3
- Episode Number: 3
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4Hang the DJ
Hang the DJ explores the natural progression of dating apps when it takes a look at a Tinder-esque software that helps decide who its users can date rather than allowing them to figure it out for themselves. The app runs users through every scenario possible, and even decides when you should split. It's a great system, but it can't stop Amy and Frank from meeting up with one another again and again.
BAFTA Award Nomination: Best Single Drama 2019
Black Reel Award Nominations - Best Supporting Actress in a TV Movie or Limited Series (Georgina Campbell) 2018- Original Airing: Dec 29 2017
- Season: 4
- Episode Number: 4
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5Black Museum
With some time to kill while charging her car in the desert, Nish decides to check out the Black Museum. Inside she meets Rolo Haynes, the owner of the establishment. Haynes walks Nish through three tales of technological woe, before the episode's grim sci-fi twist takes hold. It turns out that the kindly/creepy museum owner owes a debt of retribution to Nish, and she's going to get her revenge by any means necessary.
Black Reel Award Nominations - Best Supporting Actor in a TV Movie or Limited Series (Babs Olusanmokun) 2018, Best Supporting Actress (Letitia Wright)
Emmy Award Nomination - Best Supporting Actress in a Limited Series or Movie (Letitia Wright)- Original Airing: Dec 29, 2017
- Season: 4
- Episode Number: 6
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6The Entire History of You
Set in an alternative reality where everyone has access to a system which records everything they do, see or hear. You need never forget a face, a holiday or a night out again...
- Original Airing: December 18, 2011
- Season: 1
- Episode Number: 3
- Series: Black Mirror
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7White Bear
Victoria wakes up and cannot remember anything about her life. Everyone she encounters refuses to communicate with her and enjoys filming her discomfort on their phones. Victoria meets Jem, who explains that a signal is being transmitted that has turned most of the population into dumb voyeurs. This apathy has allowed the unaffected, the 'hunters', to do what they want and they are out to get people like her and Victoria...
- Original Airing: Feb 18, 2013
- Season: 2
- Episode Number: 2
- Series: Black Mirror
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8San Junipero
In 1987, a shy young woman, Yorkie (Mackenzie Davis), visits San Junipero for the first time. One of the first people she sees is Kelly (Gugu Mbatha-Raw) a vivacious party girl trying to lose Wes, a guy she had a fling with. Kelly uses Yorkie to ditch Wes, pretending they are old friends, and then compliments her "authentic" look and invites her to dance. Embarrassed to be seen flirting with Kelly, Yorkie runs away...
Emmy Award Nominations: Best TV Movie 2017 - WON, Best Writing for a Limited Series or Movie - WON
Hugo Award Nomination - Best Short Form Dramatic Presentation
IGN Award Nomination - Best TV Episode - WON
GLAAD Media Award Nomination - Outstanding Individual Episode - WON
Diversity in Media Award Nomination - TV Moment of the Year- Original Airing: Oct 21, 2016
- Season: 3
- Episode Number: 4
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9Nosedive
Lacie Pound (Bryce Dallas Howard) lives in a world where anyone can rate your popularity out of five stars from both friends and strangers due to technology inside phones and standard smart lenses that display everyone's name and current rating. Obsessed with being received well, she currently has an approval rating around 4.2...
Screen Actors Guild Award Nomination: Best Actress in a TV Movie or Miniseries (Bryce Dallace Howard) 2017- Original Airing: Oct 21, 2016
- Season: 3
- Episode Number: 1
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1015 Million Merits
Set in a sarcastic version of a future reality, 15 Million Merits is a satire on entertainment shows and our insatiable thirst for distraction. In this world, everyone is confined to a life of strange physical drudgery. The only way to escape this life is to enter the 'Hot Shot' talent show and just pray you can impress the judges...
- Original Airing: December 11, 2011
- Season: 1
- Episode Number: 2
- Series: Black Mirror
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11Hated in the Nation
DCI Karin Parke (Kelly Macdonald) has been summoned to a hearing to discuss her involvement in a case. On May 15th of the previous year, journalist Jo Powers (Elizabeth Berrington) is found dead at home with her throat cut. Powers had recently been subjected to online death threats after she published a column critical of a disabled activist’s suicide.
- Original Airing: Oct 21, 2016
- Season: 3
- Episode Number: 6
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12Playtest
Cooper (Wyatt Russell), a man living with his mother, leaves home to travel the world. He keeps ignoring his mother's calls, feeling unable to connect to her following his father developing early onset Alzheimer's and dying. In London, shortly before he plans to return home, he meets Sonja (Hannah John-Kamen). He shows her an app he has been using, Oddjobs, which shows him various tasks he can complete for money...
- Original Airing: Oct 21, 2016
- Season: 3
- Episode Number: 2
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13Be Right Back
Martha and Ash are a young couple who move to a remote cottage. The day after the move, Ash is killed, returning the hire van. At the funeral, Martha's friend Sarah tells her about a new service that lets people stay in touch with the deceased. By using all his past online communications and social media profiles, a new 'Ash' can be created. Martha is disgusted by the concept but then in a confused and lonely state she decides to talk to 'him'...
- Original Airing: Feb 11, 2013
- Season: 2
- Episode Number: 1
- Series: Black Mirror
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14Crocodile
After committing a hit and run murder, architect Mia believes that she's gotten away scot-free. That is, until she meets an insurance claims adjuster with a memory reader 15 years after the fact. The episode's tension ratchets up while Mia tries to keep herself from thinking of anything that could get her in trouble. Viewers will definitely be disturbed by the amoral lengths which Mia goes to in order keep her guilt to herself.
- Original Airing: Dec 29, 2017
- Season: 4
- Episode Number: 3
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15The National Anthem
Prime Minister Michael Callow (Rory Kinnear) faces a huge and shocking dilemma when Princess Susannah, Duchess of Beaumont (Lydia Wilson), a much-loved member of the Royal Family, is kidnapped. For her safe return, the Prime Minister must have live sexual intercourse with a pig on national television, with a list of technical specifications designed to make it impossible to fake...
- Original Airing: December 04, 2011
- Season: 1
- Episode Number: 1
- Series: Black Mirror
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16Arkangel
Rosemarie DeWitt plays Marie, a classic helicopter mom who seeks out a company called Arkangel to help her keep tabs on her daughter. By installing a program into her child that allows her to see everything that happens in her daughter's life in real time, Marie violates every code of ethics one could conceive of. Throughout the episode, Marie watches as her daughter lives out her worst parental fears before it culminates in a true nightmare.
- Original Airing: Dec 29, 2017
- Season: 4
- Episode Number: 2
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17Striking Vipers
Danny (Anthony Mackie) and Karl (Yahya Abdul-Mateen II) had been close friends in college but grown apart. Reuniting after eleven years, Karl gifts Danny Striking Vipers X, a virtual reality game. The pair spend more and more time together playing the fighting game. Their relationship in the game begins to have an effect on Danny's marriage with Theo (Nicole Baharie).
- Original Airing: June 5, 2019
- Season: 5
- Episode Number: 1
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18Men Against Fire
A military organization is battling a threat referred to as "roaches", mutated leftovers of a biological weapon from an unspecified war. Koinchange, known as "Stripe" (Malachi Kirby), and Raiman, known as "Ray" or "Hunter" (Madeline Brewer), are part of a squad led by Medina (Sarah Snook), who use an implant called MASS to help with strategic operations.
- Original Airing: Oct 21, 2016
- Season: 3
- Episode Number: 5
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19Smithereens
Chris (Andrew Scott), a taxi driver for the app Hitcher, meets a woman whose daughter had committed suicide at their group therapy session. She ends each day attempting to log onto her daughter's Smithereens social account, which invariably locks her out. When one of Chris' next fares is a Smithereen employee, his agenda becomes clear and the day rapidly spirals out of control.
- Original Airing: June 5, 2019
- Season: 5
- Episode Number: 2
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20Metalhead
After society completely breaks down, Bella is alone in a desolate wasteland pursued by a seemingly unstoppable robotic dog drone. Filmed in stark black and white, "Metalhead" is essentially one long chase scene that races towards a thrilling and heart-stopping conclusion.
- Original Airing: Dec 29, 2017
- Season: 4
- Episode Number: 5
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21Rachel, Jack and Ashley Too
Sisters Rachel (Angourie Rice) and Jack (Madison Davenport) live with their father Kevin, a widower who spends his time in the basement attempting to create a replacement for mousetraps. Lonely Rachel finds comfort in the AI doll of her favorite pop superstar, Ashley O, to the frustration of her older sister Jack. But, as much as Rachel looks up to the singer, her life isn't nearly as rosy as it appears...
- Original Airing: June 5, 2019
- Season: 5
- Episode Number: 3
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22The Waldo Moment
Jamie Salter (Daniel Rigby) is a failed comedian who performs the voice and movements (via performance capture) of a blue cartoon bear named Waldo, who interviews politicians and other authority figures. The interviewees are fooled into thinking the Waldo interviews are for a children's TV program, when they're actually for a late-night, topical comedy show...
- Original Airing: Feb 25, 2013
- Season: 2
- Episode Number: 3
- Series: Black Mirror
