Black Mirror: Hated In The Nation

October 27, 2016 4:47 AM - Season 3, Episode 6

Detective Karin Parke investigates a series of strange deaths that seem to be linked to social media. And there are also android bees.
posted by EmpressCallipygos (30 comments total)

I have one nit to pick: I was getting a little sick of Major Plot Developments being heralded by having someone stare intently at their computer and say "holy shit".
posted by EmpressCallipygos at 4:48 AM on October 27, 2016 [2 favorites]

This kinda felt the X-Files films version of Black Mirror, like it's a really long episode. However, the story was good, and it has Kelly McDonald. Not going to complain.
posted by lmfsilva at 6:23 AM on October 27, 2016 [1 favorite]

Agree with both of the above: it reminded of circa-2000 techno-thrillers where directors were trying to make typing a dramatic activity through camera moves and music cues.
posted by ricochet biscuit at 7:49 AM on October 27, 2016

THEY CALL ME CRAZY, BUT THEY CAN'T CALL ME GUILTY! NOT WITH MILLIONS OF HANDS ON THE BLADE!
posted by theodolite at 7:52 AM on October 27, 2016 [6 favorites]

Either San Junipero or Men Against Fire should have gotten the 90 minute treatment. This one would have been fine at an hour.
posted by theodolite at 3:16 PM on October 27, 2016

Yeah I was nodding off through this one. It was good but I think Black Mirror works better with tighter, more focused episodes. The music over the big swarm at the end was sublime, though.
posted by turbid dahlia at 5:23 PM on October 27, 2016 [1 favorite]

I just wanna say I'm glad I live in a time where shows like this can get made. The Brits have always made the best telly, and I'm glad that Netflix and HBO are capitalising on their talent.
posted by turbid dahlia at 5:24 PM on October 27, 2016 [1 favorite]

I've just got to the bit with the rapper in the morgue and they've just found the bee and I've worked it out, but it's all about the how rather than the what, isn't it? I think so, anyway.
posted by Grangousier at 3:00 PM on October 28, 2016

Though "I didn't expect to find myself living in the future but here I fucking well am" might be my new motto.
posted by Grangousier at 3:02 PM on October 28, 2016 [15 favorites]

Is that a Barry Shitpeas cameo?
posted by Grangousier at 3:32 PM on October 28, 2016 [1 favorite]

Am I the only one worried about Blue after she texted that she "Got him"? I mean, she's one person with no backup, she didn't change her appearance, and he would know what she looked like.
posted by Dr. Zira at 3:56 PM on October 29, 2016

Would he know, though? How much media were the police getting while they were investigating the main cases?
posted by EmpressCallipygos at 6:12 PM on October 29, 2016

I didn't really like this episode (too boring, too reminiscent of X Files) but the disturbing part of Black Mirror is its plausibility, at least on its face.

1. we really are facing colony collapse of bees
2. we really do have android insects
3. we have facial recognition and phone tracking
4. people really do attack others en masse via social media
5. there really are destructive bots, and cyberwarfare is ramping up in general

...so there are just a few technical gaps remaining before this episode is possible. I mean, just last week the IoT was hacked - what happens when our toasters start targeting us for death?
posted by AFABulous at 9:09 PM on October 29, 2016 [1 favorite]

Seems a little reckless to use a picture of your own face for your avatar in that world!
posted by rhizome at 1:30 AM on October 30, 2016 [2 favorites]

Seems a little reckless to use a picture of your own face for your avatar in that world!

That or breakfast would be a terrible experience with all the twitter egg avatars.
posted by longbaugh at 4:54 PM on October 30, 2016 [2 favorites]

It's just as well, they're all dead now.
posted by rhizome at 2:39 AM on October 31, 2016

The most far fetched thing about this episode is that Twitter is still solvent in the near future.
posted by benzenedream at 8:44 AM on November 1, 2016 [5 favorites]

Do you know what I really identify with in this episode? At the very beginning when she's unpacking the groceries. It all looks like the start of a healthy meal. Then she's reading the instructions on whatever she pulled out of the fridge and decides a tube of pringles on the sofa is good enough for tonight.
posted by adept256 at 9:27 AM on November 5, 2016 [8 favorites]

This is a small quibble. If they had cut two quick shots of Blue texting 'got him' -- just two small shots at the very, very end -- then the audience would have been left wondering if Blue had been working with the bad guy all along, and I think that would have been better.
posted by Catblack at 7:24 AM on November 18, 2016 [2 favorites]

I think that would have been better.

Totally agree, Catblack. There was something weird about Blue throughout this episode, and even up to that point it was plausible she was part of the conspiracy.

Even so, I'd put this up there almost with San Junipero. The conference room scene with a raging, frightened Pickering... the bathroom scene (before that I figured everyone would be walking around with earmuffs soon enough)... the look on Li's face as he sat down for his testimony... It was all fun, lively entertainment.

And, yeah, I really like Kelly MacDonald.
posted by sixpack at 1:49 PM on November 22, 2016 [1 favorite]

Spotted something on my second watch: TV news ticker shows "EU Court Of Human Rights says "cookies" have human rights". Callback to White Christmas.
posted by EndsOfInvention at 1:27 PM on December 6, 2016 [4 favorites]

Also on the news ticker: a reference to the games company from Playtest releasing a new console.
posted by EndsOfInvention at 1:55 AM on December 12, 2016

There was also the headline "What if phones, but too much?" in a sidebar that flashes past.
posted by wilberforce at 7:54 AM on December 12, 2016 [8 favorites]

I really liked this. I was annoyed by the manifesto because the system he set up was punishing the wrong people, and so the twist came to me just as they revealed it.
posted by wilberforce at 7:57 AM on December 12, 2016 [1 favorite]

A bunch of other links to other episodes.
posted by EndsOfInvention at 9:33 AM on December 12, 2016

Can't help but wonder if this episode was the inspiration for Tom Gauld's comic for New Scientist this week...
posted by oulipian at 6:02 PM on March 21, 2017

From this article on drangonfly drones:

And the technology has some important applications. For example, it could be used to replace bees that farmers depend on (but which are dying out around the world at an alarming rate) or be used to monitor the health of beehives in a novel way.

I guess the writer hasn't seen this episode or they would know why this isn't such a good idea.
posted by unliteral at 5:57 PM on June 15, 2017 [2 favorites]

Hadn't seen this anywhere yet: Season 4 titles are up, some with synopses.
posted by rhizome at 12:19 PM on September 24, 2017

Season 4 starts 12/29!
posted by rhizome at 9:44 PM on December 16, 2017

I like how Garret Scholes, after activating his endgame where he eliminates a category of people he believes are responsible for the degradation of society, shaves his head and moves to what appears to be South America.
posted by tobascodagama at 6:46 AM on December 30, 2017 [1 favorite]