Black Mirror has no doubt grown into one of the best-known series for wanting to force the mind to think. All conversation around it has a positive glow, and for good reason. Created in 2011, Black Mirror not only strives to entertain but also to ponder the many ways evolving technology can contribute to or harm society. This is the very reason it is regarded so highly, despite the never-wavering curse that Netflix shows ultimately have. As I wait, probably endlessly, for the next season, here are my top favorite episodes of Black Mirror.

5. Hang the DJ

As I’ve mentioned in numerous columns I wrote on here, I’m a complete sucker for most romance plots. Finding escape in romantic films has been a comfort since the first days when I fully understood what happens on a television screen. It’s no wonder that Hang the DJ is on this list. Coincidentally, the fourth episode of season four, Hang the DJ is only black mirror’s second episode with a seemingly happy ending. We follow two individuals who are paired together, based on the accuracy of a dating program that forces its partners to be together for as long as it thinks the relationship will last. Our main couple, Frank and Amy originally go on a date and get 12 hours until the relationship expires but as the show goes on we see this could vary from 6 months to a year. 

4. White Christmas

White Christmas is the season finale of their second season, and if it already wasn’t proven before, this really showed why Black Mirror is such an excellent show. The blurb for this episode alone shows that we’re going to be in for a crazy ride, given the technological rules that this universe has. At the beginning, we’re immediately thrust into chaos as a guy who is using technology that lets others see his vision, needs help getting laid but ends up with the wrong person at the wrong time and is ultimately murdered. Just watching it is a bit confusing, but I promise, it gets worse. Next, we follow a girl whose consciousness is removed and forced to be a living Siri. The limits of technology in this world have no restrictions and that’s why it interests me so much.

3. Hated in the Nation

Here we reach my favorite episode of Black Mirror. I know it’s a bit bizarre, given we’re only at number three but I have my reasons. Although this is my favorite episode, I’m able to differentiate between favorite and best. Hated in the Nation is the one that entertains me the most, however, I can identify other elements in the other two episodes that can rank them a little higher. Holding the title for longest runtime in the series, Hated in the Nation is a season finale episode about one of the oldest bewares in the book: digital footprint is real. This episode explores the possibility of having negative thoughts said online, such as wishing death on something, come true with the help of killer wasps. The episode is highly entertaining, with the twist at the end moving it to the best storylines in the show.

2. White Bear

I’m extremely biased towards White Bear given that the first time I saw it, I was in high school and my teacher put it on during religion class. Either we were supposed to use this to think about the concept of forgiveness or I got the classes wrong. Anyway, I was so enamored by the episode I went home to start the series, and you can imagine my surprise with a politician and a pig. That’s besides the point. White Bear is an episode that forces us to think about the rules of humanity. We follow Victoria, a woman who wakes up in a strange town with absolutely no memory of her life prior. Everywhere she goes she is being videoed by firm bystanders who refuse to speak to her. Later, she ends up being hunted by men in masks who try to kill her at every turn, with the bystanders still unwavering in their goal to only watch. Later it is revealed that Victoria was actually the partner of a man who kidnapped, tortured, and killed a child while she recorded it. Victoria is now the main attraction of white bear justice park, where her memory is wiped every day, and she’s forced to live out her punishment forever. This episode raised many questions and sparked debates. Is it still just punishment if the subject in question has no memory of committing the crime? Is she still a criminal if she’s now just a shell of the person she used to be? Or is deserving based on the crime she did? She’s now been reduced to Jemima, the child she watched be tortured with no understanding as to why it was happening. White Bear is an excellent commentary on the justice system and that is the area Black Mirror thrives best.

Honorable Mention: U.S.S. Callister

This is not one of my favorite episodes by far. However, because of this fact I would have to be a complete fool to not recognize the brilliance of it. A fan favorite amongst Black Mirror enjoyers, U.S.S. Callister explores the idea of being able to make carbon copies of other people for your own personal enjoyment. 

1. Nosedive

I’ve expressed my love for Nosedive before in my columns. Black Mirror is at its best when it’s commenting on prime problems in society. Nosedive takes the idea that social media is running our lives and amplifies it by a hundred. We follow Lacie Pound, who lives in a society where having a high social media presence and a five-star rating literally make or break you. The star rating you have decides the types of houses you live, the jobs you get, and even the transportation you’re allowed to take.We even see people have consultants for game plans to reach more stars. When we meet Lacie, she is doing everything she can to increase her ratings so she can move out of the house with her brother and into a nice neighborhood. However, when an old “friend” invites her to speak at her wedding things take a drastic turn as her ratings go down at every possible chance. It’s a brilliantly written episode that forces us to think about our current relationship with social media.