Category: Uncategorized

  • Black Mirror: A postmodern marvel that hasn’t lot its touch

    A show with humble beginnings yet blessed with the mastermind of Charlie Brooker, Black Mirror has always been this remarkable exception in postmodern sci-fi storytelling that thrives on the radical, and evidently terrifying, potential of technology. Yet, recent series have faced unprecedented criticism, notably relating to the programmes shift in ownership.

    To be honest this concept of ‘owning’ an asset that relies on one man’s creative prowess is confusing enough but the bottom line is people aren’t happy with Netflix swooping up what was once a Channel 4 fan favourite – born and bread in Britain. Supposedly the dreaded Americanisation of a grassroots British production would ruin the humble magic of the beloved Black Mirror – because who would want to see their favourite show get a better budget and production values right? Regardless, and putting my vaguely satirical rant aside, social media would have you believe that Black Mirror has dropped in quality and been a so called ‘flop’ since its transition in parental control shall we say.

    Now, I can’t claim to be a die hard fan who’s been around since its pilot episode but, like the majority of the anthology series’ newfound (and let’s face it, much bigger) audience since its been on Netflix, I’ve delved into some of the more renowned and high rated episodes. The fan favourite – Nosedive- which boasts a breath-taking performance from Bryce Dallas Howard, I found to be a compelling episode that utilises its uncomfortable resemblance with the popularity obsessed, like-fishing social media culture that unapologetically intrudes on all of our lives. San Junipero is a captivating and moving watch that tackles some of the most polarising debates in modern society. The list goes on: Black Museum, White Christmas, Plaything, USS Callister. The point is, I quite like Black Mirror. And so, with the cautiously anticipated release of Season 7 this past Tuesday, I rather efficiently binged all 6 episodes of the new season and like any sane person took to social media to see if what I thought about it was right.

    For the most part I was relieved to see that I wasn’t all on my own and the majority of people felt it was a return to form for a series that was on a gradual critical downward spiral. Many creators I saw on TikTok identified episodes like Eulogy and Common People as real strongpoints for the series, and I couldn’t agree more. I think Common People in particular is a showcase of Netflix and Charlie Brooker working at their synergetic best. Without spoiling too much, Common People is a pessimistic commentary generally on the selfishness of capitalism but more specifically on how this spills over into the healthcare system, pricing the less fortunate out of basic survival and rights. There’s also a notable stab at subscription culture, which is rather bold for Netflix. Brooker clearly lets loose on some personal grievances here and its truly a great watch so if you can, please go watch it yourself because my little review can not do it justice. Anyway, what I wanted to drive home here was that Black Mirror hasn’t become a meaningless corporate shill under Netflix and in fact they have merely given Brooker the platform he deserves to showcase his masterful writing.

    Season 7 is rife with the essence of Charlie Brooker and provides a refreshing variety of genre-hybridity and tone. There’s a real mix of tear-jerkers, heart-stoppers and overall what-the-fuckers. And to me that’s what Black Mirror is all about, emotive storytelling with clever twists and overriding theme of tech-terror. Chef’s kiss Charlie Brooker, Black Mirror is back!

  • The New A-List: Youtube W*nkers

    After the most recent sell out charity match at Wembley raised over £4.7 million for charity its undeniable that the Sidemen and ‘Youtubers’ as a whole have found themselves truly in the mainstream spotlight. Sure, KSI and Logan Paul have been front runners with music, boxing, PRIME (I mean pretty much anything you can name they’ve had a crack) but now influencers and Youtubers as a collective seem to have gained the respect of the mainstream. In a way its slightly patronising to put it like that when in reality its the mainstream companies who are begging them for sponsorships and endorsements but the point is that ‘Youtuber’ seems to have become less of a derogatory term for ridicule and can now rival the prestige of footballers.

    Youtube started off with a man at the zoo and quickly became synonymous with high energy video content – popularising the obsession with vlogging that we collectively share today. Of course, you might not post your videos online but any video of you and your friends – capturing a funny moment – it’s all basically the same premise. Just a decade and a half ago this would have seemed not just absurd but outright impossible to be viewed as a career but nowadays its one of the most prestigious and lucrative jobs around. Self-made millionaires like the Sidemen that started with FIFA and Call Of Duty videos in their bedroom now have reality shows and documentaries on Netflix and can sell out the iconic Wembley stadium playing a football match. Millions of teenagers and young adults, me included, have grown up watching and feeling part of the lives of these people through the medium of vlogs, gaming and travel videos and their success is for the most part applauded by all (apart from Joey Barton, he must have missed the nearly £5 million they raised for charity).

    So with all this considered, I’m sure you’ll be revisiting some choice language I used in my title with some puzzlement. For some perspective, I’m, and I won’t understate this, an absolutely massive fan of WWE at the moment and it just so happens that Logan Paul is currently on the roster as a WWE superstar. Now, his role has never been as a fan favourite but during his appearance on Monday Night Raw in London his promo was completely drowned out by chants of ‘Youtube Wnker’ (I’m sure you can fill in the blank). What struck me is that the way this is composed uses Youtube as an adjective that is being used pejoratively (in other words being a Youtuber is the reason he is a wnker). In fairness he did spend most of the promo boasting his wealth and calling half the crowd broke, so maybe the latter pant of the chant was fair but why the first bit.

    To me, all this implies there is something inherently embarrassing about being a Youtuber, as if you can’t be taken seriously or appreciated as a proper celebrity. This is obviously a ridiculous notion because the majority of our generation idolises Youtubers and obsess over them – seriously go on Tik Tok for 5 minutes and I guarantee you you’ll see a George Clarkey edit. I suppose my point here is just why are we still pretending like influencers and Youtubers aren’t proper celebrities. I can guarantee you more people watch the Sidemen Sunday every week than almost anything on TV nowadays. KSI is even a judge on Britain’s got talent now, which, OK I’ll agree is somewhat questionable – he certainly would fit in on Britain’s got hard workers.

    Anyway, let’s accept that Youtubers are the new A-listers and will be for the foreseeable future. They deserve their platforms and more often than not use them to do a bit of good so let’s just cut them some slack. Apart from Jeremy Lynch, he really is a wanker.