Posted in: Conventions, NYCC | Tagged: black mirror, huhu, tv

Bleak, Bleak, Jesus Christ, This Is Bleak: Black Mirror at NYCC

Danielle Mick reports from NYCC 2017 for Bleeding Cool:

I am a huge fan of anthology series. I love films and series that explore slices of life and really revel in the ease of a one off story. This is exactly what drew me to Black Mirror and co-creators Charlie Brooker and Annabel Jones hit the nail on the head with their description: "You get a full meal with each episode; something that can't be sustained for seven seasons. It doesn't need to be."

The dynamic duo have known each other for about 17 years. They met in the comedy industry and have the absolute best chemistry. They fed off of each other really well and you can tell that they genuinely enjoy being in each other's space beyond business. They were joined by the one and only Jodie Foster, who directed an episode in the upcoming season, though she promised that she was there as a fan first and foremost.

Both Brooker and Jones handled the topic of the new season very well.

"It's a really tricky show to promote because there aren't recurring characters from previous seasons and, also, you don't really want to know about what's coming. It's a bit of an unboxing video really; a box of chocolate because you don't know what the filling is, but you know it's dark chocolate." He went on to explain that the new season will deal with different genres that are tackled in different worlds. It's said to be quite ambitious. "There are some that are a bit more playful because the world is currently a 3-D Black Mirror episode."

The fact that Brooker is controlling the world with his dark mind was a running theme throughout the panel. "It's weird because we are in competition with the new." He stated when asked about the parallel of our current societies and the darkest parts of his mind. Are we becoming Black Mirror ourselves? Have we learned nothing from his cautionary tales? (If you have not watched an episode of Black Mirror before and are interested in seeing an animated bear become a position of power, check out The Waldo Moment episode in season two.)

"There's new stories, new themes, lots of unpredictability there." Every time Jones joined the conversation, it was something concise and informative. "You don't know what you're going to get at all and I think there's something quite thrilling about the unknown." She spoke very highly about their switch to becoming a Netflix Original, stating that it opened up the show as a whole and allowed them to shoot American-based stories in America. Netflix didn't question their decisions and really gave them the reigns. They were basically told that they knew what they were doing and that the company's suggestion was not law, which allowed for a lot of freedom regarding the presented content.

Brooker let us in on a little secret as well. There will be Easter eggs this time around. The episodes are not all set in the same universe by any means (perhaps the same psychological universe), but there will be nods and winks to former characters and scenarios in Black Mirror and other projects.

Although we were not given spoilers, and I for one do not want them, there were a few things that were said that I compiled into little hints of what's to come. The episode Black Museum will feature three stories in one. Brooker said it was "Russian doll style." The longest episode of the season is 74 minutes long and Metalhead ("it's like a punk single from a music album") is the shortest. Crocodile takes place in Iceland.

The most information we received was about the episode Jodie Foster directed which is entitled Arkangel. We watched the first ten minutes of it and from what we saw, the episode is about a woman (Rosemarie DeWitt) and her daughter, who is receiving some sort of free trial. She has something implanted in her temple which allows her mother to track her, check her vitals, and relay optic feed. She is even presented with a way to filter content to avoid exposing her child to stressful, negative, or potentially triggering situations.

As a whole, the Black Mirror panel was an absolutely blast and I was blown away by both the creativity and intelligence of the panelists and the questions from the audience. I can not wait to see what's in store for season four.

"If I'm laughing hauntingly and Annabel is looking appalled, I know we are in Black Mirror territory."

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