Summary: Yorkie is making visits to San Junipero, a sort of heaven for those who want to stay there after death. She meets Kelly and they fall in love. Yorkie reveals that she became a quadriplegic and is going to be dying soon. She is getting married to a random guy so she can choose to be in San Junipero forever. Kelly chooses to marry her instead. Yorkie wants Kelly to choose to stay in San Junipero after she dies, but Kelly doesn't want to because her husband and daughter both didn't get to experience the world. After an argument, Kelly ultimately decides to stay in San Junipero and the 2 remain together forever.
The Good: This was a very different episode for Black Mirror and the new approach with new themes and different storytelling served to create one of the very best hours of the show so far. The setting of the episode was a small thing which was done completely right. The colouring of all the scenes was excellent and the setting did a great job of establishing the tones of all of the scenes, from the creepy aura of the Quagmire to the loving beauty of the beaches. This ended up becoming a really atmospheric episode and it only added to the experience. The world itself is really interesting and I was always trying to figure out what time period it was from. I love how the reveal that San Junipero is a sort of heaven was given to us slowly so that it could be pieced together. It was really great and it also allowed me more time to process the characters' stories and what they were doing in San Junipero. The concept of this sort of heaven which is accessible by humanity is really interesting and I liked this unique exploration of technology. The characters were outstanding though. Both Kelly and Yorkie felt relatively fleshed out, had motivations and had background to provide insight on why they were that way. I love seeing such detailed characters in an episode like this and it definitely made me care a ton about their fates in this episode. The relationship they had was great as well, and while I don't think it's as good as it could have been, it was enough to get me to buy into their bond, especially when you take into account that these 2 are essentially just 2 really lonely old woman who are looking for their place in the world before they die. Kelly's character story is excellent. Her backstory is suitably tragic when we learn that her husband left her in the world after 49 years and it's easy to sympathize with her and understand the void that he has left behind, as well as the feeling that she doesn't want to be left behind again so she is scared to love. But somehow, the show digs deeper to really pull at our heart-strings as we learn that she had a daughter who died before her time. This adds even more layers to Kelly and makes her unease in choosing to stay in San Junipero so much more understanding. After all, her daughter didn't get to enjoy the luxury so why should she? It's painful, it's real and it's understandable, giving Kelly's character a truckload of depth which really impressed me and made me feel, as the show does all to well with episodes like this. Yorkie's story was another tearjerker though. Her tragic life was very sad and it was awful to learn about her quadriplegia, but that also made it understandable why she would want to keep going back to San Junipero and stay there. Her life was robbed from her in the real world, but here she gets to enjoy moving around and doing what she pleases. The reveal that she was dying and seemed to be on borrowed time was also heartbreaking, but it led to a much happier moment as Kelly and Yorkie got officially married, providing a rare glimmer of hope in this show. That hope would thankfully stay though. After their fight, it seemed destined for both ladies to live separately forever in a pained existence, just as miserable as other episodes of the show. But thankfully that wasn't the case and instead we actually got a happy ending where both women got to live out their lives together forever. In an episode with no real twists and turns, this happy ending actually ended up becoming one of the show's biggest twists. It was powerful, genuinely unexpected and satisfying as we finally got to see some characters living happily without any kind of misery or pain thrown at them. It's a wonderful change of tone and makes this episode really stand out and feel special. Not to mention, it's wonderful to feel happiness after an episode of Black Mirror for a change. The Bad: I wish that Yorkie's joy at being able to move again was played out a little bit better. We really got no reaction from her, but I feel that it would have been much more powerful and affecting to have some scenes showing Yorkie's joy in San Junipero. The Unknown: What would you choose? San Junipero or passing over peacefully? Which is the better option? Can you ever leave San Junipero if you die there? What is passing over? What happens to those who do? Is there another world out there? Will Kelly and Yorkie remain happy forever in San Junipero? Will Kelly be satisfied with her life or will she still feel the guilt she felt earlier about staying in San Junipero while her family passed over? Did Kelly make the right choice or should she have honoured her old family by passing over? Best Moment: The happy ending was powerful and for once this show managed to make me feel complete happiness. That's really impressive and I hope this show continues to demonstrate an ability to provide a wide variety of emotions. Character of the Episode: Kelly was better than Yorkie in my opinion. Conclusion: A stellar episode, and one which isn't afraid to do something different. Black Mirror has always been a bold and powerful show, and this episode exemplifies both of those aspects in wonderful fashion. Easily one of the show's finest hours. Score: 80
0 Comments
Your comment will be posted after it is approved.
Leave a Reply. |
Aaron DhillonJust a university student who loves to watch TV. And analyze it way too much. Archives
March 2024
Categories
All
|