The Official Black Mirror Thread: Season 6 on Netflix Now

[a-friend]

How could you/y'all need "backstory" for METALHEAD?
Needing dialogue even, I can give a pass on that I guess, but...backstory? Why would you want,....why would you need that spoonfed to you?
There isn't a plausible explanation in your head already!? Without needing one?

"I needed color"
"I needed it to be longer"
"I needed it to be shorter"
"Not my cup of tea"
"Poor subject matter"
"Boring"


^^all could be valid complaints

....but needing backstory?

Here, let me make it easy and give you the, A backstory.

Planet was dying.
Overpopulation.
Machines were built to eradicate all remaining Human form.
Fair?

Nah but for real, I find the complaints a bit waterlogged and campfiriery.

 

[DCAllAfrican]

I think it’s meant to show the viewer that she is really cautious of her daughter and protective after first almost losing her as a baby and then again when she follows the cat. So two instances where there is good reason to input the implant.

But man. I thought she was a good 21 not 15

I was hurt when the dog moved away

 

[dhart48]

season was a definite letdown
Crocodile and Black Museum were standouts.
I really wished they kept that doctor around from Black Museum. He coulda been a connective tissue to all the episodes and could've provided great origin stories to other great episodes, like how the people came to be working like they were in 15 million merits.

Would've been dope if after the daughter left at the end, a new digital projection of that guy loaded in the museum and he just says something like
"I've got so many more stories to tell."

 

[tokes99]

Alright alright. I think this season has been a letdown so far. But the fact that I still enjoy what has been shown so far speaks to the quality of the show. There hasn't been nothing too bad, but metalhead was insulting I just watched a 40 minute chase sequence with no backstory or dialogue. Which is fine if this was a pilot episode. If they wanna do something like that, they need to have back to back episodes with longer seasons. I didn't get much of anything from this episode at all

i think my problem with metalhead is basically my issue w/the whole season, it just doesn't feel like as much like fully formed idea/premise/story as compared to previous seasons, even with the more unbelievable stories of past seasons i felt like i understood why characters did what they did, stuff made sense

Spoiler

wouldn't crocodile make at least a lil more sense if the women was the driver?

...none of the endings in this season, to me, are satisfying, every episode seem to either shortcut (uss callister, crocodile, black museum, metalhead) their way into a resolution or be kinda vague about the resolution, if there is a resolution at all (hang the dj, arkangel)...i can't call it, i don't know if they were trying to be to clever or not clever enough?

How could you/y'all need "backstory" for METALHEAD?
Needing dialogue even, I can give a pass on that I guess, but...backstory? Why would you want,....why would you need that spoonfed to you?
There isn't a plausible explanation in your head already!? Without needing one?

"I needed color"
"I needed it to be longer"
"I needed it to be shorter"
"Not my cup of tea"
"Poor subject matter"
"Boring"


^^all could be valid complaints

....but needing backstory?

Here, let me make it easy and give you the, A backstory.

Planet was dying.
Overpopulation.
Machines were built to eradicate all remaining Human form.
Fair?

Nah but for real, I find the complaints a bit waterlogged and campfiriery.

here is the problem though, they kinda did try to give this a kind of backstory...it just wasn't really important or necessary to what the episode is, which basically is just a relentless chase thriller; no story necessary really...which is what i think black mirror has done well over the course of previous 3 seasons, tell interesting stories about the different ways we use technology...this season i felt like the stories weren't nearly as believable/grounded/interesting

 

[cosmiccoffee9]

cosmiccoffee9 Did you think of Benoit while watching Croc?

interesting parallel...I actually didn't. then again, I try not to think of that incident in general.

I do like how she was just able to overpower everybody tho, like "oh no, you're killing me, I wish you wouldn't!"

I like to think I'd put up a better fight than some of those folks did in defense of my life.

Alright alright. I think this season has been a letdown so far. But the fact that I still enjoy what has been shown so far speaks to the quality of the show. There hasn't been nothing too bad, but metalhead was insulting I just watched a 40 minute chase sequence with no backstory or dialogue. Which is fine if this was a pilot episode. If they wanna do something like that, they need to have back to back episodes with longer seasons. I didn't get much of anything from this episode at all

you've articulated my "meh" with that episode.

the technology was cool, the chase was tense, I rooted for the protagonist, Boston Dynamics, I get it...but what did we think about? what did we learn?

still, it says something that the most forgettable episode of this series was better than most movies I've seen over the past 5 years.

well, actually, San Junipero was s o b o r i n g the first time I tried to watch it.

 

[sooperhooper]

Just watched arkangel. It's basically 'the entire history of you' with a mother daughter theme. Pretty decent episode overall, certain parts were a bit predictable, and I felt they could've done better with he ending but overall it gave a good message. And I'm certain something similar will become popular and I no know parents will obsess over it just like she did.

 

[toneagain]

so, i'm not racking my brain after watching this season, can we get better scripts next season

 

[tay1]

Well Black Museum was disturbing

 

[SupremeBeing5]

Well Black Museum was disturbing

First one I watched from Season 4.

This **** weird.

Lady sitting on a chair inside of dude. Wtf man. Who comes up with this stuff.

 

[hipstermike]

Loved everything except Metalhead, felt a bot out of place, didn't quite get the point of it all

LOVED BLACK MUSEUM and how it ties the universe together

I wish the romance one was the third episode, watching them in order, its rough

Arkangel is possible now the way some parents shelter kids, very important lesson

Might watch a couple episodes again

 

[hipstermike]

Just watched arkangel. It's basically 'the entire history of you' with a mother daughter theme. Pretty decent episode overall, certain parts were a bit predictable, and I felt they could've done better with he ending but overall it gave a good message. And I'm certain something similar will become popular and I no know parents will obsess over it just like she did.

Are they selling toddler body cams yet? like they want the cops to wear?

 

[kvsm23vs24]

I thought Arkangel was going to end a bit more disturbing. Like her actually killing the mom and staying on parental advisory mode the whole time.

Also, in black museum, I thought black dude was going to go crazy with homegirl in his head. Was still creepy she was in the bear though.

 

[hipstermike]

I thought Arkangel was going to end a bit more disturbing. Like her actually killing the mom and staying on parental advisory mode the whole time.

Also, in black museum, I thought black dude was going to go crazy with homegirl in his head. Was still creepy she was in the bear though.

Felt like a big missed opportunity

I like that she took the bear with her, love the whole episode

 

[jaypesoz]

Not really feeling the first three episodes.

Fixed. The first half of this season has been pretty straight forward so far with their "messages". I'm hoping the latter three can deliver a bit better.

 

[calibeebee]

I thought Arkangel was going to end a bit more disturbing. Like her actually killing the mom and staying on parental advisory mode the whole time.

Also, in black museum, I thought black dude was going to go crazy with homegirl in his head. Was still creepy she was in the bear though.

Same!! I thought for SURE it was gonna end up like White Christmas where the girl had blurry images of people her whole life because she broke the tablet. Or anything that reminds her of her mom would raise her cortisol levels so EVERYTHING would stay blurry. I guess you could kinda say the ending was a happy ending. Girl escaped her controlling mother. Gets to live the life she wants now.

 

[masagipatron]

Only episode I didn't really care for was Arkangel. I liked the others for the most part. Even Metalhead was kind of dope though I would have liked some more backstory as to how things got so bad. Kind of reminded of "The Road" film in that sense. You know something went wrong and society collapsed but you don't know what happened exactly.

With Black Museum, I thought they were going to do some killer doll/Twilight Zone **** with the monkey. That was a bit underwhelming. Overall decent episode though.

I think the show benefited from smaller seasons early on. Since S3, they've expanded the amount of episodes per season, which could mean having to throw in a filler or two to fill up a season.

 

[hipstermike]

Watching Metalhead, it takes you out of their universe a bit, doesn't feel like a big part of it, maybe it's later in the future? probably why its black and white to distinguish it

 

[masagipatron]

I think the B&W had to do more with the amount of blood they showed onscreen

 

[hand2handking]

man when them dudes got blasted

 

[tay1]

I thought Arkangel was going to end a bit more disturbing. Like her actually killing the mom and staying on parental advisory mode the whole time.

Also, in black museum, I thought black dude was going to go crazy with homegirl in his head. Was still creepy she was in the bear though.

She killed a blind baby. That's distubing

 

[MVP]

She killed a blind baby. That's distubing

That was crocodile with the baby

 

[paulwest1985]

Started season 4 by watching Black Museum first. My gosh, that episode was amazing. I've read some comments where some people theorize that Black Museum will be the last episode of Black Mirror because of the way it ended. Some say that Douglas Hodge's character is an amalgamation of Charlie Booker and we the audience are Letetia's character. All of the callbacks to other episodes gives credence to that theory. All of the artifacts in the museum and the 15 million merits comic book was a nice way of tying this universe togheter. Aside from that, those 3 stories in this episode were disturbing on multiple levels. That pain doctor was the most frightening. And the second story with the couple occupying the same brain was trippy (I'm glad the woman trapped inside the monkey was rescued at the end, because she got royally effed around).

It seems to me that TCKR ( the company ) is the real villain of Black Mirror.

 

[hand2handking]

Dark Future: Here’s When We’ll Have the Autonomous Guard Dogs from Black Mirror

https://futurism.com/dark-future-autonomous-guard-dogs-black-mirror/

The Headless Guard Dog
Three people prepare for their mission to break into a seemingly abandoned warehouse. They had made a promise to help someone who was dying, to make his final days easier. They seem nervous and a little frantic, like they were undertaking this task out of sheer desperation.

Within a few minutes, we find out what they’re afraid of — and as the episode continues, we understand why the characters were so worried. It’s a four-legged, solar-powered robot-dog. It looks eerily similar to the latest iteration of Boston Dynamics’ SpotMini. Like the SpotMini, “the dog,” as it’s called in the “Metalhead” episode of the latest season of Black Mirror, doesn’t have a head. Instead, it has a front piece encased in glass that houses its many sensors, including a sophisticated computer vision system (we see this as the screen flips periodically to the dog’s view of the world).



Unlike the SpotMini, however, the metalhead dog comes with a whole bunch of advanced weaponry — a grenade that launches shrapnel-like tracking devices into the flesh of prospective thieves or assailants, for example. And in its front legs, the dog is armed with guns powerful enough to pop a person’s head off. It can also connect to computer systems, which allows it to conduct more high-tech tasks like unlocking security doors and driving a smart vehicle.

The metalhead dog is no regular guard dog. It’s lethal and relentless, able to hunt down and destroy anyone who crosses it. Potential robbers, like the characters at the beginning of the episode, would be wise to stay away, no matter how promising the payload of a break-in.

Like a lot of the technology in Black Mirror, the dog isn’t so far-fetched. Countries like the United States and Russia are keen on developing weapons powered by artificial intelligence (AI); companies like Boston Dynamics are actively developing robo-dogs to suit those needs, among others.

But how close are we to having the AI-enhanced security dog like the one in “Metalhead”?

Beware of (Robo)Dog
According to experts, some of the features in Black Mirror’s robotic dog are alarmingly close to reality. In November, a video about futuristic “slaughterbots” — autonomous drones that are designed to search out specific human targets and kill them — went viral. The comments section reflects people’s discomfort with a future filled with increasingly facile ways to kill people.

Mercifully, the technology was fictional, as was the video. But that may not be the case for long, Stuart Russell, a professor of computer science at the University of California, Berkeley who was part of the team that worked on the video, tells Futurism. “The basic technologies are all in place. It’s not a harder task than autonomous driving; so it’s mainly a matter of investment and effort,” Russell said. “With a crash project and unlimited resources [like the Manhattan Project had], something like the slaughterbots could be fielded in less than two years.”

Metalhead. Image credit: Netflix

Louis Rosenberg, the CEO and founder of Unanimous AI, a company that creates AI algorithms that can “think together” in a swarm, agrees with Russel’s assertion that fully autonomous robotic security drones could soon be a regular part of our lives. “It’s very close,” Rosenberg told Futurism. “[T]wenty years ago I estimated that fully autonomous robotic security drones would happen by 2048. Today, I have to say it will happen much sooner.” He expects that autonomous weapons like these could be mass produced between 2020 and 2025.

But while the “search and destroy” AI features may be alarmingly close, Black Mirror‘s metalhead dog is still some ways off, Russell noted.

The problem with creating this robo-killer, it seems, goes back to the dog’s ability to move seamlessly through a number of different environments. “The dog functions successfully for extended periods in the physical world, which includes a lot of unexpected events. Current software is easily confused and then gets ‘stuck’ because it has no idea what’s going on,” Russell said.

It’s not just software problems that stand in the way. “Robots with arms and legs still have some difficulties with dextrous manipulation of unfamiliar objects,” Russell said. The dog, in contrast, is able to wield a kitchen knife with some finesse.

And the dog is not so easy to outsmart, unlike today’s robots. “Robots are still easily fooled, of course — they currently would be unable to cope with previously unknown countermeasures, say, a tripwire that is too thin for the [LIDAR] to detect properly, or some jamming device that messes up navigation using false signals,” Russell said.



Please Curb Your (Robo)Dog
In the end, the consensus seems to be that, in the future, we could bring such robo-dogs to life. But should we?

Both Rosenberg and Russell agree that the weaponization of AI, particularly as security or “killer-robots,” will bring the world more harm than good. “I sincerely hope it never happens. I believe autonomous weapons are inherently dangerous — [they leave] complex moral decisions to algorithms devoid of human judgement,” Rosenberg explained. The autocorrect algorithms on most smartphones makes errors often enough, he continued, and an autonomous weapon would probably still make errors. “I believe we are [a] long way from making such a technology foolproof,” Rosenberg said.

Granted, most AIs today are pretty sophisticated. But this doesn’t mean they are ready to make life-or-death decisions.

One big hurdle: the central inner-workings of most algorithms are incomprehensible to us. “Right now, a big problem with deep learning is the ‘black box’ aspect of the technology, which prevents us from really understanding why these types of algorithms take certain decisions,” Pierre Barreau, the CEO of Aiva Technologies, which created an artificial intelligence that composes music, told Futurism via email. “Thus, there is a safety problem when applying these technologies to take sensitive decisions in the field of security because we may not know exactly how the AI will react to every type of situation, and if its intentions will be the same as ours.”

That seeming arbitrariness with which AIs make enormous, important decisions concerns critics of autonomous weapons, such as Amnesty International. “We believe that fully autonomous weapons systems would not be able to comply with international human rights law and international policing standards,” Rasha Abdul-Rahim, an arms control advisor for Amnesty, told Futurism via email.



Humans aren’t perfect in making these decisions, either, but at least we can show our mental work and understand how someone reached a particular decision. That’s not the case if, say, a robo-cop is deciding whether or not to use a taser on someone. “If used for policing, we’d have to agree that machines can decide on the application of force against humans,” Russell said. “I suspect there will be a lot of resistance to this.”

In the future, global governing bodies might prohibit or discourage the use of autonomous robotic weapons — at least, according to Unanimous AI’s swarm, which has successfully predicted a number of decisions in the past.

However, others claim that there may be situations in which countries might be justified in using autonomous weapons, so long as they are heavily regulated and the technology does as it’s intended. Russell pointed out that a number of global leaders, including Henry Kissinger, propose a ban on autonomous weapons designed to directly attack people, but still allow their use in aerial combat and submarine warfare.

“Therefore there must always be effective and meaningful human control over what the [International Committee of the Red Cross] has termed as their ‘critical functions’ — meaning the identification of targets and the deployment of force,” Abdul-Rahim said.

Then again, the kind of nuance some experts suggest — autonomous weapons are fine in one case, but not allowed in others — might be difficult to implement, and some assert that such plans might not be enough. “Amnesty International has consistently called for a preemptive ban on the development, production, transfer, and use of fully autonomous weapons systems,” Abdul-Rahim said. But it might already be too late for a preemptive ban, since some countries are already progressing in their development of AI weapons.

Still, Russell and numerous other experts have been campaigning for halting the development and use of AI weapons; the group of 116 global leaders recently an open letter to the United Nations on the subject. The U.N. is supposedly already considering a ban. “Let’s hope legal restrictions block this reality from happening anytime soon,” Rosenberg concluded.

There’s little question that AI is poised to revolutionize much of our world, including how we fight wars and other international conflicts. It will be up to international lawmakers and leaders to determine if developments like autonomous weapons, or faceless robotic guard dogs, would cause more harm than good.

 

[DCAllAfrican]

GameSpot has been doing some solid reviews/Easter Eggs of the episodes



PlayList:

 

[sooperhooper]

Just watched black museum and that was a masterpiece. I like how it had 3 different stories. They definitely borrowed elements from other episodes. Kinda wished I saved this one for last. Still got 3 more to watch.