10/10 as of 2023-07-??.

+The most disturbing and intense pilot episode I have seen.

10/10 as of 2023-07-??.

+Predicted the rise of microtransactions and pay-to-skip ads.

10/10 as of 2023-07-??.

+Getting close to this with live streams and surveillance states.

10/10 as of 2023-07-??.

+The amount of technology we now have from this episode is frightening.

10/10 as of 2023-07-??.

+Black Mirror's first foray into hell-loops.

9/10 as of 2023-07-18.

+Re-watching this episode, the parallels to Trump's rise and the mockery it made of democracy are 'prophetic' (to quote Dad).

10/10 as of 2023-07-18.

+Time dilation and multiple visions of techno hell.

6.5 as of 2023-07-19.

+/-Enjoyed it more than my first time watching, but definitely not my favourite of Black Mirror's episodes.

7.5 as of 2023-??-??.

10.0 as of 2023-??-??.

10.0 as of 2023-??-??.

9.5 as of 2023-??-??.

7.0 as of 2023-08-??.

10.0 as of 2023-??-??.

9.0 as of 2023-09-??.

9.0 as of 2023-09-??.

10.0 as of 2023-09-06.

8.5 as of 2023-09-11.

+The design of the mechanical dogs is sleek and lethal. The gun arm leads to a couple splattered heads blown to bits. Not only are they physically vicious, they are cunning trackers that use their different types of sensors to best track and execute their prey before moving onto the next target. -While I don't mind unanswered mysteries in some instances, Black Mirror episodes usually keep you in the dark for most of the episode before neatly tying together all loose ends in a series of mind-bending twists. This episode is blunt and straight forward (right off the bat with the profanity laced small talk), yet leaves so many questions open. It is hard to compete with the traditional Black Mirror formula (I think it is very powerful), and if you do try to bend or break the formula (which I am eager to see) you have to do it well. This one doesn't quite do it for me, but I appreciate David Slade's stylistic entry into the Black Mirror catalogue.

10.0 as of 2023-09-??.

9.5 as of 2023-09-??.

9.0 as of 2023-09-30.

8.5 as of 2023-10-01.

+Miley Cyrus gives a great performance: she obviously does the pop icon parts perfectly, she nails the dramatic notes, excels at the vulgar comedic parts, and what stood out most for me were her understated quiet moments. +There were clear parallels to Cyrus' life (move from Hannah Montana to Wrecking Ball phase), as well as other pop icons like Britney Spears (conservatorship drama taken to scifi and moral extremes here). +The ending NIN cover goes hard.

9.0 as of 2023-10-01.

+A bold new step for Black Mirror: Joan is Awful is by far the most comedic the show has gone. Charlie Brooker writes some excellent comedy, performed perfectly by the ensemble cast including Salma Hayek, Annie Murphy (I did not know her, but the show said she is from Schitt's Creek - she was outstanding), and Michael Cera. +There are so many little references to other episodes ("The Callow Years" on Streamberry, along with the Bandersnatch character Will Poulter played, possibly Ashley O right below Joan is Awful; "Anyone Who Knows What Love Is (Will Understand)" makes another audio appearance as the most repeated leit motif throughout the series; a Loch Henry poster in the Netflix office (foreshadowing the next episode which we have not even seen yet). +The technology is terrifying: Phones record your conversations, an AI uses the likenesses of performers to create, edit, and send out TV episodes on the fly of anyone or anything. This creates a multiverse of variations (fiction levels as said by Cera's character) which all believe they are real. *The ultimate destruction of the quantum computer holding the multiverse brings everyone back to a base reality, but the horror of this outcome is not addressed after the fact. +However, the ending is hopeful as Brooker essentially tells the audience to stop obsessing with the scary existential mindfucks Black Mirror has been pumping out - go outside and live your lives and you will be happy. Joan puts all the confusion aside and lives her life, even opening a coffee shop where Annie Murphy stops in to visit - Salma Hayek character in the base reality; Joan was Annie Murphy in fiction level one, but in base reality Annie Murphy plays Salma Hayek who plays Joan in fiction level one. -One issue: If the multiverse is truly infinite, there should be no "base" reality or original timeline. Everything should change with subtle variation between the branches of the multiverse so that eventually when pushed to the limits, they fold back in on themselves. "A circle has no end" as Arkady says.

9.0 as of 2023-10-06.

+Another bold step forward - this time forgoing technology for a disturbing tale full of twists. Black Mirror branches out like Twilight Zone, covering a broader range of twisted tales.

9.5 as of 2023-10-14.

+Brutal, pensive, and ultimately tragic beyond belief. Hits like a sledge hammer.

7.5 as of 2023-10-15.

+A fun creature feature that once again expands what Black Mirror can be, but it just doesn't stack-up with some of this show's greatest episodes.

8.5 as of 2023-10-17.

+Fun, and I liked the friendship/romance between Nida and Gaap.