A sci-fi anthology series and a stacked cast might seem like a match made in heaven, as is the case with Charlie Brooker's "Black Mirror." The Netflix series has featured everyone from Peter Capaldi to Miley Cyrus, leveraging a wide range of performances that underline dystopian stories about technology and its hold over humanity. Although not every "Black Mirror" episode comes with a prescient or timely commentary about the state of the world, the series has undoubtedly set a standard for television anthologies that dabble in speculative sci-fi.

However, not every genre offering with a talented A-list cast succeeds in making a mark, as some only manage to convey an abstract sense of scope without any meaning attached to it. David Weil's "Solos" is the perfect example of such hollowness, where its critique of technology comes exclusively in the form of episodic monologues. This isn't a terrible idea on paper,...