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‘Black Mirror’ Finds Terror, and Soul, in the Machine

nytimes.com

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Re: ‘Black Mirror’ Finds Terror, and Soul, in the Machine

#21

Post by Mao_Zedang »

lozf wrote: post #13
Mao_Zedang wrote: post #3

I was really sad at how short season 3 was, but quality over quantity, at the very least I am grateful that Netflix revived one of my favorite shows. If all netflix does is pick up popular shows that arent popular enough for time slot tv, and inject new life into them I will be a netflix subscriber forever.

> I was really sad at how short season 3 was Huh? It's already 6 episodes, compared to the first two seasons that were just 3 episodes each, not including the one-off "White Christmas" special. The runtime of the season 3 episodes are longer too.

Short compared to other shows, not short compared to its previous format designed for time slot tv.

Re: ‘Black Mirror’ Finds Terror, and Soul, in the Machine

#22

Post by dajohnson89 »

Mao_Zedang wrote: post #3

I was really sad at how short season 3 was, but quality over quantity, at the very least I am grateful that Netflix revived one of my favorite shows. If all netflix does is pick up popular shows that arent popular enough for time slot tv, and inject new life into them I will be a netflix subscriber forever.

Netflix didn't revive it. They outbid the original producers for production rights. It would've been continued one way or another.

Re: ‘Black Mirror’ Finds Terror, and Soul, in the Machine

#23

Post by gallerdude »

saurik wrote: post #17

For people who like Black Mirror, I highly recommend the YouTube Red series from College Humor, Bad Internet. In the exact same genre, the episodes have nothing to do with each other, so I'll link to my favorite episode, "Amazon Foresight": https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=WQwK3jaQGKY

Bad Internet is the comedic version of Black Mirror, and completely hilarious.

Re: ‘Black Mirror’ Finds Terror, and Soul, in the Machine

#27

Post by laurieg »

Black Mirror tackles one of the hardest problems about technical: How society changes around it.

We spend such a long time talking about the latest cutting edge hardware, new algorithms, new problems that can now be solved, but it's too easy to forget that people are part of this system too.

There's a great film from the 60's [1] that talks about the house of the future. It predicts online shopping and other modern appliances easily, however it is completely blind to any social change. The wife is still a housewife, the husband still goes to work and so on.

As we produce more and more new tech I think media such as Black Mirror are a great way to explore some of the more human implications.

[1] https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=0RRxqg4G-G4

Re: ‘Black Mirror’ Finds Terror, and Soul, in the Machine

#28

Post by justinpombrio »

ben_jones wrote: post #18
m_mueller wrote: post #9

Black Mirror often takes little details that we add in software, like a rating system, and takes them to their extreme and logical conclusion. Its premises are mostly sci-fi, but as thought experiments on how what we do could lead to a severe dystopia, it is superbly engaging. I recommend watching no more than one episode per day - I've been thinking about its topics quite a lot recently. At the least, it's refreshin…

I've watched the first episode and had some existential questions pop up while on a walk today. Isn't that end-all rating system, like you mention, the final form of many companies like Facebook or Instagram? When the value generated on the platform grows beyond its platform to other important parts of society. I think this is only just starting to happen, like Air BnB's usage of Facebook profiles as host validation,…

Apparently China plans to role out that kind of rating system by 2020, dubbed a "social credit score":

http://www.bbc.com/news/world-asia-china-34592186

Re: ‘Black Mirror’ Finds Terror, and Soul, in the Machine

#29

Post by eevilspock »

m_mueller wrote: post #9

Black Mirror often takes little details that we add in software, like a rating system, and takes them to their extreme and logical conclusion. Its premises are mostly sci-fi, but as thought experiments on how what we do could lead to a severe dystopia, it is superbly engaging. I recommend watching no more than one episode per day - I've been thinking about its topics quite a lot recently. At the least, it's refreshin…

> Black Mirror often takes little details that we add in software, like a rating system, and takes them to their extreme and logical conclusion.

I can't tell if you're dismissing the logical conclusion as unlikely. The proliferation of ratings systems, from Facebook likes to Tinder swipes to Uber drivers who have to stay above 4.7 just to keep their job, tells me that we're a lot closer to that logical conclusion than you think. And it is far from logical, sane, healthy or kind!

Re: ‘Black Mirror’ Finds Terror, and Soul, in the Machine

#30

Post by WillPostForFood »

dajohnson89 wrote: post #22
Mao_Zedang wrote: post #3

I was really sad at how short season 3 was, but quality over quantity, at the very least I am grateful that Netflix revived one of my favorite shows. If all netflix does is pick up popular shows that arent popular enough for time slot tv, and inject new life into them I will be a netflix subscriber forever.

Netflix didn't revive it. They outbid the original producers for production rights. It would've been continued one way or another.

Netflix outbid the original broadcasters for broadcast/streaming rights. The same producers (Zeppotron /Endemol Shine) have made all three seasons.
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