Science-fiction/horror series Black Mirror made a splash with its debut five years ago, and recently its newest season premiered on Netflix as part of a new distribution deal. The third season excels in more ways than it falls short, but the real highlight of the season (and perhaps the 2015-2016 fall television season) is the fourth episode “San Junipero.”
“San Junipero” reaches emotional heights that other shows strive for and fail to reach. In the quiet moments of any given day, my mind drifts back to aspects of the episode.
“San Junipero” was written by series creator Charlie Brooker and masterfully guided by the hands of its lead actresses, Mackenzie Davis (Halt and Catch Fire, Freaks of Nature) and Gugu Mbatha-Raw (Beyond the Lights, Concussion). It manages to strike a tale of romance and mortality that resonates with our fast-paced modern age of interactions.
The episode centers around Davis’ character, Yorkie, a new girl in the town of San Junipero. San Junipero is a Californian coastal town with a young populace and a definite ‘80s vibe (most likely because the episode is set in 1987).
Yorkie, a fish out of water in the party-going town of San Junipero, enters the bar where most of the episode’s action is set in the opening moments of the show. Soon enough, she meets Raw’s character, Kelly, who is an outgoing party-girl who seems to be living in the moment.
It’s difficult to describe why this episode is so strong and resonates with me so much on an emotional level. The way it delves into mortality and the way we view relationships after they reach a hard endpoint is only second to the acting chops on display here by each of the main actresses. Davis, a strong member of the sweeping Halt and Catch Fire cast, makes a mark for herself in this episode. She shows the vulnerabilities of Yorkie and makes subsequent viewings of the episode stronger once the entirety of the plot has been revealed.
Raw also manages to play the usually cliché (especially for an ‘80s themed fictional work) party-girl who is living in the moment with an astounding amount of depth that sheds even more light on the writing talent of Charlie Brooker.
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