Best Way to Watch Black Mirror Season 6 is Actually in Reverse Order

The sixth season of Black Mirror proved to be a great addition to the iconic dystopian show, especially in comparison to Season 5, which fans and critics agreed was the weakest. All five episodes of the current season were released at once, and because Black Mirror is an anthology series, the watching order is entirely up to the viewer. You can start with the first episode, skip certain episodes, or you can… watch in reverse order.

Yep, you heard right, watching Black Mirror Season 6 from the last to the first episode isn't such a bad idea. Here's why.

As Charlie Brooker himself admitted, the episodes were written last to first. Initially, the creator worked on 'Demon 79,' which was supposed to be the start of his new project for Netflix. Then, however, Brooker decided to incorporate the episode into Black Mirror's new season and continued writing others with a fresh approach to storytelling.

So if you watch the season in reverse order, you'll discover a certain continuity conveyed through many Easter eggs and recurring themes, which, while not always a leitmotif, are present in the rest of the episodes.

For example, the far-right politician Michael Smart, introduced in 'Demon 79,' is mentioned in a newspaper in 'Loch Henry.' In 'Joan Is Awful,' a documentary that Joan and Krish scroll through is also dedicated to him. All of this suggests a certain chronology for the episodes, as 'Demon 79' obviously takes place in 1979, 'Loch Henry' in the present day, and 'Joan Is Awful' in the near future.

Another argument for watching the season in reverse order is that Brooker, who began writing the scripts with very different ideas in mind, seems to reach the more familiar Black Mirror undertone with each subsequent episode.

'Demon 79' starts off as a short horror movie, followed by the thematically similar 'Mazey Day.' Then, 'Beyond the Sea' takes the season in a more familiar direction, exploring the grim consequences of reckless use of technology. 'Joan Is Awful' is even more typically Black Mirror-ish, touching on the classic themes of technology invading our lives and minds and the uncontrolled use of AI for commercial purposes.

Finally, it's worth noting that the reverse viewing order provides for a more optimistic tone for the whole season. Beginning with Episode 6, which ended in a literal apocalypse, you'll then finish watching the series with 'Loch Henry' and 'Joan Is Awful,' whose finales are not unequivocally happy but certainly more upbeat, giving us a more positive view on the fate of the protagonists.