Black Mirror's Most Disturbing Episode is Almost Criminally Underrated

With each episode unfolding a beautiful, dark, exciting and intricate story on technology and its grip on society, Black Mirror is nothing short of groundbreaking and has delivered 27 thought-provoking episodes over six seasons.

From one episode to the next, we never know what to expect from Black Mirror, from supernatural twists to shocking analogies, every story is different, and excellent in its own way. With so many to choose from, it's hard to decide on a favorite, but this episode stands out from the rest, and we're shocked it so often goes unnoticed.

Nosedive is the first episode of Black Mirror season 3, and a brilliantly told and executed story that makes for an eerily accurate reflection of what our society is, and what it could become.

It depicts a world where people rate everyone they interact with on a scale from 0 to 5, which contributes to each person's overall rating out of 5, and the higher your total rating, the 'wealthier' you are in social status, and the greater your opportunities are.

Every interaction feels forced and superficial,with people only acting nice to get high ratings. Did we mention that everyone has a technology lens in their eye, so they can see each other's ratings 24/7? If you have a low rating, there is no hiding it, and you will be isolated and avoided by those 'above' you.

The episode follows Lacie, who has a rating of 4.2, and like everyone around her, she is desperate to increase it. In Lacie's case, she learns that she needs a 4.5 rating to live in an exclusive estate, and is advised that the best way to do this is to interact outside of her friends circle, with people of higher ratings.

As the title 'Nosedive' indicates, Lacie's rating and her life take a downward spiral due to a series of unfortunate events and misunderstandings, driving her close to madness, but giving her a sense of freedom in the end that she had never experienced before.

So, what is scary about this episode?

Black Mirror creator Charlie Brooker described the episode as 'a satire on acceptance and the image of ourselves we like to portray and project' and went on to say that Nosedive is 'basically the world we live in.'

Nosedive is an eerie reflection of our technology centric society where our lives are ruled by how others perceive us, the personas we create to be liked and accepted, and the lengths we are willing to go to gain status, specifically on social media.

The episode depicts a society so close to ours that the realization has our stomachs in twisting knots, as we ask ourselves two questions, 'Is this really what we have become?' And, 'Why is this episode not more talked about?' Perhaps it's because nobody wants to admit the hard truth.

Source: YouTube.