This Old-school Black Mirror Episode Is Even More Disturbing in 2023

Since 2011, Black Mirror has been toying with our minds with disturbing short stories about dystopian society and the ever-evolving grip of technology on humanity. Some episodes are far too 'out there' to ever feel real, while others have felt disturbingly close to real life and really made us think.

15 Million Merits was the second ever episode of Black Mirror, released over a decade ago, telling the story of a society where people's lives revolve around riding stationary bikes in exchange for merits, their form of currency. Overweight people are treated as less than those who cycle, work as cleaners and are often ridiculed or humiliated for entertainment.

People cycle to earn merit, spend merit on unnecessary things, cycle to earn more merit, spend merit, repeat. It's a mundane and meaningless existence, and people are forever surrounded by screens, forced to watch commercials or pay merit to skip them, which is considered a luxury.

Watching 15 Million Merits 12 years ago, it seemed like a bleak existence, and thankfully a far cry from real life, but today it feels all too relatable. We're often trapped watching ads until they're over, with no option to skip, and more importantly, the majority of the population work tirelessly for powerful corporations to make ends meet, while the minority sit at the top of the hierarchy, holding all the wealth and control.

If You Liked Black Mirror Before Netflix, Here's the Show You Should Watch ASAPBlack Mirror fans have begun to realize how accurately 15 Million Merits captures life today and speaks volumes about modern consumerism and the power technology holds over us. Workers are exploited, often indebted to the cost of living, with little chance of escaping the system, while the gap between rich and poor grows ever wider.

The episode also follows Abi, whose desperation to escape the slave-like system leads her to enter a singing competition, with her 15 million merit entry fee paid by her friend Bing. After presumably being drugged and failing to impress the judges, Abi is convinced that her looks would make her suitable for another profession: porn. Desperate to escape the endless life of cycling, Abi accepts.

Bing, on the other hand, has become famous for ranting about how unfair the system is, but his fame depends on the system staying the way it is to ensure his audience is always listening.

Does that sound like the world today? Many fans feel that '15 Million Merits' has only become more relevant over the years and is a frightening reflection of the world we live in today and the direction it could be heading.