Joan Is Awful

"Joan is Awful" is the first episode in the series after a four year hiatus. After three of the weaker episodes of the entire series aired in the previous season, I did not have sky-high hopes for this new season as many die-hard fans did.

But "Joan is Awful" was a welcome addition to the Black Mirror series. And a perfect introduction episode after a long time off as it was one of the more comical episodes of the show. It lets the audience dip their toes back into this universe without jarring us.

You can expect to hear rave reviews for Annie Murphy's performance. She had to run through virtually every emotion and mood in an actor's arsenal, and she did it seamlessly without overacting.

While Annie Murphy carries the episode on her back, there are still good performances all around. It helps that most of the roles were obviously written by Charlie Brooker for certain actors specifically. Salma Hayek does well; and comedy fans will appreciate cameos from Rich Fulcher (Mighty Boosh, Snuff Box) and Michael Cera.

A welcome return from Black Mirror.

I'm starting to think that Black Mirror has spoiled you / us too much !

This episode was definitely something special. A very unique concept , brilliantly executed and amazingly acted ....

I'm pretty sure that if this exact same episode would have been included in one of the first 3 series of Black Mirror, it would have gotten STELLAR reviews. Also, try and compare it to all the tasteless, unoriginal, boring stuff that is provided on this streaming platform.... there is no comparison.

So, maybe it's me, but ever since series 5 I've been seeing this frankly unjustified skepticism towards the show.

Not sure what they need to do to deserve a full 8 at this point ...

This episode had everything, and it should have been a kick-ass start! I thought Black Mirror would have a hard time generating new, unique ideas. However, in this case, it was really a good idea. But... yes, there's a "but." They decided to execute it in a cliché Hollywood-ish way that would please teenagers. Black Mirror is all about provoking thought, not offering solutions. The challenge presented here with the deepfake technology was truly alarming, providing ample food for thought. Sadly, it was all undermined by the actions and plot twists. It ended up being disappointingly mediocre and catering to the crowd. What a tremendous waste of opportunity! I did enjoy it, but as a Black Mirror fan, it didn't live up to the mark.

The central idea is classic Black Mirror, but each moment that had potential for dramatic tension is undermined by a script that ranges between silly and simply dull. It seems like they came set with an interesting idea but had no idea what to do with it. Lots of celebrity references and cameos that ended up being flat name dropping. The ending feels hurried and certainly didn't leave me "thinking" as the best Black Mirror episodes did.

I gave it a six because there are moments of humour. The cast seemed to have done their best with what they were given. Many people will find it a pleasant time waster, but if you are looking for dark compelling sci-fi drama or techno horror, you will be disappointed.

Joan lives a fairly average existence and is shocked to discover that her everyday life has been made into a TV show, with Salma Hayek playing her. Every embarrassing detail is depicted within hours of it occurring. As a result of these revelations she loses her job, her boyfriend and her privacy. There's no legal way to prevent the producers doing this so she resorts to drastic measures.

I was at first pleasantly surprised that, four and a half years after Season 5, there's a Season 6 of Black Mirror. It is one of my favourite drama series of recent times and captures quite accurately the risks, phobias and pleasures of modern technology.

However, I was also worried in that after such a long gap the creativity isn't there any more and that Netflix and Charlie Brooker just wanted to cash in on how highly regarded the show is.

I needn't have worried. Episode 1 of Season 6 is as good as ever, with a clever Christopher Nolan-like layers-of-reality plot and some great performances. Very profound and thought-provoking too (as Black Mirror usually is). Plus, it's all so plausible, which has always been the scariest part of Black Mirror.

Can't wait to watch the remainder of Season 6.