Black Mirror is now a delightful escape from reality

The latest season of Black Mirror feels almost therapeutic as we peer over the cliff of civilizational collapse. Everything is awful, but at least we don't have to worry about renting out access to our brains from skeevy startups, or dealing with the consequences of a PC game's super-intelligent AI. Not yet, anyway. While Black Mirror felt like a horrifying harbinger of an over-teched future when it debuted in 2011, now it's practically an escape from the fresh hell of real world headlines. That's not to say that the show has lost any of the acerbic bite from creator Charlie Brooker. Season 7 of Black Mirror, which debuts on Netflix on today, still occasionally veers into nihilistic territory, and at times it will emotionally devastate you. But now Brooker and his writers — Ms. Marvel showrunner Bisha K. Ali, William Bridges, Ella Road and Bekka Bowling — more deftly wield their talent for cultural analysis. Minor spoilers for Black Mirror season 7 ahead. ADVERTISEMENT Advertisement ... Read full article.