‘Black Mirror: Demon 79’ Review
by Frank Martin
It’s become apparent by the end of this season that Black Mirror is spreading its wings a little bit and trying to experiment with different genres. Most of the episodes were good television. They just weren’t necessarily good Black Mirror. “Demon 79” continues this trend as it features a lot of supernatural elements, a rarity for Black Mirror. It goes further than that, though. These supernatural elements are rooted in biblical mythology. Black Mirror hasn’t done anything close to that before. On its own, the episode is bloody, quirky, and a profound character drama. It doesn’t have any of the societal or technological cautionary aspects that some of the best episodes have, but there are still some parts to like about it.
The story focuses on an immigrant woman (Anjana Vasan) who lives a rather quiet and mediocre life. Unfortunately, a rising nationalist sentiment in her neighborhood has led to some prejudice. She fantasizes about embracing her rage and attacking people on a regular basis. Things change for her when she finds a peculiar talisman that summons a demon (Paapa Essiedu) only she can see. This demon says she must kill three people in three days, otherwise the apocalypse will begin. The woman fails and the police believe she is crazy. However, she’s vindicated in the episode’s closing moments as the apocalypse begins and she decides to spend all of eternity in oblivion with the demon.
The episode doesn’t exactly break new ground. Plenty of stories have explored whether or not the main character is crazy or really an anointed one. Also, plenty of stories have dealt with serial killers developing their skills and becoming more confident in the process. Still, the episode does a great job mending all these different elements together in a period piece that also deals with things like racism and the rise of nationalism. The episode has a quirky horror vibe to it that is slow in the beginning but picks up in the end. It might not be Black Mirror’s best, and it might not be Black Mirror at all, but it’s still decent enough television.
Black Mirror is now streaming on Netflix.
