Pondering Black Mirror isn't a review series. It is a series where I take the intriguing parts of the episodes and attempt to break them down followed by me asking questions relating to the theme of the episode. Questions, that I am genuinely interested in hearing opinions about.
The first-ever episode of Black Mirror. There was certain importance put on it thanks to the Piggate and David Camero revelations. If you don't know what Piggate is, you might as well keep it that way.
When I think of National Anthem I think it is divided into several aspects.
Media and politics
The value of information
Information and politics
The real news
Media And Politics
In the current climate, there's a lot of power in the hands of the majority. A power that no one can claim is fully thought-through as it is often emotions-based.
In the given example we have a loved princess, but what if it is not a popular person, a hated person, or simply a regular citizen? Would the public be as invested in saving the person and have the prime minister commit a disgusting act such as having sexual intercourse with a pig?
The Value Of Information
As the main plot with the government attempting to locate and save the princess is happening we have two other plots relating to the value of information.
Firstly, we have a reporter offering nudes of herself in exchange for information from inside the government. The person in the government is willing to leak that information but only in exchange for something they'd never get in a normal situation. They could have used shares or money as a reward for the leak, but I believe this method provided the best example of how akin to prostitution it is.
Secondly, and this relates to the first point, we are mesmerized by new scopes, information, and the press in general. We are also quick to add our judgment to it. This makes the media go the distance that the reporter went to obtain them.
This combination can be dangerous as illustrated by the reporter getting harmed during the police attempting to save the princess.
Information And Politics
The first thing we see the government aiming to do when they receive the news and demands is whether or not they could keep it a secret. This opens up a debate about whether the public should know everything or even a deeper debate about what the public should and shouldn't know.
The Real News
Perhaps the irony of the episode is the meaninglessness of the prime minister's actions to save the queen. Amidst everything, the real news was lost and all the people received was pointless.
The prime minister didn't want to do it in the end but was forced, in the end with direct threats. Someone as powerful as the prime minister falling into blackmail by the government matching and even worse than that of the kidnapper. The most disturbing fact in consideration was completely missed by everyone.
Also, the princess was already released before the prime minister ended up doing what he did. And again, everyone missed it as they were glued to their T.V. Because, the fact is, those people are like us and we weren't watching the episode to see the princess get saved. A piece of information that was kept secret.
In Conclusion
What I like about Black Mirror is that it creates chaos based on a simple action. In this episode, the kidnapper wasn't a political power but rather a self-indulged artist. Chaos that it often tries to govern or an aspect for which it later attempts to add context.
National Anthem lays out many questions to ponder, it is essentially the show's creator Charlie Brooker picking out the worms in his brain and forcing us to watch. The first episode of Black Mirror clearly managed to get that idea across, that the show isn't about events or action sequences.
Questions Of The Episode.
These are questions relating to the episode that I would like to know your opinions on at least one of them:
Do you think people should have access to all information, even if it means them making an immediate or a quick decision?
If Elon Musk was forced to have sex with a pig tomorrow, would you be interested in watching?
How satisfied are you with your favorite news station coverage of current political events?
