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I thought this episode was trash. It makes no sense, and very cliche. Horrible episode....by the way I mean the Black Mirror episode not your show. You're pretty awesome mate. You showed me how to be a Lord.
Next time dont add any text to the thumb nail. It’s spoils it for people who are looking for recaps for episodes they’ve already seen. Like me. Dick move.
@@eppsunc THANK YOU! They totally had this plan backwards. As mentioned, there wouldn't be an episode if they did it this way. But outside of that, if you had this technology, there is no reason you would send the actual people into space vs the replicas.
Aaron paul deserves more drama roles. Shit like this shows how good he is at even outside breaking bad. I wonder if he is just purposely avoiding acting that much, bc he obviously has the talent to do more.
Nope, the theme they shared was how your company and family traumatizes you and then demonizes you for the symptoms they caused themselves and then stab you in the back. It's all about the dangerous mixture of ignorance and cruelty. And the good old seeing the devil in everything.
The heartbreaking fact of this ending, is that both needed each other to drive the spaceship and get back to Earth, so yeah, imagine spending the next 4 years next to the guy who murdered your family, an UNTHINKABLE ending!
This episode does an excellent job at making a sympathetic character completely unsympathetic by the end, despite the tragedy he went through. Amazing episode.
while i didn't think he was outright evil i did get some creepy vibes from him in the first half of the episode which i felt were validated by his creepy advances on Lana so i like that it feels just realistic enough based on how his character is portrayed throughout the episode
@@markc8329 I kind of agree, but then again he ended up using Cliffs act of kindness for his own benefit and pleasure. David was so distraught from losing his family that he ended up taking it out on Cliff because he was so jealous of the fact that Cliff still had a family and he didn’t. It would’ve been one thing if David had simply left Cliff to die in space while he went back down to Earth to steal his family, but instead he chose to murder them, and let Cliff live, because he knew that it would hurt Cliff just as much as losing his own family hurt him and being willing to inflict that kind of pain on someone else is just a whole other level of fucked up. It just revealed what kind of person David truly was the whole time, but before the tragedy it was just slowly crawling under the surface.
@@u121386 to be fair killing cliff wasnt really an option because it was established that the mission/station could not be maintained by one person so it would have been like killing himself
Interesting thought i had about this episode right after finishing it: Cliff was distant with his family while David was more present just because Cliff didn't feel right about living his life trough the replica. He loved his family but he wanted to remind himself that he wasn't really there. David on the other hand was able to live his life to the fullest trough the replica. This is reflected by the fact that David is good at using tools (drawing and operating controls on the spaceship) while Cliff, who's not good at using tools, including his own replica, is the one that goes on spacewalks, to do the actual grounded work on the field with its own body. Not sure what to take from it but it adds up and its very interesting.
That was my exact take. Cliff was just disgusted in a way with the idea of a robot being intimate with his wife, even though it was his “mind” controlling it. That tools aspect is pretty cool though and something I didn’t think about. Good catch
You can also add that Cliff maintained always a low profile: he moved to a farm zone to evite the contact with the world, meanwhile David was very open and even went to the Cinema with his family (this showed to affect the ending of both characters, you can see what happened with David's family)
Honestly this episode surprised me by its ending, I thought he was just gonna leave him Cliff in space and die there then pretends to be Cliff and live his life. But the message of this episode I believe was 1. Treasure what you have while you have it all. 2. Misery loves company. It was brilliant and dramatic~
I also think this episode begs the question that if someone goes through a horrific trauma and doesn’t get professional help, do they turn out to be monsters themselves?
@@owli3kat181 oh no. Hell no. Why he would want to survive after that? And also to rely on his family's murderer to be alive? For what? To return to Earth and be locked for life? To live with no family? To spend the rest of his life with the guilt of being responsible for his family's death (because of what he said to David)? Cliff has no reason to stay alive. This point of them depending on each other makes no sense.
I agree with your assessment. I also think a 3rd moral might be to beware your rage, for it may be returned to you.......perhaps in the worst way possible.
@@theiceyhawttstunna6631depending on the trauma. What happened specifically to David? Clearly he needed a LOT of help. I think watching your loved ones be killed brutally in front of you, with no way of stopping it, will definitely do a fucking number on you, and break your sanity. What doubled David’s problem was the isolation in space. He was left alone with his own thoughts, which I’m sure were not good anymore. He more than likely had frequent nightmares about the incident. Putting people in solitary confinement for too long has been proven to affect the brain permanently, so I don’t know that there was much to even do for David at that point. If they happen to make it back to earth, he could not and should not be allowed to be a member of the public. It’s so fucking tragic, but he’d likely have to be seen for therapy for the entirety of his life, and kept away from the general population. ☹️ And now Cliff will probably suffer that same mental breakdown.
I only have one gripe with this episode. If they had the technology to create these replicas, why wouldn't they just send the replicas into space instead of the actual human being? Then they would be out of harms way and would still be able to do their jobs.
Both people had some moments of difficulty working in replica form (ex: chopping wood). I thought that was a hint that it’s not as great as the real thing.
i think they mention multiple times that the mission would be impossible without two men hence why cliff lets david use his replica the first time. if david offed himself from his isolation cliff’s real body would be stuck up there with no way back down. i also think that’s why in the end cliff would have to sit with david. if either of them want to be able to return to earth they need each other
and that’s also why david doesn’t straight off off cliff. they really tried to make it seem that way with the editing but david wants to get back one day
They cant. Remember the show keeps showing the daily fitness test? It's to keep track of both pilots' vitality status. If one of them is dead, the plane couldnt be operated.
This episode felt like a feature film. The characters were well developed and complex. Every actor including the boy held their own. Emotional rollercoaster and claustrophobic. Thriller. It had it all. One of the best in the overall series.
I remember halfway through the episode I was like, “okay it’s so obvious David’s going to fall in love with Cliff’s wife, kill Cliff and take over his replica” and was almost disappointed as my prediction became more and more accurate … up until David opened the door and let Cliff back into the ship. And then the true ending. Wow.
David caused his own downfall, you can see this in the beginning where he lives a lavish life and thrives from the attention and fame he and his family receives. This eventually creates access to his family and life to others leading the hippies to kill his family and replica. In contrast, Cliff lives a much more conservative and private life but he does this to protect his family despite being perceived as cold to others. We get a second look at this when David returns in Cliffs replica and appears energized again by being recognized in the bookstore.
It is not David’s fault that his family got killed. It is the killer’s fault. The fact that they can’t live wherever they want is already these hippee’s fault. This is akin to blaming a raped woman for being too beautiful or dressed too seductively. What the fuck. Stop blaming the victims/
That really isn't fair. David did not walk around advertising his replica or job, he was recognized just like how Cliff was recognized at the book store. Even if he did brag and boast, he did not deserve loosing his family. He was a loving man driven mad due to the tragedy and isolation in space.
He could have called 911 after hearing people had broken in his house instead of confronting them. Would it have prevented them from attacking him and his family? Probably not, but way better than fighting them off on your own.
@@harmankang6883 Not just any famous person. The idea of him going to space and kept the robot version of himself is already controversial enough. Not everyone was a big fan of that idea and yes, there are always haters and that is why his family got killed. It is also wrong that famous person like David and Cliff got no bodyguards.
In my head, from the jump, I liked the idea of allowing him some space to use his replica but I would not have let my family be around him, I would’ve personally told my family to leave town or stay somewhere else while harnett was using Aaron’s replica. It allows him to be himself without putting the fact that someone else is playing your husband/father onto your family.
Good idea! 👍 That actually might've prevented Lana and their sons death too. Normal peeps with a traumatic tragedy to their loved ones with nothing to lose are just as dangerous as a bullied kid becoming the next school shooter. Their intentions in a way are unpredictable...
Fr was thinking about this the entire time. Or they could hire a servant. The wife and the kid pretended to go to beach on his last visit..if only they'd have done that from the start. But plot armor I guess
The moment Cliff said those hurtful things to David about how Lana feels about him (which might not be completely true since Cliff was super upset), you could see David display a break within him, a huge one, that made me think he was gonna do something else than trying to play nice since Lana apparently felt that way about him. So David saw that he had no choice, in his twisted mind. He literally lost EVERYTHING even the one short escape from that prison which was their ship. When you lose everything, you see and act completely different. (since you have nothing else to lose, but your own life which is useless if you don't have anything meaningful to fill it with) So never break someone and have their broken pieces directed towards you since you are gonna be the one whose negative emotions are gonna be directed towards, you're gonna be the victim, the one to suffer. So, think first, speak later.
It just sux that Cliff lied to him about what his wife told him about him! He didn’t want to make it seem like there was a chance when he knew that his wife admitted to him that she’s curious and all that bs
I think a key part I haven’t seen mentioned yet is the fact Cliff will be the one responsible for killing his own family since no one outside of his wife and son know he was letting David use his link and David can just deny it. He’ll be forced to stay on the ship with him until he’s arrested when he returns. Dark
I think this point could also be further proof for the hippies in that universe that the replicas are inhumane and only lead to destruction. Heartbreaking ending
Nah I don’t think so. The other guy was doing PT tests, which are recordable events, while he was letting the other use his robot. Probably enough evidence to suggest that they were both using the robot.
I think it would be pretty easy for Cliff to explain that he let his coworker use his replica because his was destroyed. The sad thing is David would probably use the insanity defense and get away with it.
I won't say it's Cliffs fault but I don't think it was smart to really twist the knife that Lana was disgusted by David. As much as David definitely crossed lines and boundaries, David was on the verge of full mental breakdown and cliff needed to have a bit more finesse with defending the honor of his family
aye well said, I knew that would bite him in the ass when I saw it. You don't create that level of tension with someone you need on a space mission and cooped up with for a few years alone. Better to try and be diplomatic.
@@Blake4014 yea man like I said David definitely crossed lines, but it's impossible not to empathize with him. For cliff and his wife to not even think prior that perhaps allowing a man who watched his family get butchered while he was stuck in space, might develop serious attachments to this family he's dropping into is just wild to me. And then once those attachments do form and it's all he has to focus on, you basically torment him and tell him he'll never have that and treat him as if he's a monster for it. It was all so avoidable
Maybe I'm splitting hairs but I don't think the one guy wasn't necessarily emotionally distance per se I think he just wanted to be emotional distant in the robot body because he felt like maybe the emotions weren't real in that body
Yeah I think he was just disgusted of the idea of a robot kissing and fucking his wife lol. And the idea of his son being attached to a robot. Which I can’t blame him for honestly
Yeah he was also religious so that could have played a big part in his reason for the distance from his wife. I imagine that being intimate with his wife in his replicas body would be very morally conflicting for a religious person.
Yesss and the religious point was a nice juxtaposition to the real story discussed in this video with the religious fanatics being against space travel
I think this is my new favorite episode of Black Mirror. I was on the edge of my seat the entire time and that final scene was haunting! I want there to be a follow up somehow about what happened during those remaining 4 years in space
I think you left out a key factor. Josh Hartnett went over the edge when Aaron character destroyed his painting. Going to the farm was helping him heal. When Aaron destroyed the painting and told Josh you can’t go back, that was the end of Josh peace so he said neither one of us will have peace.
you just justified that it's right and fair what did someone who killed a child and a woman (who said "love" when he was just sick obsessive) did after harassing the wife of the only man who tried to help him? Are you clearly a sociopath totally incapable of living in society? your way of thinking is disgusting and scary in equal parts. you should see a psychiatrist immediately. Not even joking, i am worry for real for your family and friends.
Well Josh Hartnett didn’t know his painting was destroyed. He purposely went back one final time to kill the wife and son. The painting might be a symbol of his broken peace but the character didn’t know about it.
Cliff mentions to his wife (when worried what David might do to himself) that the ship requires 2 people in order to run, this is what prompts him to allow David to use his replica (and it’s a kindness). So I just wanted to quickly add that at the end if he chose to kill David he would also be dooming himself, not just a matter of boredom.
yep it was like a chess move. Either get revenge on a man with nothing to lose and die in space or stay with the guy who killed your family and also not return to earth cuz hes a criminal now.
But as a husband and father, I would not care for my future, if someone would do it to my family - from my perspective to live in peace with David to the end of the mission - no way!
Misery loves company. That’s really what the episode tells you in the last scene. My thoughts on what transpired after this was that Aaron Paul’s character sat down and when Josh Hartnett tries speaking to him, there is no response. Basically they can still co-exist on the ship but Hartnett has lost the right to his interaction as punishment for his murderous actions.
People dont realize how powerful and distructive envy can be. David had so much envy in his heart that he couldnt let go of the fact Cliff had his life still intact while he didn't. On some "why me? why not him too?" And "if I'm gonna suffer, then you must suffer too" People like this do exist unfortunitly. Instead of focusing his energy on elevating him self (via healing or even retaliating against the cult) he instead focus his energy on bringing Cliff down to his level. Because misery loves company.
Because most “regular” people are more likely to get really fucked up over traumatic shit. Like imagine spending your whole life living in a peaceful bliss and then it gets ripped away from you abruptly and violently, something you’ve never experienced before and do not know how to deal with, and to add to it, instead of the traumatic event being something small, it is the ultimate worst thing to possibly happen to anybody. People who grow up with constant traumatic experiences eventually become more numb or desensitized to it and/or become more experienced and prepared for it, so when something truly truly fucked up happens they will not descend into madness as quickly or as deeply as someone who is in no way qualified to deal with something like that. And don’t even forget that this completely normal dude who has assumedly never had anything remotely fucked up happen to him had to deal with all the trauma of watching his family be butcher *all by himself* and he didn’t even have *fucking nature* to console him. Even if someone doesn’t talk to a therapist or a friend about something like that, it’s still extremely effective to just *go outside*, he didn’t even have the sun. It was the fact that he was so regular that makes the spiral into insanity even worse than some peoples, and to add to it he was completely, *completely* isolated afterwards. Even if Cliff was there it is clear that so much time has passed and they probably have not discussed what happened to David once. It feels even more isolating to be physically near someone and still be all alone.
Sorry for paragraph I just think a lot about the concept of “regular” ppl going insane, especially cuz it is far more impacting to see a story about someone in that position cuz it shows just truly how messed up humans can become.
Wouldnt say everyone faced with tradgedy would just go and kill Cliff's family like that though. Feels a little devoid of reason or logic. If they needed one another to survive, and David needed help, would they not have just agreed to compromise? There were so many reasonable avenues to go down but Dave just ended up in the worst possible one. Idk I felt like this whole episode was just way too conveniently set up so as that no new replicas could be made, the replicas were not instead sent into space. Feels like convenience masquerading as "thought experiment" to generate raw shock value and make u forget that the episode had almost no exploration of a message. Aside from the obvious, "trauma changes people" which we never get a development on or a follow up. The fact that we never got to see the two talk at the end or watch them descend into madness was the most suprising part, even more so than the fact that Dave killed Cliff's family which itself was supposed to be the big twist. Yet they chose to just abruptly end it before we got into the good stuff. You know, the stuff that makes an episode of black mirror worth your time. Why pull that twist where Cliff kills instead of steals and just refuse to elaborate on it?
@@JosefinaQByou give this a lot of thought.. truly, going from point a to point b, can happen in a blink of an eye… will it happen to me? Will it happen to you? Will we have a normal life, or will darkness claim our rest of our lives in this roulette?
@Aminata Kone the couple could have agreed to it before the 1st time they swapped. There was plenty of time, he only occupied the body for one hour a week
Honestly I don't think it mattered, cliff lived in the middle of nowhere and he was outside in space for less than 10 minutes, my guess is he ran into the house grabbed a knife and finished the job as soon as possible, there would have been no time to even ask him what the password is
No security for the replicas? No shrink for the guy that lost his family? Amazing episode, but these little things bugged me. Not to mention the fact that they send the real humans to space, and not the replicas
It is set in the 70’s, they wouldn’t consider these potential problems. NASA had to learn the hard way too. Additionally it’s the entire concept of the show, a lot of these episodes have solutions though it’s highlighting the extreme end of over reliance of technology and not considering the impact on society.
Part of the reason Cliff was distant with his wife was because he felt that doing so as a Replica isn't the real thing. Maybe the same can be applied when wondering about why they didn't send the replicas to space: because it wouldn't be the same as the men themselves going? an Ego thing
@tiptoejoe4899 Part ego and part practicality. The androids having a malfunction in the outer reaches of space jeopardises the entire mission. Part of the mission was to measure how humans might adapt to living in space.
Great actor! Just looked up why he never become a huge, permanent superstar. Took a long hiatus from acting to spend time with his wife and raise his kids. They're still married eleven years later. He just walked away from it all for his own sanity. Kind of admire a man who quits while he's ahead and stops to enjoy the fruits of his labor
i think the point was that they needed both men to man the ship, there was a scene where they explicitly stated that. so if one killed the other he would essentially be signing his own death warrant. which is i think why josh hartnett's character chose to kill the family instead of aaron paul, because if he had done the latter he could have just taken over his link. but he'd eventually die because the ship needs them both to function properly.
I agree. They needed two men to run the ship or everything and everyone dies. But also, I think he wanted Cliff to understand what it was like for him to lose his entire family. That Cliff took his Earth life experience for granted. So David steps in and sees color, life, love, and a place for all of them to be happy. Cliff was exaggerating when he angrily told David what Lana thought of him. She never said she wanted to vomit. She was trying to tell Cliff that David made her feel seen, while Cliff did not. That she wished Cliff would look at her like David did. Jealousy took over Cliff. Then Cliff decided to take everything David had to look forward to for one hour a week. And David saw it as a waste. If one couldn’t appreciate Lana then neither should be able to have her. I felt biblical references here. Of Canaan and Able. I felt too many loose ends though. Who would be accused of Lana and Henry’s murders? Did NASA know about them sharing Cliff’s link? Was Cliff just a selfish prick who wanted to stay alive and finish the mission, even though his family was murdered? Because we could see David going into suicide mode when his family was murdered.. but Cliff just “takes a seat” at the end. A lot of symbolism in this episode, yet unanswered questions too.
I also can't help by notice a subtle theme of domestic abuse and violence. Many times folks in domestic violence relationship report how their partner "was a different person" when engaging in the more abusive acts. This episode literally has the partner in question change and, eventually, end the life of the wife and child.
Yeah absolutely, I think is more what it’s about than anything really. When he says “you don’t appreciate what you have” we naturally assume he means “your wife and daughter are wonderful people whom you should do right by.” But he didn’t literally meant it as not a appreciating your possessions. If he believed the wife and son had intrinsic value as people, it wouldn’t be worth killing then to prove a point. It makes you realize he probably felt this way about his own family too.
@@muffininorbitit wasn’t just to prove a point. Cliff threw all the nasty things the wife supposedly said in his face. He was enraged. He was alone. He was jealous. That’s a bad combination, and if he had nothing left to lose, sometimes you think the only thing that can make you feel better is to have someone feel just like you. I don’t think there’s a strong argument to be made that Ross was some sort of secret abuser than looked at his family as possessions. I don’t exactly like how they framed the wife’s infidelity in this situation, because they absolutely physically and emotionally cheated together, even if they didn’t go all the way. But they went with the misogynistic-undertone with the way Ross treated rejection. But again, he’d just be broken in a dozen different ways. He’s mentally unstable, understandably so. I think it’s unfair to treat it as a black/white, evil/good dilemma. Of course Ross was in the wrong. But what would you do if you were stuck on a ship, alone while the people who hates you live happily right next door, and you lived knowing everyday is meaningless for you? I guarantee that you wouldn’t sit quietly and wait for the ship to land on earth. I love the writing of this tragedy, but it’s not fair to break it down to another simple domestic abuse PSA.
This episode made me feel so much. Yes, it was predictable. Immediately was wondering when he was going to start “dancing” with Cliff’s wife. Immediately knew this dynamic was not sustainable. But predictability doesn’t dilute execution. Beautiful episode that made me reflect on the concept of misery and which character truly felt the most misery….and how much work has no regard for it (David’s replica never replaced by the organization, no contact made to tend to the needs of David or Cliff even after their families are murdered….just get back to work and complete the work that needs to get done).
I don't think replacing David's replica was a factor, maybe it would have been eventually. But, since he felt he had nothing and no one to go back to, I don't know if going off on his own would have helped much. Maybe eventually it could have been helpful. I just get the feeling that he wouldn't want to go back to his own home - which was burned down anyway - and going back down as himself would not have done him much good. He would have gotten a lot of pity but also he might have been attacked again.
Once you get to a certain point in the episode, you get a pretty good idea of how it ends, but none of that matters because it's just a really good episode.
The ending actually is a surprise because u think the majority of us thought, he would’ve just left him outside of the spaceship, or that he would’ve returned as him, and faked his life as him, knowing that he really killed him
@@assassin0547yeah but that’s not out of the ordinary. The man has no family so it isn’t ridiculously to think that he’d lock cliff out and just live out his time in the replica until the ship is destroyed .
For some reason when David first wakes up as Cliff, my mind immediately thought, "I'm a dude playing a dude disguised as another dude." Probably not the reaction the show was going for, but here we are.
This whole episode I thought David was going to kill Cliff and come back to earth pretending to be the real Cliff so he can have his wife and his life. Even though the ship needs 2 ppl I still thought that through the whole thing lol great episode tho I loved it
@@DJMS2706The voice is the same too, it’s just the tone and mannerisms that makes him distinct. He could act more like Cliff, or maybe just say there was an accident and it’s just him in space now. Eventually he might win over Lana.
David is just awful...I know his family was taken but that doesn't mean he gets to take someone else's. This is the reality of a kind person. Lana and Cliff only showed him kindness and generosity. They did a good deed by helping him, but it only led to a terrible ending. David got way too comfortable taking and taking. That just wasn't right. Cliff wasn't perfect but he and his family did not deserve that. David is now on my list of highly unlikable characters.
Incredible episode. To me, this really explores the primal human need for connection. Even if the only person you have to be connected to is the person who annihilated your family. He goes back into his replica, he has nothing. He at least has someone in space but, it’s space and it’s lonely. And they can both now at least connect over not having their families in a sick way. This show talks about loneliness in different forms, and what we need Vs what we want. Ugh, So many angles you could look at this episode from. I love this show haha
Nah cliff is just evil psychopath just 4 yrs of loneliness doesn’t make human to massacre innocent people lol you’re definitely getting weird wrong messages from this episode
What an absolutely incredible episode. I loved that they didn't do the trite ending of 'David kills Cliff and takes over his replica.' This ending was way more interesting. David wanted Cliff to feel the same agony he was in. He didn't want to be alone in his anguish.
I don’t think either of them could kill each other as the ship can’t be run with just 1 person. If they kill each other then they’re killing themselves in the long run. That’s ultimately the choice at the end. Cliff ultimately let’s David borrow his replica because hes so depressed that he’s worried David will leave the ship and kill himself as he has no purpose and cliff can’t run it on his own.
The theme of being alone is also stressed in the interaction where he says you have no idea how he feels. He felt even alone in tragedy he felt coupled with being alone in space. He essentially was tired of being alone at the end and introduced that tragedy into his copilots life.
I was getting Heavy Charles Mason vibes from the group that killed his family. Also Cliff was brave asf for just going back to earth all sleep while a unhinged man is wondering about In the ship w him lol talk about hostile work environments
Loved this episode "Some things cant be told. you live them or you don't." A quote from the Hunting of Hillhouse that it encapsulates this ep beautifully
Remember it was mentioned that it was a two man ship and the mission couldn’t be completed with just 1. This answers: Why did he open the door back up instead of just leaving him out there in space, then just go ahead and continue to use his replica on earth? Why doesn’t Jesse Pinkman kill the guy at the end? Its not just because they would have to endure the rest of the mission alone but because they themselves wouldn’t be able to survive it without eachother
Yeah I think Jesse Pinkman was just delayed in his shocked response. I like to think he strangled psycho dude after the credits roll. What an awful episode.
@@assassin0547 Yes, comparatively speaking awful. Obvious, very negative endings. Scenes that didn't make sense. Even that Smithereens episode where the guy dies had some positive, interesting elements to it. Yup,just plain awful.
Cliff did love his wife and son and want to be affectionate, I think. I think the deal was he didnt like the idea of a robot touching her and being intimate with them. Even though it was “him”. So I’m not so sure he would’ve killed david. He’s very objective and would probably realize the mission is bigger than their personal tragedies. So in a fucked up way David wins.
Jealousy works the other way round. If you already had something you won't be jealous of something different than your preferred life. People are usually jealous of something they can't have and never had. It made no sense, to me at least. Unless his mate had something to do with his tragedy. That's a different story. Ruining someone's life to share the tragedy they are not at fault in makes no sense at all.
Jealousy comes in many forms and people aren’t perfectly logical. The isolation and mental illness from watching your family get murdered drove David insane. Misery loves company. He wanted to lash out at someone. Since the cult already turned themselves into police there was no one to lash out at.
@@lukesmith3618 I understand what it's trying to sell, but it's still forced. You don't just turn into a sadistic murderer. It would've required more than this. These are astronauts, mentally and physically strong guys, not just random people. And you won't kill the only people you can have contact with and are the only link to the earth, only if you've given up on life. But he hasn't. There has to be a way stronger motive, betrayal or something. What do we know about the cult? Who are they, why did they target him? What happened to them? Will they attack him on the earth again? Will he get revenge? Where's the closure? It's an open story. Anyway replicas are probably an analogy to the masks people wear in different situations. And depicting the people, who are so ignorant they believe it makes people fake, as a cult is actually a smart observation. I liked that.
*Everyone’s saying “why didn’t they just send a replica into space”, but I’m asking why they didn’t give protection to the replicas and their families with law enforcement so the murders didn’t even happen in the first place!*
In "The Moon is a Harsh Mistress" the moon settlers practice group and line marriages. I think this was a part of the reason David chose that book for Cliffs wife, to kind of worm that idea into her head, the possibility of multiple husbands.
I thought the replicas should of been used in space too. But when I thought about it, if a replica did break down the ship and mission is lost. But if it breaks down on earth they can either fix it or worse case have to finish your mission the “old fashion way” and stay in space for the whole mission
In modern age like now we would definitely use replicas in space any chance possible, human lives, especially astronauts are far far more valuable than the cost of any missions. But it was set in the 60s so they probably didn’t value lives as much
I mean that man was a petty narcissist. If they wanted to go crazy and make David endearing, he would've gone to the jail to kill the cult members and be a robot vigilante from space.
@@Nice-sz4ee yeh, I actually briefly thought that David would use Cliffs replica to go after the murderers and get revenge, would've made him a hero. But no, he chooses to hurt his friend out of pure selfishness.
I love how they made everyone think Cliff would be stranded in space where David could live his life himself. Literally everyone was shocked by the ending, probably my favourite episode of the whole show. Properly f’d up
Just finished this and so far it’s the best of the season. This season is a strong return to form although I felt Joan is Awful’s twist ending pulled me out of the episode.
He was in Cliff's body when he committed the crime, so when a forensics team sees Cliff's fingerprints at the scene, can they figure out that it was David in Cliff's body? Is there a log or something? If not, he framed Cliff and essentially forced him to stay on the ship full-time with him. If Cliff comes back to his Replica, he could immediately be arrested.
@@heathledger8439 yea and I'm sure cliff mentioned to mission control that he was allowing David to use his replica. Because they would probably know cliff's replica was running when cliff was in the middle of his physical.
I don't think it'll be a stretch to convince authorities that the guy whose family was butchered stole the chip of his shipmates and butchered his family in a similar way.
I honestly can't believe that there's no programming to prevent violence or that the wife was not concerned about his partner stealing the body or killing her husband. Once he betrays trust, the family should have left.
My initial thought was that David would go back to Cliff's body pretending to be him in order to have sex with his wife. Knowing all the details of what was said, he would use that as the con and Cliff's rekindling of an intimate relationship with his wife to get it started. However, I do understand how the actual ending is definitely better. His wife saying she'd never be with Cliff's enraged his ego. The chair being kicked out at the end was a, "have a seat buddy - who is now in the same predicament as I am with having lost everyone I care about. We're going to just coexist now in that state of understanding."
I don’t think David killed Cliff’s family. He used linseed oil on his red paint to make Cliff think that his family was dead… to make him appreciate what he has. This was alluded to throughout the episode. Cliff was quick to get mad at David throughout, and was visibly upset at the end of the episode… not because of what David did, but because David taught him a lesson. That’s why David kicks the chair out to talk instead of immediately defend himself.
I really thought David was going to try something on cliff and start living as him but I also thought why don’t they just send the replicas to space instead
His family wasn't dead they were alive. They are showing the cabin where the painting was had Red paint missing which was present in the episode. The car parked outside the car was missing too. David wanted to make sure Cliff felt his pain . David did go to the past but he told Cliff's wife its him. As routine Cliff's wife and son left from the house and then David painted it red. Cliff realized it so when he returned back he had sympathy in his eyes rather than anger and David had confidence.
Ok so if u suspects that your wife and kid died by seeing bloods everywhere, wouldn't u go find the body first to make sure if they survive it somehow and then return to the spaceship instead of just seeing blood, didnt see the body and be like "eh they must be dead, ill head back to the ship"..so in short the whole point of the episode is how David felt jealous of cliff n lost his mind so killed his family so cliff can feel what he feels..theres no theory..they didnt showed david's wife's body too so the episode just didnt showed any dead body..doesnt mean they're not dead
Plus david knows cliff wont kill him on revenge (atleast not on spaceship) coz he wont be able to handle the spaceship alone so killing david means Killin ownself n david took the chances of that not happening
I wanted to give props to Rory Culkin’s awesome 5 minutes of fame in this episode, his performance was chilling and dreadful. You can tell he really tapped into his evil side after Lords of Chaos, in which his character is strikingly similar, both in looks and demeanour to his character in this episode.
I think another reason he probably didn't kill David is because as Cliff had mentioned to his wife before when David seemed to be contemplating suicide. it's a 2 man ship and if there are ever any emergencies or repairs required etc he would need David. So he would be dooming himself as well if he killed him.
First time watching this episode I thought that David would either get revenge on the cult for murdering his family, or that the cult would end up murdering Cliff’s family too, which I think would have made for a much more suspenseful episode. But the ending was good, nonetheless.
@@Brismo7that’s what any other studio working on this kind of an episode would do, but this is black mirror. Sure they could’ve made it an action packed fight against an evil cult, but that’d be too easy. Black mirror is a psychological horror. It took probably the most realistic route (well apart from the humanoid robots lol).
@@N3XUS_T4RG3T I thought it would be interesting to play with the morality of using someone else's avatar to do harm. But the extreme hartnett's character went seemed way out of character. I also thought he got over his wife and kid very quickly. Maybe they were trying to portray him as being an extreme sociopath. But the first half of the story made him seem very very normal. But then again, remember that one lady astronaut that wore a diaper and drove 2 days straight to see her lover? Idk...
@@smartwater598she definitely knew, she craved it, she got tempted but was able to not give in to that temptation and remembered who her real husband is. I think it started with her giving David her husbands hat saying he always wears it
Strong episode. I thought it showcased very well how someone (David) can lose their sanity through great loss. I know it’s not Black Mirror’s style, but I can imagine this episode getting a sequel in the next season, with further twists, and Cliff getting back at David, only dooming himself as well
The entire episode, I was wondering if Replicas could continue to function while the main body was deceased, because I expected David to murder Cliff while Cliff was in his body on Earth and take his place. We don't really know what this mission is about, but we do know that the ship requires 2 people to operate, so if David were to kill Cliff then he would possibly be dooming his real body to die up there, or at the very least fail the mission. I did think of the possibility that David would murder Cliff's family so he could know how it feels, but I didn't think he'd actually do it because he would have to face Cliff up in space. Still, the fact that they went through with it shocks me.
@@tf2368On the contrary Charlie didn’t give us the expected ending and left us hanging how events would pan out for the two characters. That’s classic Black Mirror narrative, giving the viewer plenty to think about.
Interesting. It was intuitively clear to me that the end was not really a killing. He's a painter and knows how to use paint. It's not blood, it's red paint. He just wanted to put him through the same experience so he could understand how he felt -- to get his empathy back. When he realizes he didn't kill his family after all, but it was all just red paint, he's infinitely grateful and understanding -- the end scene shows that quite well, because it's much more of a brotherly coming together than a meeting with a psycho killer. anyone?
The whole time I was thinking why didn’t they just send the robots up instead. I get they did it for plot convenience but black mirror is usually pretty good at avoiding those plot holes.
If I had a coin for every time Josh Hartnett played a guy trying to steal his friends girl, Id have two coins which aint much but its weird it happened twice.
Thumbnail is more spoilery than you probably intended. Knowing he was going to "do" something (likely heinous) basically had me waiting for what "it" would be.
doesn't make you immune because you're bigger, if the other person is determined he'll find a weapon or something to give him better odds. Where theres a will, theres a way.
Another way of looking at this episode is to think of it as a bottle episode. The main characters are stuck on a spacecraft together floating in space for a very long time. We as the audience don't even know this at first. We think life on Earth is basically normal until we find out about the replica / consciousness-transference situation. Even then, the characters aren't really confined, because of the replicas. It's not until the very end--when we realize that neither guy has a reason to go back to Earth (given the deaths of their families) and that even if they wanted to use the one remaining replica, there may be legal reasons why doing so would be difficult (the replica has blood on its hands in more ways than one)--that we feel as trapped aboard the spacecraft as the guys do. And then we understand: this was a bottle ep all along.
But why couldn't Cliff use his replica to organize a replica-replacement for David? He had access to be on earth and therefore could go to their "head office" and order a replacement..That would have been the decent thing to do instead of linking him to his own clone..
David did not kill the family. He shaved and cleaned himself up to start anew. David’s intention was to apologise to Cliff’s wife. Maybe say his goodbye. Checked in and saw the family already slaughtered. The blood smears on the wall was the “chekov’s gun” planted by the writers in the same early scene when David’s family was massacred. This ties in with the bookstore scene whereby Cliff’s family location was revealed (so it’s also partly David’s fault) David wanted to hide the tags to stall Cliff from seeing the horror sooner. This will explain why Cliff wasn’t raging to kill David after returning to the ship. And why David offered a chair so he could comfort him. Brilliant writing.
They handed themselves in and are locked away. Also he’s still grieving and processing the loss of his family and agreed only to use the replica for short periods of time.
Did anyone else notice the Breaking Bad reference when they are going shopping and the character use Heisenberg's clothes? He even put the iconic black hat like Walt.
This episode really shows what kindness does. Cliff and Lara only showed kindness to David, David took it for granted, got greedy, and ended up hurting them both. You don't always see someone's true colors, but when you do, it is unmistakable. Cliff wasn't a perfect man, but he was a good man deep down inside. He and his family didn't deserve that. Not at all. Looks can be decieving. On the surface, David seems like a warm, caring, and forgiving man. But deep down inside, he was selfish, murderous, and out of control. Cliff on the surface seemed like an indifferent, distant, and emotionless man, but deep down inside, he cares. Never judge a book by it's over. There's only so much you can see on the tip of the iceberg.
I think this is a PERFECT example of an episode that pays homage to the everlasting theme in every black mirror ending. this is the message that no natter what...the reliability of inate human instincts will always trump the faulty, narrow grip that technology has on mankind. This answers the question; "why don't they just send the replicas into space?". If we apply this logic it is not a matter of if...but WHEN our A.i fails us. As we begin to rely on technology too much we also start losing our faith in humanity. Humans could very well be the product of their own demise.
I never understood why the evil astronaut didn’t try to get revenge on the cult with the other guys body double. Also if they have that technology why wouldn’t u stay on the planet and neurolink to the space station.
the culprit already caught i believe, and i prefer the ending as the killer is not the other astronout, its just he make himself the witnes, again, instead off the original astronout aaron paul should nut suffer the same as other astronout by witnesing his family get slaughter, sory cant realy remember thir name
The end of this episode PISSED ME OFF SO BAD me and my friends argued on end about what we imagined Cliff would have done afterwards. The final twist was totally unexpected.
He didn’t kill the family. He killed the dog. That is why right before the call they focus him with they dog, that I personally didn’t even know they had one until then. He was showing his hand that he could kill the family anytime he wanted. So he pushed out the chair so they could make a deal. Most likely he got the wife. I mean it’s kinda obvious and surprised no one talked about it. Also on a side note. I hate endings like this. Because either theory could be right. However mine is more sound just for the fact that the would have killed his partner if he murdered his family. So he wins nothing. He loved her. So again wins nothing by killing her. Plus he had no sign of being that cruel. I prefer the classic beginning, middle, and end of stories. Yeah, sometimes you can break the rule when the situation suits or needs it. But this wasn’t one of them.
Although i love your analysis, i got the impression he was distant from his family because he was so far away/interacting through his replica. He knew how fragile that link way. Thats why he is so cagey about the replica sharing. When he talks with his family on earth he is thoughtful in a considered, logical way (hence the coldness). Just my 2 cent. Cant wait for further episode breakdowns.
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why didnt they put the machines in space
I thought this episode was trash. It makes no sense, and very cliche. Horrible episode....by the way I mean the Black Mirror episode not your show. You're pretty awesome mate. You showed me how to be a Lord.
Next time dont add any text to the thumb nail. It’s spoils it for people who are looking for recaps for episodes they’ve already seen. Like me. Dick move.
@@eppsunci was thinking the same
@@eppsunc THANK YOU! They totally had this plan backwards. As mentioned, there wouldn't be an episode if they did it this way. But outside of that, if you had this technology, there is no reason you would send the actual people into space vs the replicas.
I thought he was going to kill Cliff and continue to visit Earth and live as him. I was very surprised by the ending.
Same. But I think he was just pity and evil
needed two people if anything happened up there
Same
Me too
I was thinking the same, maybe they thought it would be predictable or they would have to extend the episode.
Aaron Paul killed that shit. Always props to one actor playing two characters
Aaron paul deserves more drama roles. Shit like this shows how good he is at even outside breaking bad.
I wonder if he is just purposely avoiding acting that much, bc he obviously has the talent to do more.
Yes he did. I was so moved but also wrecked by this episode.
He deserves an award for this performance for sure, so good
Literally.... No wait...
His crying scene was incredible. He did it all in one take
A theme shared by "Joan Is Awful" and this episode is that you need to be really careful about whom you let use your image and likeness.
no shot 😮
Absolutely, and what papers you sign! Because AI is already here and most people are awful.
Nice!
yeah, they've run out of ideas for this season
Nope, the theme they shared was how your company and family traumatizes you and then demonizes you for the symptoms they caused themselves and then stab you in the back. It's all about the dangerous mixture of ignorance and cruelty. And the good old seeing the devil in everything.
The heartbreaking fact of this ending, is that both needed each other to drive the spaceship and get back to Earth, so yeah, imagine spending the next 4 years next to the guy who murdered your family, an UNTHINKABLE ending!
1.5-2 years. Remember they already mentioned it's been 2 years and some time has passed
Wouldnt he be going back to earth to go to jail? That would be an interesting trial to prove that he wasnt linked in.
@@s.k.o.e.2191 well considering they live out in the country, to save both their asses just dispose of the bodies and nobody will bat an eye
@@s.k.o.e.2191 not likely. shit like thís got surveillance hard, I bet they have a way to trace back who logged in
Well, he has 2 years to plot his revenge.
He was trying to be helpful, not realizing he was inviting a monster into his home. Gut-wrenching.
Well he was also trying to save his own ass remember. David was not stable suicidal maybe. And if David died the Aaron Paul did too
He should've just had him talk to a therapist..
@@CursedAi-This just proves suicidal people are also homicidal. If you can off yourself you can off anyone
No good deed goes unpunished. Sad to see David take advantage of his generosity
This sounds like it should be part of the synopsis of episode
This episode does an excellent job at making a sympathetic character completely unsympathetic by the end, despite the tragedy he went through. Amazing episode.
while i didn't think he was outright evil i did get some creepy vibes from him in the first half of the episode which i felt were validated by his creepy advances on Lana so i like that it feels just realistic enough based on how his character is portrayed throughout the episode
@@markc8329 I kind of agree, but then again he ended up using Cliffs act of kindness for his own benefit and pleasure. David was so distraught from losing his family that he ended up taking it out on Cliff because he was so jealous of the fact that Cliff still had a family and he didn’t. It would’ve been one thing if David had simply left Cliff to die in space while he went back down to Earth to steal his family, but instead he chose to murder them, and let Cliff live, because he knew that it would hurt Cliff just as much as losing his own family hurt him and being willing to inflict that kind of pain on someone else is just a whole other level of fucked up. It just revealed what kind of person David truly was the whole time, but before the tragedy it was just slowly crawling under the surface.
@@u121386 to be fair killing cliff wasnt really an option because it was established that the mission/station could not be maintained by one person so it would have been like killing himself
@@markc8329 you think he is going to return to earth and everything be fine? People commit suicide all the time.
@@Brismo7 good job proving you can bring up obvious possibilities. Want a cookie?
Interesting thought i had about this episode right after finishing it: Cliff was distant with his family while David was more present just because Cliff didn't feel right about living his life trough the replica. He loved his family but he wanted to remind himself that he wasn't really there. David on the other hand was able to live his life to the fullest trough the replica. This is reflected by the fact that David is good at using tools (drawing and operating controls on the spaceship) while Cliff, who's not good at using tools, including his own replica, is the one that goes on spacewalks, to do the actual grounded work on the field with its own body.
Not sure what to take from it but it adds up and its very interesting.
That was my exact take. Cliff was just disgusted in a way with the idea of a robot being intimate with his wife, even though it was his “mind” controlling it.
That tools aspect is pretty cool though and something I didn’t think about. Good catch
You can also add that Cliff maintained always a low profile: he moved to a farm zone to evite the contact with the world, meanwhile David was very open and even went to the Cinema with his family (this showed to affect the ending of both characters, you can see what happened with David's family)
@@cubanenjoyer1325 yes, even their homes on earth reflect this aspect of their characters
Dam I didn’t even make that connection 👏
could argue davis was a romantic, hense being good at art, and why he was struggling to keep it together once he lost touch of tht
Honestly this episode surprised me by its ending, I thought he was just gonna leave him Cliff in space and die there then pretends to be Cliff and live his life. But the message of this episode I believe was 1. Treasure what you have while you have it all. 2. Misery loves company. It was brilliant and dramatic~
I also think this episode begs the question that if someone goes through a horrific trauma and doesn’t get professional help, do they turn out to be monsters themselves?
He couldn’t do that becuSe it’s a two man ship . He didn’t want to die. And he knew Cliff wouldn’t kill him either cause they need each other
@@owli3kat181 oh no. Hell no. Why he would want to survive after that? And also to rely on his family's murderer to be alive? For what? To return to Earth and be locked for life? To live with no family? To spend the rest of his life with the guilt of being responsible for his family's death (because of what he said to David)? Cliff has no reason to stay alive. This point of them depending on each other makes no sense.
I agree with your assessment. I also think a 3rd moral might be to beware your rage, for it may be returned to you.......perhaps in the worst way possible.
@@theiceyhawttstunna6631depending on the trauma. What happened specifically to David? Clearly he needed a LOT of help. I think watching your loved ones be killed brutally in front of you, with no way of stopping it, will definitely do a fucking number on you, and break your sanity. What doubled David’s problem was the isolation in space. He was left alone with his own thoughts, which I’m sure were not good anymore. He more than likely had frequent nightmares about the incident.
Putting people in solitary confinement for too long has been proven to affect the brain permanently, so I don’t know that there was much to even do for David at that point.
If they happen to make it back to earth, he could not and should not be allowed to be a member of the public. It’s so fucking tragic, but he’d likely have to be seen for therapy for the entirety of his life, and kept away from the general population. ☹️
And now Cliff will probably suffer that same mental breakdown.
The guy’s name is Cliff (The last barrier between the sea and the land). This ties to the episode title, ‘Beyond the Sea’
What about beaches
Oh, I like this observation!
@@BobbyCaldwell69do u really believe that every edge of the earth has a beach? 🤦🏾♂️
@@awesomesauce8151or a cliff?
@@BobbyCaldwell69 Beaches gonna beach.
I only have one gripe with this episode. If they had the technology to create these replicas, why wouldn't they just send the replicas into space instead of the actual human being? Then they would be out of harms way and would still be able to do their jobs.
That's a really good question. Maybe it speaks to the early development stages where you learn from the failures and do better goin forward.
My exact thought, they could've done the job from the earth. Isn't it why we invented robots?
fair point
Because people want to go to space. That's a goal for some, specially those in that field of expertise.
Both people had some moments of difficulty working in replica form (ex: chopping wood). I thought that was a hint that it’s not as great as the real thing.
Honestly I just thought he'd lock him out when he was outside the ship but damn, that ending really was unexpected.
Me too
i think they mention multiple times that the mission would be impossible without two men hence why cliff lets david use his replica the first time. if david offed himself from his isolation cliff’s real body would be stuck up there with no way back down.
i also think that’s why in the end cliff would have to sit with david. if either of them want to be able to return to earth they need each other
and that’s also why david doesn’t straight off off cliff. they really tried to make it seem that way with the editing but david wants to get back one day
I thought he would lock him out and replace him. But man that ending was truly crazy
They cant. Remember the show keeps showing the daily fitness test? It's to keep track of both pilots' vitality status. If one of them is dead, the plane couldnt be operated.
Aaron was convincing playing as two different people
Massive respect to his acting
He did such a great job holly shit
Yeah you could really tell when david was using his replica it's insane
@@oess855 yeah every opening shot in the barn realllly helped!
One of the best actors in the business
Truly impeccable
bravo vince
This episode felt like a feature film. The characters were well developed and complex. Every actor including the boy held their own. Emotional rollercoaster and claustrophobic. Thriller. It had it all. One of the best in the overall series.
What did the boy do? 😂 They didn't ask much of him tbh.
Probably bc they are Hollywood actors not just random actors like some of the other eps
Its length was 1 hour and 30 mins so yeah I understand why you might say it's like a feature film
@@JB-kp7pw Emmy worthy for sure
My first black mirror episode and I’m afraid nothing will live up to it like this one did.
I remember halfway through the episode I was like, “okay it’s so obvious David’s going to fall in love with Cliff’s wife, kill Cliff and take over his replica” and was almost disappointed as my prediction became more and more accurate … up until David opened the door and let Cliff back into the ship. And then the true ending. Wow.
Thank God the ending was different, it was so close to disappoint me.
Exactly my thoughts 😅 I DID NOT expect David to kill his family...
This was the best episode this season. It was really sad that his pain made him so selfish that he chose to rather share it than wait it out.
Thank you, I agree. People are out here saying it was bad. I couldn't disagree more.
Only good episode in season 6
This is the only episode which sticks with the Black Mirror theme.
@@noone-sq8ct this one and joan is awful, i didn't like the shift into the supernatural honestly.
@@boizen same , forgot to mention Joan is Awful.
David caused his own downfall, you can see this in the beginning where he lives a lavish life and thrives from the attention and fame he and his family receives. This eventually creates access to his family and life to others leading the hippies to kill his family and replica. In contrast, Cliff lives a much more conservative and private life but he does this to protect his family despite being perceived as cold to others. We get a second look at this when David returns in Cliffs replica and appears energized again by being recognized in the bookstore.
It is not David’s fault that his family got killed. It is the killer’s fault. The fact that they can’t live wherever they want is already these hippee’s fault. This is akin to blaming a raped woman for being too beautiful or dressed too seductively. What the fuck. Stop blaming the victims/
That really isn't fair. David did not walk around advertising his replica or job, he was recognized just like how Cliff was recognized at the book store. Even if he did brag and boast, he did not deserve loosing his family. He was a loving man driven mad due to the tragedy and isolation in space.
He could have called 911 after hearing people had broken in his house instead of confronting them. Would it have prevented them from attacking him and his family? Probably not, but way better than fighting them off on your own.
By that logic any famous person that dies, it’s the famous persons fault.
@@harmankang6883 Not just any famous person. The idea of him going to space and kept the robot version of himself is already controversial enough. Not everyone was a big fan of that idea and yes, there are always haters and that is why his family got killed. It is also wrong that famous person like David and Cliff got no bodyguards.
In my head, from the jump, I liked the idea of allowing him some space to use his replica but I would not have let my family be around him, I would’ve personally told my family to leave town or stay somewhere else while harnett was using Aaron’s replica. It allows him to be himself without putting the fact that someone else is playing your husband/father onto your family.
Good idea! 👍 That actually might've prevented Lana and their sons death too. Normal peeps with a traumatic tragedy to their loved ones with nothing to lose are just as dangerous as a bullied kid becoming the next school shooter. Their intentions in a way are unpredictable...
Fr was thinking about this the entire time. Or they could hire a servant. The wife and the kid pretended to go to beach on his last visit..if only they'd have done that from the start. But plot armor I guess
The moment Cliff said those hurtful things to David about how Lana feels about him (which might not be completely true since Cliff was super upset), you could see David display a break within him, a huge one, that made me think he was gonna do something else than trying to play nice since Lana apparently felt that way about him. So David saw that he had no choice, in his twisted mind. He literally lost EVERYTHING even the one short escape from that prison which was their ship. When you lose everything, you see and act completely different. (since you have nothing else to lose, but your own life which is useless if you don't have anything meaningful to fill it with)
So never break someone and have their broken pieces directed towards you since you are gonna be the one whose negative emotions are gonna be directed towards, you're gonna be the victim, the one to suffer. So, think first, speak later.
Right… I was like dude you have to live up here with this guy. Might wanna watch your mouth just a lil bit 🫣
@@cupofmel Exactly! 👌🏻 Not act like an enemy.
yeah someone that literally got nothing to loose is the worst type of enemy
@@microzoftexel7455 👍🏻well said
It just sux that Cliff lied to him about what his wife told him about him! He didn’t want to make it seem like there was a chance when he knew that his wife admitted to him that she’s curious and all that bs
I think a key part I haven’t seen mentioned yet is the fact Cliff will be the one responsible for killing his own family since no one outside of his wife and son know he was letting David use his link and David can just deny it. He’ll be forced to stay on the ship with him until he’s arrested when he returns. Dark
I think this point could also be further proof for the hippies in that universe that the replicas are inhumane and only lead to destruction. Heartbreaking ending
I thought of this too
or replica cliff could clean it up. i'm sure there's no dna evidence, blame it on the cult.
Nah I don’t think so. The other guy was doing PT tests, which are recordable events, while he was letting the other use his robot. Probably enough evidence to suggest that they were both using the robot.
I think it would be pretty easy for Cliff to explain that he let his coworker use his replica because his was destroyed. The sad thing is David would probably use the insanity defense and get away with it.
I won't say it's Cliffs fault but I don't think it was smart to really twist the knife that Lana was disgusted by David. As much as David definitely crossed lines and boundaries, David was on the verge of full mental breakdown and cliff needed to have a bit more finesse with defending the honor of his family
aye well said, I knew that would bite him in the ass when I saw it. You don't create that level of tension with someone you need on a space mission and cooped up with for a few years alone. Better to try and be diplomatic.
@@Blake4014 yea man like I said David definitely crossed lines, but it's impossible not to empathize with him. For cliff and his wife to not even think prior that perhaps allowing a man who watched his family get butchered while he was stuck in space, might develop serious attachments to this family he's dropping into is just wild to me. And then once those attachments do form and it's all he has to focus on, you basically torment him and tell him he'll never have that and treat him as if he's a monster for it. It was all so avoidable
Easy to say
David is just pure evil
Maybe I'm splitting hairs but I don't think the one guy wasn't necessarily emotionally distance per se I think he just wanted to be emotional distant in the robot body because he felt like maybe the emotions weren't real in that body
Yeah I think he was just disgusted of the idea of a robot kissing and fucking his wife lol. And the idea of his son being attached to a robot. Which I can’t blame him for honestly
Yeah he was also religious so that could have played a big part in his reason for the distance from his wife. I imagine that being intimate with his wife in his replicas body would be very morally conflicting for a religious person.
@@Steeltoeguyreligion is a ducking cancer in this world smh
Yes it was exactly that
Yesss and the religious point was a nice juxtaposition to the real story discussed in this video with the religious fanatics being against space travel
Lana is also reading the Valley of the Dolls which also starred Sharon Tate in the movie adaptation of that book.
Interestingly, Sharon Tate was famously killed by a cult, just like David's family were.
I think this is my new favorite episode of Black Mirror. I was on the edge of my seat the entire time and that final scene was haunting! I want there to be a follow up somehow about what happened during those remaining 4 years in space
They probably went insane and killed each others
If they continue the series the probably they’ll throw an Easter egg in the future
The pacing dragged so hard for me
The pacing was sluggish to be on the edge of your seat the whole time
the whole point of black mirror is that they don’t have a follow up
I think you left out a key factor. Josh Hartnett went over the edge when Aaron character destroyed his painting.
Going to the farm was helping him heal. When Aaron destroyed the painting and told Josh you can’t go back, that was the end of Josh peace so he said neither one of us will have peace.
I havent seen Josh Hartnett acting since "Penny Dreadful!" He looks like he's aging backwards! Such a good looking man since the 90s...
you just justified that it's right and fair what did someone who killed a child and a woman (who said "love" when he was just sick obsessive) did after harassing the wife of the only man who tried to help him? Are you clearly a sociopath totally incapable of living in society? your way of thinking is disgusting and scary in equal parts. you should see a psychiatrist immediately. Not even joking, i am worry for real for your family and friends.
Well Josh Hartnett didn’t know his painting was destroyed. He purposely went back one final time to kill the wife and son. The painting might be a symbol of his broken peace but the character didn’t know about it.
He didn't know his painting was destroyed. What sent him over the edge was when he told him he will never have access to his wife again.
@Alex P the Op was referring to the kid _ruinning_ the painting.
Cliff mentions to his wife (when worried what David might do to himself) that the ship requires 2 people in order to run, this is what prompts him to allow David to use his replica (and it’s a kindness). So I just wanted to quickly add that at the end if he chose to kill David he would also be dooming himself, not just a matter of boredom.
yep it was like a chess move. Either get revenge on a man with nothing to lose and die in space or stay with the guy who killed your family and also not return to earth cuz hes a criminal now.
Either way it didnt matter, both had no reason to live
But as a husband and father, I would not care for my future, if someone would do it to my family - from my perspective to live in peace with David to the end of the mission - no way!
This was my favorite of the new season. Most Memorable. Absolute Gut Punch, Even if you knew something awful was coming.
This was my favorite episode of the season. A lengthy episode that kept me invested all the way through.
Misery loves company.
That’s really what the episode tells you in the last scene.
My thoughts on what transpired after this was that Aaron Paul’s character sat down and when Josh Hartnett tries speaking to him, there is no response. Basically they can still co-exist on the ship but Hartnett has lost the right to his interaction as punishment for his murderous actions.
It is open ended story, probably things will come to light once they get back to Earth.
People dont realize how powerful and distructive envy can be. David had so much envy in his heart that he couldnt let go of the fact Cliff had his life still intact while he didn't. On some "why me? why not him too?" And "if I'm gonna suffer, then you must suffer too" People like this do exist unfortunitly. Instead of focusing his energy on elevating him self (via healing or even retaliating against the cult) he instead focus his energy on bringing Cliff down to his level. Because misery loves company.
That’s a good point
i like how black mirror makes “regular” people go bat sh*t crazy because i think it happens a lot in real life
Because most “regular” people are more likely to get really fucked up over traumatic shit. Like imagine spending your whole life living in a peaceful bliss and then it gets ripped away from you abruptly and violently, something you’ve never experienced before and do not know how to deal with, and to add to it, instead of the traumatic event being something small, it is the ultimate worst thing to possibly happen to anybody. People who grow up with constant traumatic experiences eventually become more numb or desensitized to it and/or become more experienced and prepared for it, so when something truly truly fucked up happens they will not descend into madness as quickly or as deeply as someone who is in no way qualified to deal with something like that. And don’t even forget that this completely normal dude who has assumedly never had anything remotely fucked up happen to him had to deal with all the trauma of watching his family be butcher *all by himself* and he didn’t even have *fucking nature* to console him. Even if someone doesn’t talk to a therapist or a friend about something like that, it’s still extremely effective to just *go outside*, he didn’t even have the sun. It was the fact that he was so regular that makes the spiral into insanity even worse than some peoples, and to add to it he was completely, *completely* isolated afterwards. Even if Cliff was there it is clear that so much time has passed and they probably have not discussed what happened to David once. It feels even more isolating to be physically near someone and still be all alone.
Sorry for paragraph I just think a lot about the concept of “regular” ppl going insane, especially cuz it is far more impacting to see a story about someone in that position cuz it shows just truly how messed up humans can become.
Wouldnt say everyone faced with tradgedy would just go and kill Cliff's family like that though. Feels a little devoid of reason or logic. If they needed one another to survive, and David needed help, would they not have just agreed to compromise? There were so many reasonable avenues to go down but Dave just ended up in the worst possible one. Idk I felt like this whole episode was just way too conveniently set up so as that no new replicas could be made, the replicas were not instead sent into space. Feels like convenience masquerading as "thought experiment" to generate raw shock value and make u forget that the episode had almost no exploration of a message. Aside from the obvious, "trauma changes people" which we never get a development on or a follow up. The fact that we never got to see the two talk at the end or watch them descend into madness was the most suprising part, even more so than the fact that Dave killed Cliff's family which itself was supposed to be the big twist. Yet they chose to just abruptly end it before we got into the good stuff. You know, the stuff that makes an episode of black mirror worth your time. Why pull that twist where Cliff kills instead of steals and just refuse to elaborate on it?
@@JosefinaQByou give this a lot of thought.. truly, going from point a to point b, can happen in a blink of an eye… will it happen to me? Will it happen to you? Will we have a normal life, or will darkness claim our rest of our lives in this roulette?
They should have agreed upon a password so his family would know who the real person using the replica was. It might have made all the difference
there was t time for that. he was in space for probably less than 10 minutes
@Aminata Kone the couple could have agreed to it before the 1st time they swapped. There was plenty of time, he only occupied the body for one hour a week
Honestly I don't think it mattered, cliff lived in the middle of nowhere and he was outside in space for less than 10 minutes, my guess is he ran into the house grabbed a knife and finished the job as soon as possible, there would have been no time to even ask him what the password is
Exactly my thought when I saw the episode
I'm not sure that would have saved her or the kid
No security for the replicas? No shrink for the guy that lost his family? Amazing episode, but these little things bugged me. Not to mention the fact that they send the real humans to space, and not the replicas
Yeah. Even if the replicas were hard to control, they should’ve allowed them to practice using the replicas before sending the replicas to space
It is set in the 70’s, they wouldn’t consider these potential problems.
NASA had to learn the hard way too.
Additionally it’s the entire concept of the show, a lot of these episodes have solutions though it’s highlighting the extreme end of over reliance of technology and not considering the impact on society.
THANK YOU
Part of the reason Cliff was distant with his wife was because he felt that doing so as a Replica isn't the real thing. Maybe the same can be applied when wondering about why they didn't send the replicas to space: because it wouldn't be the same as the men themselves going? an Ego thing
@tiptoejoe4899 Part ego and part practicality.
The androids having a malfunction in the outer reaches of space jeopardises the entire mission.
Part of the mission was to measure how humans might adapt to living in space.
Josh hartnett totally knocked it out of the park. Fabulous acting. Hope to see him in more things. He didnt lose his edge at all. Super talented.
Great actor! Just looked up why he never become a huge, permanent superstar. Took a long hiatus from acting to spend time with his wife and raise his kids. They're still married eleven years later. He just walked away from it all for his own sanity. Kind of admire a man who quits while he's ahead and stops to enjoy the fruits of his labor
He must have turned down the offer for his soul. Good on him. Many don't make that choice.
i think the point was that they needed both men to man the ship, there was a scene where they explicitly stated that. so if one killed the other he would essentially be signing his own death warrant. which is i think why josh hartnett's character chose to kill the family instead of aaron paul, because if he had done the latter he could have just taken over his link. but he'd eventually die because the ship needs them both to function properly.
I agree. They needed two men to run the ship or everything and everyone dies. But also, I think he wanted Cliff to understand what it was like for him to lose his entire family. That Cliff took his Earth life experience for granted. So David steps in and sees color, life, love, and a place for all of them to be happy. Cliff was exaggerating when he angrily told David what Lana thought of him. She never said she wanted to vomit. She was trying to tell Cliff that David made her feel seen, while Cliff did not. That she wished Cliff would look at her like David did. Jealousy took over Cliff.
Then Cliff decided to take everything David had to look forward to for one hour a week. And David saw it as a waste. If one couldn’t appreciate Lana then neither should be able to have her.
I felt biblical references here. Of Canaan and Able.
I felt too many loose ends though.
Who would be accused of Lana and Henry’s murders? Did NASA know about them sharing Cliff’s link?
Was Cliff just a selfish prick who wanted to stay alive and finish the mission, even though his family was murdered? Because we could see David going into suicide mode when his family was murdered.. but Cliff just “takes a seat” at the end.
A lot of symbolism in this episode, yet unanswered questions too.
Y'all killin me, you'd continue to exist around someone that murdered your family? Couldn't be me.
@@GigiNKDIt certainly felt like sharing the body was them winging it up to keep David from going insane without telling NASA at all.
Why not make 4 replicas and send them into space and leave the 4 humans at home?
@TheMightyOdin that's actually big brain
I also can't help by notice a subtle theme of domestic abuse and violence. Many times folks in domestic violence relationship report how their partner "was a different person" when engaging in the more abusive acts. This episode literally has the partner in question change and, eventually, end the life of the wife and child.
Yeah absolutely, I think is more what it’s about than anything really. When he says “you don’t appreciate what you have” we naturally assume he means “your wife and daughter are wonderful people whom you should do right by.” But he didn’t literally meant it as not a appreciating your possessions. If he believed the wife and son had intrinsic value as people, it wouldn’t be worth killing then to prove a point.
It makes you realize he probably felt this way about his own family too.
@@muffininorbitit wasn’t just to prove a point. Cliff threw all the nasty things the wife supposedly said in his face. He was enraged. He was alone. He was jealous. That’s a bad combination, and if he had nothing left to lose, sometimes you think the only thing that can make you feel better is to have someone feel just like you. I don’t think there’s a strong argument to be made that Ross was some sort of secret abuser than looked at his family as possessions.
I don’t exactly like how they framed the wife’s infidelity in this situation, because they absolutely physically and emotionally cheated together, even if they didn’t go all the way. But they went with the misogynistic-undertone with the way Ross treated rejection. But again, he’d just be broken in a dozen different ways. He’s mentally unstable, understandably so. I think it’s unfair to treat it as a black/white, evil/good dilemma. Of course Ross was in the wrong. But what would you do if you were stuck on a ship, alone while the people who hates you live happily right next door, and you lived knowing everyday is meaningless for you? I guarantee that you wouldn’t sit quietly and wait for the ship to land on earth. I love the writing of this tragedy, but it’s not fair to break it down to another simple domestic abuse PSA.
This episode made me feel so much. Yes, it was predictable. Immediately was wondering when he was going to start “dancing” with Cliff’s wife. Immediately knew this dynamic was not sustainable. But predictability doesn’t dilute execution. Beautiful episode that made me reflect on the concept of misery and which character truly felt the most misery….and how much work has no regard for it (David’s replica never replaced by the organization, no contact made to tend to the needs of David or Cliff even after their families are murdered….just get back to work and complete the work that needs to get done).
I don't think replacing David's replica was a factor, maybe it would have been eventually. But, since he felt he had nothing and no one to go back to, I don't know if going off on his own would have helped much. Maybe eventually it could have been helpful. I just get the feeling that he wouldn't want to go back to his own home - which was burned down anyway - and going back down as himself would not have done him much good. He would have gotten a lot of pity but also he might have been attacked again.
Once you get to a certain point in the episode, you get a pretty good idea of how it ends, but none of that matters because it's just a really good episode.
The ending actually is a surprise because u think the majority of us thought, he would’ve just left him outside of the spaceship, or that he would’ve returned as him, and faked his life as him, knowing that he really killed him
@@MkiiahMichaels-qq1oi They needed two men to operate the ship remember
@@MkiiahMichaels-qq1oi So if he killed him they would both (Including the Replica) just die.
@@assassin0547yeah but that’s not out of the ordinary. The man has no family so it isn’t ridiculously to think that he’d lock cliff out and just live out his time in the replica until the ship is destroyed .
You did not know he would kill his family. Stop it
For some reason when David first wakes up as Cliff, my mind immediately thought, "I'm a dude playing a dude disguised as another dude." Probably not the reaction the show was going for, but here we are.
This whole episode I thought David was going to kill Cliff and come back to earth pretending to be the real Cliff so he can have his wife and his life. Even though the ship needs 2 ppl I still thought that through the whole thing lol great episode tho I loved it
The body was the same but the voice was different so would never have worked for him.
@@DJMS2706The voice is the same too, it’s just the tone and mannerisms that makes him distinct.
He could act more like Cliff, or maybe just say there was an accident and it’s just him in space now.
Eventually he might win over Lana.
This was the most brutal episode for me
Yeah still thinking about that ending lol. Thanks for the support as well. Hope you have a great weekend
The ending of Mazey Day was crazy and brutal too
Only problem is that there is no way either would want to continue living at the end.
The ending was awful
@@tf2368 No, Joan is awful.
@@alexp601 that was awful too
@@tf2368 Maybe YOU’RE awful? 0_0
So true!
David is just awful...I know his family was taken but that doesn't mean he gets to take someone else's. This is the reality of a kind person. Lana and Cliff only showed him kindness and generosity. They did a good deed by helping him, but it only led to a terrible ending. David got way too comfortable taking and taking. That just wasn't right. Cliff wasn't perfect but he and his family did not deserve that. David is now on my list of highly unlikable characters.
Incredible episode. To me, this really explores the primal human need for connection. Even if the only person you have to be connected to is the person who annihilated your family. He goes back into his replica, he has nothing. He at least has someone in space but, it’s space and it’s lonely. And they can both now at least connect over not having their families in a sick way. This show talks about loneliness in different forms, and what we need Vs what we want. Ugh, So many angles you could look at this episode from. I love this show haha
Lol no, the only reason Cliff didn't murder that psycho immediately is because it was a two man ship
@@thereapergaming6704exactly💀
Nah cliff is just evil psychopath just 4 yrs of loneliness doesn’t make human to massacre innocent people lol you’re definitely getting weird wrong messages from this episode
Are you trolling?
@@thereapergaming6704 hence exactly what I’m talking about when it comes to what we want to do versus need to do
What an absolutely incredible episode. I loved that they didn't do the trite ending of 'David kills Cliff and takes over his replica.' This ending was way more interesting. David wanted Cliff to feel the same agony he was in. He didn't want to be alone in his anguish.
I don’t think either of them could kill each other as the ship can’t be run with just 1 person. If they kill each other then they’re killing themselves in the long run. That’s ultimately the choice at the end. Cliff ultimately let’s David borrow his replica because hes so depressed that he’s worried David will leave the ship and kill himself as he has no purpose and cliff can’t run it on his own.
That doesn't justifies the murder
The theme of being alone is also stressed in the interaction where he says you have no idea how he feels. He felt even alone in tragedy he felt coupled with being alone in space. He essentially was tired of being alone at the end and introduced that tragedy into his copilots life.
Josh Harnett is making his Keanu comeback, and I support it.
I was getting Heavy Charles Mason vibes from the group that killed his family. Also Cliff was brave asf for just going back to earth all sleep while a unhinged man is wondering about In the ship w him lol talk about hostile work environments
It was a remake of once upon a time in Hollywood
This was one of my most favorite episodes EVER! Aaron Paul is amazing in it!
Loved this episode
"Some things cant be told. you live them or you don't."
A quote from the Hunting of Hillhouse that it encapsulates this ep beautifully
Remember it was mentioned that it was a two man ship and the mission couldn’t be completed with just 1. This answers: Why did he open the door back up instead of just leaving him out there in space, then just go ahead and continue to use his replica on earth? Why doesn’t Jesse Pinkman kill the guy at the end? Its not just because they would have to endure the rest of the mission alone but because they themselves wouldn’t be able to survive it without eachother
Jesse Pinkman lol
Science BI*CH!!! 😂
Yeah I think Jesse Pinkman was just delayed in his shocked response. I like to think he strangled psycho dude after the credits roll. What an awful episode.
@@jamesbell1613 Awful?
@@assassin0547 Yes, comparatively speaking awful. Obvious, very negative endings. Scenes that didn't make sense. Even that Smithereens episode where the guy dies had some positive, interesting elements to it. Yup,just plain awful.
Cliff did love his wife and son and want to be affectionate, I think.
I think the deal was he didnt like the idea of a robot touching her and being intimate with them. Even though it was “him”. So I’m not so sure he would’ve killed david.
He’s very objective and would probably realize the mission is bigger than their personal tragedies. So in a fucked up way David wins.
Jealousy works the other way round. If you already had something you won't be jealous of something different than your preferred life. People are usually jealous of something they can't have and never had. It made no sense, to me at least. Unless his mate had something to do with his tragedy. That's a different story. Ruining someone's life to share the tragedy they are not at fault in makes no sense at all.
Jealousy comes in many forms and people aren’t perfectly logical. The isolation and mental illness from watching your family get murdered drove David insane. Misery loves company. He wanted to lash out at someone. Since the cult already turned themselves into police there was no one to lash out at.
@@lukesmith3618 I understand what it's trying to sell, but it's still forced. You don't just turn into a sadistic murderer. It would've required more than this. These are astronauts, mentally and physically strong guys, not just random people. And you won't kill the only people you can have contact with and are the only link to the earth, only if you've given up on life. But he hasn't. There has to be a way stronger motive, betrayal or something.
What do we know about the cult? Who are they, why did they target him? What happened to them? Will they attack him on the earth again? Will he get revenge? Where's the closure? It's an open story.
Anyway replicas are probably an analogy to the masks people wear in different situations. And depicting the people, who are so ignorant they believe it makes people fake, as a cult is actually a smart observation. I liked that.
It was gut-wrenching. I cannot imagine the pain Cliff must be going through, sharing a spaceship with a man who killed his family
*Everyone’s saying “why didn’t they just send a replica into space”, but I’m asking why they didn’t give protection to the replicas and their families with law enforcement so the murders didn’t even happen in the first place!*
In "The Moon is a Harsh Mistress" the moon settlers practice group and line marriages. I think this was a part of the reason David chose that book for Cliffs wife, to kind of worm that idea into her head, the possibility of multiple husbands.
Holy crap, good catch! I think you're totally right. i just got goosebumps.
I thought the replicas should of been used in space too. But when I thought about it, if a replica did break down the ship and mission is lost. But if it breaks down on earth they can either fix it or worse case have to finish your mission the “old fashion way” and stay in space for the whole mission
Just have spare replicas in space in case the primary one fails. Problem solved.
👍🏼 That explains the sense of urgency when their watch goes off. If the ship is in danger, their lives are in danger.
Man plz don’t start making excuses the whole season is just a dump piece of shit
In modern age like now we would definitely use replicas in space any chance possible, human lives, especially astronauts are far far more valuable than the cost of any missions. But it was set in the 60s so they probably didn’t value lives as much
@@Nel_34the mission was to study the sustainability of human bodies in space.
This episode is the epitome of why I don't help broken people no more.
Same here.
I mean that man was a petty narcissist. If they wanted to go crazy and make David endearing, he would've gone to the jail to kill the cult members and be a robot vigilante from space.
@@Nice-sz4ee yeh, I actually briefly thought that David would use Cliffs replica to go after the murderers and get revenge, would've made him a hero. But no, he chooses to hurt his friend out of pure selfishness.
"no more", sounds like you've got some experience trying to help 'broken people' fancy elaborating on that?
In case they take over your robot duplicate and murder your family?
Aaron paul is a fantastic actor imo his emotions are palpable and effortlessly convincing
I love how they made everyone think Cliff would be stranded in space where David could live his life himself. Literally everyone was shocked by the ending, probably my favourite episode of the whole show. Properly f’d up
I just started reading “the moon is a harsh mistress” last week so it was a cool surprise to see it in this episode
I have never been so angry at an episode in my entire life, I was livid when the episode ended.
You should know that there aren’t many happy endings in Black Mirror 😬😳
Just finished this and so far it’s the best of the season. This season is a strong return to form although I felt Joan is Awful’s twist ending pulled me out of the episode.
@@levir3482 yeah ngl it was so boring I had to skim through to see like if the woman gets offed or something 😭
@@levir3482mazey day was much worse imo
I love Joan is Awful. But I don’t like murder and all that sad stuff. So it was a great change of pace from this depressing episode
He was in Cliff's body when he committed the crime, so when a forensics team sees Cliff's fingerprints at the scene, can they figure out that it was David in Cliff's body? Is there a log or something?
If not, he framed Cliff and essentially forced him to stay on the ship full-time with him. If Cliff comes back to his Replica, he could immediately be arrested.
I think they can find some data that at the time of the murder Real cliff was outside the ship.
@@heathledger8439 yea and I'm sure cliff mentioned to mission control that he was allowing David to use his replica. Because they would probably know cliff's replica was running when cliff was in the middle of his physical.
@@heathledger8439There is absolutely no chance of nasa didn’t have a log of this, camera, etc. It would be easy to prove
It wouldn’t be Cliff’s fingerprints, or any fingerprints. The death was carried out by a machine made to look like Cliff
I don't think it'll be a stretch to convince authorities that the guy whose family was butchered stole the chip of his shipmates and butchered his family in a similar way.
I’m just happy seeing Josh Hartnet
Josh Hartnett having a bit of a career resurgence is nice to see!
Loved the ending. Circumstance makes villains of us all.
Nah villains turns themselves into villains but blame the circumstances
I honestly can't believe that there's no programming to prevent violence or that the wife was not concerned about his partner stealing the body or killing her husband. Once he betrays trust, the family should have left.
My initial thought was that David would go back to Cliff's body pretending to be him in order to have sex with his wife. Knowing all the details of what was said, he would use that as the con and Cliff's rekindling of an intimate relationship with his wife to get it started.
However, I do understand how the actual ending is definitely better. His wife saying she'd never be with Cliff's enraged his ego. The chair being kicked out at the end was a, "have a seat buddy - who is now in the same predicament as I am with having lost everyone I care about. We're going to just coexist now in that state of understanding."
That makes david a selfish piece of sht who has no graitude for the fact that his friend allowed him to use his replica when he didn't have to.
I don’t think David killed Cliff’s family. He used linseed oil on his red paint to make Cliff think that his family was dead… to make him appreciate what he has. This was alluded to throughout the episode. Cliff was quick to get mad at David throughout, and was visibly upset at the end of the episode… not because of what David did, but because David taught him a lesson. That’s why David kicks the chair out to talk instead of immediately defend himself.
I would like to think that to 😂
I agree! This is like the comment I posted as well
there's no way you can mistake the smell of blood to be paint
@jontrinh140wrestler he's a robot though do u think he can smell?
@@aylakrueger1203they mentioned how clear the air is on earth.
I really thought David was going to try something on cliff and start living as him but I also thought why don’t they just send the replicas to space instead
His family wasn't dead they were alive. They are showing the cabin where the painting was had Red paint missing which was present in the episode. The car parked outside the car was missing too. David wanted to make sure Cliff felt his pain . David did go to the past but he told Cliff's wife its him. As routine Cliff's wife and son left from the house and then David painted it red. Cliff realized it so when he returned back he had sympathy in his eyes rather than anger and David had confidence.
It’s possible though we didn’t see it so it’s unclear.
And where are you getting this info from?
I mean they didn’t show the bodies so 🤷🏾♂️
Ok so if u suspects that your wife and kid died by seeing bloods everywhere, wouldn't u go find the body first to make sure if they survive it somehow and then return to the spaceship instead of just seeing blood, didnt see the body and be like "eh they must be dead, ill head back to the ship"..so in short the whole point of the episode is how David felt jealous of cliff n lost his mind so killed his family so cliff can feel what he feels..theres no theory..they didnt showed david's wife's body too so the episode just didnt showed any dead body..doesnt mean they're not dead
Plus david knows cliff wont kill him on revenge (atleast not on spaceship) coz he wont be able to handle the spaceship alone so killing david means Killin ownself n david took the chances of that not happening
I wanted to give props to Rory Culkin’s awesome 5 minutes of fame in this episode, his performance was chilling and dreadful. You can tell he really tapped into his evil side after Lords of Chaos, in which his character is strikingly similar, both in looks and demeanour to his character in this episode.
Waco really left an influence on him...
He’s great
I think another reason he probably didn't kill David is because as Cliff had mentioned to his wife before when David seemed to be contemplating suicide. it's a 2 man ship and if there are ever any emergencies or repairs required etc he would need David. So he would be dooming himself as well if he killed him.
First time watching this episode I thought that David would either get revenge on the cult for murdering his family, or that the cult would end up murdering Cliff’s family too, which I think would have made for a much more suspenseful episode. But the ending was good, nonetheless.
yeah, i thought he was going to use Cliff's body to hunt down the murderers.
Same here
That would have been boring and predictable
@@Brismo7that’s what any other studio working on this kind of an episode would do, but this is black mirror. Sure they could’ve made it an action packed fight against an evil cult, but that’d be too easy. Black mirror is a psychological horror. It took probably the most realistic route (well apart from the humanoid robots lol).
@@N3XUS_T4RG3T I thought it would be interesting to play with the morality of using someone else's avatar to do harm. But the extreme hartnett's character went seemed way out of character.
I also thought he got over his wife and kid very quickly. Maybe they were trying to portray him as being an extreme sociopath. But the first half of the story made him seem very very normal.
But then again, remember that one lady astronaut that wore a diaper and drove 2 days straight to see her lover?
Idk...
The saddest part was that this was all the wife's idea. She was a nice person and trapped by the neglect and isolation her husband put her through
I think wife knew this would happen wanted change other guy in her husband’s body
@@smartwater598she definitely knew, she craved it, she got tempted but was able to not give in to that temptation and remembered who her real husband is. I think it started with her giving David her husbands hat saying he always wears it
Strong episode. I thought it showcased very well how someone (David) can lose their sanity through great loss.
I know it’s not Black Mirror’s style, but I can imagine this episode getting a sequel in the next season, with further twists, and Cliff getting back at David, only dooming himself as well
The entire episode, I was wondering if Replicas could continue to function while the main body was deceased, because I expected David to murder Cliff while Cliff was in his body on Earth and take his place. We don't really know what this mission is about, but we do know that the ship requires 2 people to operate, so if David were to kill Cliff then he would possibly be dooming his real body to die up there, or at the very least fail the mission.
I did think of the possibility that David would murder Cliff's family so he could know how it feels, but I didn't think he'd actually do it because he would have to face Cliff up in space. Still, the fact that they went through with it shocks me.
What I took in from this episode is that EVIL is REAL. It’s neither created nor destroyed. It’s just converted from one form to another.
What I learned is the writers had no idea how to end it
@@tf2368On the contrary Charlie didn’t give us the expected ending and left us hanging how events would pan out for the two characters.
That’s classic Black Mirror narrative, giving the viewer plenty to think about.
@@ObsessiveGeek you're giving him way too much credit
@@tf2368 Nope, he’s a fantastic writer.
It’s the entire concept of this series he created.
Aaron Paul always get betrayed by his partner💀
Not in breaking bad...
Interesting. It was intuitively clear to me that the end was not really a killing. He's a painter and knows how to use paint. It's not blood, it's red paint. He just wanted to put him through the same experience so he could understand how he felt -- to get his empathy back. When he realizes he didn't kill his family after all, but it was all just red paint, he's infinitely grateful and understanding -- the end scene shows that quite well, because it's much more of a brotherly coming together than a meeting with a psycho killer.
anyone?
The whole time I was thinking why didn’t they just send the robots up instead. I get they did it for plot convenience but black mirror is usually pretty good at avoiding those plot holes.
If I had a coin for every time Josh Hartnett played a guy trying to steal his friends girl, Id have two coins which aint much but its weird it happened twice.
Thumbnail is more spoilery than you probably intended. Knowing he was going to "do" something (likely heinous) basically had me waiting for what "it" would be.
Why would you look up an episode for something you’ve yet to see?
@@ObsessiveGeek The channel is in my subs. I didn't go 'looking' for the video.
Tiny little dude threatening much bigger and stronger guy was the most unbelievable part.
Bigger doesn’t always equal stronger
Lmao he's a lanky tall guy, the kind you could push over if you're not carefull
doesn't make you immune because you're bigger, if the other person is determined he'll find a weapon or something to give him better odds. Where theres a will, theres a way.
Another way of looking at this episode is to think of it as a bottle episode. The main characters are stuck on a spacecraft together floating in space for a very long time. We as the audience don't even know this at first. We think life on Earth is basically normal until we find out about the replica / consciousness-transference situation. Even then, the characters aren't really confined, because of the replicas. It's not until the very end--when we realize that neither guy has a reason to go back to Earth (given the deaths of their families) and that even if they wanted to use the one remaining replica, there may be legal reasons why doing so would be difficult (the replica has blood on its hands in more ways than one)--that we feel as trapped aboard the spacecraft as the guys do. And then we understand: this was a bottle ep all along.
When Cliff went off on him , and said (for all time , she is mine ) 😂😂😂😂😂 had me dying. The ending was crazy though.
Every day/night in every way. PERIODT 🤣
But why couldn't Cliff use his replica to organize a replica-replacement for David? He had access to be on earth and therefore could go to their "head office" and order a replacement..That would have been the decent thing to do instead of linking him to his own clone..
This ep had such phenomenal acting. All 3 of the main characters played their parts very well
Well yeah they’re 3 seasoned actors that’s been in many movies , i’m not really surprised they acted so well
@@mervynpriela6959 Still, great acting is great acting and should always be praised.
David did not kill the family.
He shaved and cleaned himself up to start anew.
David’s intention was to apologise to Cliff’s wife. Maybe say his goodbye.
Checked in and saw the family already slaughtered.
The blood smears on the wall was the “chekov’s gun” planted by the writers in the same early scene when David’s family was massacred.
This ties in with the bookstore scene whereby Cliff’s family location was revealed (so it’s also partly David’s fault)
David wanted to hide the tags to stall Cliff from seeing the horror sooner.
This will explain why Cliff wasn’t raging to kill David after returning to the ship.
And why David offered a chair so he could comfort him.
Brilliant writing.
Wow… you just blew my mind
Yes my view as well.
Dude is a coward, he could have gone after the ones that killed his family, but instead he destroyed another.
They handed themselves in and are locked away.
Also he’s still grieving and processing the loss of his family and agreed only to use the replica for short periods of time.
Did anyone else notice the Breaking Bad reference when they are going shopping and the character use Heisenberg's clothes? He even put the iconic black hat like Walt.
This episode really shows what kindness does. Cliff and Lara only showed kindness to David, David took it for granted, got greedy, and ended up hurting them both. You don't always see someone's true colors, but when you do, it is unmistakable. Cliff wasn't a perfect man, but he was a good man deep down inside. He and his family didn't deserve that. Not at all. Looks can be decieving. On the surface, David seems like a warm, caring, and forgiving man. But deep down inside, he was selfish, murderous, and out of control. Cliff on the surface seemed like an indifferent, distant, and emotionless man, but deep down inside, he cares. Never judge a book by it's over. There's only so much you can see on the tip of the iceberg.
These breakdowns have been amazing and insightful 👍❤️
I think this is a PERFECT example of an episode that pays homage to the everlasting theme in every black mirror ending. this is the message that no natter what...the reliability of inate human instincts will always trump the faulty, narrow grip that technology has on mankind. This answers the question; "why don't they just send the replicas into space?". If we apply this logic it is not a matter of if...but WHEN our A.i fails us. As we begin to rely on technology too much we also start losing our faith in humanity. Humans could very well be the product of their own demise.
I never understood why the evil astronaut didn’t try to get revenge on the cult with the other guys body double. Also if they have that technology why wouldn’t u stay on the planet and neurolink to the space station.
the culprit already caught i believe, and i prefer the ending as the killer is not the other astronout, its just he make himself the witnes, again, instead off the original astronout aaron paul should nut suffer the same as other astronout by witnesing his family get slaughter, sory cant realy remember thir name
The cult turned themselves in after the murders
The end of this episode PISSED ME OFF SO BAD me and my friends argued on end about what we imagined Cliff would have done afterwards. The final twist was totally unexpected.
He didn’t kill the family. He killed the dog. That is why right before the call they focus him with they dog, that I personally didn’t even know they had one until then. He was showing his hand that he could kill the family anytime he wanted. So he pushed out the chair so they could make a deal. Most likely he got the wife. I mean it’s kinda obvious and surprised no one talked about it.
Also on a side note. I hate endings like this. Because either theory could be right. However mine is more sound just for the fact that the would have killed his partner if he murdered his family. So he wins nothing. He loved her. So again wins nothing by killing her. Plus he had no sign of being that cruel. I prefer the classic beginning, middle, and end of stories. Yeah, sometimes you can break the rule when the situation suits or needs it. But this wasn’t one of them.
IMO the best episode this season... but damn I just wanna see Jesse Pinkman happy for once!!
Although i love your analysis, i got the impression he was distant from his family because he was so far away/interacting through his replica. He knew how fragile that link way. Thats why he is so cagey about the replica sharing. When he talks with his family on earth he is thoughtful in a considered, logical way (hence the coldness). Just my 2 cent. Cant wait for further episode breakdowns.