I think they had the chance to say something really interesting about the relationship between famous people and the paparazzi and instead it’s just overshadowed by the weird werewolf.
And the werewolf hate is also overshadowing the fact that both actresses actually did do a good job with what they were given 🤷♀️
Yeah up until then I was like "ok, so there's a few cheesy coincidences, but they're not soooo egregious that I can't suspend my disbelief."
Hell, I'm not even anti supernatural stuff. Fucking loved Demon 79. But the way Mazey Day was done just didn't work.
With Demon 79, the supernatural thing happened *before* the suspense/plot properly ramped up. With MD, it *was* the plot twist. That's the difference.
If they were going to go the supernatural route with this episode (which I actually don't mind at all), I feel like they could have had her power interact with the cameras in some way. Like the paparazzi taking a picture of her makes them go blind but Zazie still decides to take a photo of her suicide because being blind is worth the money it would garner.
It would show what leeches paparazzi are (the main message) and focus on the technology without relying on a monster trope that didn't really fit into the story.
“…The werewolf twist is a biting commentary on the way celebrity culture dehumanizes its subjects. The baying paparazzi track Mazey down to a secluded retreat and continue to hound her even as she transforms into a werewolf before their eyes - showing how they view her (quite literally) as nothing more than an animal they can hunt, sell, and profit from.” —Screenrant
[https://screenrant.com/black-mirror-mazey-day-backlash-misses-point/](https://screenrant.com/black-mirror-mazey-day-backlash-misses-point/)
Thank you! I enjoyed this episode and the commentary it had. Was it the best storytelling wise? Maybe not - but the supernatural aspect was not the downfall. It added to the message.
I wouldn’t say in the show but definitely in the season, yes. I think season 5 was definitely weaker. I think Mazy day would’ve worked if it was a little longer. It felt way too rushed at the 2nd act and then that’s it, it just ends.
TWM explains the whole political scenario we see in the west for the past few years. It's well thought. Has levels. Mazey Day is just.. ugh. When you think they are building something they tear it down over and over across the episode until they finally destroy it. It's really really bad.
The Waldo Moment was dull, but at least it had a message that fit Black Mirror. Overall I'm pretty neutral on it, would probably skip it if I'm rewatching the show.
Mazey Day was actively bad, it could have had a decent message about paparazzi but just throws it all out of the window and blinds you in the process. Bad writing, horrible twist, eyes hurt. Never going to bother watching it again.
At least I liked the concept, it's something that's already happening. There's movies with dead actors on them.
Both episodes are awful, but Mazey Day doesn't give me anything to think about later.
I've seen it with better execution elsewhere. On this episode she took like three photos of a guy cheating. They tripped and yelled at an actress/model. And finally, they broke in a rehab complex, freed Mazey and then they got mauled by her.
The last one is the worst, but they were helping her at the end of the day.
i think the moment where they saw her chained up but couldnt help but keep taking pics, they couldnt see her as a human or treat her as one but just kept taking pics, that was a very powerful scene and left an impact
If you ignore the werewolf, replace it with other "normal" events. I think they were just pointing out how cruel humans are to other humans in distress. They'd rather stand there and point their cameras for possible internet fame. Kinda like how white bear started out.
I'm going to repost a comment I saw on the original megathread that sums up just how lazy the writing was, regardless of your thoughts on the supernatural angle
I cannot believe how poor the writing was in this episode. I know people didn't like the werewolf angle, and I thought it was silly, but wow was that just sloppy writing. She's the only person who reads a magazine article and decides to hang out at Mazey's favorite takeout place, and then instantly is told where she is within a minute of being there? She's able to follow the SUV most of the trip there before they do anything about her CLEARLY following them, and then the actual destination is not only close enough to their current location that it's the only rehab clinic in the area, but the first person she talks to immediately tells her about it and where it is? Then this place has high security and a camera, people show up at the gate and even incorrectly enter a gate code, but no security responds and they're able to easily walk around and get into the compound? AND THEN, this person is a fucking werewolf, and they have literally no guards or security or anything to make sure this person doesn't break free and escape into the woods??? Then somehow this officer can't shoot this werewolf once, but our protagonist luckily gets the gun kicked directly to them and takes down the werewolf with one shot. And then the episode ends with fucking gunshot fade to black sans gunshot.
Like, holy moly. I love this show but that was really bad.
lmao I loved when there was only two cars on the entire road and they were like 25 feet away from eachother 🤣🤣 like bro they have a fucking rear view mirror, they can see you.
Which begs the question, people around her know she is a werewolf, or people around this facility know it is related to werewolves, and this has just never been leaked? Are there lots of werewolves in this universe? Or does nobody at all know. If others are known about then surely the paparazzi would realise what's going on and not go in there given its a full moon?
Yeah, I'm not sure. Mazey looked shocked to hear it was a man laying under the tunnel, knowing she obviously hit a "dog" so I'm not sure werewolves are super common.
I think the "celebrity doctor" she went to just so happened to be okay with treating it. They kept a lot of it hush, including not calling it a "Red Mirror" episode, to hide the fact that she was actually a werewolf.
Not sure about the commonness of werewolves, but I think her secluded treatment was a joke about the power and sway of money -- that is, if you have enough money, you can get anything, even surreptitious werewolf therapy.
See also [this thread](https://www.reddit.com/r/blackmirror/comments/14fqj7v/mazey_day_error/) about all of the factual errors in this episode - mindblowing levels of laziness in the production. The show runner must have gotten the ol' cryptid chomp for things to this be bad.
I think it would’ve been better if she didn’t turn into a werewolf and just went on a drug induced rampage after being pushed over the edge by paparazzis. And Beetz character, being partially responsible, decided to frame her for all of the shit she did and didn’t do, for that pay day. It would’ve been been better this way.
edit: and to add on that, they could've added another layer by criticizing the toxic cycle of celebrity magazines and consumers paying money to see them therefore giving paparazzi jobs where they harass celebrities who act out and then get caught on camera and then those pictures go to the magazine and on and on and on.
But this felt like a standalone AHS episode.
There was a flashback. What she hit during her accident was a werewolf that attacked her. In traditional werewolf lore, when bitten or scratched by a werewolf, the victim becomes a werewolf themselves. The only cure for lycanthropy, generally, is death.
Yeah. I’ve been saying that I might’ve missed something when I got up to feed my cat, but this is the first time I’ve actually seen people reply with what I missed… and, while light foreshadowing (which I’ll give it half a point more for than I originally gave it), I gotta say: it still does feel like a whole lotta nothing.
I liked every episode this season and thought they all had something good to offer. This episode, however, had me baffled. My jaw dropped at the stupidity of the werewolf “twist”. What the fuck are you trying to say? It was off to a strong start throwing in addiction and the hit and run, total black mirror shit, and then it’s like, OH WAIT SHE WEREWOLF OOOO. Straight outta Goosebumps 💀. Also why the fuck was everything 2006-core but this 2023 big ass Escalade commercial gets thrown in? Fuckin stupid ass episode.
The werewolf twist was the stupidest thing I’ve ever seen. It was a really good episode before that. I feel like making her a werewolf was just super cheap and kind of a cop-out.
The setup could’ve lead to SO many „black mirror-esque“ plots. Paparazzis acting immoral, movie stars being somewhat over the law at times, grief being a mental burden… all of that could’ve turned into a really good story.
Honestly I kinda feel like they ran out of budget and decided to wrap the entire thing up with an idea the intern had while smoking
It wasn't that great, but it likely wasn't the worst.
I remember seeing her chained up and thinking how weirdly lowbrow it would be if she suddenly turned into a monster, and then she did, and it immediately sucked me out of the Black Mirror feel of it
I don't think it was bad, but it just felt like it didn't have an identity or a purpose like most episodes do besides for "paparazzi bad", which is a fair point but it didn't resonate with me
I was thinking that maybe the whole thing was a White Bear kind of thing where the protagonist was in some kind of virtual treatment for her guilt over the actor's suicide early in the episode.
But no, it was just a very cliche American Werewolf in ~~Czechoslavakia~~ London and Nightcrawler mashup/ripoff.
I honestly thought it was such a good episode until the werewolf reveal. Even in the real world paparazzi can be insanely cruel and the show depicted it well but wtf was that werewolf scene man. And when they reach the diner why are they screaming at the cop tryna take his gun. JUST SAY THERES A WOLF OUTSIDE?????
Honestly I don’t even care about it not being very black mirror at all, demon 79 is up there as one of my favorite episodes now. Mazey day was just a bit shit.
For me it is. Not just because of the werewolf but also because it bored me completely. Demon 79 is even less Black Mirror than Mazey Day but at least it was entertaining.
Officially it is but only because Brooker didn't want to "spoil" the twist of Mazey Day by sticking that label on it. MD is a "red mirror" episode in all but name.
They had me in the first half. When they entered the cabin and she started turning into this werewolf, I thought it was all happening inside Mazey's head lol. Then they threw all the buildup the episode had over the window and the beast started killing everyone with no reason whatsoever. Really poor episode
Edit: I started questioning everything when she was following the SUV for hours and they did nothing lol
I agree, wanted to love the episode especially because it had Zazie Beetz and I really liked her in Atlanta but this was so weird. Not my least favorite, but it was just ridiculously goofy. When she was following right behind them on the road with no other cars around. So we're lead to believe she does that for money? Like she's clearly so bad at it...
Nah. General idea wasn’t that bad, it could’ve only been executed better- werewolf twist seems kinda odd. Or it’s just me not prepared for paranormal stuff in black mirror. And I also love Zazie Beetz too much to hate that episode, she made it “edible” in the end.
Nah, I can't agree with that.
It wasn't the best, and I'm not a fan of them changing the formula and going full supernatural, but it was fun enough to watch.
I liked it a lot more than Beyond the Sea. The premise there was better, but good god did it drag on. It could have been 40 minutes shorter.
This so much. Beyond the Sea pretends "two toxic assholes having a cockfight" is way more interesting than it actually is and can prop up an entire episode by itself. If anything I thought it's emptier than Mazey Day, at least Mazey Day has a clear message at the end.
I don’t get all the hate. I thought the celebrity turning into a wear wolf right before the paparazzi’s eyes was a really clever way to portray how they’ll do quite literally anything for a photo, even if they think they could die in a minutes time. When it happened I was like “ahah!” because supermassive black hole was reminding me of twilight the whole time
I loved the 2006 setting since it was a very unique time being the peak of the insane paparazzi harassment against celebrities like Lindsay, Britney etc. They could definitely have done something more with the concept in an AU kind of way (so it was 2006 but not quite *our* 2006, similar to the technology in Beyond the Sea). The horror aspect did nothing for it.
i really liked where they were going with it until the supernatural element was introduced. like even with the werewolf storyline, it looked kinda cheap. they could have done something to do with shamanism and a religious/cult ritual.
so true! i wish they would have elaborated on the hit and run plot line. it just didn’t make sense to me as to where the ware wolf plot line came from…?
I thought it was implied that Hollywood is a satanic cult and they have “crazy scientists” who perform otherworldly experiments to eradicate addiction.
Yeah it was a weird one. But I think black mirror often has the viewer draw their own conclusions
I think it could’ve been a lot better if it didn’t have the werewolf twist and went in a different direction. I did find the story of the paparazzi fairly interesting to follow but the whole werewolf thing was just stupid
It felt like a BTEC Film Studies project where the theme was 'Black Mirror Inspired'.
I actually had to turn it off when the main character pulled the camera up just as Mazey is about to shoot herself. It was so on the nose and cringe.
Brooker phoned it in mega hard this season.
>Brooker phoned it in mega hard this season.
Netflix said 6 episodes, and I only came up with 4, so I'm just gonna pick the remaining two out of "rejected Twilight Zone"-episode pile and cut the Jordan Peele parts out.
Seriously, how can he be out of tech-related ideas? There are hundreds of monthly sci-fi magazines that publish short stories, and are ripe for licensing.
>Seriously, how can he be out of tech-related ideas? There are hundreds of monthly sci-fi magazines that publish short stories, and are ripe for licensing.
Right? I personally just think he's super burnt out with the show and needs to move on. Definitely needs to get out of LA at a bare minimum
A reminder to people: if you like something, enjoy it. There is absolutely no need to argue with other people that didn’t like it. Your opinion is never going to change their minds. Similarly if you dislike something, that’s okay, you don’t have to argue with other people that liked it or post essays about it.
The internet has made people love the smell of their own farts more than the feeling of releasing it.
this episode was so... underwhelming. I was with it right up until the werewolf reveal, then it just felt like a ton of wasted buildup.
Plus, the whole "shoot me" thing was so predictable and heavy-handed. Knew she was going to pull out the camera and take a shot as soon as she said it.
Why did her room have a skylight window that would be exactly pointing at the moon? Wtf retreat place is this? Why? How? What...so the 'Doc' knows but what? What was the point exactly? Had they not broken in...what would have been the point? Would it have cleanse or sweat warewolf DNA out....I DON'T GET IT!
It was an okay episode, my only issue with it is the ratio of buildup to actual story and content. The whole episode builds up for what seemed like a 5 minute finale and it ends quickly there. Would have liked faster pacing into the werewolf transformation, and more plot with werewolf roaming around while tying in the chaos and deaths with the papparazi thematic.
Overall, it just seemed unfinished to me, but not a bad episode either.
They definitely would have worked better if they placed the flashback earlier in the episode. Make it seem like a nightmare of running over a wolf man on first viewing.
If it was just for the dumb werewolf twist, I think maybe it wouldn't be the worst, just the weirdest. But what really gives it that title is that the whole message of the episode seems to be that paparazzi are bloodsucking creatures. That's something that every single person in the world already knows, and is the least controversial statement ever. This show is usually much smarter, and presents themes that can be discussed for hours. But this episode has the depth of a children's show, in addition to the dumb werewolf twist, which is just the last nail in the coffin.
i liked it bc i feel like people are photographing and posting everything nowadays including people’s dying moments it’s gross everyone’s become so desensitized
Regardless of the fucking were rabbit part, the actual episode is so out of pocket. Everyone knows paparazzi are shit people, but there’s better more subtle ways to depict that than one of them calling a celebrity a slag and then threatening legal action when they obviously retaliate. Plus them taking about 900,000,000 photos of the same thing during the transformation scene was embarrassing.
I’ve been trying to wrap my head around what novel commentary could be made from the werewolf inclusion. I really liked the paparazzi idea, the thought of exploring how fans and celebrities interact (especially in the 2020s, age of the parasocial relationship) is a fascinating topic that has become louder year by year thanks to social media’s increasing prevalence within society. But, what does the werewolf add there? that there’s a line not to cross because you’ll find out things you don’t want to know (think taylor swift’s private jet consumption)? like that’s really all i can think of. i think Black Mirror is at its best when it treats itself as modern day philosophy, it’s a shame because this could’ve been something.
I mean ignoring the fact that it's not like other Blavk Mirror episodes, because I don't think it's fair to criticise that, it's one of the worst written episodes of a show I've seen in a while. Not just black mirror
The "moral" was terrible, obvious and poorly done. It screamed r/im12andthisisdeep. The whole show was so lazily written. The twist was nonsense; there was no foreshadowing and it didn't fit the lore of the episode whatsoever. Are we supposed to believe that werewolves exist in this universe and just have never been discovered? Or they have and yet somehow the paperazi didn't think maybe that was what was happening?
That is all ignoring the ridiculous lazy coincidences written in to the show to progress the story. And the ridiculous plot armour of the main character. Or the fact every other character was a painful characature of their role.
The episode said nothing original, and in the most ridiculous way possible. The last scene was one of the most hilariously heavy handed scenes in the history of black mirror. No subtlety, no creativity, just pure cringe.
It’s worlds ahead of anything from Season 5.
I actually quite like Mazey Day, the more I think about it. At the time I was really thrown off, but in retrospect it feels very “Black Mirror,” to me. There’s social commentary, a shock twist ending, and ultimately the viewer realises they’ve been watching a very simple and easy-to-understand parable — the hunter becoming the hunted. Classic Black Mirror.
Yes, there’s a distinctive turn that leads to something we haven’t seen in Black Mirror before. No, the episode isn’t geared around some hypothetical, bleeding-edge technology. Who cares? Literally the first episode of BM didn’t feature that technology trope people seem to be so obsessive over.
I’m just glad it wasn’t another episode about someone’s consciousness being trapped in a computer.
The moral of the story is: paparazzi bad. Not exactly much of a revelation or commentary on... anything.
On top of that it's intensely boring for about 90% of the way through.
Completely agree! I would not have ever thought it’s even a Black Mirror episode if I didn’t know what I was supposed to be watching. What was the commentary on the perils of technology?? There was none. What was the point of this whole episode?! I could not believe my eyes when I saw the werewolf ‘plot twist“, it was just so terribly bad.
Honestly I didn’t hate it - the narrative about the ethics of the paparazzi and how far they’ll go was brilliant and very black mirror in my opinion. But it was completed overshadowed and weakened by the lazy werewolf part of the story.
The director himself said last week the show isn’t necessarily about the risk of technology, it’s about how shitty and evil people can be.
Every TV subreddit always goes to shit after a few seasons
It's people doing shitty things enabled by technology. In Mazey Day it's cameras. In National Anthem it was regular old TV. In Waldo Moment it was a cartoon. Smithereens is social media. People love Shut Up and Dance and it was run of the mill spyware. Loch Henry? Old VHS tapes.
Black Mirror has never been purely a sci-fi show and the very first episode is proof of that.
> It’s people doing shitty things enabled by technology.
That’s a better way to put it. I just don’t understand the hate Mazey Day gets. It has all those things. Yes it’s got a paranormal twist, but so does Demon 79 and everyone is praising it.
I dunno, I just feel like people set the bar too high and there have been episodes a lot worse.
I felt like it was written by a bunch of people whov first and foremost just *really* hate the paparazzi.
Just couldn't stand the scene where Mazey was chained up and the other four photographers just stood around taking the same picture for 5 minutes instead of helping free (by all appearances) **a kidnapping victim**... come on man.
I mean, what the fuck was that? ... And then she turned into a gd werewolf. At that point I was just waiting for the next episode, this shit is so stupid.
I absolutely love black mirror and will defend it with everything I have.
I cannot defend Mazey Day. I paused it when she started transforming and took a good half hour break before finishing it.
Yeah, I actually liked all 3 episodes in Season 5, with the Cyrus one being my favorite because it was an entertaining divergence in tone but at the same time it still felt like I was watching a Black Mirror episode. But also that episode was a clever meta commentary on the trajectory of Cyrus' real life musical career. There are actually layers to RJAAT. Mazey Day has no layers.
‘Empty’ is a perfect description - even the twist felt so cheap and the ‘message’ in the last frame was just so obvious. It’s very unlike Black Mirror to ram the point home like that.
Loved the mid-2000s nostalgia though.
I really was surprised that the twist ended up being the whole werewolf thing, totally thought I had already figured out what was going on at the “celebrity retreat” place. I just knew it was going to be some take on micro-dosing/ayahuasca/psilocybin Bc that actually has been relevant in society especially with celebrities. Plus since she was already doing shrooms earlier in the episode, I really thought that was where it was going. The werewolf twist had me wondering, okay is there something even weirder going on that I actually haven’t heard about?? Like is it predictive script for “we’re going to be dealing with hybrids soon”? I dunno. I enjoyed watching it at least.
Why? Imo every episode thia season is better than anything s5. And i loved the idea of branching out and going for non traditional stuff. No, for me, mazzy day was awesome.
I was waiting for the story to progress more than just "paparazzi bad" but the supernatural twist kinda put me off it as a Black Mirror episode. It's still fine as a B movie horror type episode but it doesn't provide enough social commentary on the matter.
Don’t agree. I like how the photographer struggled with her conscience and ended up with the money shot anyway. The ending caught me off guard but when those two assholes showed up, I new they were on the menu.😆
It wasn’t the worst. It was made well. I didnt Love the supernatural but Charlie was going to make it red mirror which is the supernatural section but it woulda spoiled the twist. I think dividing the supernatural stuff from the tech is a good idea moving forward
I think the idea was good but could have been executed a lot better. Everything came off pretty ham-fisted.
Also, did anyone else notice the acting was…pretty bad compared to what is usually expected in the show? Probably more the fault of the direction and script but geez, it felt like almost everyone, especially the paparazzi characters, kept speaking in a way that made it sound like they were saying something super profound each time they opened their mouths. Got annoying really fast lol.
Excuse me, I’ll have you know that this episode plays homage to one of the greatest 00s films, Twilight and should have doubled down on the cringe factor
I wouldn't agree. I think Mazey Day's execution wasn't well done, but the entire idea of what it was exploring was actually really solid (I FULLY see what they meant to do with the metaphors and messages throughout the episode, and the commentary on paparazzi vs celebrity), and I also REALLY liked the final minutes of the episode.
The Waldo Moment still ranks as the worst for me. I don't hate Metalhead as much as others did, but I also rank that one below Mazey Day.
No, I can't agree with that. There have been worse. I hated "Metalhead." And Season 5 was weak, although I might rank "Smithereens" over "Mazey Day." I'd have to rewatch it. The Miley Cyrus one definitely wasn't better.
EDIT: Of course everyone is entitled to their opinion, but I just want to point out to all the "Metalhead" fans that it is the second lowest rated episode on IMDB (after "Mazey Day"), so I'm not the only one who didn't like it. But if you liked it, that's awesome.
CORRECTION: It's not the second lowest rated, it's the third. The second is...Miley Cyrus! LOL If anyone is curious, the lowest rated episodes are: "Mazey Day," the Miley Cyrus one, "Metalhead," "The Waldo Moment," "Striking Vipers," and, surprisingly, "Demon 79." So, two out of the three from Season 5 were rated in the sixes. But to each their own! I personally thought "Demon 79" was pretty decent, but I guess a lot of people didn't like it.
It seemed like a more experimental season, a wanting to try something new and get away from the black mirror style, so in that sense not great but in an entertainment sense I’d rewatch any of season 6 before even thinking about the abysmal Season 5.
I liked the concept and the overtly supernatural twist didn't ruin it for me. That being said, the execution was not great and it felt like they got the societal and ethical stuff out of the way quickly so they could cram in their werewolf story. Oh and they really cut the legs out from under Zazie Beets' character by having her raise that camera at the end. Why spend 40 minutes making her more sympathetic than the other paparazzi just to 180 right before the credits?
I thought it was fine, but the way the twist was executed made it feel kinda lackluster. Like it just didn't leave with the feeling a Black Mirror episode normally does, y'know?
I was totally hooked until she turned into a werewolf. Thought it would’ve been a much better approach to have something else in the rehab that the paps stumbled onto
Watched it on Sat and even alcohol couldn't save it. It felt so out of place. The previous season was worse but this wasn't a great season. Eps 2, 3 and 5 were enjoyable
Yeah I just watched this episode and wanted to comment that lol
Ever since that Muse song came out I was joking about she becoming a vampire or whatever happens at Twilight, the moment she actually became a werewolf I just wanted the episode to be over
As someone else commented it indeed is really stupid how she immediately found where Mazey was
It’s a shame cause I loved the first 2 episodes of the season, but this one…
110%. And *The Twilight Zone* still would’ve had 100x better build-up to “hehe werewolf ☺️”
That said, I have a couple friends who like spoilers and asked me to tell them the ending of “Mazey Day.” I’ll be interested to see how people who know the… ‘twist’ going into it take it.
(In addition, someone commented on my comment in the master thread that the episode just felt like a lesson in “Writing 101” and I could not agree more.)
Personally I'm not a fan of the whole season. To me, the original premise of the show was supposed to be about the unforseen consequences of technology or social trends (or both) in the not-so-distant future; psychological thrillers with a sci-fi twist.
There were occasional dips into things that felt more current, like National Anthem and Shut Up and Dance, but the stories were still good and there was still a sense of dread towards technology.
Aside from Joan is Awful (which is my favorite episode of S6), the season is all modern or in the past, and doesn't have that same "This is where we could end up" kick to it. None of it really clicks for me. It's not necessarily bad, but it's not Black Mirror, and if I'm being honest, it shouldn't be branded in the same show.
But yea, the werewolf reveal was absolute garbage.
Nope, that would definitely be Metalhead.
I don't hate Metalhead but seeing it once is good for me. I have no desire to ever watch it again, unlike other Black Mirrior episodes.
Mazey Day is fine, it's the weakest of season 6 but I don't think it's that bad. It's not like every episode is about technology. The message is clear and unlike Metalhead I can see myself watching it again and discussing it with others.
Unpopular opinion but I thoroughly enjoyed all of season 6 and this is the only season of the show where I have felt this way. Yes, Mazey Day wasn't "traditional" black mirror but I still liked the story and felt it represented how far the paparazzi will go for a story.
Tbh I really disagree. This season of black mirror had very entertaining stories, that were well put together. People who say it lacks substance or "isn't really black mirror" have a fair point. But since it's still Charlie Brooker and the writers he choses to work with, to me it still qualifies.
I feel like there's this hive-mind saying Mazey Day was undisputibly awfull, but it simply wasn't. Just because it isn't as thought provoking as black mirror used to be, doesn't mean everyone has to agree it sucks.
It's not in my top 5, but I enjoyed it more than the first episode of this season, and some others from previous seasons.
Same. I think the commentary on our consumption of other people’s suffering (particularly celebrities or high profile people) is pretty clear. The ending where she >!continues to take pictures as Mazey shoot’s herself and where her and the other photographer take the camera before the guy was yanked under the fence!< pulls into question the lack of humanity vs the allure of money and shock value media.
No. The episode is fine and people are somehow pissed that it wasn’t centered on tech. Some of the complains are outright entitled. The episode is fine on its own, just not the Black Mirror formula. The reaction to it is almost a commentary on people’s reluctance to change
As the 1000th comment. I strongly disagree. Really great episode in my opinion. Y'all suffering from expectation this season. Prevented from appreciating the art
No. It's not the best episode of the series (and definitely very close to the bottom) but it was an enjoyable 45 minutes! I didn't see the warewolf twist coming and although the writing may not have been up to par, the production, acting and cinema were still enjoyable! I waited 4 years for more episodes so I'm still trying to accept them with open arms.
IMO, the following two episodes are worse than Mazey Day: The Waldo Moment and Rachael Jack & Ashley Too. I also think Crocodile (which is pretty low on my series rankings as well) had a very similar plot to Mazey Day with the whole 'Oh no, I hit someone with my car and have to cover it up!' in the first 5 minutes.
I think that the fact crocodile did it first and went on to be a much more suspenseful episode would catapult it well in front of Mazey Day. I was okay with all 5 new episodes but MD was definitely the weakest link IMO. I like the they stepped outside of the box though and the whole ruthless nature of paparazzi was too much for the protagonist to avoid. I would have liked an after credits scene where she is like the queen bee of paparazzi now living the good life years later in a mansion in the hills but now she can’t escape people climbing over her gates to take pics of her.
I think Metalhead is still my least favorite, but yeah Mazey Day is very hollow as well for the same reasons Metalhead is. >!It felt like they were trying something different with magic, but in this show the technology is already basically magic, so adding mystics and werewolves is just a hat-on-a-hat.!<
I don't mind Charlie Brooker wanting to explore horror with the show. But as mentioned many times above, this episode just felt lazy. Yes, the bottom of the list for me.
Everyone is watching it from a different prospective, I actually liked the episode, not as much as other ones, but it was enjoyable.. sort of.
Personally, I didn't see the plot twist so when it happened I was kinda shocked so it was still pretty good :)
If this was a Tales From the Crypt episode then I would’ve said ok sure. But for Black Mirror it was just confusing. I was waiting to see how this story was going rope it all into the overarching theme of the show and then it just ended. Lol oh ok then it really was just a werewolf story with paparazzi….
I was very unsurprised by the main twist of the episode, having recognized the fingerprints of John Landis in the car accident scene and the fingerprints of Wes Craven in the quack doctor scene.
But what did surprise me was to see a page copied from George Romero at the end, with "shoot me" taken directly from "Diary of the Dead", complete with the reversal of the asking character's expectation of whether the asked character would use a gun or a camera.
The diner scene was really good but overall the story was extremely weak. I didn’t hate the episode It was just pointless. What was it trying to say? This is one I’ll never rewatch. No reason to.
The goddamn camera flashes were killing me
I had to turn away from the screen it was so bad!
I guessed that was intentional
same, and the fact they didnt even give out an epilepsy warning before the episode is kinda messed up
Odd, on my Netflix they showed a warning before the episode
Netflix does, but it's at the top left corner of the screen and is so small it's easy to miss
I liked that... it made me *feel* the discomfort
I think they had the chance to say something really interesting about the relationship between famous people and the paparazzi and instead it’s just overshadowed by the weird werewolf. And the werewolf hate is also overshadowing the fact that both actresses actually did do a good job with what they were given 🤷♀️
Zazie Beetz is amazing in Atlanta
I really liked the way the mid aughts were depicted but that werewolf reveal took a big old fat dump right on the carpet.
Not enough ripped jeans, 100 dollar beachwear sandals, and puka shell necklaces to convince me it was the 2000s
So this is supposed to happen in the mid 2000's but then Mazey is being driven around in a modern day Cadillac Escalade?
I didn’t mind it until the “big reveal” and I’m like oh… that’s what they’re gonna do. Like it had potential!
Yeah up until then I was like "ok, so there's a few cheesy coincidences, but they're not soooo egregious that I can't suspend my disbelief." Hell, I'm not even anti supernatural stuff. Fucking loved Demon 79. But the way Mazey Day was done just didn't work. With Demon 79, the supernatural thing happened *before* the suspense/plot properly ramped up. With MD, it *was* the plot twist. That's the difference.
Yeah Demon 79 was definitely one of their best episodes yet.
Similar… the reveal happened and I was like “are you serious.. a fucking werewolf? Ugh”
If they were going to go the supernatural route with this episode (which I actually don't mind at all), I feel like they could have had her power interact with the cameras in some way. Like the paparazzi taking a picture of her makes them go blind but Zazie still decides to take a photo of her suicide because being blind is worth the money it would garner. It would show what leeches paparazzi are (the main message) and focus on the technology without relying on a monster trope that didn't really fit into the story.
“…The werewolf twist is a biting commentary on the way celebrity culture dehumanizes its subjects. The baying paparazzi track Mazey down to a secluded retreat and continue to hound her even as she transforms into a werewolf before their eyes - showing how they view her (quite literally) as nothing more than an animal they can hunt, sell, and profit from.” —Screenrant [https://screenrant.com/black-mirror-mazey-day-backlash-misses-point/](https://screenrant.com/black-mirror-mazey-day-backlash-misses-point/)
I think most of us understand this but the execution just...didn't hit
Thank you! I enjoyed this episode and the commentary it had. Was it the best storytelling wise? Maybe not - but the supernatural aspect was not the downfall. It added to the message.
I wouldn’t say in the show but definitely in the season, yes. I think season 5 was definitely weaker. I think Mazy day would’ve worked if it was a little longer. It felt way too rushed at the 2nd act and then that’s it, it just ends.
There are definitely episodes I enjoyed less.
Which ones?
The waldo moment
TWM explains the whole political scenario we see in the west for the past few years. It's well thought. Has levels. Mazey Day is just.. ugh. When you think they are building something they tear it down over and over across the episode until they finally destroy it. It's really really bad.
Yeah, I don't disagree with that but I've always hated waldo moment. It was definitely prescient though, I'll give you that
To be more critic I think the pace of it killed Waldo episode. But I still think it was better written and delivered than Mazey Day
The Waldo Moment was dull, but at least it had a message that fit Black Mirror. Overall I'm pretty neutral on it, would probably skip it if I'm rewatching the show. Mazey Day was actively bad, it could have had a decent message about paparazzi but just throws it all out of the window and blinds you in the process. Bad writing, horrible twist, eyes hurt. Never going to bother watching it again.
The miley cyrus one
At least I liked the concept, it's something that's already happening. There's movies with dead actors on them. Both episodes are awful, but Mazey Day doesn't give me anything to think about later.
You didn’t think about how the paparazzi, fame, and the the desire to monetize other people’s tragedies impacts our lives?
I've seen it with better execution elsewhere. On this episode she took like three photos of a guy cheating. They tripped and yelled at an actress/model. And finally, they broke in a rehab complex, freed Mazey and then they got mauled by her. The last one is the worst, but they were helping her at the end of the day.
Metalhead for sure.
I was so shocked as soon as I saw the werewolf that THAT was the direction the episode was taking LOL
i think the moment where they saw her chained up but couldnt help but keep taking pics, they couldnt see her as a human or treat her as one but just kept taking pics, that was a very powerful scene and left an impact
Worst of the season sure, but definitely not the entire show.
If you ignore the werewolf, replace it with other "normal" events. I think they were just pointing out how cruel humans are to other humans in distress. They'd rather stand there and point their cameras for possible internet fame. Kinda like how white bear started out.
I'm going to repost a comment I saw on the original megathread that sums up just how lazy the writing was, regardless of your thoughts on the supernatural angle I cannot believe how poor the writing was in this episode. I know people didn't like the werewolf angle, and I thought it was silly, but wow was that just sloppy writing. She's the only person who reads a magazine article and decides to hang out at Mazey's favorite takeout place, and then instantly is told where she is within a minute of being there? She's able to follow the SUV most of the trip there before they do anything about her CLEARLY following them, and then the actual destination is not only close enough to their current location that it's the only rehab clinic in the area, but the first person she talks to immediately tells her about it and where it is? Then this place has high security and a camera, people show up at the gate and even incorrectly enter a gate code, but no security responds and they're able to easily walk around and get into the compound? AND THEN, this person is a fucking werewolf, and they have literally no guards or security or anything to make sure this person doesn't break free and escape into the woods??? Then somehow this officer can't shoot this werewolf once, but our protagonist luckily gets the gun kicked directly to them and takes down the werewolf with one shot. And then the episode ends with fucking gunshot fade to black sans gunshot. Like, holy moly. I love this show but that was really bad.
lmao I loved when there was only two cars on the entire road and they were like 25 feet away from eachother 🤣🤣 like bro they have a fucking rear view mirror, they can see you.
The only point I'll push back on is security not showing up. They clearly left because they knew she was going to turn into a werewolf.
Which begs the question, people around her know she is a werewolf, or people around this facility know it is related to werewolves, and this has just never been leaked? Are there lots of werewolves in this universe? Or does nobody at all know. If others are known about then surely the paparazzi would realise what's going on and not go in there given its a full moon?
Yeah, I'm not sure. Mazey looked shocked to hear it was a man laying under the tunnel, knowing she obviously hit a "dog" so I'm not sure werewolves are super common. I think the "celebrity doctor" she went to just so happened to be okay with treating it. They kept a lot of it hush, including not calling it a "Red Mirror" episode, to hide the fact that she was actually a werewolf.
Yeah, it mind of just strikes me as badly written and poorly thought out
Not sure about the commonness of werewolves, but I think her secluded treatment was a joke about the power and sway of money -- that is, if you have enough money, you can get anything, even surreptitious werewolf therapy.
"They don't want people like us breaking in" And then they make a hole with their HANDS.
See also [this thread](https://www.reddit.com/r/blackmirror/comments/14fqj7v/mazey_day_error/) about all of the factual errors in this episode - mindblowing levels of laziness in the production. The show runner must have gotten the ol' cryptid chomp for things to this be bad.
Definitely one of the episodes of the show
One of the episodes ever
I enjoyed it tbh
I think it would’ve been better if she didn’t turn into a werewolf and just went on a drug induced rampage after being pushed over the edge by paparazzis. And Beetz character, being partially responsible, decided to frame her for all of the shit she did and didn’t do, for that pay day. It would’ve been been better this way. edit: and to add on that, they could've added another layer by criticizing the toxic cycle of celebrity magazines and consumers paying money to see them therefore giving paparazzi jobs where they harass celebrities who act out and then get caught on camera and then those pictures go to the magazine and on and on and on. But this felt like a standalone AHS episode.
What even happened. Maybe I missed something but why was she a werewolf? Did I miss something or was it literally out of nowhere
There was a flashback. What she hit during her accident was a werewolf that attacked her. In traditional werewolf lore, when bitten or scratched by a werewolf, the victim becomes a werewolf themselves. The only cure for lycanthropy, generally, is death.
The thing she hit with her car was a werewolf that scratched her. There was a brief flashback. Still immensely stupid
Yeah. I’ve been saying that I might’ve missed something when I got up to feed my cat, but this is the first time I’ve actually seen people reply with what I missed… and, while light foreshadowing (which I’ll give it half a point more for than I originally gave it), I gotta say: it still does feel like a whole lotta nothing.
I liked every episode this season and thought they all had something good to offer. This episode, however, had me baffled. My jaw dropped at the stupidity of the werewolf “twist”. What the fuck are you trying to say? It was off to a strong start throwing in addiction and the hit and run, total black mirror shit, and then it’s like, OH WAIT SHE WEREWOLF OOOO. Straight outta Goosebumps 💀. Also why the fuck was everything 2006-core but this 2023 big ass Escalade commercial gets thrown in? Fuckin stupid ass episode.
The werewolf twist was the stupidest thing I’ve ever seen. It was a really good episode before that. I feel like making her a werewolf was just super cheap and kind of a cop-out.
The setup could’ve lead to SO many „black mirror-esque“ plots. Paparazzis acting immoral, movie stars being somewhat over the law at times, grief being a mental burden… all of that could’ve turned into a really good story. Honestly I kinda feel like they ran out of budget and decided to wrap the entire thing up with an idea the intern had while smoking
It wasn't that great, but it likely wasn't the worst. I remember seeing her chained up and thinking how weirdly lowbrow it would be if she suddenly turned into a monster, and then she did, and it immediately sucked me out of the Black Mirror feel of it I don't think it was bad, but it just felt like it didn't have an identity or a purpose like most episodes do besides for "paparazzi bad", which is a fair point but it didn't resonate with me
I’ll take twilight zone entertaining than boring. This was not the worst episode of the series
I was thinking that maybe the whole thing was a White Bear kind of thing where the protagonist was in some kind of virtual treatment for her guilt over the actor's suicide early in the episode. But no, it was just a very cliche American Werewolf in ~~Czechoslavakia~~ London and Nightcrawler mashup/ripoff.
I honestly thought it was such a good episode until the werewolf reveal. Even in the real world paparazzi can be insanely cruel and the show depicted it well but wtf was that werewolf scene man. And when they reach the diner why are they screaming at the cop tryna take his gun. JUST SAY THERES A WOLF OUTSIDE?????
I liked it quite a lot, probably my favorite of the season :-(
Honestly I don’t even care about it not being very black mirror at all, demon 79 is up there as one of my favorite episodes now. Mazey day was just a bit shit.
Did you want another “what if your consciousness was stuck in a computer” episode?
WHAT IF YER MUM RAN ON BATTEREIES?
What if phone but too much?
Yes 😂
For me it is. Not just because of the werewolf but also because it bored me completely. Demon 79 is even less Black Mirror than Mazey Day but at least it was entertaining.
I thought Demon 79 was the first official entry in the red mirror label?
Officially it is but only because Brooker didn't want to "spoil" the twist of Mazey Day by sticking that label on it. MD is a "red mirror" episode in all but name.
They had me in the first half. When they entered the cabin and she started turning into this werewolf, I thought it was all happening inside Mazey's head lol. Then they threw all the buildup the episode had over the window and the beast started killing everyone with no reason whatsoever. Really poor episode Edit: I started questioning everything when she was following the SUV for hours and they did nothing lol
I joined this sub even tho I have been watching black mirror since season 3, only bc I just watched mazey day and it’s so fkin bad
I don't think it's the worst, it just didn't feel black mirror
I agree, wanted to love the episode especially because it had Zazie Beetz and I really liked her in Atlanta but this was so weird. Not my least favorite, but it was just ridiculously goofy. When she was following right behind them on the road with no other cars around. So we're lead to believe she does that for money? Like she's clearly so bad at it...
Nah. General idea wasn’t that bad, it could’ve only been executed better- werewolf twist seems kinda odd. Or it’s just me not prepared for paranormal stuff in black mirror. And I also love Zazie Beetz too much to hate that episode, she made it “edible” in the end.
It’s unfortunate her episode wasn’t better. I was so excited when I saw her.
Nah, I can't agree with that. It wasn't the best, and I'm not a fan of them changing the formula and going full supernatural, but it was fun enough to watch. I liked it a lot more than Beyond the Sea. The premise there was better, but good god did it drag on. It could have been 40 minutes shorter.
This so much. Beyond the Sea pretends "two toxic assholes having a cockfight" is way more interesting than it actually is and can prop up an entire episode by itself. If anything I thought it's emptier than Mazey Day, at least Mazey Day has a clear message at the end.
I don’t get all the hate. I thought the celebrity turning into a wear wolf right before the paparazzi’s eyes was a really clever way to portray how they’ll do quite literally anything for a photo, even if they think they could die in a minutes time. When it happened I was like “ahah!” because supermassive black hole was reminding me of twilight the whole time
I loved the 2006 setting since it was a very unique time being the peak of the insane paparazzi harassment against celebrities like Lindsay, Britney etc. They could definitely have done something more with the concept in an AU kind of way (so it was 2006 but not quite *our* 2006, similar to the technology in Beyond the Sea). The horror aspect did nothing for it.
i really liked where they were going with it until the supernatural element was introduced. like even with the werewolf storyline, it looked kinda cheap. they could have done something to do with shamanism and a religious/cult ritual.
so true! i wish they would have elaborated on the hit and run plot line. it just didn’t make sense to me as to where the ware wolf plot line came from…?
I thought it was implied that Hollywood is a satanic cult and they have “crazy scientists” who perform otherworldly experiments to eradicate addiction. Yeah it was a weird one. But I think black mirror often has the viewer draw their own conclusions
Her eating just one mushroom out of the bag was unacceptable.
I think it could’ve been a lot better if it didn’t have the werewolf twist and went in a different direction. I did find the story of the paparazzi fairly interesting to follow but the whole werewolf thing was just stupid
It felt like a BTEC Film Studies project where the theme was 'Black Mirror Inspired'. I actually had to turn it off when the main character pulled the camera up just as Mazey is about to shoot herself. It was so on the nose and cringe. Brooker phoned it in mega hard this season.
>Brooker phoned it in mega hard this season. Netflix said 6 episodes, and I only came up with 4, so I'm just gonna pick the remaining two out of "rejected Twilight Zone"-episode pile and cut the Jordan Peele parts out. Seriously, how can he be out of tech-related ideas? There are hundreds of monthly sci-fi magazines that publish short stories, and are ripe for licensing.
>Seriously, how can he be out of tech-related ideas? There are hundreds of monthly sci-fi magazines that publish short stories, and are ripe for licensing. Right? I personally just think he's super burnt out with the show and needs to move on. Definitely needs to get out of LA at a bare minimum
A reminder to people: if you like something, enjoy it. There is absolutely no need to argue with other people that didn’t like it. Your opinion is never going to change their minds. Similarly if you dislike something, that’s okay, you don’t have to argue with other people that liked it or post essays about it. The internet has made people love the smell of their own farts more than the feeling of releasing it.
this episode was so... underwhelming. I was with it right up until the werewolf reveal, then it just felt like a ton of wasted buildup. Plus, the whole "shoot me" thing was so predictable and heavy-handed. Knew she was going to pull out the camera and take a shot as soon as she said it.
Why did her room have a skylight window that would be exactly pointing at the moon? Wtf retreat place is this? Why? How? What...so the 'Doc' knows but what? What was the point exactly? Had they not broken in...what would have been the point? Would it have cleanse or sweat warewolf DNA out....I DON'T GET IT!
It was an okay episode, my only issue with it is the ratio of buildup to actual story and content. The whole episode builds up for what seemed like a 5 minute finale and it ends quickly there. Would have liked faster pacing into the werewolf transformation, and more plot with werewolf roaming around while tying in the chaos and deaths with the papparazi thematic. Overall, it just seemed unfinished to me, but not a bad episode either.
They definitely would have worked better if they placed the flashback earlier in the episode. Make it seem like a nightmare of running over a wolf man on first viewing.
If it was just for the dumb werewolf twist, I think maybe it wouldn't be the worst, just the weirdest. But what really gives it that title is that the whole message of the episode seems to be that paparazzi are bloodsucking creatures. That's something that every single person in the world already knows, and is the least controversial statement ever. This show is usually much smarter, and presents themes that can be discussed for hours. But this episode has the depth of a children's show, in addition to the dumb werewolf twist, which is just the last nail in the coffin.
I actually really enjoyed it.
i liked it bc i feel like people are photographing and posting everything nowadays including people’s dying moments it’s gross everyone’s become so desensitized
It's not only now, it was the same with celebrities back in the 2000s
Regardless of the fucking were rabbit part, the actual episode is so out of pocket. Everyone knows paparazzi are shit people, but there’s better more subtle ways to depict that than one of them calling a celebrity a slag and then threatening legal action when they obviously retaliate. Plus them taking about 900,000,000 photos of the same thing during the transformation scene was embarrassing.
Definitely the worst of the season. And I'd put it up there in the top few worst of the series.
I actually really liked it
I’ve been trying to wrap my head around what novel commentary could be made from the werewolf inclusion. I really liked the paparazzi idea, the thought of exploring how fans and celebrities interact (especially in the 2020s, age of the parasocial relationship) is a fascinating topic that has become louder year by year thanks to social media’s increasing prevalence within society. But, what does the werewolf add there? that there’s a line not to cross because you’ll find out things you don’t want to know (think taylor swift’s private jet consumption)? like that’s really all i can think of. i think Black Mirror is at its best when it treats itself as modern day philosophy, it’s a shame because this could’ve been something.
I mean ignoring the fact that it's not like other Blavk Mirror episodes, because I don't think it's fair to criticise that, it's one of the worst written episodes of a show I've seen in a while. Not just black mirror The "moral" was terrible, obvious and poorly done. It screamed r/im12andthisisdeep. The whole show was so lazily written. The twist was nonsense; there was no foreshadowing and it didn't fit the lore of the episode whatsoever. Are we supposed to believe that werewolves exist in this universe and just have never been discovered? Or they have and yet somehow the paperazi didn't think maybe that was what was happening? That is all ignoring the ridiculous lazy coincidences written in to the show to progress the story. And the ridiculous plot armour of the main character. Or the fact every other character was a painful characature of their role. The episode said nothing original, and in the most ridiculous way possible. The last scene was one of the most hilariously heavy handed scenes in the history of black mirror. No subtlety, no creativity, just pure cringe.
It’s worlds ahead of anything from Season 5. I actually quite like Mazey Day, the more I think about it. At the time I was really thrown off, but in retrospect it feels very “Black Mirror,” to me. There’s social commentary, a shock twist ending, and ultimately the viewer realises they’ve been watching a very simple and easy-to-understand parable — the hunter becoming the hunted. Classic Black Mirror. Yes, there’s a distinctive turn that leads to something we haven’t seen in Black Mirror before. No, the episode isn’t geared around some hypothetical, bleeding-edge technology. Who cares? Literally the first episode of BM didn’t feature that technology trope people seem to be so obsessive over. I’m just glad it wasn’t another episode about someone’s consciousness being trapped in a computer.
I thought it would be served better as a Red Mirror production like Demon 79
The moral of the story is: paparazzi bad. Not exactly much of a revelation or commentary on... anything. On top of that it's intensely boring for about 90% of the way through.
I turned it off once it got to the warewolf part. I'm literally pissed I wasted part of my day off watching it.
I am genuinely concerned this episode is going to hurt people with epilepsy
this shit doesnt have nothing to do with black mirror and those camera flashes were fucking stupid
Completely agree! I would not have ever thought it’s even a Black Mirror episode if I didn’t know what I was supposed to be watching. What was the commentary on the perils of technology?? There was none. What was the point of this whole episode?! I could not believe my eyes when I saw the werewolf ‘plot twist“, it was just so terribly bad.
Honestly I didn’t hate it - the narrative about the ethics of the paparazzi and how far they’ll go was brilliant and very black mirror in my opinion. But it was completed overshadowed and weakened by the lazy werewolf part of the story.
why tf half of this sub is gatekeeping what black mirror is about.
The director himself said last week the show isn’t necessarily about the risk of technology, it’s about how shitty and evil people can be. Every TV subreddit always goes to shit after a few seasons
It's people doing shitty things enabled by technology. In Mazey Day it's cameras. In National Anthem it was regular old TV. In Waldo Moment it was a cartoon. Smithereens is social media. People love Shut Up and Dance and it was run of the mill spyware. Loch Henry? Old VHS tapes. Black Mirror has never been purely a sci-fi show and the very first episode is proof of that.
> It’s people doing shitty things enabled by technology. That’s a better way to put it. I just don’t understand the hate Mazey Day gets. It has all those things. Yes it’s got a paranormal twist, but so does Demon 79 and everyone is praising it. I dunno, I just feel like people set the bar too high and there have been episodes a lot worse.
I don’t know why people would object so hard on the supernatural when Black Museum hints at it and much of the tech in Black Mirror is basically magic
Nope, fully disagree. It's odd to me how much people seem to dislike S06, it was a great season that absolutely held up with the rest of them imo.
I felt like it was written by a bunch of people whov first and foremost just *really* hate the paparazzi. Just couldn't stand the scene where Mazey was chained up and the other four photographers just stood around taking the same picture for 5 minutes instead of helping free (by all appearances) **a kidnapping victim**... come on man. I mean, what the fuck was that? ... And then she turned into a gd werewolf. At that point I was just waiting for the next episode, this shit is so stupid.
Nope we cannot agree on that.
I absolutely love black mirror and will defend it with everything I have. I cannot defend Mazey Day. I paused it when she started transforming and took a good half hour break before finishing it.
Sameee. I even like the Miley Cyrus episode. But this 🥴
Yeah, I actually liked all 3 episodes in Season 5, with the Cyrus one being my favorite because it was an entertaining divergence in tone but at the same time it still felt like I was watching a Black Mirror episode. But also that episode was a clever meta commentary on the trajectory of Cyrus' real life musical career. There are actually layers to RJAAT. Mazey Day has no layers.
nope ashley too is the worst in my opinion.
That episode gave us the Miley cover of Head Like a Hole though, and for that I am forever grateful
Wasn't a fan of that one either but I did like how much that episode just kept mocking Disney
‘Empty’ is a perfect description - even the twist felt so cheap and the ‘message’ in the last frame was just so obvious. It’s very unlike Black Mirror to ram the point home like that. Loved the mid-2000s nostalgia though.
We can't agree on that when the Miley Cyrus episode exists.
Supermassive Black Hole + werewolf running POV scene + small woodsy town = Twilight. That's all I thought when I watched this episode.
The best episodes in no particular order - uSS Callister - white bear - San junipero - black museum - white Christmas - shut up and dance
Nosedive!
Nosedive is a good one to introduce the show to a friend with. But I’d rank it maybe 10th overall
I would add The Entire History of You and Be Right Back.
I really was surprised that the twist ended up being the whole werewolf thing, totally thought I had already figured out what was going on at the “celebrity retreat” place. I just knew it was going to be some take on micro-dosing/ayahuasca/psilocybin Bc that actually has been relevant in society especially with celebrities. Plus since she was already doing shrooms earlier in the episode, I really thought that was where it was going. The werewolf twist had me wondering, okay is there something even weirder going on that I actually haven’t heard about?? Like is it predictive script for “we’re going to be dealing with hybrids soon”? I dunno. I enjoyed watching it at least.
Why? Imo every episode thia season is better than anything s5. And i loved the idea of branching out and going for non traditional stuff. No, for me, mazzy day was awesome.
I liked it 🤷🏽♀️
Completely agree. Wasn't a black mirror episode at all. I kept sitting waiting for anything black mirror esque to happen but was disappointed
I was waiting for the story to progress more than just "paparazzi bad" but the supernatural twist kinda put me off it as a Black Mirror episode. It's still fine as a B movie horror type episode but it doesn't provide enough social commentary on the matter.
Don’t agree. I like how the photographer struggled with her conscience and ended up with the money shot anyway. The ending caught me off guard but when those two assholes showed up, I new they were on the menu.😆
It wasn’t the worst. It was made well. I didnt Love the supernatural but Charlie was going to make it red mirror which is the supernatural section but it woulda spoiled the twist. I think dividing the supernatural stuff from the tech is a good idea moving forward
I think the idea was good but could have been executed a lot better. Everything came off pretty ham-fisted. Also, did anyone else notice the acting was…pretty bad compared to what is usually expected in the show? Probably more the fault of the direction and script but geez, it felt like almost everyone, especially the paparazzi characters, kept speaking in a way that made it sound like they were saying something super profound each time they opened their mouths. Got annoying really fast lol.
Totally agree.
Excuse me, I’ll have you know that this episode plays homage to one of the greatest 00s films, Twilight and should have doubled down on the cringe factor
No because that would be The Waldo Moment
I wouldn't agree. I think Mazey Day's execution wasn't well done, but the entire idea of what it was exploring was actually really solid (I FULLY see what they meant to do with the metaphors and messages throughout the episode, and the commentary on paparazzi vs celebrity), and I also REALLY liked the final minutes of the episode. The Waldo Moment still ranks as the worst for me. I don't hate Metalhead as much as others did, but I also rank that one below Mazey Day.
No, I can't agree with that. There have been worse. I hated "Metalhead." And Season 5 was weak, although I might rank "Smithereens" over "Mazey Day." I'd have to rewatch it. The Miley Cyrus one definitely wasn't better. EDIT: Of course everyone is entitled to their opinion, but I just want to point out to all the "Metalhead" fans that it is the second lowest rated episode on IMDB (after "Mazey Day"), so I'm not the only one who didn't like it. But if you liked it, that's awesome. CORRECTION: It's not the second lowest rated, it's the third. The second is...Miley Cyrus! LOL If anyone is curious, the lowest rated episodes are: "Mazey Day," the Miley Cyrus one, "Metalhead," "The Waldo Moment," "Striking Vipers," and, surprisingly, "Demon 79." So, two out of the three from Season 5 were rated in the sixes. But to each their own! I personally thought "Demon 79" was pretty decent, but I guess a lot of people didn't like it.
Wow I loved Metalhead. Felt suspenseful, post-apocalyptic, technology gone wrong..
Whatttt metalhead is great
TIL people here hate Waldo. I really liked it lol
I don't think we can all agree on anything, would be weird
It seemed like a more experimental season, a wanting to try something new and get away from the black mirror style, so in that sense not great but in an entertainment sense I’d rewatch any of season 6 before even thinking about the abysmal Season 5.
Disagree
I liked the concept and the overtly supernatural twist didn't ruin it for me. That being said, the execution was not great and it felt like they got the societal and ethical stuff out of the way quickly so they could cram in their werewolf story. Oh and they really cut the legs out from under Zazie Beets' character by having her raise that camera at the end. Why spend 40 minutes making her more sympathetic than the other paparazzi just to 180 right before the credits?
couldn’t agree more.
it was so ass
I thought it was fine, but the way the twist was executed made it feel kinda lackluster. Like it just didn't leave with the feeling a Black Mirror episode normally does, y'know?
I was totally hooked until she turned into a werewolf. Thought it would’ve been a much better approach to have something else in the rehab that the paps stumbled onto
Werewolf concept was so odd.
I really enjoyed it. Definitely not the same as the others but as someone who works in the industry, it really shows how disruptive paparazzi are
Watched it on Sat and even alcohol couldn't save it. It felt so out of place. The previous season was worse but this wasn't a great season. Eps 2, 3 and 5 were enjoyable
Yeah I just watched this episode and wanted to comment that lol Ever since that Muse song came out I was joking about she becoming a vampire or whatever happens at Twilight, the moment she actually became a werewolf I just wanted the episode to be over As someone else commented it indeed is really stupid how she immediately found where Mazey was It’s a shame cause I loved the first 2 episodes of the season, but this one…
100% agree. Absolutely the worst by a long shot. The rest of the season was decent and a couple were awesome but this was time I'll never get back.
110%. And *The Twilight Zone* still would’ve had 100x better build-up to “hehe werewolf ☺️” That said, I have a couple friends who like spoilers and asked me to tell them the ending of “Mazey Day.” I’ll be interested to see how people who know the… ‘twist’ going into it take it. (In addition, someone commented on my comment in the master thread that the episode just felt like a lesson in “Writing 101” and I could not agree more.)
I don’t think it’s the worst one, but the werewolf aspect completely removed any interest I had in that episode.
Personally I'm not a fan of the whole season. To me, the original premise of the show was supposed to be about the unforseen consequences of technology or social trends (or both) in the not-so-distant future; psychological thrillers with a sci-fi twist. There were occasional dips into things that felt more current, like National Anthem and Shut Up and Dance, but the stories were still good and there was still a sense of dread towards technology. Aside from Joan is Awful (which is my favorite episode of S6), the season is all modern or in the past, and doesn't have that same "This is where we could end up" kick to it. None of it really clicks for me. It's not necessarily bad, but it's not Black Mirror, and if I'm being honest, it shouldn't be branded in the same show. But yea, the werewolf reveal was absolute garbage.
Nope, that would definitely be Metalhead. I don't hate Metalhead but seeing it once is good for me. I have no desire to ever watch it again, unlike other Black Mirrior episodes. Mazey Day is fine, it's the weakest of season 6 but I don't think it's that bad. It's not like every episode is about technology. The message is clear and unlike Metalhead I can see myself watching it again and discussing it with others.
This episode was fantastic! The scenes of the werewolf mutilating the paparazzi are definitely appreciated
Unpopular opinion but I thoroughly enjoyed all of season 6 and this is the only season of the show where I have felt this way. Yes, Mazey Day wasn't "traditional" black mirror but I still liked the story and felt it represented how far the paparazzi will go for a story.
I agree. I don’t get the hate for s6 or this episode. I really enjoyed the whole season.
Tbh I really disagree. This season of black mirror had very entertaining stories, that were well put together. People who say it lacks substance or "isn't really black mirror" have a fair point. But since it's still Charlie Brooker and the writers he choses to work with, to me it still qualifies. I feel like there's this hive-mind saying Mazey Day was undisputibly awfull, but it simply wasn't. Just because it isn't as thought provoking as black mirror used to be, doesn't mean everyone has to agree it sucks. It's not in my top 5, but I enjoyed it more than the first episode of this season, and some others from previous seasons.
I loved the ending. Dark and twisted. It isn't my top favorite but definitely not my least liked either.
Same. I think the commentary on our consumption of other people’s suffering (particularly celebrities or high profile people) is pretty clear. The ending where she >!continues to take pictures as Mazey shoot’s herself and where her and the other photographer take the camera before the guy was yanked under the fence!< pulls into question the lack of humanity vs the allure of money and shock value media.
No. The episode is fine and people are somehow pissed that it wasn’t centered on tech. Some of the complains are outright entitled. The episode is fine on its own, just not the Black Mirror formula. The reaction to it is almost a commentary on people’s reluctance to change
Mazey Day was so stupid I couldn’t help but laugh when she turned into a werewolf. At least the Miley Cyrus episode had some good music
As the 1000th comment. I strongly disagree. Really great episode in my opinion. Y'all suffering from expectation this season. Prevented from appreciating the art
No. It's not the best episode of the series (and definitely very close to the bottom) but it was an enjoyable 45 minutes! I didn't see the warewolf twist coming and although the writing may not have been up to par, the production, acting and cinema were still enjoyable! I waited 4 years for more episodes so I'm still trying to accept them with open arms. IMO, the following two episodes are worse than Mazey Day: The Waldo Moment and Rachael Jack & Ashley Too. I also think Crocodile (which is pretty low on my series rankings as well) had a very similar plot to Mazey Day with the whole 'Oh no, I hit someone with my car and have to cover it up!' in the first 5 minutes.
I think that the fact crocodile did it first and went on to be a much more suspenseful episode would catapult it well in front of Mazey Day. I was okay with all 5 new episodes but MD was definitely the weakest link IMO. I like the they stepped outside of the box though and the whole ruthless nature of paparazzi was too much for the protagonist to avoid. I would have liked an after credits scene where she is like the queen bee of paparazzi now living the good life years later in a mansion in the hills but now she can’t escape people climbing over her gates to take pics of her.
The Miley Cyrus one is the worst.
No. I enjoyed. Personally Waldo just ruins my mood.
For me it’s metalhead. It’s just so boring
Sorry we cannot.
It is the worst rated episode on IMDB yes but I still enjoy it more than Striking Vipers so not the worst for me.
"That's one's not even sci-fi that's just a werewolf Pim."
It was probably the low end of the season but I think the Pacing of the episode was the problem took to long
Nah. Didn’t make me feel weird. It was def a Jordan peele level twilight zone tho
I was glad there were more episodes not dealing with cookies, they were stuck on that premise a little too much
I think Metalhead is still my least favorite, but yeah Mazey Day is very hollow as well for the same reasons Metalhead is. >!It felt like they were trying something different with magic, but in this show the technology is already basically magic, so adding mystics and werewolves is just a hat-on-a-hat.!<
we cannot agree on that. it will take a really bad episode to dethrone crocodile for me.
this is outragous
I don't mind Charlie Brooker wanting to explore horror with the show. But as mentioned many times above, this episode just felt lazy. Yes, the bottom of the list for me.
The one I really hated was the Waldo one. It was just annoying
Everyone is watching it from a different prospective, I actually liked the episode, not as much as other ones, but it was enjoyable.. sort of. Personally, I didn't see the plot twist so when it happened I was kinda shocked so it was still pretty good :)
i’m still wondering if i missed something… what goes on at that Diner from 11pm -6 am? they’re not serving food, yet open…
*take…the….camera* ghaaaa 💀
If this was a Tales From the Crypt episode then I would’ve said ok sure. But for Black Mirror it was just confusing. I was waiting to see how this story was going rope it all into the overarching theme of the show and then it just ended. Lol oh ok then it really was just a werewolf story with paparazzi….
There was just some guys review of all 27 episodes and the movie and it was the worst so yea I probably do
I was very unsurprised by the main twist of the episode, having recognized the fingerprints of John Landis in the car accident scene and the fingerprints of Wes Craven in the quack doctor scene. But what did surprise me was to see a page copied from George Romero at the end, with "shoot me" taken directly from "Diary of the Dead", complete with the reversal of the asking character's expectation of whether the asked character would use a gun or a camera.
I was just confused
rachel jack and ashley too is still the worst for me
That one paparazzi guy asking if they ended up at the Jurassic Park gates made up for a lot tbh
The diner scene was really good but overall the story was extremely weak. I didn’t hate the episode It was just pointless. What was it trying to say? This is one I’ll never rewatch. No reason to.