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Rolo Haynes Is The Narrator Of The Series And Each Artifact In His Museum Represents An Episode
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Redditor nathanlunn68's theory is actually quite simple; as his TL;DR says, "Rolo Haynes (the Black Museum’s owner) is the metaphorical narrator of the Black Mirror series. Each episode is his explanation of an artifact in his Museum." So each artifact in the "Black Museum" is associated with an episode in the series, and represents the narrative of that episode.
Is this convincing? - 2
Dr. Dawson Killed The Weather Girl
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Redditor thisisforscienceonly is not alone in believing Dr. Dawson to be the real murderer of the weather girl (as the comments make clear), but the user's theory on what is going on withing Season 4's "Black Museum" episode is presented well:
"I think that Dr. Dawson is the one who murdered the weather girl.
We first hear about the weather girl's disappearance when Dawson is watching TV, contemplating hurting himself.
For the theory to work it means either A) he starts hurting himself after he killed her,
or B) it's from Douglas Hodge, the museum director's perspective, so the whole timeline could be a bit faulty on his part. Maybe the self mutilation, then kidnapping of weather girl happened, and finally murder of the homeless man, but of course Hodge wouldn't have known all of this, so that's why the story is portrayed differently.
In the monkey story the news report discusses that the weather girl had been mutilated, which ties in with Dawson's whole 'pain = pleasure' thing.
It's strongly alluded that Clayton was innocent, as there had been DNA tampering, and he just didn't seem to have a motive of any kind."
Is this convincing? - 3
'15 Million Merits' Is Contemporaneous With 'Nosedive' And Is A Part Of The Shared Universe's Reality
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"15 Million Merits" is the source of much debate within the Black Mirror universe, one that many are coming to see as a shared universe with a specific timeline (just not in the order the episodes are presented). Kally-0 believes "15 MM" is a reality within the universe (not a show or work of fiction within the universe as some believe). Here's the Redditor's breakdown:
"All episodes seem to fit into three general eras:
- Current day with 'experimental tech' (e.g. 'National Anthem,' 'Shut up and Dance,' 'Waldo Moment').
- Near future episodes with advanced technology within cultures that take these technologies as the norm (e.g. 'Nosedive,' 'Entire History of You,' 'White Christmas').
- Apocalyptic episodes (e.g. 'Men Under Fire,' 'Metalhead').
My theory is that 15 MM is contemporary with the 'Nosedive' era, but the people in it are the British working classes and/or underclasses. I propose that 15 MM actually takes place in a futuristic form of a Victorian workhouse, where the unemployed are used as a cheap, renewable power source in exchange for shelter and food. Of course this is a depressing system, so the use of 'merits' and reality TV shows like 'Hot Shots' are used as a way to give these working classes false hope of escaping to a better life."
Is this convincing? - 4
'15 Million Merits' And 'Men Against Fire' Are Shows Within A Show
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Redditor BlackHolePizza, like many others, believes Black Mirror takes place in a single universe, but notes a couple exceptions, namely, that the episodes "15 Million Merits" and "Men Against Fire" are actually shows within said universe:
"In 'Arkangel,' we see an example of violent imagery on TV, and it's literally just a scene from 'Men Against Fire' (rather than some sort of news coverage of the 'war').
And in 'Black Museum,' we see someone reading '15 Million Merits' as a graphic novel. We know 'Hot Shots' and 'Wraith Babes' exist in the Black Mirror universe (given the references to them in 'Crocodile' and other episodes), and '15 Million Merits' is probably some writer's 'Black Mirror' take on it."
Is this convincing? - 5
The Whole Show Is All About The Singularity
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Miranda Katz of Wired makes a cogent, meticulous argument explaining the soul of Black Mirror: it's a show about the inevitable singularity, the point of no return when artificial intelligence becomes so it advanced it dictates the course of events forever after. She points to a scene in "Playtest" that shows Sonja has a book on the singularity. Spider-webbing from there she speculates what the show as a whole is driving toward:
"[The episodes of Series 4] grapple obsessively with the notion of the human mind: uploading it; infiltrating it; probing its memories; preserving it after death. Though the show has flirted with digital consciousness in the past, most notably with its mind-bending 'White Christmas' special and the series three darling, 'San Junipero,' the new season takes up the thought experiment with zeal. Black Mirror’s episodes still stand well enough on their own, but after this latest installation, it’s possible to zoom out and see a cohesive rumination on the implications of digital immortality...
So as we interpret Black Mirror as a cautionary tale about online dating and robot guard dogs and myriad technologies, let’s not lose sight of its larger message: A reminder to center our humanity as we speed toward a world in which that becomes harder and harder to define."
Is this convincing? - 6
All Episodes Take Place In The Same Universe
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This is not an uncommon theory, but 2localboi does an uncommonly good job of explaining it. This Redditor lays out the events of six episodes explaining how they chronologically relate to one another in this order: "The National Anthem," "The Waldo Moment," "White Bear," "Entire History Of You," "Be Right Back," "15 Million Merits." What's more, the theory suggests that all the events in the series are related to Waldo's rise to power, his totalitarian government, and the subsequent effects on humanity with centuries'-long ramifications.
The TL;DR reads: "'The National Anthem' sets off a series of events that lead to WALDO controlling the world, ultimately making people live a quasi-virtual game-ified existence in the year 2211."
Is this convincing? - 7
The People In '15 Million Merits' Live In Some Sort Of Prison
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A Redditor has come up with a theory laying out some context for a very early installment of Black Mirror — the second episode of the first season entitled "15 Million Merits." This Redditor believes the people living in that purgatory-like reality are imprisoned there for breaking either laws or societal norms, and being outcast:
"Black Mirror is all about public humiliation for punishment right? ('White Bear,' 'Shut up & Dance,' etc.) So what if the place where the people live in '15 Million Merits' is a housing / job situation (they live there for free and get paid in 'credits,' for riding bikes for no reason but monotony and to force them to want something more out of life) for people who have been 'blocked' by everyone because of some crime? So then if they make it 'out' they are serving a purpose by providing entertainment for everyone and the block gets removed and then the whole world can see them."
Is this convincing? - 8
Rolo Haynes Of 'Black Museum' Is The Devil
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If you're a Rick & Morty fan, Badenh94's theory on "Black Museum" will become immediately recognizable to you. This Redditor posits that the curator of the museum is Lucifer:
"Rolo Haynes, the curator of the museum, shows the visitor items of abstract technology based crimes. However, each item used in the stories has a twist.
The pain feeling device to diagnose illness and pain ends up making pain enjoyable for the user.
The tech used to transplant a consciousness of a woman into another person ends up being used to put her in a toy monkey where she can watch but only reply with two answers... happy or sad.
The tech used for a man to sell his 'soul' ends up turning him into an attraction.
Stephen King’s Needful Things (Rick and Morty fans should recognize this) is a story of the devil who sells technology to people except the technology ends up having a weird twist.
Rolo is incredibly charismatic like many interpretations of the Devil. The word Soul is even used in the episode. Clayton’s wife says that it’s basically selling his soul to Rolo Haynes.
Using this soul/ digital soul idea. Rolo Haynes is tricking humans into selling their souls to him in exchange for flawed payment. Then after owning the souls. He tortured them for what would feel like an eternity."
Is this convincing? - 9
Robert Daly Believed He Was In A Simulated Game In 'USS Callister'
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Redditor eldritch_ape's analysis of the Series 4 episode "USS Callister" is a deep dive into thought provoking philosophy on what constitutes life. The theory is worth reading in its entirety, but it's long, so to sum up: Robert Daly (the protagonist of "USS Callister") believed himself to be playing a virtual reality game, which he essentially was, but he did not realize he was imprisoned within. "The true reality of what was happening to him," says eldritch_ape, "must not have set in until the very last moment, as his mind had become trapped in a dying universe of his own making, murdered in his sleep by his own Sims."
Is this convincing? - 10
Charlie Brooker, The Creator Of 'Black Mirror,' Is Actually The Protagonist Of The Series
FaerieStories's theory is quite trippy. It essentially argues that the whole story revolves around the paradoxical relationship Charlie Brooker finds himself in with modern culture/media:
"Black Mirror Season 1, Episode 2 is a mixture of Brave New World, Requiem for a Dream and Network. Like Network, when the protagonist of the episode goes on live TV to deliver an impassioned rant against the system (the motif of threatening suicide live on air is also similar) the 'system' accepts this speaker and decides to give him even more air-time. The idea in both works of satire is that no publicity is bad publicity, and even satirical proselytizing against the system has a place within the system.
So the protagonist at the end is essentially Charlie Brooker. The figure who is within the system (i.e. he's a part of the media) who criticizes the system, yet hypocritically knows that without the very media/modern world he complains about he would have no platform for his views. Perhaps Brooker is even satirizing the genre of satire: the impossibility of being truly 'outside' these social systems."
Is this convincing? - 11
'Men Against Fire' Depicts A Vignette Of The Eugenics Wars From Star Trek
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To understand tyrannosaurus_r's theory, it might help to have background knowledge of Star Trek, but this Redditor explains,
"The Eugenics Wars were a critical event in human history taking place, depending on where you are in the canon, anywhere from 1990-2010. In this era, genetic engineering led to the creation of superhuman individuals, known as 'Augments,' who rose to power swiftly across the world and created despotic regimes in competition both with each other and established nation-states."
The ensuing theory is long but brilliant, but the TL;DR is sufficient:
"'Men Against Fire' has just enough coincidental elements to fit almost seamlessly with a revamped Star Trek timeline and describes a single event in a tragic folly that leads mankind to apocalypse, recovery, and eventually, to the path to First Contact and the Federation. This may always be how the Eugenics Wars were intended to be portrayed, or it is the result of the alterations to the timeline caused by the Narada traveling across universes."
Is this convincing? - 12
'Be Right Back' Is A Prequel To 'Ex Machina'
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This theory presented by Redditor famousmess is highly speculative and more of a "what if" than a hypothesis, but it's interesting. It stems from Domhnall Gleeson's role in both Ex Machina and the Black Mirror episode "Be Right Back," suggesting that they're the same character:
"The plotlines from Black Mirror (Season 2, Episode 1) and the film Ex Machina are very similar and have some overlapping themes. What's even more interesting is that Domhnall Gleeson has a main role in each.
I think it would be interesting to see somebody connect the two characters as if they were the same, especially since both have different views on AI.
The most interesting bits to iron out would be how Domhnall Gleeson's character from Ex Machina (Caleb) was able to get out or another theory on that.... and the story of his character from Black Mirror (Ash) 's wife.
One take could be that the Black Mirror episode is a prequel to Ex Machina and the twist to that movie (as if there needs more) is that he is himself an AI."
Is this convincing? - 13
'Community' Is In The 'Black Mirror' Universe
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Stickguy259 believes that "Nosedive" opens the possibility that Dan Harmon's comedy Community exists within the Black Mirror universe, where the fictional social networking app, MeowMeowBeenz. could both exist and thrive. At first glance it seems like a bizarre cohort but on second thought, it's kind of plausible, especially remembering that Community featured Danny Pudi as the Black Mirror-esque sci-fi nerd and tech wizard in more than one trippy episode. The Redditor speculates:
"I was just re-watching Community and reached "App Development and Condiments," and realized that MeowMeowBeenz was only in beta testing in that episode. My theory is that the creators decided to take a step back after the events at Greendale, and then relaunched a few years later as a revamped version of MeowMeowBeenz in a world where people all have computer contact lenses in their eyes all the time.
As more evidence that Community and Black Mirror share a universe though, how about Greendale Community College's fancy freaking hologram that they have at the entrance to their campus? And then you have Pierce's insanely old father who somehow managed to create an 8-Bit game which not only scanned a player's face to create an avatar, but where Abed was able to us the game's speech mechanics to talk his way into a basic coding language and then create an army of mini-Abeds who could themselves create and do, I sort of quote, 'Anything you can imagine.'
They may live in some sort of future (which we know isn't the case because of references to current years), but my guess is that they live in a universe where technology advanced just a little faster than ours. Sorta like how Black Mirror seems to operate."
Is this convincing? - 14
'Riverdale' And 'Black Mirror' Take Place In The Same Universe
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Riley Silverman of Syfy Wire got sucked into the dark world of Riverdale while maintaining her viewership of Black Mirror. So it was that she spotted an Easter egg in The CW's Archie comics adaptation: a bus headed to San Junipero. Little elabaoration is needed, considering "San Junipero" from Season 3 is one of the most popular Black Mirror episodes to date. Expanding on her epiphany, Silverman continues considering the Black Mirror episode of "USS Callister," and concludes:
"Riverdale is an artificial construct within the Black Mirror universe. It’s a virtual reality world. It’s a video game. Essentially what we’ve gotten sucked into watching this last year is an elaborate game someone has been playing."
Is this convincing? - 15
'Nosedive' Is A Prequel To 'The Hunger Games'
A TV Troper believes that Port Mary, a city introduced in "Nosedive," becomes the capital of Panem, the authoritarian nation of the dystopian future presented in The Hunger Games. The theory is somewhat difficult to summarize, given its granular breakdown of a speculative series of events connecting the two, so here it is in its entirety:
"Over the decades, that exclusive village for high-rated elites becomes ever more and more exclusive, to the point where it ends up walling itself off from the rest of the country, and beefing up security at the gates, with The Beautiful Elite from all over the country pouring in and retreating behind its walls in a centralized form of 'white flight.' Meanwhile, the rest of the excluded, ill-rated country (explicitly the United States, as shown by the flag in one scene) goes through a number of chaotic upheavals and eventually coalesces into the thirteen districts of the new nation of Panem, while Port Mary builds upward, expands in population, adds skyscrapers onto its glitzy suburbs, and slowly grows from a mere luxury residential village into the new nation's glossy seat of power, the Capital. The episode proper is already set 20 minutes into the future, so real-world problems like climate change are hinted at, and may have gotten worse in the meantime: over time, some of these, coupled with other unstated problems both natural and manmade, not to mention the extrapolated consequences of Port Mary's growing class discrimination, might snowball into whatever flashpoint caused the Dark Days, at which point the conflict between the Port Mary-turned-Capital and the Districts (themselves of varying levels of wealth, but none anywhere near the high-fours and fives of the Capital) sparks into an all-out war, which sees District 13 going underground and taking the nation's nuclear arsenal, and the Capital covering up by publicizing the district's apparent obliteration. As the dust settles, the Capital, in a new attempt to impose order, brings the remaining twelve districts in line by mandating annual fights to the death between teenage representatives of all the districts. The rule is, There Can Only Be One, and that's how the first, annual Hunger Games began."
Is this convincing?
COLLECTION6 LISTS
Black MirrorThe British sci-fi anthology series has been popularly described as 'The Twilight Zone, except with technology.' All six seasons are on Netflix now. What are you waiting for?
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Black Mirror
The British sci-fi anthology series has been popularly described as 'The Twilight Zone, except with technology.' All six seasons are on Netflix now. What are you waiting for?
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