All five episodes from season six of Black Mirror, ranked from worst to best

It’s crazy to think about all the events that have happened in the world since we last got a new season of Black Mirror. The show hasn’t aired a new episode since 2019, which means we’ve endured a global pandemic and about 43 Tory prime ministers since Charlie Brooker left us with Miley Cyrus as Ashley O. Which, let’s face it, was dreadful – but at least we got On A Roll on Spotify. With the last season of Black Mirror being the worst by far, all eyes were on for season six returning to Netflix. The verdict? Erm, a mixed bag. This season strays from the identity of the show, in some ways intentionally. It swings, and it misses more than it hits. Here are all five episodes of Black Mirror season six ranked from worst to best.

5. Mazey Day

To put it bluntly, Mazey Day is a disaster. It is without a doubt the worst episode of Black Mirror ever made. A comment on the ethics of paparazzi – a theme that’s been explored in fiction for the last 30 years at least – the episode is clunky and hamfisted. The characters then pursue missing actress Mazey Day to a remote location where it’s revealed she’s… a werewolf. Nope, not joking. Werewolf. It’s not a comedy, and if it’s meant to be a horror episode it neither scares nor entertains. Just atrocious. The best thing I have to say about it is it’s thankfully only got a 41 minute runtime.

4. Demon 79

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Demon 79 is a tricky beast. First of all, it’s the debut episode under the new horror umbrella of Red Mirror – which means it feels intentionally completely different to any other episode and is a pretty much straight up horror comedy centred around racism in 1970s Britain. Where Demon 79 excels is its world building – the racism, the political climate, the aesthetic, the music. Where it fails for me is its tone, its writing. It’s all having a bit too much fun with its silliness and its wise cracking demon. The first half in particular is, for me anyway, just annoying. The tone of a janky Doctor Who episode with added gore.

By the second half though, Demon 79 started to win me round. The performances stopped being so irritable as the excellent Paapa Essiedu and Anjana Vasan develop their chemistry, and Vasan’s Nida gets her red leather jacket on and becomes a bit of an icon. Was also a huge fan of the apocalyptic ending, which reminded me of the conclusion to The Cabin in the Woods – one of my favourite films.

I just kind of wish Demon 79 and Red Mirror as an umbrella was its own show entirely. Demon 79 plays out like a pilot episode in many ways – you finish wanting to go on adventures with Gaap and Nida as the two descend into oblivion. Some great ideas going on here and some excellent moments, but just doesn’t quite pull it all off.

3. Loch Henry

Loch Henry is inarguably an entertaining hour of telly. It never stops being engaging, its mystery unravelling nicely and its setting sucks you in – just a stunning showcase for Scotland. The direction is top tier here – unsettling and dark, a constant feeling of everything being not quite right. The episode teeters on its big twist, which I felt brewing but don’t think it was overly obvious. The accents were all over the place, acting quite hit and miss – but my big issue with it really is what actually makes Loch Henry an episode of Black Mirror?

Is this no longer a show about dystopias, dangers of technology or straight up sci-fi? Loch Henry is simply a dark story with a twist, lightly treading themes about true crime docs and fiction. What sets this apart from being a random drama on ITV at 9pm? It’s these kind of factors that leave me questioning what Black Mirror even means as an anthology anymore. Can we just do anything and tell any old tale? A good, fun hour – not wholly original, but beyond my qualms with it not feeling Black Mirror-y enough, I liked it.

2. Joan is Awful

A pretty great start to Black Mirror season six, just missing out on getting ranked at the top. Joan Is Awful bursts out of the gate with an all star cast made up of Annie Murphy, Salma Hayek Pinault and an iconic guest spot from Michael Cera and barely pauses for breath. One of the show’s most meta episodes ever, it takes a swipe at the streaming service that it literally airs upon. The mystery feels impenetrable for a while, before untangling itself thick and fast with reveal upon reveal and it descends into perfect carnage.

Salma Hayek Pinault is a delight, it’s so much fun seeing her have such a blast and not take herself too seriously. I liked this episode because it really leaned into a camp tone the show often never bothers with. The ‘awful’ here is a petty awful, and it’s a nice bit of brevity that still feels rooted in the danger of technology advancements the show is literally based around. A blast.

1. Beyond The Sea

Breezing into first place when it comes to Black Mirror season six ranked is the longest, middle child – Beyond The Sea. Like Joan is Awful, Beyond The Sea is stacked with acting talent. Aaron Paul, Josh Hartnett, Kata Mara and a dark turn from Rory Culkin help make this one instantly feel elevated – like you’re seated for an actual feature film. The Netflix budget was budgeting – the whole episode looks gorgeous, from the 1960s space exploration sets to the world building back on earth. It’s lush, rich and gorgeous to watch.

The synopsis is a recipe for success from the off. Two astronauts are on a mission together in space and project their consciousness back into android replicas on earth so they can spend time with their families. When David’s home gets broken into and his family are murdered, along with his replica being destroyed and his home burnt down – Cliff lets David borrow his replica body to escape the solitude of the ship. When doing that, he gets closer to Cliff’s wife Lana whilst in his body. Chaos and carnage of course ensue.

I love the entangling of the sci-fi with the suburban drama of what is essentially a tale about loss and crimes of passion. The ending is shocking and a bit left field and rushed but it doesn’t throw off a stunningly directed episode that engrossed me for its lengthy duration. How I saw anyone complaining this one was slow and boring on Twitter is beyond me – the show at its best.

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