Black Mirror Analysis

the MES of the arcade driving game not only constructs a deeply involving nostalgic mode of address to the target audience, but also functions as a dual proairetic and hermeneutic code, involving the specialised target audience of sci fi fans, and inviting them to speculate on future events
the establishing montage of ant TV show serves a number of functions. Primarily there to establish a central narrative, this sequence also establishes key representations that are fundemental to this episode

while this establishing montage presents a range of polysemic interpretations, one key theme that is introduced is Yorkie and Kelly's gay relationship
Yorkie's sexuality was encoded in to the narrative from an early point in order to challenge heteronormative and hegemonic assumptions of sexuality
the subtle queer relationship forms a binary opposition of an 80s setting, which serves to foreground its importance

the themes of queer acceptance are central to the narrative theme of 'heaven' being a physical and reachable place on earth
Kelly and Yorkie are immediately established as a diametric opposite, through the wildly different colour scheme of their outfits

Kelly's purple costume is hegemonically associated with femininity, while the pastel blue of Yorkie's jumper is further anchored through her shorts, which construct a somewhat masculine representation
Yet Yorkie is somewhat androgynous through adopting stereotypically feminine traits, such as her subtle makeup, which in turn constructs a complex representation of gender, which will clearly appeal to a younger, teenage audience who will expect to see a more nuanced representation of gender

Kelly asks Yorkie "are you visiting?", which situates Yorkie as an outsider, which is reinforced through her glasses being called in to question
We as an audience are positioned with Yorkie throughout the opening scene through a montage of tracking shots, positioning the audience in a simultaneously nostalgic but also distanced mode of address
the cinematography jumps form focusing on Yorkie to tracking Kelly as she emerges in to the club, which establishes a proairetic code: while Yorkie is stereotypically shy and demure, she is also motivated by sex is clearly romantically interested in Kelly

Representation - where a group of people, issue and/or an event is used by a producer to show their ideologies

incidental but personally poignant detail in a photograph which 'pierces' or 'pricks' a particular

the sequence focuses on notions of overcoming trauma which is a powerful and affirming experience
the MES of Yorkie jumping into the sports car demonstrates her symbolic conquering of a trauma that can only come through her assisted suicide

the sense of the real world being a hellish obstacle, while the simulation is a heavenly manifestation of freedom presented in the form of a glorified version of America, which presents a complicated relay of information for the target audience

themes of existentialism are introduced and emphasised through the blunt and nightmarish hellscape of the server room in the bleak grey warehouse
making explicit intertextual relay to simulation narratives such as the Matrix
the symbolic code constructed through the rotating and blinking LED lights constructed through a highly sophisticated montage which now represents dancing, romance, sex and life
Yorkie is now wearing a combination of blue and pink, has gravitated towards a more stereotypically feminine costume, while Kelly's costume has also changed subtly
to live our fantasy, we must die? No point being alive unless you are young?
the ending is deliberately problematic by presenting a number of contentious ideologies

essentially, the scene ideologically communicates that true love is only attainable through death
additionally, we are lead to believe that true love only exists as a hyperreal representation of an eternally young couple dancing forever
with no limits on time, or no threats of illness or other issues, is true passion even attainable? Ultimately these thoughts do not matter because "heaven is a place on Earth"

James H Media Studies