Black Mirror's Best Netflix Episode Was Written In Response To A Major Fan Worry

When the science fiction anthology series "Black Mirror" moved to Netflix ahead of its third season in late 2016, it was clear that things were slightly different from how they were when the show was airing on the U.K. network Channel 4. Whereas seasons 1 and 2 primarily featured British talent, season 3 had episodes headlined by American actors, such as Bryce Dallas Howard and eventual "Thunderbolts" star Wyatt Russell. Then there was "San Junipero," which is ostensibly set in the fictional California town of the same name. To this day, many fans — myself included — consider it among the best "Black Mirror" episodes of all time and the best of the Netflix era. And it turns out that episode was created as a response to fans who were concerned that the series might have too much of an American flavor upon its debut on the streaming giant's platform.

In an interview with Little White Lies, "Black Mirror" creator Charlie Brooker explained why he chose to give "San Junipero" a U.S. setting and stick it to those who felt Americanization might become an issue going forward. "I was deliberately, slightly impishly thinking, because I'd read somewhere that somebody was worried that it would get all Americanized, I thought, 'Right, f*** it, I'm going to set one in California — f*** you! — because I can!'" he said. "Really, most of our stories, with [the] exception of 'The National Anthem', could have been set anywhere, and they were set nowhere. But other than that, the major differences [on Netflix] are running time, because you can be flexible, so we've got a 90-minute one, and some are shorter, and it's a slightly bigger canvas."

The fact that "San Junipero" seems to be set in a California beach town is irrelevant. At first, we see Yorkie (Mackenzie Davis) and Kelly (Gugu Mbatha-Raw) as young women in 1987, falling in love and enjoying their forbidden romance. But it's eventually revealed that the town of San Junipero is a simulation that allows dead or dying individuals to live forever in their youth once their consciousness is uploaded to the system. In the real world, Yorkie (who's been comatose for 40 years) and Kelly are actually elderly women who don't have much longer to live.

This theme of nostalgia therapy in "San Junipero" is one that transcends locations and past timeframes; I, for one, wouldn't mind going back to the '90s and 2000s and reliving my teenage and young adult years in the rock clubs of Manila, either playing the drums at shows or enjoying them as an ordinary fan, if I were in a similar situation. That would be my version of San Junipero, and I'm sure many others who watched the "Black Mirror" episode have their own twist on the virtual-reality town.

The ending of "San Junipero" is also a pleasant surprise for a show that's known for bleaker resolutions to already-bleak stories. Although the elderly versions of Yorkie (Annabel Davis) and Kelly (Denise Burse) are both euthanized, that frees them to enjoy eternal youth together in San Junipero. It's a touching and satisfying way to end an episode that, while earnest in its nostalgia-heavy theme, was written partly as a take-that to "Black Mirror" purists who wanted the show to stay true to its British origins.