Of all the memorable and hauntingBlack Mirrorepisodes, “Arkangel” just might be the one that fans talk the most about. Released in December 2017, this season 4 episode was written by Charlie Brooker and directed by Jodie Foster. It stars Rosemarie DeWitt as Marie, a single parent who becomes obsessed with a surveillance system that will allow her to see and hear her young daughter all the time. Of course, this is a terrible idea, and since this is the horrifying world ofBlack Mirror,things only get worse from there.
TheBlack Mirror"Arkangel" episode is tough to watch at times because it’s so emotionally gripping and depicts so many painful moments between a mother and daughter. It definitely delivers the message that there is such a thing as too much technology. It’s no wonder that “Arkangel” remains one of the most talked aboutBlack Mirrorepisodes, and that fact is unlikely to change.
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What Happens In Black Mirror’s “Arkangel”?
In thescaryBlack Mirrorepisode"Arkangel," Marie (Rosemarie DeWitt) is a single mother who is terrified of all the bad things that could happen to her daughter Sara (Aniya Hodge), who is three years old when the episode begins. Marie learns about a system called Arkangel that will put an implant in her child’s body and allow her to know where her daughter is at all times. Marie thinks that this is a great idea and that it will ease her anxiety.
Like theBlack Mirrorepisode “Metalhead,““Arkangel” presents a world that feels like an exaggerated, more terrifying, and more emotionally heightened version of the current one. The episode works so well because of Rosemarie DeWitt’s tense performance as a single parent who lets her worries get the best of her. While there are many movies and TV shows about anxious parents,Black Mirror’s “Arkangel” explores this subject even more deeply. Even though she thinks that she’s doing the best thing that she can, she makes wild decisions that viewers disagree with.
The story then shifts six years in the future when Sara (Sarah Abbott) is older and her father Russ (Nicholas Campbell) has passed away. When another student at school wants to show Sara something that is violent and inappropriate, the filter makes it so Sara can’t see it properly. Marie is freaked out, and a psychologist says that Arkangel will undergo a ban and that Marie needs to get rid of it immediately.
As in theBlack Mirrorepisode “Loch Henry,““Arkangel” presents an upsetting storyline with characters who rely on technology instead of human connection. This causes all kinds of problems and it’s tough watching Marie make the wrong choice over and over again.
When Sara (Brenna Harding) is 15, she begins acting in a way that Marie views as a terrible and dangerous rebellion. She does drugs and sleeps with Trick (Owen Teague). This is when theBlack Mirror"Arkangel” episode gets to the heart of the matter: parents can’t control their children, no matter how hard they try, and they need to have a gentler and more compassionate approach.
What Happens At The End Of Black Mirror’s “Arkangel”?
At the end of theBlack Mirrorepisode “Arkangel,” Marie finds out more about Trick and tells him that he shouldn’t see Sara anymore. Arkangel then lets Marie know that Sara has gotten pregnant, and Marie gives Sara a smoothie that has a secret emergency contraception pill inside of it. Like theBlack Mirror"White Christmas” episode, “Arkangel” features a main character who makes a terrible choice that ruins their life. Instead of making this awful decision, Marie should talk to Sara and show her some compassion.
The smoothie scene is problematic, however, and it’s also incorrect. According toVice, the pill that Marie gives Sara is like the morning after pill, but that can stop pregnancy from occurring. It isn’t the same as the abortion pill.
In one of the most memorable and heartbreaking moments in aBlack Mirrorepisode, Sara grabs the Arkangel tablet and hurts Marie with it. Sara then leaves home and the last image is Sara finding a random ride with a stranger in a truck. The Arkangel tablet and surveillance system cause a major problem in this mother and daughter’s relationship, and they will never get back those years that they lost. While sometimestechnology doesn’t make sense in sci-fi movies and TV shows, “Arkangel” does explain how Marie can see and hear everything that Sara is. It’s definitely awful to imagine what it would be like if this was real.
Fans have thoughts about thequality of laterBlack Mirrorepisodes. WhileBlack Mirror’s “Arkangel” isn’t perfect, it does show a parent/child dynamic that gets destroyed by the parent’s reliance on technology. It’s definitely a difficult, haunting, emotional, and thought-provoking episode.
