Watch: ‘Black Mirror’ Marketing Gets Meta With Netflix Vista Ad
There’s always been something kind of ironic about the fact thatBlack Mirroris consumed through the very same technologies it’s warning us about. We’re watching it on our TVs and laptops and smartphones, and we’re discussing it with other fans on social media. To be fair,Black Mirror’s message isn’t as simple as “technology is bad” — it’s more like “technology can be bad because human nature can be bad.” But more than once I’ve finished an episode ofBlack Mirrorwanting nothing more than to throw all my devices out the window. Of course, I never actually do it, because then how would I watch the next episode ofBlack Mirror?
A newBlack Mirrorpromo takes that irony one step further, introducing Netflix Vista — a (fictional) technology that will allow you to stream episodes ofBlack Mirrorstraight into your eyeballs. Watch the Black Mirror Netflix Vista short below.
Like the bestBlack Mirrorepisodes, thisBlack Mirrorad is all the more effective because it feels so chillingly plausible. We’re already streaming Netflix during our morning commute, or while sitting at coffee shops and bars. We’re already scrolling through our smartphones even while in the company of people we love (who are probably also scrolling through their smartphones). It’s only a matter of time before technology figures out a way to bypass the “handheld” part of your handheld device, so you can implant the technology right into your body and beam those videos straight into your contact lenses. At some point in the not-too-distant future, youwillfind yourself sitting down with your spouse so you can eat “together” while watching completely different shows.
The moral might be a tad simplistic, seeing as there would be some real upsides to the ability to ignore the real world in favor of Netflix. (It’d make dental cleanings go by much faster, for example.) But go ahead and take this as a helpful reminder that as convenient and enjoyable as it is to be able to accessBlack Mirroranywhere, anytime, there is something to be said for occasionally turning off those screens and actually looking at the gorgeous beach around you — not just at fictional characters enjoying a fictional beach in a fictional reality.
