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Black Mirror – Season 1, Episode 2 15 Million Merits

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Black Mirror – Season 1, Episode 2

15 Million Merits

Aired Dec 11, 2011

Sci-Fi

Drama

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100%

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15 Reviews

The "Hot Shot" talent show offers the only way to escape a life of physical drudgery; this imagined future reality presents a satirical take on entertainment shows and society's insatiable thirst for distraction.

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Critics Consensus

Combining the worst aspects of reality shows, talent competitions, and a hunger for fame, "Fifteen Million Merits" effectively shows how anything -- even our humanity -- could be readily exploited.

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Charles Bramesco

New York Magazine/Vulture

10/02/2018

Brooker puts the carnivorous culture of reality TV on trial in this diabolical hour, set in a world where lower-caste citizens pedal stationary bikes to power their surroundings and earn meager currency.

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David Sims

AV Club

09/05/2018

A

[It's] a dazzling piece of science fiction that builds its world out slowly but perfectly over the course of an hour-and packs an emotional wallop along with the "15 minutes into the future" warning you already expect.

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Sam Richards

Daily Telegraph (UK)

08/15/2018

4/5

[Black Mirror] expertly lassoed a whole range of targets, from craven politicians to sensationalist news outlets to the glib creators of shock art... [It] was a more conventional dystopian sci-fi fantasy, incorporating a caustic satire on TV talent shows.

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Miles Surrey

The Ringer

07/18/2023

“Fifteen Million Merits” is mostly remembered for Bing’s epic speech—which helped put Kaluuya on Jordan Peele’s radar—but it’s always worth revisiting as we continue to get sucked into our own digital lives.

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Samantha Olthof

Film School Rejects

06/10/2019

Black Mirror has never been one to shy away from an unsettling ending.

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Jacob Hall

Slashfilm

12/04/2018

"Fifteen Million Merits," the first great episode of Black Mirror, takes the world of YouTube and mobile gaming and pushes it to hellish extremes.

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Synopsis

The "Hot Shot" talent show offers the only way to escape a life of physical drudgery; this imagined future reality presents a satirical take on entertainment shows and society's insatiable thirst for distraction.

Executive Producer: Annabel Jones, Charlie Brooker
Screenwriter: Charlie Brooker
Network: Netflix
Rating: TV-MA
Genre: Sci-Fi, Drama
Original Language: British English
Release Date: Dec 11, 2011

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