Black Mirror: Bandersnatch has just hit Netflix and the new TV show’s unique premise leaves a lot to unpack from it. The show presents a pick your own adventure style ostorytellingng that allows the viewer to effect the outcome of the story due to the choices that they make whilst watching it. Reportedly there is over 312 minutes of footage that is condensed into roughly 90 depending on the plot branches that watchers take.
Throughout this video, I will be breaking down the choices that I made and explaining what I took from the ending. There will of course be heavy spoilers so if you don’t want to know anything about Bandersnatch then I highly suggest that you turn off now.
For everyone else, I’m Deffinition and welcome to the channel where I ruin it so you don’t have to.
Bandersnatch: Ending Explained
Set in 1984 we follow Stefan a game designers who is showcasing his game Bandersnatch, based on the book of the same name. We watched him start the day off smiling because he chose Sugar Puffs and then Now 2 which is of course the right thing to do as this allows us to hear the Eurithymics and start the day off on the right track.
Upon reaching the Game design studio we see a poster for Metl hedd which of course ties into the Black Mirror episode of the same name and confirms that this was indeed a computer game as many viewers theorised. Stefan then showcases his game Bandersnatch which too revolves around choices, similar to the episode itself. Stefan accepts a job offer from the company and we flash forward five months and see that Bandersnatch is recieving exetremly negative reviews. Stefan defiantly states that he wishes to start again and then we are transported back to 1984 in which Stefan relives the same choices, aware of the outcome similar to a game in which players are able to replay and effect the outcome with hindsight.
Stefan this time refuses the offer to work with a team and instead states that he wishes to complete the project from home. Again we flash forward 5 months and see that the game is receiving rave reviews. We then join the character in therapy discussing his mother’s passing which I decided to talk about openly. We learn that after Stefan couldn’t find a child’s toy that his father hid, he refused to go with his mother and she was killed on a train that derailed. Stefan feels guilt but also blames his father as she would not have been on it had he not held her up. This highlights the even the most meaningless events have grand consequences.
The Lives Of Jerome F Davies
When out shopping Jerome picks up a book called ‘The Lives Of Jerome F Davies’ which discusses the biography of the creator of The Bandersnatch book. Stefan uses the perspectives presented in it and redesigns his game. Here I chose shouting at his father instead of destroying the game as this seemingly was the lesser of two evils but in the end, it caused the character to spiral further into his obsession. This was made worse when I made Stefan refuse therapy and instead had him follow Colin who makes him take LSD in order to heighten his reality and help pull him out of the hole he is in design wise. Colin informs Stefan that time is cyclical and that mirrors allow you to move through time and through flashbacks we can alter the choices we make to alter the present.
Colin proves that life doesn’t matter because of the altered paths and commits suicide which causes Stefan to flashback and choose to go to his therapist instead of chasing Colin. Stefan was medicated but I flushed these in order to focus on the game.
When demoing it though we discover that Colin is missing and the game is broken. However, there was a mysterious package left behind by Colin. This tape discusses the life of Jerome who like Stefan became obssessed about branching paths of reality and how he became completely swept up with murdering his wife. Stefan nearly destroys his computer but refuses to which eventually leads him to discover password encrypted computer. I incorrectly entered the password which caused the situation to reset and let me to destroy the computer once and for all, however, Stefan could not do this and thus kept working, questioning the forces that were controlling him.
Watching Netflix
The computer then broke the forth wall and stated that we were on Netflix watching him and we attempted to explain this but failed. This caused Stefan to fall further into therapy as he attempted to understand the scenario. Stefan then ramps up the action when tempted to and throws coffee in his therapists face before fighting her and his father. This caused the timeline to reset and we hid that we were Netflix but it still caused Stefan to realise that he was not in control which allowed us to make the choice to kill his father. We then chopped up the body and had a breakthrough with the game that allowed Stefan to finish the game, only giving the player the illusion of free will.
Bandersnatch recieves rave reviews and we flash forward and discover that Stefan was arressted shortly after it’s release and that Colins daughter is now a games designer that is developing the game for Netflix and soon discovers Stefan within the game, trapped and reliving the same choices.
My Analysis
What I love about the show is that it is a true represenation of life. Life is just a constant set of choices that all wield different outcomes that will alter the path we walk on significantly. Stefan’s life could easily go a completely different direction but due to seemingly insignificant choices, there are completely different outcomes.
A Bandersnatch is a fierce mythical creature immune to bribery and capable of moving very fast and to me this holds many connotations over the show.
Throughout the episode Stefan is often bribed and tempted with certain choices that he believes will alter his life for the better even if they have negative effects. In the end though he is completely corrupted by the knowledge that there is no real choice and that we are all on a path to our ultimate end. It’s a genius move that too highlights that individuality is an illusion and we are all more similar than we would care to admit. I absolutely loved the show and can’t wait to watch it again to see how differently the story could have gone.
To me the episode was absoltely incredible and stands strong as the next step of evolution in television.
Your Thoughts
So, what did you think of the Black Mirror Special? Did you enjoy it what ending did you get? Comment below and let me know and if you enjoyed this video then please like it and check out my breakdown of Bird Box which will be linked at the end. Netflix blocked the video twice so I’ve lost quite a lot of views on it and have had to start again each time so I massively appreciate just one click.
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Thanks again for taking the time to watch this, I’ve been Deffinition, you’ve been the best and I hope you have a great 2019! Take care, PEACE!
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