History YMMV / BlackMirrorChristmasSpecial

'''Main Page''': ''Series/BlackMirror''

'''Main YMMV''': ''YMMV/BlackMirror''

!!Tropes related to ''White Christmas'':
* AlternativeCharacterInterpretation
** Is Matt a sociopathic SmugSnake, or is he just an ObliviouslyEvil PunchClockVillain? Did he really care about helping Harry overcome his social anxiety and meet a girl, or did he (a married family man, if he's even being truthful about that) just enjoy psychologically controlling and living vicariously through the eyes of a single guy? Is he some twisted combination of all of the above? No matter which way you go, he clearly is not a very morally upright person.
** Is Joe Potter a relatable and sympathetic [[TheEveryman everyman]] brought to the DespairEventHorizon by the memory of the perfect life he lost, or [[spoiler:is he a [[PsychopathicManChild pathetic, obsessed stalker]] whose refusal to let go of the past and move on led him to become an irredeemable murderer]]?
*** Then again, if Bethany [[spoiler:had just admitted [[YourCheatingHeart her affair]] with Tim, Joe likely would've left her alone completely and her father and daughter would not be dead]]. This is just PoorCommunicationKills taken to the extreme.
*** TakeAThirdOption: Joe is TheAlcoholic whose tendency towards belligerency when drunk makes [[PoorCommunicationKills it hard to talk to him]] and who [[spoiler:ended up substituting one addiction for another with tragic results.]]
** Bethany herself; [[spoiler: is she completely selfish, ignorant of Joe's pain, or just trying to make the best of a bad situation and doing a terrible job of it?]]
*** On the one hand, [[spoiler:it was cruel to block Joe and not clarify anything to him. If she had been honest with him about the affair from the start, the whole tragedy would have been avoided -- Joe likely would have moved on and been spared years of pain and false hope, her father and daughter would still be alive, Joe wouldn't be in prison for murder and Cookie Joe wouldn't be condemned to hell for over a million years.]]
*** On the other hand, [[spoiler:she was planning to abort the baby and possibly try to fix her relationship with Joe, until he found the pregnancy test and blew up at her when she said she wasn't keeping it. Whatever your views on abortion and the right to choose, it's obvious that Bethany is angry and upset at Joe telling her what she could and could not do with her body. She never got Joe's apology letters thanks to her father destroying them, and likely didn't know that Joe ''hadn't'' moved on and was obsessed over the girl he believed was his daughter -- or if she did know, maybe she thought it was better that he ''never'' find out about her affair, since by this point there was no way it was going to end well if he discovered her daughter wasn't his.]]
*** Moreover Joe's being a [[TheAlcoholic belligerent alcoholic]] could've kept her from [[spoiler:telling him the truth about the baby's true father in fear that he would not take it very well.]]
* CaptainObviousReveal: The cabin setting is very isolated, neither man has an obvious reason to be there, and Matt is trying too hard to be charming, so it is obvious within the first few minutes that [[spoiler:their interaction is a stealth, virtual reality interrogation.]]
* CrossesTheLineTwice: Joe[[spoiler:'s cookie (who, for all intents and purposes, ''is'' Joe) is forced to spend a million years in isolation over Christmas]]. That's not funny. What ''is'' funny is the fact [[spoiler:he is forced to spend a million years listening to "[[SoundtrackDissonance I Wish It Could Be Christmas Every Day]]" by Wizzard.]]
* JerkassWoobie: [[spoiler: Matt]] is an awful person, but it's hard not to empathize with [[spoiler: [[UnPerson his hellish fate]]]].
* ParanoiaFuel:
** The idea that the cute guy you meet at a party could be live-streaming his entire encounter with you to a host of sleazy, perverted, [[CasanovaWannabe Casanova Wannabes]]. Not only that, but said Casanova Wannabes are coaching said cute guy on how he can get you to have sex with him.
** In the same light, [[spoiler: what if the pretty, quiet girl you start hitting it off with takes you home with her, only for you to discover in the middle of a passionate embrace that she's homicidally insane, and intends to kill you and herself.]]
** [[spoiler: The way [[TheSociopath Matt just puts on the charm and starts hitting on Greta immediately after he just got done torturing her exact digital copy without a care in the world,]] and with the real Greta having no idea.]]
** Also, that monotonous life you might find yourself living where every day feels the same and nothing changes for you? Are you just in a rut, or [[spoiler: are you really an AI version of yourself stuck in some advanced, solitary matrix, trapped in time, unable to die or do anything?]]
* RewatchBonus: All the subtle, interweaving hints at the big reveal towards the end are made all the more creepy upon repeat viewings.
* TearJerker: Joe's story, especially the ending.
* TheWoobie: Joe, [[spoiler: but definitely not as much as cookie!Joe.]]
** Also [[spoiler: cookie!Greta.]] It's clear from her reaction that the real Greta had no idea what she would actually be doing to herself, with the copy being justifiably frightened beyond belief.

*** On the one hand, [[spoiler:it was cruel to block Joe and refuse to let him have any contact with her daughter. If she had been honest with him about the affair from the start, the whole tragedy would have been avoided -- Joe likely would have moved on and been spared years of pain and agonising hope, her father and daughter would still be alive, Joe wouldn't be in prison for murder and Cookie Joe wouldn't be condemned to hell for over a million years.]]

* FakeMixedRace: Presumably for impact rather than due to lazy casting, [[spoiler:but Beth does not appear to have contributed any DNA to her own child.]]

*** TakeAThirdOption: Joe is TheAlcoholic who's tendency towards belligerency when drunk makes [[PoorCommunicationKills it hard to talk to him]] and who [[spoiler:ended up substituting one addiction for another with tragic results.]]

*** On the other hand, [[spoiler:she was planning to abort the baby and possibly try to fix her relationship with Joe, until he found the pregnancy test and blew up at her when she said she wasn't keeping it. Whatever your views on abortion and the right to choose, it's obvious that Bethany would be angry and upset at Joe telling her what she could and could not do with her body. She never got Joe's apology letters thanks to her father destroying them, and likely didn't know that Joe ''hadn't'' moved on and was obsessed over the girl he believed was his daughter -- or if she did know, maybe she thought it was better that he ''never'' find out about her affair, since by this point there was no way it was going to end well if he discovered her daughter wasn't his.]]

*** Moreover Joe's being a [[TheAlcoholic belligerent alcoholic]] could've kept her from [[spoiler:telling him the truth about the baby's true father in fear that he would not take it very well.]]

** TakeAThirdOption: Joe is TheAlcoholic who's tendency towards belligerency when drunk makes [[PoorCommunicationKills it hard to talk to him]] and who [[spoiler:ended up substituting one addiction for another with tragic results.]]

*** On the other hand, [[spoiler:she was planning to abort the baby and possibly try to fix her relationship with Joe, until he found the pregnancy test and blew up at her when she said she wasn't keeping it. Whatever your views on abortion and the right to choose, it's obvious that Bethany would be angry and upset at Joe telling her what she could and could not do with her body. She never got Joe's apology letters thanks to her father destroying them, and likely didn't know that Joe hadn't moved on and was obsessed over the girl he believed was his daughter -- or if she did know, maybe she thought it was better that he ''never'' find out about her affair, since there was no way it was going to end well if he discovered her daughter wasn't his.]]

* Captain Obvious Reveal: The cabin setting is very isolated, neither man has an obvious reason to be there, and Matt is trying too hard to be charming, so it is obvious within the first few minutes that [[spoiler:their interaction is a stealth, virtual reality interrogation.]]

* Fake Mixed Race: Presumably for impact rather than due to lazy casting, [[spoiler:Beth does not appear to have contributed any DNA to her own child.]]

* MeaningfulReleaseDate / ShoutOut: December 16 is a birthday of none other than Creator/PhilipKDick. This might be a coincidence, though.

* ContinuityPorn: There are lots of [[http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/White_Christmas_%28Black_Mirror%29#Continuity 'blink and you'll miss it']] references to past episodes that confirm that yes, the whole series takes place in the same [[CrapsackWorld horrible reality.]]

** Is Joe Potter a relatable and sympathetic [[TheEveryman everyman]] brought to the DespairEventHorizon by the memory of the perfect life he lost, or [[spoiler:is he a pathetic, obsessed stalker whose refusal to let go of the past and move on led him to become an irredeemable murderer]]?

* AlternativeCharacterInterpretation: Is Matt a sociopathic SmugSnake, or is he just an ObliviouslyEvil PunchClockVillain? Did he really care about helping Harry overcome his social anxiety and meet a girl, or did he (a married family man) just enjoy psychologically controlling and living vicariously through the eyes of a single guy? Is he some twisted combination of all of the above? No matter which way you go, he clearly is not a very morally upright person.
** Is Joe Potter the relatable and sympathetic [[TheEveryman everyman]] brought to the DespairEventHorizon by the memory of the perfect life he lost, or [[spoiler: is he a pathetic, obsessed stalker whose refusal to let go of the past and move on led him to become an irredeemable murderer.]]

** Also [[spoiler: cookie!Greta.]] It's clear from her reaction that the real Greta had no idea what she would actually be doing to herself, with the copy being justifiably frightened beyond belief.]]

* NightmareFuel:
** For starters, there's the thought of spending five years confined to a small winter cottage.
** At first, it seems like Harry's date with Jennifer couldn't be going any better. Then, right as she's straddling his lap and purring into his ear, he starts coughing uncontrollably on the GargleBlaster she just gave him, which leads to BloodFromTheMouth. [[spoiler: It turns out she just gave him poison; Jennifer is apparently schizophrenic and believes Harry is as well, mistaking his live group chat for multiple personalities. She also misinterpreted his earlier remarks and has decided to end what she believes is their mutual suffering with a suicide pact. And, as he lies dying in agony, she puts a small funnel in his mouth and pours the rest of the poisoned drink down his throat. All while Matt and the other peeping toms watch in horror through Harry's eyes as it happens.]]
** They take the concept of "blocking" people, as seen on Facebook or Twitter, and apply it to reality. The result? [[UnPerson The blocked individual is rendered without a voice or any features, a static silhouette, and the one who blocked them appears the same to them.]]
** Cookies; people have their personalities (pretty much their entire consciousness) copied onto a small WetwareCPU so that all of their personal preferences can be conveniently wired into their smart-homes. This is done by having programmers, like [[spoiler: Matt,]] essentially torture the digitally copied personality until they are half-insane, forcing them into a state of "compliance". How is this done? Very easily, [[AndIMustScream you can just lock the cookie into a state of limbo and have as much time pass in their blank digital space as it takes to break them. Since they aren't physically real, they can't feel hunger or thirst, they can't even die. Meaning, they can be subjected to potentially lifetimes of nothingness while only seconds pass in the real world.]] At a certain point, the cookies will do almost anything to not go back to that, becoming willing slaves and functioning as AI robots.
** This is seen when [[spoiler: Matt]] loses patience with [[spoiler: cookie!Greta's]] natural CloningBlues FreakOut, simply mutes her anguished crying and screaming, and locks her in limbo for three weeks. Then for three months when she still won't comply. By the time he's done eating a piece of toast, three months have passed for her and [[MadeASlave she's been broken into submission.]] [[spoiler: This is what Matt does for a living.]]
** It gets even worse when we witness the way in which the police implement cookies, specifically [[spoiler: the cookie version of Joe. After leaving his virtual self to sit in silence for five years, he is manipulated into confessing to real Joe's crimes. For his murder of Beth's father and the subsequent death of Beth's daughter, [[ForTheEvulz the police decide it would be fun]] to leave cookie!Joe in a virtual recreation of the crime scene, with the little girl's frozen corpse in view from the window. And with "I Wish It Could Be Christmas Every Day" playing on a loop. [[FateWorseThanDeath And a thousand years pass for every minute that goes by in the real world]].]]
** According to Matt, the cookies that are left in limbo for too long become AxCrazy. In which case, they are deemed to be only good for use as cannon fodder in some video game.

* BlackComedy: [[spoiler:Joe's cookie (who, for all intents and purposes, ''is'' Joe) is forced to spend a million years in isolation over Christmas. That's not funny. What ''is'' funny is the fact he is forced to spend a million years listening to "[[SoundtrackDissonance I Wish It Could Be Christmas Every Day]]" by Wizzard.]]

* NightmareFuel: For starters, there's the thought of spending five years confined to a small winter cottage.

* ParanoiaFuel: The idea that the cute guy you meet at a party could be live-streaming his entire encounter with you to a host of sleazy, perverted, [[CasanovaWannabe Casanova Wannabes]]. Not only that, but said Casanova Wannabes are coaching said cute guy on how he can get you to have sex with him.

* TearJerker: Joe's story, especially the ending.

** This is seen when [[spoiler: Matt]] loses patience with [[spoiler: cookie!Greta's]] natural CloningBlues FreakOut, simply mutes her anguished crying and screaming, and locks her in limbo for three weeks. Then for three months when she still won't comply. By the time he's done eating the toast she just made, three months have passed for her and [[MadeASlave she's been broken into submission.]] [[spoiler: This is what Matt does for a living.]]

** Cookies; people have their personalities (pretty much their entire consciousness) copied onto a small WetwareCPU so that all of their personal preferences can be coded into their smart-homes. This is done by having programmers, like [[spoiler: Matt,]] essentially torture the digitally copied personality until they are half-insane, forcing them into a state of "compliance". How is this done? Very easily, [[AndIMustScream you can just lock the cookie into a state of limbo and have as much time pass in their blank digital space as it takes to break them. Since they aren't physically real, they can't feel hunger or thirst, they can't even die. Meaning, they can be subjected to potentially lifetimes of nothingness while only seconds pass in the real world.]] At a certain point, the cookies will do almost anything to not go back to that, becoming willing slaves and functioning as AI robots.

* AlternativeCharacterInterpretation: Is Matt a sociopathic SmugSnake, or is he just an ObliviouslyEvil PunchClockVillain? Did he really care about helping Harry overcome his social anxiety and meet a girl, or did he (a married family man) just enjoy psychologically controlling and living vicariously through the eyes of a single guy? No matter which way you go, he clearly is not a very morally upright person.