YMMV / Black Mirror: The Entire History of You

Black Mirror YMMVSeries OneThe National Anthem — Fifteen Million Merits — The Entire History of You

• Alternative Character Interpretation: Is Ffion selfish and heartless for cheating on Liam? Or, in light of Liam's increasingly irrational conduct, is she a woman desperately seeking an escape from an increasingly abusive relationship? There's evidence to support both positions, as she appears to agree with Jonas' view that relationships are a sham, giving the impression that she's unhappy in her marriage, but also appeared desperate to save her relationship with Liam until he made it clear that he didn't want anything to do with her after discovering what she did.
• Broken Base: This episode is notable for strongly dividing the fanbase. When reviewed on forums, it tended to move down on lines between those who felt Liam was justified in his paranoia versus those who felt he was an abusive Boyfriend. Many people brought their own relationships with abusive, cheating, or suspicious partners.
• Jerkass Woobie: Regardless of your own interpretation of Liam's character, his reaction to finding out his wife did indeed cheat on him and that his daughter is not actually his is one of genuine heartbreak.
• Moral Event Horizon:
  • Towards the end, it becomes quite clear that Ffion has been telling a whole heap of lies about her relationship (and brief affair) with Jonas. She then crosses the Horizon handily by lying appallingly badly about Jonas using a condom, heavily implying that Jonas is her baby's real father. Crosses over with Idiot Ball as well; come on, lying about everything from the existence of a relationship in the first place to the use (or not) of contraception when there's photographic proof that you're lying? Not the cleverest decision.
  • Liam crossed it by submitting a man to a Mind Rape under threat of death while in a drunken stupor, wrecking a car, fleeing the police, and then going home, assaulting his wife after spying on her and humiliating her at every turn.
• Retroactive Recognition: Ffion is portrayed by Jodie Whittaker, seven years before she became internationally famous for getting the role of the Thirteenth Doctor.
• Too Bleak, Stopped Caring: Neither of the three central figures in the story are likeable. Both Ffion and Liam cross the Moral Event Horizon (as seen above) and while Jonas didn't deserve what Liam did to him, there's still the fact that he had sex with Liam's wife and that he may very well be the real father of Ffion's child.

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