The trailer for season 7 of Black Mirror shows a familiar face from Bandersnatch, suggesting that the episode might reveal the real ending of the ambitious but divisive episode. Black Mirror always straddled the line between sci-fi and reality, using real-world inventions and concepts as a starting point, then showing their dystopian potential. While the love story “San Junipero” was a rare optimistic episode, the best episodes of Black Mirror are usually disconcerting cautionary tales about taking technology too far. That said, Black Mirror even pushed its own boundaries, resulting in the movie, Bandersnatch.
Most Black Mirror episodes are relatively short, but Bandersnatch was completely different. Bandersnatch was a cross between a movie and a video game, telling a story using a “choose your own adventure” format that allowed viewers to control parts of the story, accessing different possible endings. The trailer for season 7 of Black Mirror features Will Poulter, who played a key role in Bandersnatch. With Poulter appearing to reprise his previous role, the new trailer could tease the idea that one of Bandersnatch‘s endings will be revealed as canon in the upcoming season.
Black Mirror Season 7 Teases An Answer To What Bandersnatch’s Ending Really Was
If Colin Is In Black Mirror Season 7, There Could Be Several Explanations
In the trailer for Black Mirror season 7, Will Poulter appears to be playing Colin from Bandersnatch. He is seen talking to another character about game development, and appears similar, with glᴀsses and bleached blonde hair. Colin dies in several of Bandersnatch‘s different possible endings, so if Poulter is reprising his role as Colin, that appears to rule out the endings in which Colin dies. This has implications for Stefan, who sometimes ends the episode alive but in prison in the versions in which Colin dies. This could leave the possibility open for Stefan to return too.
While Colin may be alive in Black Mirror season 7, virtually every past episode of the show has illustrated that things are not always as they seem. Even the most overrated episodes of Black Mirror can shock their audiences with twists that nobody saw coming. With that in mind, it is possible that Colin did die in Bandersnatch, but has been brought back in another way. Black Mirror has featured AI recreations, clones, and even characters that appear to have returned from the ᴅᴇᴀᴅ, so there could be several explanations for Colin’s apparent reappearance.
Bandersnatch Had Multiple Different Endings (Depending On Which Route You Took)
Bandersnatch’s Endings Gave An Interesting Insight Into Its Audience
Bandersnatch‘s format allowed the viewer to make choices on seemingly insignificant things, like what cereal to eat, as well as major events, like who lives or dies. It was not always clear what the right choices were in Bandersnatch, as the vast majority of the endings were disturbing. Bandersnatch‘s many possible paths led to five main endings, including a “meta” one in which the characters are revealed to be actors, and one where Stefan dies. That said, some of the endings appear to be more commonly reached than others, which can reveal something interesting about Black Mirror‘s audience.
The тιтle refers to a mysterious creature in Alice in Wonderland author Lewis Carroll’s poem, Jabberwocky.
Bandersnatch leans into the dystopian nature of Black Mirror by adding another “meta” twist, questioning the free will of its audience. While there were several possible endings, these had all been predetermined by Charlie Brooker and the writing team, meaning that the viewer had free will, but only within certain parameters. Earlier decisions would eliminate other possible endings, and sometimes even Stefan would question the viewer’s choices. As Brooker and the team also created the options offered to the viewer, this even suggests that the audience never had a choice in Bandersnatch, only the illusion that they did.
Giving Bandersnatch A Definitive Ending Would Risk Defeating Its Purpose
Bringing Colin Back Could Be A Way Of “Undoing” Bandersnatch
Black Mirror‘s ominous тιтle refers to the fact that the show is a social commentary, with every episode holding a mirror up to an aspect of society or technology and revealing the darkest possible future. Bandersnatch is one of the most interesting episodes of Black Mirror, as it is a commentary on many things, including the illusion of free will. Giving us a canon ending confirms that some viewers are wrong in their choice of ending, defeating the purpose of the episode, which is raising the question of how much choice we had in Stefan’s story.
The concept for Bandersnatch was so exciting that it appeared certain that more episodes would use a similar format. However, in an interview with The New York Times, Charlie Brooker explained, “Run away. It’s harder than you think.” This suggests that the concept could have been too ambitious even for Black Mirror. It is possible that bringing Colin back for a definitive ending confirmation could be a way of “undoing” Bandersnatch, taking away the audience’s influence on the result and making Bandersnatch feel more like a regular Black Mirror episode that has concluded after an unusually long time.
Source: The New York Times
