Black Mirror (Netflix) Season 3, 2016. Episode: Nosedive. Shown: Bryce Dallas Howard. Photo courtesy of Netflix/Photofest. Algorithmic Intimacy, Prosthetic Memory, and Gamification in By Jin Kim 109 110 JPF&T—Journal of Popular Film and Television Abstract: Black Mirror (2011–current), an anthology science-fiction television se- Black Mirror reflects and shapes our ries, portrays how digital technologies reflect and shape our dreams and night- fascinations and frustrations with the mares about the current media environment. The ways in which Black Mirror digital media environment. More spe- depicts the world where digital devices are strongly tied to human conscious- cifically, the distinction between the ness and bodies can be elaborated by focusing on three keywords: algorithmic real and the artificial is blurred, and ac- intimacy, prosthetic memory, and gamification. There are two major arguments cordingly it affects human conditions in presented. First, Black Mirror provides critical perspectives on quantified rela- the science-fiction show. The reversal tionships, artificial memory, and social ratings. Second, at the same time, the of the genuine and the fake has been ways in which this science fiction text portrays current media environments ren- observed in numerous cultural, artistic, ders these critical representations of digital technologies ironically normalized. and theoretical tropes, from Plato’s cave Keywords: Algorithmic intimacy, Black Mirror, gamification, prosthetic memory, metaphor to Marx’s use-value theory to science-fiction television Walter Benjamin’s aura to Borges’ fic- tions to Baudrillard’s simulacra. Digital simulations force us to revisit this old question about authenticity, and Black cience fiction can be a barom- Loop, The Man in the High Castle, The Mirror portrays how the real-genuine eter of social-cultural-political Handmaid’s Tale, etc.). experiences are transformed by the Praised as Twilight Zone for the fake-artificial simulations. environments, addressing our digital age (Nussbaum), Black Mirror Of the twenty-three episodes in Black Sfascinations and anxieties about the (2011–current) is an anthology science- Mirror, three episodes were chosen unknown, the Other, and new tech- fiction television series that portrays the for critical analysis based on their ex- nologies (Bould; Sobchack). Since the lures and perils of artificial intelligence, amination of the real-fake boundary in early 1950s, science-fiction television wearable devices, virtual lives, video notably realistic settings with ordinary series have continuously garnered criti- games, social media, surveillance, pre- characters. Episodes about intelligent cal evaluations and market success with dictive analytics, quantified life, and machines (e.g., “Be Right Back”) and such shows as Twilight Zone (1959–cur- toxic communication. As of 2020, a to- virtual reality (e.g., “San Junipero,” rent) and The Quatermass Experiment tal of twenty-three episodes (in five sea- “Striking Vipers”) were excluded from (1953). Early science-fiction television sons and two specials) have been made this analysis due to the overly futuristic often portrayed images of monsters, under Charlie Brooker’s production.1 assumptions about technologies and the aliens, and robots that could be read as Many works of science fiction offer supernatural-fantastical tone. The three metaphors of inhumane agencies, racial fantastical depictions of a distant future episodes chosen for analysis were “The differences, and bureaucracy (Janco- (Westworld, Electric Dreams), super- Entire History of You” (season 1, epi- vich and Johnson). During the 1960s natural settings (Sense8, Tales from the sode 3; “History”), “Nosedive” (season and the 1970s, science fiction in tele- Loop), or alternate histories (The Man in 3, episode 1; “Nosedive”), and “Hang vision became more stabilized, with the High Castle, The Handmaid’s Tale), the DJ” (season 4, episode 4; “DJ”). ideologically convoluted liberal and all of which speculate upon the condi- Three keywords were chosen for the conservative discourses. The Star Trek tions of a dystopian world. Compared depth of analysis: prosthetic memory, (1966–current) and Doctor Who (1963– with other series, Black Mirror takes a gamification, and algorithmic intimacy. current) franchises continue to embrace realistic approach to dystopic themes Previous scholarly works on “History” cultural diversity and political tolerance, with a more focused angle. Specifically, episode highlight an issue of organic- despite somewhat incoherently also re- it is concerned with media and depicts inforcing other values more in line with how digital technologies are saturated a sense of authoritarianism, patriarchy, and weaponized in mundane lives. Its and imperialism (Wright). Recently, portrayal of social-media addiction, Compared with other science fiction as a genre has become microchip implants and tracking, and mainstream, enjoying both market suc- algorithm-based apps is familiar to a cess and awards and nominations at the series, Black Mirror contemporary society. One particular Oscars (Arrival, Blade Runner 2049, episode (“Nosedive”) on citizen rating Her, Inception, Interstellar, etc.), Em- and self-surveillance was released be- mys, and Golden Globes (Westworld, takes a realistic fore China’s Social Rating became an Electric Dreams, Sense8, Tales from the international issue (CBS; Hvistendhal). As a fable and a critique of the contem- approach to dystopic porary media milieu, the series touches Copyright © 2021 Taylor & Francis Group, LLC on timely issues about the ways in which DOI: 10.1080/01956051.2021.1871584 themes with a more Color versions of one or more of the figures in the human relationships and consciousness article can be found online at www.tandfonline. are conditioned by digital devices and com/vjpf. technological environments. focused angle. Black Mirror 111 synthetic memory (Jenkins; Opaza & The Truth of Feeling” is also examined Faure), which deserves further inquiry. as a site for discussion about prosthetic This is a hyperreal and “Nosedive” is similar to “Fifteen Mil- memory and China’s Social Rating case lion Merits” (season 1, episode 2; “Fif- for gamification. teen”) in that they both satirize media postmodern moment, user labor, which has been discussed Algorithmic Intimacy in a using the theoretical lenses of gamifi- Preemptive World where a copy could be cation (Dragona; Woodcock, and John- “DJ” is a parable about dating apps son) and neoliberalism (Elias, Gill, and algorithmic relationships. Frank and and Scharff; Gill and Kanai). “Fifteen” Amy live in a world of algorithmic codes. more desirable, and has been explored using those theories Everyone meets other people, spends a (Johnson), but “Nosedive” has been designated time with them, and eventu- uniquely studied drawing on panopti- ally is assigned a final partner from the thus more “real” than cism (Allard-Huver and Escurignan) recommendations through Coach, a por- and simulacra (Thomas and Rajan). table matching gadget. Amy and Frank the real thing. Critically examining “Nosedive” would find themselves attracted to one another, facilitate discussions on gamification but the dating device assigns a different and neoliberalism with supplementary partner to Amy. Nevertheless, Amy and triumph of human free will or the fatal- comments on “Fifteen.” Likewise, the Frank decide to believe in intuition, not istic determinism of statistical simula- episode “DJ” portrays algorithmic cal- in numbers, and choose to escape from tion. In the simulation, we see emotional culation as a new condition in relation- the world they live in. When they arrive rollercoasters and powerful romances ships (Abad-Santos; Gilbert), and this at the end of the world, it is found that that look vivid and vigorous. In fact, trope can be more effectively examined they are avatars in one of a thousand they are constructed fictions generated using recent scholarly literature on algo- simulations to test their matching, and from metadata (i.e., data about data) rithmic culture. the avatars visually dissolve into the from anonymous users who share the While discussing the ideologies and percentage “99.9%,” suggesting a suc- same categories of habits, likes, and styles that often appear in the Black Mir- cessful matching probability. In the end, fears with Amy and Frank. This is an ex- ror universe, each episode is closely tied the real-life versions of Frank and Amy ample of measurable types, a sum of “a to memory (“History”), gamification are in a bar. They check their almost nexus of different datafied elements that (“Nosedive”), and relationships (“DJ”), perfect matching rate and approach each construct a new, transcoded interpreta- but they commonly reflect the ways in other more or less hesitatingly. tion of the world” (Cheney-Lippold 47). which qualitative human conditions are Except for the ending sequence, Here is one whimsical interpreta- replaced by quantitative measures in a “DJ” only shows the online doubles of tion of the ending scene: Frank might world of automatic calculations. For the “Frank” and “Amy,”2 who are quanti- not necessarily need Amy if he finds a depth of analysis of scenes, characters, fied and simulated versions of the of- 100% match with another woman. It’s dialogues, ideologies, and styles, Ted fline Frank and Amy. This final scene a classic “boy meets girl” scenario, but Chiang’s short story “The Truth of Fact, can be interpreted openly: the optimistic in this case