Re:“I can't stop comparing everything to Black Mirror”
by robl97 on Wednesday December 31, 2014 @12:24PM
(#8820140)
Part of the humiliation voyeur effect is that notion that, "my life sucks, but they have it worse than I do". One thing in 15 Million Merits that I found interesting too is that in the first-person shooter game, the player is killing the 'lower class' annoyances versus aliens, other factions/countries, enemies - it actually creates an even greater sense of claustrophobia in this world and emphasizes that whoever is in power is not even part of the consideration set for "revolution".
I think the people selling the 'adult channels' in that episode mainly want money, which they know the masses will provide. It's not so much a criticism of those in power as the whole system, including those who watch all the humiliation (the x-factor show and the rough sex show) and make these things financially viable.
Random other Black Mirror trivia: the guy who rallies against the system and then becomes part of it seems to be Charlie Brooker reflecting on himself. People tuned in to Black Mirror to see a David Cameron clone fuck a pig (yes that was actually the plot) in much the same way they tune in to the humiliation channels in 15 Million Merits.