(WARNING: we obviously are going to discuss some big spoilers for “Black Mirror: Bandersnatch” in here).
If you’re bored during your coronavirus quarantine, then this is as good a time as any to explore all the crazy branches of Netflix’s interactive film “Black Mirror: Bandersnatch.” But, take it from us, it can be quite a pain to manually navigate this whole thing without any sort of guide. So if you get tired of making different choices that end up back at the same endings you already got, we have you covered.
As best as TheWrap can tell — after an unhealthy amount of viewings and backtracks — the interactive story about ’80s video game programmer Stefan (Fionn Whitehead) and his attempts to develop the fantasy novel “Bandersnatch” into a video game, has 5 “main” endings. By which we mean, endings that trigger the closing credits — or rather, the option to “exit to credits” as an alternative to going back to an earlier point in the story.
Of course, there are over a trillion different permutations of the narrative, based on the various choices you make for Stefan — some of which represent major forks in the road while others are merely window dressing. So your path to getting here will vary from viewing to viewing. But, as far as we can tell, these appear to be the five main ways the story ends for poor Stefan:
1. Stefan’s dad drags him out of Dr. Haynes’s office, following a huge fight between the three of them: Stefan tells Dr. Haynes (Alice Lowe) that he thinks he’s being controlled in the early ’80s by, who else, you the viewer in the 21st century, because you told him through his computer about Netflix (bear with us). When Dr. Haynes goes along with Stefan’s theory, she asks if he were really in some kind of movie, it should get more dramatic. When you decide whether Stefan should climb out the window or fight her, and pick fight her, it ends with a crazy brawl between Stefan and Dr. Haynes, with Stefan’s dad, Peter (Craig Parkinson) coming in and dragging Stefan out of the office and Stefan him screaming about his “21st century friend.”
2. Dr. Haynes’s office is revealed to be a movie set: This ending features a very similar setup to the one above, except one of the decisions you make for Stefan, after Dr. Haynes asks him if things should get more dramatic, ends the story differently. This time, if you tell Stefan to climb out the window, the camera pans out to reveal that Stefan was more right than he thought. Dr. Haynes’s office is just a giant movie set, and her, Stefan’s dad, and (unknowingly) Stefan himself are all actors. The director comes up and says he wasn’t supposed to climb out the window because this is the “fight scene.” It ends with the director telling a very confused Stefan (or Mike, as he calls him) to take a break.
3. Pearl Ritman: After Stefan decides to kill his dear old dad and chop him up (and keep his head in his room) he is finally able to focus on finishing “Bandersnatch.” Then we see him a) lie to his psychiatrist, Dr. Haynes about his dad being on holiday and b) tell her he figured out he needed to make fewer options in the game and make more decisions for the player while letting them think they had free will. This leads to “Bandersnatch” getting a rave, five-star review from the gaming critic.
We then jump to a news report in the present day, which is intercut with the final credits. The segment reveals that after “Bandersnatch” was released, it was discovered Stefan murdered his father and the game was pulled from shelves, with all copies pulped. The report includes an interview with Pearl Ritman (Laura Evelyn), a coder who happens to be the daughter of Colin (Will Poulter) and Kitty (Tallulah Haddon). She explains she found Stefan’s game hidden in a crate and is rebooting it for a streaming platform, which is “rumored” to be Netflix (though she can’t talk about that).
Then there is a scene of Pearl mapping a decision tree with “Bandersnatch” choices that definitely appear to be ones from Stefan’s own real-life journey. She turns on her computer to check something and we see she’s watching footage of Stefan waking up in bed back in the ’80s. Then the screen scrambles with the White Bear symbol. The viewer is given the option to throw tea over the computer or destroy it, but either choice cuts to black.
4. Stefan goes to jail: This is one of the outcomes of Stefan committing murder, either killing Colin or his dad. What distinguishes this ending from the one above is that the murder is discovered before the “Bandersnatch” game is ever released — either because the neighbor’s dog dug up the body or because Stefan called his psychiatrist’s office to threaten to murder her.
In this version, with “Bandersnatch” unreleased and Colin missing regardless of whether Stefan murdered him, Tuckersoft ends up going bankrupt and having to liquidate. In the last scene, we see Stefan in his prison cell, scrawling the White Bear symbol on the wall.
5. Stefan dies with his mom as a child: In what may be the “true” ending, if Stefan enters the code “TOY” into his father’s safe, he can get the stuffed rabbit back that he lost when he was a child. This leads, somehow, to Stefan retroactively not losing the rabbit when he was a child on the day his mother died.
With 5-year-old Stefan finding the rabbit, you’re then presented with the choice to travel with his mom (Fleur Keith)on the train that derailed and killed her. This kills Stefan too — in the present (alternate?) timeline Stefan just spontaneously dies while meeting with his shrink. And that’s the end of his story.
Or is it? “Black Mirror: Bandersnatch” actually has one additional, secret ending that is relatively minor on its face but which contains a huge Easter egg that took some significant digging for fans to figure out. And you can read all about this bonus secret ending here.
'Striking Vipers' to 'San Junipero': Every 'Black Mirror' Episode Ranked, From Good to Mind-Blowing (Photos)
With the arrival of "Striking Vipers," "Smithereens" and “Rachel, Jack and Ashley Too,” it's time to re-rank every episode of "Black Mirror," going back to the first episode, "National Anthem." There are no bad "Black Mirror" episodes, so we ranked them from good to mind-blowing.
Netflix
23. Season 2, Episode 3: "The Waldo Moment"
Many have made the now-trite observation that this episode, about a cartoon bear who insults his way into higher office, predicted the rise of Donald Trump. OK. This episode does a good job of again showing that we bend too easily before the loud and obnoxious. But "Black Mirror" usually has more novel things to say.
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22. Season 3, Episode 6: "Hated in the Nation"
It's disappointing that "Black Mirror" Season 3 -- one of the best TV seasons ever -- ended with a story that feels a little like "Sharknado." Great acting, though, and it can be taken as a friendly reminder not to cancel people over tweets.
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21. Season 5, Episode 2: "Smithereens"
Topher Grace's lovely performance as a tech guru who hates beeps, bloops and push notifications as much as you do saves this from being a pretty run-of-the-mill hostage drama. But it is a "Black Mirror" episode that could happen right now, in the present day, and we always like when the show pulls that off.
20. Season 2, Episode 2: "White Bear"
Sure, this one's scary, but it's just scary. There's some "Purge"-quality social commentary here, and that's nice. But "Black Mirror" is usually smarter. ("Black Mirror" creator Charlie Brooker seems pleased with this episode, though: "Bandersnatch" calls back to it aggressively.)
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19. Season 3, Episode 2: "Playtest"
This episode relies too much on typical scares to be among our favorites. The sudden turn into real-life horror is more affecting than the haunted house scenes.
18. Season 5, Episode 3: “Rachel, Jack and Ashley Too”
This feels like the umpteenth episode of "Black Mirror" in which someone's digital soul becomes trapped outside his or her body. This time the victim is pop star Ashley (Miley Cyrus! We like her), who ends up inside a robot toy owned by one of her adoring fans. A caper to reunite mind and body ensues, making this one of the funniest episodes of "Black Mirror." It feels deliberately light, and it's charming, but nothing about it will haunt you except Ashley's cheery take on a Nine Inch Nails classic.
17. Season 2, Episode 1: "Be Right Back"
We recommend this episode, and all the ones that follow, with zero reservations. Starring Hayley Atwell and Domhnall Gleeson, "Be Right Back" is another look at the qualities that make us us.
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16. Season 4, Episode 2: "Arkangel"
This episode has the best setup of any "Black Mirror," and seems poised to launch a savage critique of over-parenting. But it doesn't escalate as much as we expected it to, and can't quite live up to its brilliant concept.
15. Season 1, Episode 2: "Fifteen Million Merits"
This twist on "American Idol"-style mobs is gorgeously acted by Jessica Brown Findlay and a pre-"Get Out" Daniel Kaluuya, and their chemistry helps sell familiar lessons about literal cycles of exploitation. We think about this episode every time we ride an exercise bike, which probably isn't often enough.
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14. Season 1, Episode 1: "National Anthem"
This mean little story feels all the meaner because it's so easy to imagine it happening in real life. It's a perfect first episode, because there's no better test of whether "Black Mirror" is for you.
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13. Season 4, Episode 6: "Black Museum"
“Black Museum” references every past episode in the anthology, but the ruthlessness with which it merges three vignettes into one nasty story. Letitia Wright and Douglas Hodge counter the ugliness with some beautiful acting.
12. Season 4, Episode 5: Metalhead
Hey, Alexa: Is this episode just a stripped-down survival story? Or a grim warning that our reliance on Amazon is a slippery slope into Terminator dogs chasing us down across a hellscape Earth? Just asking.
11. Season 4, Episode 3: "Crocodile"
If Alfred Hitchcock had done a "Black Mirror" episode, it would go pretty much like this. A frosty blonde antihero (Andrea Riseborough) tries to outsmart a relentless insurance adjuster. A rodent gets involved.
10. Season 2, Episode 4: "White Christmas"
If you're dreaming of a black Christmas, this showcase for madman Jon Hamm combines two imaginary technologies -- one of which allows you to "block" people in real life -- to tell one of grayest stories ever told. Sentiment-free, it's the most "Black Mirror" episode of "Black Mirror."
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9. Season 4, Episode 4: "Hang the DJ"
Boy and girl meet cute in The System, which is designed to find “true matches.” If you and your better half are fighting over complicated wedding plans and too-high expectations, stop and watch this episode and remember you don't owe anything to anyone but each other.
"Hang the DJ" is probably the sweetest episode of "Black Mirror," and is therefore not our favorite.
8. Season 3, Episode 3: "Shut Up and Dance"
No episode of "Black Mirror" will leave you feeling worse about humanity than this one. The ultimate prank is on you. Oh, also? It could happen. Similar things have already happened.
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7. Season 4, Episode 1: USS Callister
This one makes the Top 5 on sweep and ambition alone. And it's one of many episodes that remind us to never let anyone make a digital copy of your soul. Stars Jesse Plemons and Cristin Milioti should be in everything.
6. Standalone movie: "Bandersnatch"
By far the most ambitious "Black Mirror," "Bandersnatch" does something never before attempted in serious drama, using the "Choose Your Own Adventure" format to ask provocative questions about free will and power. Part film, part video game, it's incredibly impressive, and builds a complicated, stunning alternate-reality 1984 that we're still navigating. The one flaw is that the lack of a consistent narrative makes it hard to completely engage with the characters.
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5. Season 3, Episode 1: "Nosedive"
This is the episode that probably hits closest to home: We think about it every time we get in a Lyft or consider writing a negative Yelp review. The Bryce Dallas Howard story is a perfect sendup of our obsession with social-media approval. As soon as it ended we tweeted how much we loved it, then waited to see if anyone would retweet us, and... why didn't they? What's wrong with them? What's wrong with us?
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4. Season 5, Episode 1: "Striking Vipers"
One of the best written and acted episodes, with an especially good turn by Nicole Beharie as a woman trying to figure out what's wrong in her marriage. What's wrong is very hard to explain, but it revolves around a video game obsession shared by her husband (Anthony Mackie) and his former roommate (Yahya Abdul-Mateen II). This is one of the scariest episodes of "Black Mirror," because the fear of a relationship disintegrating is so well-grounded. But there's also a beautiful resolution.
3. Episode 3, Season 5: "Men Against Fire"
We don't say this lightly: This episodes stands alongside "All Quiet on the Western Front" and "Full Metal Jacket" as one of the best stories about how war really works. (Even though the speech about how most soldiers don't fire their weapons might be totally wrong.)
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2. Season 3, Episode 4: "San Junipero"
No other story better captures the 1980s' pulsing mix of hope, heartache, cruelty and perfect pop music. It's another episode that could have been a Best Picture, and it may be the best single episode of television at capturing raw emotion. (It also feels joyously defiant that this story of colorblind LGBT love was filmed in South Africa, a former bastion of government-mandated bigotry.)
Netflix
1. Season 1, Episode 3: "The Entire History of You"
If you've ever been in a relationship with anyone who's been in another relationship, this one will crush you. Should life be lived, or remembered? And can you separate the living from the remembering? We think of this episode every time our memories fail us -- or serve us much too well.
Netflix
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There are no bad episodes of ”Black Mirror,“ but only one of the new episodes is among the best
With the arrival of "Striking Vipers," "Smithereens" and “Rachel, Jack and Ashley Too,” it's time to re-rank every episode of "Black Mirror," going back to the first episode, "National Anthem." There are no bad "Black Mirror" episodes, so we ranked them from good to mind-blowing.