LONDON — Charlie Brooker, creator of Netflix’s Black Mirror, announced a special one-off episode of the popular sci-fi anthology television series set in the Stone Age which will follow a group of early humans dealing with the ethical dangers of relying too heavily on wheel technology.
“I’m extremely excited for this episode to premiere,” said Brooker, speaking into a microphone and occasionally pausing to muse on how microphones can ironically both amplify and distort one’s voice. “When a group of cave dwelling humans accidentally invent the wheel, they eventually learn to fashion entire carts mounted on these wheels and use them to transport resources. Of course, as the viewer will discover, this will prove to be the first step on the slippery slope towards the decline of all human civilization.”
Brooker reportedly then drew a huge breath inward before ramping up to begin a full-blown lecture about how humans forsake their own innate potential.
“The cavemen stop relying on the organic locomotion afforded to them by Mother Earth,” said Brooker, bending down to grab his own legs for rhetorical effect. “They give into the doomed temptation to rest their weary legs in the backs of their crude, stone carts. Little do they realize their leg muscles will soon atrophy from lack of use. And then, one day, a bear attacks, but their carts fall apart during the escape. Their grim fate is sealed, just like ours.”
John Glover, a casual viewer of the show, wasn’t sure what to make of Brooker’s comments.
“This episode still seems like a stretch, even for Black Mirror,” Glover said. “The wheel’s super useful, we definitely wouldn’t be where we are today without it. Plus, like, aren’t wheels part of wheelchairs? A lot of people need wheels for one reason or another so I don’t really know what he expects me to do.”
At press time, Brooker clarified that the new Black Mirror episode would actually only be produced as a stage play to avoid needing to use big studio lights, pulleys, or any other form of modern technology.
