The Power of the Throng: Black Mirror Season 7, Episode 4 Review

Black Mirror Season 7

Episode Four Review

S7 EP04 | Plaything 

An eccentric loner named Cameron (Peter Capaldi), harbours an obsession with a mysterious 1990s video game. Cameron is arrested in connection with a grisly cold case but once they start his interrogation they soon realise there is more to his story. 

The episode dives quickly into the action, instantly we see Cameron arrested for a petty crime and instantly the madness starts to unfold. Cameron explains to the detectives his obsession with a video game called Throngs. Cameron gives the detectives and therefore the audience an extensive backstory on how he acquired this mysterious video game and what is it exactly. 

Essentially, Cameron was shown this mysterious video game in the 1990s by a game designer  who you may recognise from the Black Mirror spin off Bandersnatch. Once shown this evolving AI video game, Cameron wants to further understand it and steals it. Cameron soon discovers, through unconventional circumstances that whilst under the influence of drugs the ‘beings’ or ‘throngs’ within this game can communicate with him directly. 

Cameron becomes obsessed with communicating with the throngs, consuming drugs to further his connection with the being in the game. As time passes, Cameron helps further the throngs by providing them with further technology and power to harness their potential. 

Fast forward to present day and Cameron’s life, his home and his brain are all consumed directly with the throng. He is one with the throng and plans on helping the world become one with the throng. 

The episode is complex and yet comedic at times, Cameron simply comes across as a madly obsessed gamer but this is the intention. Cameron is unassuming, lonely, isolated and the world chooses to ignore him but instead, everyone should be aware of what he is doing. Quietly developing something dangerous behind closed doors, the episode kept me on my toes and I genuinely didn’t know what to expect from the story. 

Whilst watching ‘Plaything’ I didn’t realise how nuanced the storyline was, I was a little confused by it and overall found it more comedic than thought provoking but as the episode ended I was left to ponder the concept. Plaything leaves the ending purposefully ambiguous, we don’t know what happens to Cameron or humanity and we never will. What are the dangers of evolving AI? Does AI have emotions, does AI have the ability to feel, consume and control? All of these questions have risen within my mind and honestly, it is a lot to consider. The ending was incredibly clever when Cameron turns around his drawing, my jaw dropped and I was utterly fascinated by the intelligence behind the whole plot - what we thought of Cameron was wrong from the very beginning, he was always in control. 

Cameron says that the Throng will merge with humanity, bringing them a vast collective intelligence and ending conflict for good… or will it?

Similarly to episode three, Hotel Riverie, Plaything begs the question of what do we really know about AI? How powerful is AI? How will AI develop? The idea that technology is everywhere and constantly expanding, learning and controlling us without us even knowing. The idea that if it gets into the wrong hands, we cannot stop it and the humanity reset button is only a click away. 

Also, it made me question whether I should stop torturing my Sims...

Probe Points 

★★★☆☆