Black Mirror | The Top 5 episodes of the gripping Netflix anthology

'Black Mirror' has become one of the biggest television sensations of the century, and not without reason. Created by Charlie Brooker, the series offers a dystopian perspective on technological advances and the increasing control of our lives by a dominating entity.

It's no surprise that after its debut in 2011, the show became an unimaginable sensation, transitioning to the mainstream and being acquired by Netflix for future episodes. Despite the decline in the series' quality over the past decade, it's always good to reminisce about the glory days of the show and how certain messages promoted in the stories made us paranoid.

With that in mind, we have compiled a ranking of the top ten episodes of 'Black Mirror'.

"WHITE CHRISTMAS"

In December 2014, Brooker and his creative team took advantage of the popularity of "holiday specials" to release the episode (or feature-length film, if you prefer) "White Christmas." Considered one of the best iterations of the anthology, the plot revolves around two men (played by Jon Hamm and Rafe Spall) who hide dark secrets and share their respective stories on a Christmas Eve, isolated in a cabin in the Arctic. However, as one might expect, nothing is as it seems, and the consequences of their confessions are disastrous.

"THE NATIONAL ANTHEM"

The episode that started it all. "The National Anthem" is one of the most bizarre television forays in recent memory and, for that reason—and its applaudable twist—ranks among the great episodes of the anthology. In the plot, a member of the British royal family is kidnapped, and to secure their release, the criminal demands that the Prime Minister engage in sexual acts with a pig, to be broadcast live nationwide. This puts his values and what it means to be a great leader into question. Praised by experts, the episode set the tone for the series as a whole and made it clear that happy endings would not be an option.

"WHITE BEAR"

A woman wakes up in a house with no recollection of how she got there or even who she is. Upon leaving, she realizes that several people are watching and recording her every move with their cell phones, as if in a trance. The problems escalate when she starts being hunted by bloodthirsty murderers. She teams up with a young woman in an attempt to restore everything to normal. Little does she know, it's all a staged simulation created for her to relive the same day over and over again as a form of punishment for the crimes she committed in the past.

"NOSEDIVE"

"Nosedive" successfully opened the third season and won fans over with its close resemblance to reality. Directed by none other than Joe Wright ('Pride and Prejudice'), the plot is set in the near future where people have ocular implants and use a mobile app to rate others on a scale of one to five stars. Within this complex cosmos, Lacie (Bryce Dallas Howard) strives to achieve the necessary rating to purchase her dream home and prepares for the wedding of an old childhood friend. That's when everything spirals out of control, and Lacie finds herself caught in a bureaucracy that could destroy her life.

"HATED IN THE NATION"

The third season of 'Black Mirror' is notable as one of the great achievements of contemporary television, featuring simply captivating, final, and harrowing episodes. "Hated in the Nation" is one such example: this neo-noir thriller follows two detectives investigating mysterious deaths linked to the growing use of robot bees used for pollination. The victims are chosen through a sordid online poll where morally questionable individuals are selected as the "most hated in the nation," sealing their fate once and for all.