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1media/black mirror.jpg2017-03-29T13:36:17-07:00Delaney P Murray9b039227cb2ae1a7bb9ff5b9487c241b5b6fd4bb1649511image_header2017-04-19T08:58:27-07:00Delaney P Murray9b039227cb2ae1a7bb9ff5b9487c241b5b6fd4bb
Episode Focus: San Junipero
Runtime (of featured episode): 1 episode, 2016
Shown on: Netflix
Creators: Creator and Episode Writer Charlie Brooker, Director Owen Harris
Queer Characters: Kelly (Gugu Mbatha-Raw) and Yorkie (Mackenzie Davis)
Sexualities: Writer Charlie Brooker and director Owen Smith are both straight men, and the actresses who play Kelly and Yorkie appear to be straight as well
Episode Description : (from IMDB) In a seaside town in 1987, a shy young woman and an outgoing party girl strike up a powerful bond that seems to defy the laws of space and time.
Notable Queer Moments: The episode begins with Yorkie and Kelly meeting in a nightclub. Yorkie is initially nervous, especially about what people will think about two women dancing together. After a few weekends, Yorkie and Kelly sleep together and discuss their sexualities (Kelly says she is attracted to both men and women). Later, it is revealed that San Junipero, the town they have been visiting, is really a virtual town where people's subconsciousness is uploaded after they die or are close to death. In real life, Yorkie is a quadriplegic who got in a accident when she was 20 after coming out to her parents and then quickly running away from home. She wants to go to San Junipero after she dies but her homophobic family refuses to give their legal permission. Kelly legally marries Yorkie instead so she can sign the spousal permission form that allows Yorkie to go, and after Kelly dies she follows Yorkie to San Junipero.
Creator Comments: Brooker originally wrote San Junipero featuring a heterosexual couple before changing the script later. He also said that the uplifting tone of the episode was a "palate cleanser" in a dreary series and that he wanted to be able to give the characters more freedom and a better story. He also said that despite the episode's ambiguous ending, Kelly and Yorkie ultimately get a happy ending. Owen Harris commented that San Junipero was the most positive episode in an otherwise gritty series. Gugu Mbatha-Raw has also said that she appreciated that sexuality wasn't a major focus in the episode, but rather there was an emphasis on plot and story
Analysis: San Junipero is critically considered one of the best episodes of the series. Aside from focus on sci-fi world building, nearly the entire episode is built around the development of a queer relationship. It also happens to be focused on an interracial relationship, and a bisexual/lesbian relationship. However, homophobia does play a part in the episode as Yorkie's condition and her inability to go to San Junipero are both based in her family's homophobia.
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