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Men Against Fire
"Men Against Fire" is the fifth and penultimate episode of the third series of British science fiction anthology series Black Mirror. Written by series creator and showrunner Charlie Brooker and directed by Jakob Verbruggen, it premiered on Netflix on 21 October 2016, together with the rest of series three.
The episode follows Stripe (Malachi Kirby), a soldier who hunts humanoid mutants known as roaches. After a malfunctioning of his MASS, a neural implant, he discovers that these "roaches" are ordinary human beings. In a fateful confrontation with the psychologist Arquette (Michael Kelly), Stripe learns that the MASS alters his perception of reality. The episode was first conceived under the name "Inbound" in 2010. Its storyline shifted over time, influenced by Brooker reading Men Against Fire: The Problem of Battle Command by S.L.A. Marshall and On Killing by Dave Grossman.
The episode received mixed critical reception. Positive reviews praised Kirby and Kelly's acting as well as the relevance of the episode in a time of rising xenophobia in Europe and America. Other critics found the plot twist predictable and remarked that the storyline relied too heavily on cliches. Critical commentary frequently notes parallels to Nazi Germany. "Men Against Fire" was ranked poorly against other Black Mirror episodes by reviewers.
"Stripe" Koinange (Malachi Kirby) and "Hunter" Raiman (Madeline Brewer) are squadmates in a military that hunts roaches—pale, snarling, humanoid monsters with sharp teeth. Each soldier has a neural implant called MASS that provides data via augmented reality. Stripe and Hunter's squad searches a farmhouse while squad leader Medina (Sarah Snook) interrogates the owner, a devout Christian (Francis Magee). Stripe discovers a nest of roaches, one of whom points an LED device at Stripe; unfazed, he shoots one roach dead and stabs another to death. Medina arrests the owner and the squad burns down the farmhouse.
Stripe is rewarded with an erotic dream following his kills, but his MASS glitches during it. After further malfunctions the following day, Stripe has his MASS tested and consults a psychologist, Arquette (Michael Kelly), but neither visit reveals any problems.
The next day, Medina, Stripe and Hunter arrive at an abandoned housing complex. After a roach-sniper suddenly kills Medina, the other two soldiers enter the building as the sniper shoots at them. Stripe encounters a woman and urges her to flee, but Hunter shoots her dead. Stripe finds another woman (Ariane Labed) with her child, and Hunter prepares to shoot them. Stripe intervenes and wrestles Hunter, knocking her unconscious as she shoots him in the stomach. Stripe gets up and escapes with the mother and son.
They reach a cave in the woods where the woman, named Catarina, explains that the MASS implant alters soldiers' senses to show people of her ethnic group as inhuman "roaches". They are victims of a genocide justified by the military as genetic cleansing. While laypeople see the group as they are, they treat them as inferior due to propaganda. Hunter arrives and kills Catarina and her son Alec, then knocks Stripe unconscious.
Stripe awakens in a cell, where Arquette apologizes for his MASS glitch, which was caused by the LED device. Arquette reveals that MASS alters soldiers' senses, enabling them to kill without hesitation or remorse, and that Stripe consented to this when he enlisted before having his memory wiped. Stripe faces the choice of allowing his MASS and memory to be reset or opting for imprisonment, where he will be forced to rewatch the video from the farmhouse throughout his sentence. Arquette compels Stripe to rewatch the sensory feed of his farmhouse raid, where he now sees the reality of himself gruesomely killing people.
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Men Against Fire
"Men Against Fire" is the fifth and penultimate episode of the third series of British science fiction anthology series Black Mirror. Written by series creator and showrunner Charlie Brooker and directed by Jakob Verbruggen, it premiered on Netflix on 21 October 2016, together with the rest of series three.
The episode follows Stripe (Malachi Kirby), a soldier who hunts humanoid mutants known as roaches. After a malfunctioning of his MASS, a neural implant, he discovers that these "roaches" are ordinary human beings. In a fateful confrontation with the psychologist Arquette (Michael Kelly), Stripe learns that the MASS alters his perception of reality. The episode was first conceived under the name "Inbound" in 2010. Its storyline shifted over time, influenced by Brooker reading Men Against Fire: The Problem of Battle Command by S.L.A. Marshall and On Killing by Dave Grossman.
The episode received mixed critical reception. Positive reviews praised Kirby and Kelly's acting as well as the relevance of the episode in a time of rising xenophobia in Europe and America. Other critics found the plot twist predictable and remarked that the storyline relied too heavily on cliches. Critical commentary frequently notes parallels to Nazi Germany. "Men Against Fire" was ranked poorly against other Black Mirror episodes by reviewers.
"Stripe" Koinange (Malachi Kirby) and "Hunter" Raiman (Madeline Brewer) are squadmates in a military that hunts roaches—pale, snarling, humanoid monsters with sharp teeth. Each soldier has a neural implant called MASS that provides data via augmented reality. Stripe and Hunter's squad searches a farmhouse while squad leader Medina (Sarah Snook) interrogates the owner, a devout Christian (Francis Magee). Stripe discovers a nest of roaches, one of whom points an LED device at Stripe; unfazed, he shoots one roach dead and stabs another to death. Medina arrests the owner and the squad burns down the farmhouse.
Stripe is rewarded with an erotic dream following his kills, but his MASS glitches during it. After further malfunctions the following day, Stripe has his MASS tested and consults a psychologist, Arquette (Michael Kelly), but neither visit reveals any problems.
The next day, Medina, Stripe and Hunter arrive at an abandoned housing complex. After a roach-sniper suddenly kills Medina, the other two soldiers enter the building as the sniper shoots at them. Stripe encounters a woman and urges her to flee, but Hunter shoots her dead. Stripe finds another woman (Ariane Labed) with her child, and Hunter prepares to shoot them. Stripe intervenes and wrestles Hunter, knocking her unconscious as she shoots him in the stomach. Stripe gets up and escapes with the mother and son.
They reach a cave in the woods where the woman, named Catarina, explains that the MASS implant alters soldiers' senses to show people of her ethnic group as inhuman "roaches". They are victims of a genocide justified by the military as genetic cleansing. While laypeople see the group as they are, they treat them as inferior due to propaganda. Hunter arrives and kills Catarina and her son Alec, then knocks Stripe unconscious.
Stripe awakens in a cell, where Arquette apologizes for his MASS glitch, which was caused by the LED device. Arquette reveals that MASS alters soldiers' senses, enabling them to kill without hesitation or remorse, and that Stripe consented to this when he enlisted before having his memory wiped. Stripe faces the choice of allowing his MASS and memory to be reset or opting for imprisonment, where he will be forced to rewatch the video from the farmhouse throughout his sentence. Arquette compels Stripe to rewatch the sensory feed of his farmhouse raid, where he now sees the reality of himself gruesomely killing people.