‘Black Mirror’ fans are praising ‘Common People’ for satirising Netflix’s subscription tiers

**WARNING: SPOILERS AHEAD**

The seventh season of Black Mirror was released on Netflix today (April 10), and fans have been enjoying the way the opening episode, ‘Common People’, pokes fun at the streaming platform’s subscription tiers.

• READ MORE: ‘Black Mirror’ season seven review: Charlie Brooker’s twisted universe at its most absorbing

The episode revolves around teacher Amanda, played by Rashida Jones, and welder Mike (Chris O’Dowd), as they struggle to conceive a child in a world in which a new experimental medical treatment from tech start-up Rivermind works like a subscription service.

When Amanda gets a brain tumour that leaves her in a coma, Mike’s told by Gaynor (Tracee Ellis Ross), a Rivermind representative, that the company can make a backup of the part of her brain with the tumour, remove it, and replace the original part of her brain with it.

However, this synthetic part is connected to the cloud and this means that the couple need to pay a monthly subscription to access it – and have to stay in range of Rivermind’s towers. With the basic package, they have to stay within the county, while Rivermind starts to air adverts through Amanda without her realising.

This becomes an issue when she sells products to her young students, but the only way to stop the ads is by upgrading to a more expensive package, culminating in the couple resorting to ever-more desperate measures.

Charlie Brooker writing the Common People episode of Black Mirror knowing very well it satirises Netflix’s own bullshit tiered subscription model. pic.twitter.com/pnsipe6q2A

— Kyle Snape (@kylemsnape) April 10, 2025

The subscription tiers offered by platforms like Netflix have frequently been criticised by users, and many Black Mirror fans have praised the show, and creator Charlie Brooker, for satirising them. One wrote on X (formerly Twitter), “The ‘Common People’ episode of Black Mirror is cheeky considering Netflix’s subscription tiers.”

One fan said, “The ‘Common People’ of Black Mirror is actually good. It’s just sooooo ironic that Netflix made it lol,” while another joked, “The call is coming from inside the house.”

The Common People episode of #BlackMirror is cheeky considering Netflix’s subscription tiers Read More