For anyone confused about the ending to the fifth episode of season 6 of Black Mirror then allow us to try and help! We’ve also covered the remaining episodes of Black Mirror season 6, but here is the ending explained to Demon 79.
Demon 79 is the fifth and final episode of Black Mirror’s sixth season, directed by Toby Haynes and written by Charlie Brooker.
Here’s the basic premise of the episode:
“Northern England, 1979. A meek sales assistant is told she must commit terrible acts to prevent disaster.”
Demon 79 Ending Explained
After inadvertently making a contract with the demon named Gaap. Shoe shop assistant Nida is forced into murdering three people in 72 hours or nuclear annihilation for the world would commence, which she is shown a vision of.
Believing she’s gone mad, Nida attempted to run away from Gaap but this led her to her first victim, Tim Simons. To convince her to murder Tim, Gaap reveals to Nida that Tim is sexually abusing his daughter, which would result in her death by suicide by the age of 28. Hitting Tim round the head with a brick, he falls into the river and dies. The next day he is reported missing by his wife, and the police begin to investigate.
Picture. Gaap’s Talisman – Netflix
If anyone thought Gaap was lying, when the police visit the Simons household, the demeanor of his daughter revealed that the demon was telling the truth about Tim.
Nida is horrified by her actions, but Gaap eventually gaslights her into searching for a second person to murder. For the first time ever she goes to the pub, however, as the only known Indian woman in the town, she draws attention to herself. The barmaid catches her talking to Gaap but believes she is muttering to herself. Nida chooses Keith, a man known in the town for killing his wife. After following Keith home, and having an extremely awkward moment in his bedroom that results in a quick trip to the bathroom, Nida waits for him to return with a hammer in hand. Keith accepts his fate and Nida murders him.
Picture. Paapa Essiedu as Gaap (right) – Netflix
Tragedy strikes as another person arrives home before Nida can leave. He catches her trying to leave the house, and Gaap convinces her that she can’t leave any witnesses. After a quick scuffle, Nida stabs the man in the chest with a kitchen knife. We learn from Gaap that the man was Keith’s little brother, Chris. Nida had vein hope that Chris was a bad man, but Gaap reveals he was simply ordinary.
Gaap mistakingly thought Nida was done after three of the kills, but a quick phone call to hell revealed that Keith’s death didn’t count as he was directly responsible for the death of another person. Nida and Gaap bond over his fear of being exiled and sent to Eternal oblivion. She also learns that her hatred for Vicky made her corruptible, and why her blood summoned Gaap for his trial.
Nida has 24 hours to kill once more.
The next day Nida’s racist co-worker, Vicky makes her fit the shoes for Tim Simons’s daughter, who has come with her mother to buy shoes for the funeral. Gaap helps Naadi to feel better when he reveals he has saved her five years of further abuse, will no longer commit suicide, and will become a grandmother by the age of 57.
Picture. Katherine Rose Morley as Vicky – Netflix
After overhearing a deep conversation between Mark Smart and Vicky, Nida forces Gaap into revealing Smart’s future. Here she learns that the would-be Conservative MP is to become Britain’s future fascist and extremely racist Prime Minister. Gaap isn’t happy with Nida’s choice but her mind is set. Her transformation into a badass is confirmed when she steals the stylish leather jacket from the store.
Picture. Anjana Vasan as Nida – Netflix
The police investigation leads CDI Fisher directly to Nida. She does a poor job of convincing Fisher that she’s completely innocent. This results in Fisher following Nida as she begins her plan to kill Mark Smart. In Nida’s pursuit of Smart, she loses Fisher’s tail at a train crossing and Gaap continues his attempt to try and convince Nida to murder someone else. However, their argument results in her telling him to piss off, so he leaves.
Picture. David Shields as Mark Smart
Nida runs Smart’s car off the road, injuring him. She lands a handful of painful blows on Smart with her hammer, but before she can enact the killing blow, Fisher is able to stop her. Without Gaap on her shoulder to convince her to murder Fisher, she stands down and allows herself to be arrested.
Nida attempts to give her statement at the station, and despite telling them the entire truth it’s evident her story is too crazy to be believed. She watches the countdown to midnight, ready to witness nuclear annihilation, however, nothing happens.
The peace is broken when the attentions of Suzy and Fisher are drawn to the sirens in the distance. Gaap reappears and reveals to Nida that the apocalypse is happening, and thanks to their failure at stopping the apocalypse is being exiled from hell and into Eternal oblivion. Gaap offers Nida the chance to join him in Eternal oblivion, and rather than going to hell, she gladly accepts. Suzy, Fisher, and the other police officers of Tipley witness the beginning of the nuclear apocalypse.
As nukes rain down on England, Nida and Gaap walk into Eternal oblivion, paired together forever.
What is Eternal oblivion?
The theory of Eternal oblivion is the idea that there is simply nothing after death. This means when a person dies, their soul, spirit, or energy has no other material plane to travel to resulting in a state of non-existence.
Gaap summed it up in perfectly articulate detail in his explanation to Nida.
However, no one said anything about the fine print, which means as Gaap’s human companion to Eternal oblivion, Nida and her demon friend will never be alone, forever.
Why is Hell upset over the Nuclear Apocalypse?
In May 1979, the global population was over 4.3 billion. With 4.3 billion souls about to enter Hell, you would think whoever is in charge would be grateful. However the extinction of the human race at the hands of a nuclear holocaust means no more humans will be born, thus no more souls for Hell.
Had the nuclear holocaust not happened then Hell will have been drip-fed many billions more over the next several decades.
There is also the chance that there are several hundreds of millions of innocent lives that are about to enter heaven over hell.
Not to mention billions of souls in the space of 24 hours is far too much paperwork to process down below.
What did you think of the Black Mirror episode Demon 79? Let us know in the comments below!
Netflix Synopsis: "Twisted tales run wild in this mind-bending anthology series that reveals humanity's worst traits, greatest innovations and more."
