Picture: Peter Capaldi as Cameron in Black Mirror
For anyone confused about the ending to the fourth episode of season 7 of Black Mirror, then allow us to try and help. We’re also covering the remaining episodes of Black Mirror season 7, but here is the ending explained to Plaything.
Plaything was directed by David Slade and written by Charlie Brooker. It starred Peter Capaldi and Lewis Gribben as Cameron Walker, James Nelson-Joyce, and Michele Austin as DCI Kano, and Jen Minter.
The episode is set in a near-future London, where an eccentric murder suspect is linked to an unusual video game from the 1990s, an unreleased video-game by the Bandersnatch creators populated by cute, evolving artificial lifeforms.
Plaything Ending Explained
Since stealing the Thronglet Beta, Cameron had spent decades working, learning, and growing the digital creatures. Ensuring to stay under the police radar, Cameron revealed to the police that he had continued to expand his computer’s processing power; he achieved this by taking apart the latest technology and adding it to his Frankenstein-esque creation of a computer. This method allowed the Thronglet’s to continue increasing their intelligence and power, eventually becoming a powerful hive mind. He even performed surgery on himself, implanting a neurogical link that allowed the Thronglets to study his mind so they could learn more about humans.
In the end Cameron was able to trick the police into giving him a pen and paper, which he used to draw a unique code, which would allow the Thronglet’s into the government mainframe, and the processing power it would provide them would allow them to broadcast their signal across the United Kingdom, and allow them to merge with the minds of humans without the need for a neurolink. Cameron’s plan worked, as the Thronglet’s broadcast signal was sent out across the country, knocking every person unconcious while the Thronglets merged with their minds.
Picture: Peter Capaldi as Older Cameron in Plaything – Netflix
Burning Questions for Plaything
Was Cameron lying about Lump’s name?
Possibly. The entire time Cameron was with the police, he used his story to convince them to give him the pen and paper he could use to enact his plan. Had he told them Lump’s real name, this would have led to him being charged with murder and taken away before he could draw the code and have the camera upload it to the government mainframe.
Ironically, by the end, Lump’s identity does not matter, as humanity is merged with the Thronglets, and everyone becomes part of a hive mind. If Lump’s mother is still alive and she falls victim to the Thronglet merger, then Cameron and the Police would know his real identity through this process. However, it doesn’t matter, as by becoming a hive mind, the Thronglets will have likely removed humanity’s capacity to commit crimes. Thus, Cameron will walk away scot-free and not face the music for the murder of Lump.
Why did Colin Ritman go crazy (again)?
Plagued by his own genius, once again, Colin Ritman went crazy. Was it because of Thronglets? Most likely. The “Basilisk,” as mentioned by Cameron’s boss, is referring to Roko’s Basilisk, which is a thought experiment centered on the notion that the benevolent artificial superintelligence of the future would punish anyone who knew of its existence and did not contribute to its advancement or development. Simply put, Colin realized what he had created and attempted to eradicate the Thronglets from existence.
So why Colin “allow” Cameron to steal the Beta disc? It’s unclear why Colin allowed this. However, this was before Colin attempted to wipe all of the Thronglet source code from existence, and likely greatly underestimated a video game journalist’s ability to contribute to the Thronglet’s advancement.
Picture: Will Poulter as Colin Ritman in Plaything – Netflix
Easter Eggs
- Bêta Noire (S7 Episode 2) – The store Cameron attempts to rob contains Ditta products, the confectionary maker from Bêta Noire.
- Charlie Brooker – Cameron worked for PC Zone, the same magazine that Black Mirror creator Charlie Brooker worked for in the ’90s.
- Bandersnatch – Will Poulter reprises his role as Colin Ritman, and Asim Chaudhary reprises his role as Mo, from Netflix’s Black Mirror interactive episode Bandersnatch.
- USS Callister (S4 Episode 1) – A poster for Starfleet is seen at Tuckersoft, and a copy of Spacefleet is on a bookshelf.
- Bandersnatch – A poster for Bandersnatch 2 is seen at Tuckersoft.
- Striking Vipers (S5 episode 1) – A poster for Striking Vipers 2 is seen at Tuckersoft. However, the original game was made by the Japanese company SaitoGemu.
- The Waldo Moment (S2 Episode 3) – Colin Ritman has a Waldo poster in his office.
What did you think of the episode Plaything? Let us know in the comments below!
Rating: TV-MA
