Abstract

In this episode we are told ‘Oooo Heaven is a place on earth’, but in fact Oooo no it isn't. San Junipero, a virtual beach resort where the dead and dying can upload their minds, is much closer to the underworld of the ancient Greeks than the Christian Heaven. But it is not merely the people who are shades of themselves, in San Junipero our values will also fade as they are constituted in part by our human limitations. In this town the residents experience no danger and can take no risks, therefore can make no real sacrifices for one another. With our natural limits lifted our relationships would lose their importance, making the fate of the two protagonists seem much darker.