Boston Dynamics' Robot Dog strikes fear online as fans recall Black Mirror episode 'Metalhead'

The year is 2020, and while we may not have flying cars yet, we certainly have Robot Dogs strolling around the streets, akin to a Black Mirror episode.

American engineering and robotics design company Boston Dynamics has come to be known globally as the creator of Spot, the Robot Dog. Spot is a four-legged robotic canine, who is an extremely skilled robot who can open doors, climb stairs and perform all kinds of activities.

However, ever since its official launch in 2019, viewers have deemed it creepy as it bears an ominous resemblance to several sci-fi shows, most notably the Black Mirror episode 'Metalhead'.

Recently, a Robot Dog was spotted casually strolling around the streets, which was captured by a passerby who happened to post the clip on Twitter:

The clip soon went viral, and the online community was quick to draw a parallel with the Black Mirror episode Metalhead, where vicious robotic dogs ran amok in a dystopian landscape.

Black Mirror, Metalhead and Robot Dogs

Black Mirror is a British dystopian sci-fi anthology series which has become one of the most popular series of all time due to its visceral, dark and prophetic themes. Focussing on the perils of technology and science, the series created by Charlie Brooker is one of the most influential sci-fi shows today.

Known for portraying technology as a bane, many of the episodes find resonance in today's world, and the show largely seems to have spawned a whole new theory of prophetic foreshadowing called The Black Mirror Effect.

The world we're living in today is not too far away from that of Black Mirror, and this recent clip of a Robot Dog on the streets led to panic amongst viewers who were reminded of the eerie Black Mirror episode 'Metalhead' which is available on Netflix.

In the fast-paced black and white episode, the plot is a survival tale based on the plight of Bella (portrayed by Maxine Peak) who is on the run from killer robotic dogs, after the collapse of human civilization.

Bearing resemblance to the world of The Terminator and I am Robot, Metalhead is the shortest Black Mirror episode with a 41-minute runtime, which went on to receive praise for its sinister portrayal of artificial intelligence.

Twitter reacts to the 'Black Mirror Robot Dog'

As soon as the clip of the Boston Dynamics' Robot Dog went viral, several from the online community took to Twitter to react to this unusual and ominous sight.

While some instantly recalled Black Mirror, Metalhead and other dystopian films, others expressed aversion to the very idea of a fully-functional robot dog.

About the author

Saahil is an English Literature graduate, with a Post-Graduate Diploma in Broadcast Journalism.

An entertainment journalist with a strong penchant for anything cinema, travel and the ever-expansive world of pop-culture, he has contributed to film journals and websites such as Film Companion, Film Critics Circle of India, The Telegraph and Humans of Cinema.

Apart from flitting between the works of Shakespeare and Scorsese, he is also a comic-book aficionado, an avid gamer and sports enthusiast, who dabbles between putting in hours on the PlayStation and writing about the same.

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