Identifying inspiration among Black Mirror episode and Sword Art Online

Identifying inspiration among Black Mirror episode and Sword Art Online - From above of opened laptop and art magazine with various black candles placed on wooden table in modern workplace

I just watched 'Black Mirror' episode 4 of season 3 (11 episode of whole) titled 'San Junipero'

Lots of concepts were similar to the last quarter of 'Sword Art Online' anime 'Mother Rosario'

  • Using virtual reality for therapy or rehabilitation purposes.
  • Spending huge part of one's own life in VR due to health issues.
  • Homosexual relationship among protagonists in Black Mirror which resulted in marriage compared to a joke said by Yuuki to Asuna about inability to get married with her because she would change her name into Yuuki Yuuki (Asuna's surname)

My question is: Is it possible that these productions were somehow influenced by one another? Or is it common trope in SciFi or simple coincidence?



Best Answer

As far as I know, the origin of the 'meme' is Neal Stephenson's Snow Crash (1992) though you could make strong representations for the online world Second Life (2004) to be a more contemporary origin - in as much as it 'exists', unlike the world of Snow Crash [the Metaverse] which was only ever on paper.




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Is Sword Art Online Possible?




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