'Black Mirror' Season 4 Officially Has A Release Date & It's Sooner Than You Think

The most wonderful time time of the year is about to get an injection of bleak, existential dread, which honestly just seems fitting for 2017. Black Mirror just revealed when its fourth season will drop on Netflix, and it is much sooner than fans probably assumed. It's actually only weeks away, and it will be here before the end of the year! That's right — Black Mirror Season 4 is premiering on Netflix on Dec. 29, just in time for you to get in one last bit of worrying about how the world will destroy itself in the near future before saying goodbye to 2017.

The premiere date announcement came at the end of a trailer for the new Black Mirror season, which Netflix dropped on Wednesday morning. The trailer gives us some quick glimpses at the six new episodes, including shocking images like a doctor ominously inserting a needle into a child's head and a futuristic world where couples are paired up by a machine. Season 4 continues the show's six-episode format, which began last season after the first and second season only contained three episodes each. Check out the brand new trailer for Black Mirror Season 4, including the premiere date announcement, below:

Looks pretty grim, huh? But still super captivating. Although the trailer doesn't really give us too many details about the six new episodes, Netflix and showrunner Charlie Brooker have revealed what fans can expect from each of episodes, and honestly, I can't decide which one I am most excited for. Let's break each of them down in order:

Episode 1: "Crocodile"

A thriller that sounds like it may draw some of its inspiration from the Thought Police of George Orwell's 1984, this episode will tell the story of a woman who is terrified of a secret from her past coming to light and ruining her life due to a new device that is able to access a person's memories.

Episode 2: "Arkangel"

I actually got to see a sneak peek of this episode during the Black Mirror panel at Comic-Con this year. It's about a mother who implants a newly developed surveillance device into her daughter's brain to help protect her. The episode also has some major star power behind the camera, as Jodie Foster serves as the director.

Episode 3: "Hang the DJ"

This episode is already being called the "San Junipero" of this season by some critics, referencing the Emmy-winning breakout episode of Season 3 about an '80s-inspired, virtual reality love affair. "Hang the DJ" is set in a world where couples are put together by an advanced dating algorithm (think all-powerful Tinder), and it will tell the story of two people dealing with the results of this pairing system.

Episode 4: "USS Callister"

This is definitely one of the most highly-anticipated and seemingly ambitious episodes of the new season. It's the first Black Mirror episode to be set in outer space, and it already has fans guessing after a trailer for "USS Callister" dropped recently and revealed how heavily inspired by Star Trek it is. It also has a ton of familiar faces for TV lovers, featuring Jesse Plemons (Friday Night Lights, Breaking Bad), Cristin Milioti (How I Met Your Mother), Jimmi Simpson (Westworld), and Michaela Cole (Chewing Gum).

Episode 5: "Metalhead"

At Comic-Con, Charlie Brooker singled "Metalhead" out as one of the most adrenaline-pumping episodes of the season; it will also be the shortest episode of the whole series (clocking in at just over a half hour), and filmed entirely in black-and-white. The story will focus on survival in a seemingly post-apocalyptic future where a type of technology threatens humanity.

Episode 6: "Black Museum"

This one promises to be the biggest treat for diehard Black Mirror fans. Though all of the past episodes of the series have stood apart from one another, Charlie Brooker teased that this season finale will be filled with Easter eggs and references to past episodes. The episode will follow a woman visiting a high-tech crime museum, learning the stories behind a number of the attractions. The only upsetting part about the set-up of this episode is that it sounds like it could be a fitting series finale, which is worrying to some fans who want to see the show continue.