u/xylopiano9

My conclusion is based on the analysis that

1. u/OkDimension826 wrote in their comment to this Smithereens ending sequence original post.
2. the parallel that many other redditors have made that both Mom and Chris got what they wanted in the end.
3. On my own analysis of the CEO, Mr. Bauer's reaction.

I think if both men survived, the CEO, Mr. Bauer, at least, would have breathed a HUGE sigh of relief and happiness. Instead, Mr. Bauer looked angry/upset before going back to his meditation. Because he didn't breath a HUGE victory sigh or high-five his assistant Ms. Tipi, I think at least Chris died. Jaden might have died, too, but I think Mr. Bauer would have been really upset if that was the case. The fact that Mr. Bauer looked regretful, as other redditors have said, but not totally crushed, suggests to me that Chris was killed but Jaden wasn't.

Furthermore, the cops' reaction also suggests that Chris was killed, but Jaden wasn't. The cops' reaction was satisfied, or "like a release of tension" as other redditors have said. The cops would have been WAY more upset if they had accidentally killed Jaden. But no, they weren't upset, they were satisfied and relieved. They knew they would be hailed as heroes for killing the kidnapper Chris and saving Jaden. We saw almost no remorse or grief from the cops after the shot was fired, but there was a significant pause as if something big had happened, and that's when I think they realized they had killed Chris.

Most other posts I've seen suggest apathy from the strangers checking their phones, suggesting the outcome doesn't matter and that it's all "confetti" from social media. I appreciate this take, but I don't agree with it. I think it's actually quite clear who was shot and killed. I saw grief from every single one of the strangers who saw the news. If both men had survived and Chris was in custody, I would have seen a little bit of celebration, but there was none. To me it seemed like all the strangers were upset by the news, and chose to deal with the grief of Chris' murder by cops in their own ways.

u/OkDimension826 did some amazing detective work in the comments section of this original Smithereens ending sequence post. They found a thumbs-up to one social media post on a girls' phone. A girl who had just seen the news. I mean, if both men had survived, then that thumbs-up could have just been happiness at the fact they survived, but again, I don't believe they both survived mainly because of Mr. Bauer's reaction. Instead, I believe that u/OkDimension826 found a post where someone was happy the cops had killed the kidnapper.

Let this be a reminder that cops are unjust. (All cops are B***rds) (ACAB). We shouldn't be thumbs-upping when cops murder and kill with abandon. I really appreciate the grief we got to see in the ending montage of this episode of Black Mirror, because it shows that *most* people aren't going to celebrate the cops murdering people. Most are going to grieve.

Let this be a reminder that we need emergency responders that could have responded with CARE to Chris rather than with deadly force.

Thanks all for reading.