This article contains light spoilers for “Black Mirror” Season 7, Episode 5, “Eulogy.”

When you fire up an episode of “Black Mirror,” you generally know what to expect: dystopian technology, great acting, a disturbing prediction of the future that will probably come true and a devastating ending that will leave you with a lingering bad feeling for at least a few hours. But ever since “Black Mirror” creator Charlie Brooker brought his feel-bad sci-fi series to Netflix, the show hasn’t been quite as consistently gloomy.

Episodes like “San Junipero” (a love story set in cloud storage), “Hang the DJ” (another upbeat love story with a clever twist) and even “USS Callister” (basically a “Star Trek” spinoff) have been downright uplifting. Maybe it’s because they’re less depressing than usual — or maybe it’s because Brooker finally has a chance to try something new — but these episodes have quickly become standout entries in the show’s uneven last few seasons.

“To be honest, it’s probably a consequence of us going from three episodes a season to six,” Brooker told GQ in 2017 when asked about the show’s shift into less demoralizing territory. “You’ve gotta have a soft center in the chocolate box.”

At the time, he pointed to “Hang the DJ” as a new entry that felt out of place on “Black Mirror.” The episode is lighter and funnier than usual, which Brooker worried would be a turnoff for fans. Instead, it was one of the most popular stories of the batch. “It’s interesting when we confound our own expectations of what the show is,” he said.

At this point, a feel-good “Black Mirror” episode doesn’t exactly come as a surprise, but it’s still usually an instant new fan favorite. Season 7, which is streaming now on Netflix, features one of these more heartwarming episodes, and it might just be the best entry of the bunch. It might even be the best “Black Mirror” episode in years.

Episode 5, titled “Eulogy,” stars Paul Giamatti as a bitter recluse named Philip who receives some unexpected bad news: His old ex-girlfriend is dead. This announcement comes in the form of a request to contribute to a collection of memories of the deceased. Philip initially resists, claiming he can barely remember their decades-old romance, but once he gives in, a drone quickly arrives to deliver the necessary equipment.

That equipment is a Nubbin, the show’s official term for the small, round devices used in other episodes like “USS Callister” and “Striking Vipers” to power immersive VR experiences. In this case, the Nubbin possesses the power to scan old photographs and transport its user into a virtual 3D recreation of the image. Along with some help from a built-in AI assistant, Philip explores his old photos in the hopes that they’ll dislodge a few memories of his ex.

The futuristic technology that anchors the episode is depicted with impressive artistry. Each photo Philip steps into feels like a warm memory of the past, complete with the grainy aesthetic often attributed to old photographs and cheesy smartphone camera filters. Anything not revealed in the photo itself (including his ex’s face) is blurred out with chunky pixels until he can conjure enough of his own memories to fill in the blanks.

As Philip sifts through his murky past, we slowly learn how this relationship went down in flames — from the party where they first met to their first night spent together to the overpriced dinner where they broke up. If you’ve ever scrolled deep into your Instagram feed (or perhaps even leafed through an old photo book), you’ll recognize the complex emotions that come from peering back into the past. The stories behind every party or vacation you’ve recorded all add up to a life, whether you realized that’s what you were documenting at the time or not.

Giamatti, arguably one of our greatest living actors, carries the episode, which sometimes feels more like a play than a high-concept sci-fi franchise. As he steps into each successive photograph, he narrates its story in heartfelt monologues (the episode’s only other character is an AI assistant played by Patsy Ferran). With each new detail Giamatti shares, the frame widens slightly to reveal a tiny bit more.

Plenty of what Philip reveals is sad, and perhaps even devastating — this is the story of a breakup, after all. But ultimately, “Eulogy” ends on an uplifting note, making it one of those beautiful, rare “Black Mirror” episodes to leave you feeling good, not bad — and maybe even a little optimistic about the future that modern technology is hurtling us toward.

“Black Mirror” is streaming on Netflix.