TV Squad Ten: best Twilight Zone episodes

TV Squad Ten: best Twilight Zone episodes

Posted Oct 5th 2009 2:10PM by Bob Sassone
Filed under: Other Sci-Fi/Supernatural Shows, Video, TV Squad Lists, Reality-Free, TV Squad Ten


The Twilight ZoneThere is a fifth dimension beyond that which is known to man. It is a dimension as vast as space and as timeless as infinity. It is the middle ground between light and shadow, between science and superstition, and it lies between the pit of man's fears and the summit of his knowledge. This is the dimension of imagination. It is an area which we call the Twilight Zone.

Friday marked the 50th Anniversary of The Twilight Zone's debut on CBS. The first episode was titled "Where Is Everybody?" and featured Earl Holliman as a military man trapped in a town where it seems everyone has vanished. You find out at the end that it was all an experiment to see how astronauts would handle being alone on long missions. Holliman was really safe.

A very good episode, and a great introduction to what viewers could expect from the series. But I don't know if it's in the "best" category. Here are my picks for the top ten, and because I find it difficult to list them in order from 1 to 10, I've put them in random order as they came to mind. And since I know that some will disagree, tell me how I'm wrong in the comments.

Twilight Zone"To Serve Man." This is one of those episodes that has become a part of pop culture, being spoofed in many TV shows. So it's easy to forget how bizarre and powerful a story it is, with the sick ending that will freak out a lot of people. I've never understood why the guy with the clipboard doesn't do something to help though. Makes it even weirder. (Watch the episode here.)

"Eye of the Beholder." Arguably the most famous TZ episode. It's easy to look back at this now and see the twist ending coming a mile away, but that's only because the show was 50 years ago and so many other stories like this have been written since. I bet this a lot of viewers said "wow" when this first aired. (Watch the episode here.)

"Nothing in the Dark." This is the episode of TZ that makes me cry when I watch it. I feel so sorry for the woman, old and living alone and afraid that Death is going to come after her. I guess when Death looks like Robert Redford it cushions the blow. (Watch the episode here.)

"Walking Distance." Gig Young plays a busy ad exec who wants to get away from the daily grind and finds himself back in his hometown - when he was a child. This was a very personal story to Rod Serling, who wrote several stories with this theme. This is the most emotional.You can't go home again. (Watch the episode here.)

"Stopover in a Quiet Town." A couple finds themselves in a strange town and they have no idea where they are or how they got there. And what's that giant shadow that seems to be following them?

"It's A Good Life." Billy Mumy as an evil kid who controls the lives of everyone. A very tense episode. (Watch the episode here.)

Twilight zone"Nick of Time." This episode features William Shatner slowly going crazy, but it's not the episode with the monster on the wing of the airplane. This one has Shatner and Patricia Breslin as a couple who find a mysterious fortune-telling machine in a restaurant. (Watch the episode here.)

"The Midnight Sun." The Earth is hurtling towards the sun and residents of an apartment building are going crazy. So would I. This episode does a great job of building tension. (Watch the episode here.)

"A World of Difference." Howard Duff plays a man who finds out that his whole life is just a role he is playing in a movie. A lot of TV shows and movies have used this plot over the years. (Watch the episode here.)

"The Four of Us Are Dying." A con man can change his face to look like anyone he wants. Oh, you know that's not going to end well. I like the music in this episode too and the way it's filmed. Beyond the sci-fi trappings, it's like a short film noir. (Watch the episode here.)

As a bonus, here's an interview Mike Wallace did with Serling just before The Twilight Zone premiered (with several commercials as a bonus!).
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=4DIwxl8HHpM&feature=player_embedded