Summary
finest episodes of The Twilight Zone Day .. To explore the so-called dimension of imagination, which is the middle ground between light and shade, between science and superstition, and which stands between the depths of man’s anxieties and the heights of his knowledge, you do not need to take advantage of a national holiday day. However, if you are searching for a reason to revisit or finally watch “The Twilight Zone,” Rod Serling’s famous science fiction anthology series that aired from 1959 to 1964, there is a festival that you may celebrate: National Twilight Zone Day is celebrated on May 11th.
Twilight Zone Day
finest episodes of The Twilight Zone
Although Syfy, the cable network that is the home of the black-and-white classic, will be broadcasting a full-day marathon beginning at eight o’clock Eastern Time, you can watch our recommendations for the finest episodes at any time on Paramount Plus, which has all five seasons, and for free on Pluto TV (with the exception of season 4, in which episodes were stretched out to an hour).
For your information, the resurrection of the 2002–2003 season, which was hosted by Forest Whitaker, is presently available to watch on Tubi, and Jordan Peele’s update for the 2019–2020 season is now available on Freevee.
‘It’s a Good Life’ (season 3, episode 8)
Certain episodes reach their climax with a gut-punch in the last second. The terrible hook is something that we are aware of from the very beginning of this half-hour, which is hauntingly beautiful. Born with the godlike mental power to create and eliminate, six-year-old Anthony Fremont, who resembles Billy Mumy in appearance, was born with the ability to create and eliminate. When it becomes tedious for him, he may create a gopher with three heads and then kill it. He has eliminated the use of power, automobiles, and television (with the exception of what he directly displays into the screen). With his ability to read minds, he has the ability to transform you into a monster or send you to the cornfield if your thoughts are unhappy with him and the decisions he makes. Everyone, including his family (Cloris Leachman, John Larch, and Alice Frost), have to smile and reassure Anthony that whatever choice he has made out of frustration or on a whim is “good” — or else he will be punished. The tension is just as agonizing for those of us who are at home when the Fremonts bring nervous people over to celebrate the birthday of a neighbor, who happens to be Don Keefer.
As you watch the story of the little dictator in the present day, you could find yourself wondering how children who are surrounded by positive reinforcement and given tools of artificial intelligence can change the environment in which we live. You may also consider the possibility of members of a political party trying to appease a leader who is prone to irritability and mental instability in order to maintain their own careers.
The show may be seen on Pluto TV and Paramount Plus.
‘Time Enough at Last’ (season 1, episode 8)
This early-run milestone was one of Serling’s favorites during his whole career: Burgess Meredith plays the role of Henry Bemis, a bank teller who wears glasses and is a reader. Henry Bemis is the worst possible thing that a guy can be. It is his wife, Jacqueline deWit, who does not want him to read at home, and his employer, Vaughn Taylor, who threatens to fire him for reading at work. As a result of Henry’s decision to conceal himself in the vault of the bank during his lunch hour, he ends up being the only person to survive a bomb that destroys civilization. Even if he is now able to enjoy the isolation he has always desired, he is only able to read the same newspaper. In the event that it weren’t for the monotony and the lack of companionship, the situation would be different. With a contemplative expression on his face, he continues, “If only there were something to do.” A surprise that will make other introverts ecstatic for him is about to be revealed, and then another twist is so totally basic and tragic that it will cause you to gasp.
Living through the isolation of a pandemic, in addition to the growth of anti-intellectualism, bookbanning, and employee burnout in the United States, ought to provide present viewers with additional levels of empathy for Henry’s plight.
The show may be seen on Pluto TV and Paramount Plus.
‘The Monsters Are Due on Maple Street’ (season 1, episode 22)
“There are kinds of weapons that are nothing more than thoughts, attitudes, and prejudices that can only be found in the minds of men.” The inhabitants of Maple Street, a suburban neighborhood that is reminiscent of “Leave it to Beaver,” are certain that it must have been a passing meteor that suddenly knocked out the electricity on their block (in addition to their phones, radios, and automobiles). This is a compelling cautionary tale that will keep you thinking. Then, however, a young man shares with them a tale that he has read concerning an extraterrestrial invasion: As part of plan, scouts had been sent ahead of the others to act as a human family and get ready for the arrival of the others. Are they inhabited by extraterrestrial beings too? Is there a new arrival for you?
As the mistrust spreads from one neighbor (Barry Atwater) to another neighbor (Claude Akins) and then to another neighbor (Jack Weston), you should be ready for a lecture on the mindset of mobs as well as a discussion on the laws that allow people to hold their ground.
The show may be seen on Pluto TV and Paramount Plus.
‘Nightmare at 20,000 Feet’ (season 5, episode 3)
William Shatner played Bob Wilson, a man who was taking a journey home after spending six months in a sanitarium recuperating from a previous mental breakdown on an aircraft. This was three years before to the time when he courageously went where no man had gone before as Captain James T. Kirk. Bob notices a thing on the wing of the airplane that is attempting to do damage to the aircraft as he looks out the window. When there is no one else around, the “gremlin” goes into hiding. Do you think that Bob’s wife, Christine White, is right when she says that his mind is playing additional tricks on him? Is he able to see what others are unable to see, and it is his responsibility to rescue them? This stressful half-hour, which was directed by Richard Donner, takes advantage of the universal dread of flying and the agony of trying to determine if the foreboding sense you get is a genuine self-preserving intuition or a false panic-induced imagination. It is evident that Shatner’s captivating close-ups demonstrated that he was a prominent figure in the film industry.
The show may be seen on Pluto TV and Paramount Plus.
‘Eye of the Beholder” (season 2, 3 episodes)
In order to achieve the highest possible level of tension, filmmaker Douglas Heyes has skillfully arranged this timeless lesson in life. A lady by the name of Janet Tyler is seen sitting in a hospital with her face completely bandaged. She writes of a life in which both toddlers and adults scream at the sight of her throughout her existence. We have learned that this is her twelfth and last therapy that has been sanctioned by the state in an effort to make her seem “normal.” Due to the fact that the injections have not been successful, she will need to be separated from “her own kind.” Her annoyance is growing as she says, “The state is not God.” In the event that someone is born by mistake, it is not within its authority to punish them! It is not within its power to make ugly things a criminal offense! When the procedure finally starts, you will be on the edge of your seat due to the fact that it will take the doctor about four minutes to remove her bandages. Only after we have seen Janet’s face will we see the faces of others who attended her event. At the same time that the jaw-dropping revelations serve as a sobering reminder that being different in a manner that does not do damage to anybody is still deemed treason in today’s society, they also serve as a mirror to the arbitrariness of beauty, “the norm,” and privilege.
The show may be seen on Pluto TV and Paramount Plus.
‘To Serve Man’ (season 3, episode 24)
Individuals who were exposed to this suspenseful film while they were still malleable experienced a chill down their spine. An individual who claims to be a representative of the extraterrestrial species Kanamits arrives to the United Nations with the assurance that they have come to Earth with the goal of doing good. In addition to establishing reciprocal trips between the planets, the nine-foot-tall samaritans want to discuss methods to put an end to starvation, conflict, and sickness, respectively. The Kanamit, played by Richard Kiel, leaves behind a book that has been written in his own language, which is impossible to understand. After its title, “To Serve Man,” is translated at a later time, it seems to corroborate, in addition to a successful polygraph examination and the shown success of the assistance, that the extraterrestrial beings are, in fact, their friends. Even the once-skeptical decoding expert Michael Chambers, played by Lloyd Bochner, has arranged his journey aboard their spacecraft.
We are not going to reveal the unexpected surprise or the unforgettable statement that is delivered in the course of the story. The lesson to be learned, however, is that you should not give in to the influence of your peers or choose the path that is less difficult in order to comply with something that seems too good to be true. To put it simply, you should not make a commitment until you have had the opportunity to read the tiny print!
The show may be seen on Pluto TV and Paramount Plus.
‘Living Doll’ (season 5, episode 6)
There are some people who are terrified of dolls, but parents who had a Chatty Cathy doll in their house in 1963 must have been particularly traumatized by this terrifying tale. Stepfather Erich, played by a frightening Telly Savalas, is irate because his wife, Annabelle, played by Mary La Roche, has purchased yet another doll, Talky Tina, in order to appease her daughter, Christie, played by Tracy Stratford. In the moment when she is alone with Erich, Talky Tina alters her pre-programmed language by saying, “My name is Talky Tina, and I’m beginning to hate you.” She does this because she is aware of Erich’s hostility against both herself and the innocent Christie. The conflict that unfolds will cause you to ponder if Talky Tina, whose voice is provided by Chatty Cathy’s June Foray, is Christie’s much-needed guardian or a threat in her own right.
The final narration seems to take a stance on the issue: “As a child caught in the middle of turmoil and conflict, a doll can become many things: friend, defender, guardian.” Recollections of Talky Tina, on the other hand, were a significant source of inspiration for the creation of a particular doll that was given the name Chucky.
The show may be seen on Pluto TV and Paramount Plus.
