The Twilight Zone

[Odo's_Bucket]

"There 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."


Lets make a list. Top 50 episodes. Go >

 

[Mr. Laser Beam]

80's version:

- Profile In Silver (descendant of JFK travels back in time)

- Dead Run (a truck driver gets a job...carrying dead souls to Hell)

- A Matter Of Minutes (a couple get 'unstuck' in time and find out that every minute is a separate world that has to be built from scratch)

- The Star (adaptation of Arthur Clarke short story)

- The Misfortune Cookie (arrogant restaurant critic finds a Chinese eatery whose fortunes come true)

 

[tharpdevenport]

"Time Enough At Last"
"The Midnight Sun"

Two of my favorites.

 

[JustKate]

"Obsolete Man" (another great Burgess Meredith episode, Tharp)
"The Invaders" (this loses something once you know the twist at the end, but until you do, oh man!)
"Nervous Man in a Four-Dollar Room" (not sure why I like this one so much, but I do, I do)
"The Rip Van Winkle Caper" (love it when the bad guys get what they deserve)
"Deaths-Head Revisted" (ditto, but even MORE so)

 

[tharpdevenport]

I hate to admt it -- but I've not seen all the black & white TZ episodes. I should really correct that.

 

[Odo's_Bucket]

These are some, not all, of my favorites from the original series.

What You Need
A Stop At Willoughby
Eye Of The Beholder
Two
Five Characters In Search Of An Exit
Dead Man's Shoes
To Serve Man
Hocus-Pocus And Frisby
Where Is Everybody?
Time Enough At Last
I Shot An Arrow Into The Air
The Monsters Are Due On Maple Street
The Big Tall Wish
A Penny For Your Thoughts
The Shelter
Deaths-Head Revisited
The Midnight Sun
Nightmare At 20,000 Feet
A Kind Of Stopwatch
The Jeopardy Room
Stopover In A Quiet Town

 

[Greg Cox]

I don't have time to list fifty, but, off the top of my head:

Nightmare at 20,000 Feet
The Obsolete Man
Steel
The Howling Man
Time Enough at Last
It's a Good Life
Nothing in the Dark
To Serve Man

 

[Harvey]

I couldn't even pick ten favorite episodes, though I remember enjoying both of Shatner's appearances.

The "pilot" of sorts called The Time Element is pretty good, too. I saw a digitized version of Serling's personal print at college--I don't know if it is available online or on DVD.

I must admit, I've never seen the 80s version of the series (nor have I seen Serling's Night Gallery). Are either any good? I remember the version that was on UPN being awful, despite Forest Whitaker.

 

[Odo's_Bucket]

I don't have time to list fifty, but, off the top of my head:

Nightmare at 20,000 Feet
The Obsolete Man
Steel
The Howling Man
Time Enough at Last
It's a Good Life
Nothing in the Dark
To Serve Man

Hey are you the real Greg Cox?

 

[Odo's_Bucket]

80's version:

- Profile In Silver (descendant of JFK travels back in time)

- Dead Run (a truck driver gets a job...carrying dead souls to Hell)

- A Matter Of Minutes (a couple get 'unstuck' in time and find out that every minute is a separate world that has to be built from scratch)

- The Star (adaptation of Arthur Clarke short story)

- The Misfortune Cookie (arrogant restaurant critic finds a Chinese eatery whose fortunes come true)

I haven't seen much of the second Twilight Zone series. I'd really like to though. When I get the chance, I'll probably try to buy the dvd's. It would be something to watch in the evenings after work. I'd really like to see if it's as good as the original.

 

[Moko]

Im glad this thread came up. i have been looking for an episode of twilight zone forever and maybe I imagined it who knows? Anyway the episode was centered around a zippo lighter basically this guys always challenged people that his zippo would light and if didnt they lost a finger or something similar to that. Does anyone know of this? Did I make it up in my head. I have googled countless times and finally just gave up. Thanks to everyone.

 

[ToddPence]

The episode you are referring to was not an episode of the "Twilight Zone", but of "Alfred Hitchcock Presents" called "Man From the South". Versions of it were done both on the original 1950's black and white program (starring Steve McQueen and Peter Loerre), and the 1980's revival. Roald Dahl wrote the original story on which the episode is based, a suspense classic which has been frequently anthologized. Yet another version was also done on Dahl's own "Tales of the Unexpected" TV series.

Quentin Tarantino paid tribute to the episode in a segment of his film "Four Rooms" starring Bruce Willis, in which the episode is confusingly and incorrectly referred to as "The Man From Rio".

 

[Moko]

Thank you so much todd. I have been driving myself nuts for about 10 years trying to find this and no one knew what i was talking about. Now I can finally watch it. If you ever need a solid dont hesitate to ask.

 

[Mr. Laser Beam]

80's version:

- Profile In Silver (descendant of JFK travels back in time)

- Dead Run (a truck driver gets a job...carrying dead souls to Hell)

- A Matter Of Minutes (a couple get 'unstuck' in time and find out that every minute is a separate world that has to be built from scratch)

- The Star (adaptation of Arthur Clarke short story)

- The Misfortune Cookie (arrogant restaurant critic finds a Chinese eatery whose fortunes come true)

I haven't seen much of the second Twilight Zone series. I'd really like to though. When I get the chance, I'll probably try to buy the dvd's. It would be something to watch in the evenings after work. I'd really like to see if it's as good as the original.

It is kind of a uniquely 80's spin on the concept, but it's my favorite out of all of them. Maybe it's because I remember watching it first-run when I was in high school. (Warning, though: The third season kind of sucks)

Even the 2002 relaunch had its moments. They did a shot-for-shot remake of the original's "The Eye of the Beholder" which was kind of neat.

 

[Moko]

Great now I now what the episode is called but I cant find it anywhere. Its not even available on dvd yet. Its in the fifth season and the fourth hasnt even come out yet. I guess I have to wait to see it.

 

[Odo's_Bucket]

Great now I now what the episode is called but I cant find it anywhere. Its not even available on dvd yet. Its in the fifth season and the fourth hasnt even come out yet. I guess I have to wait to see it.

psst : It's on you tube. Search the following "man from the south" it's split into three parts.

 

[Mistral]

Wasn't "Occurrence at Owl Creek Bridge" the actual pilot of the series?

 

[Mr. Laser Beam]

Wasn't "Occurrence at Owl Creek Bridge" the actual pilot of the series?

No.

 

[ToddPence]

"Occurence at Owl Creek Bridge" was actually the last episode "produced" of the series. As a budget saving move, the episode was not actually made by the TZ production team, but was an airing of an already existing French short film.

 

[Harvey]

"The Time Element" was the intended pilot. It became an episode of Westinghouse Desilu Playhouse. "Where is Everybody?" was the first episode produced under The Twilight Zone banner, and thus, the official pilot.