Favorite Twilight Zone Episode

[R. von Pnaklendorf]

I was looking for a photo of John Wayne to use as my profile picture—an actor I first discovered through Rod Serling and The Twilight Zone (but that’s another story). Then I started reminiscing about the first time I discovered the series. Given the emotional state I was in at the time, I felt like I had stumbled upon the most unsettling show I had ever seen.

Rod Serling struck me as a genius. There wasn’t a single episode that didn’t leave me intrigued, but there was one that, more than intriguing me... hit me very hard. I even drew connections between it and “The Medusa” by Thomas Ligotti, whom I had only recently discovered at the time.

All those coincidences between my personal life and the episode made the experience even more terrifying and, consequently, more enjoyable.

The episode is “Perchance to Dream,” and, if I’m not mistaken, it’s also based on a story by Charles Beaumont.

What’s your favorite episode of Rod Serling’s The Twilight Zone? Which ones would you recommend?

 

[Athammaus]

Rod Serling was fortunate to have the timeless talents of 'The Group' (i.e. Richard Matheson, Charles Beaumont, Ray Bradbury, Harlan Ellison, Robert Clayton Johnson, William Nolan, et al) at hand.

My favorite episode is 'Kick the Can' by Robert Clayton Johnson.

 

[R. von Pnaklendorf]

Rod Serling was fortunate to have the timeless talents of 'The Group' (i.e. Richard Matheson, Charles Beaumont, Ray Bradbury, Harlan Ellison, Robert Clayton Johnson, William Nolan, et al) at hand.

My favorite episode is 'Kick the Can' by Robert Clayton Johnson.

That group is incredible. I was actually just thinking about Richard Matheson and Ray Bradbury maintaining a friendship with each other, as well as with Rod Serling. Honestly, that trio is my favorite when it comes to speculative science fiction. The others, like Harlan Ellison and the rest, are equally incredible. I love the various adaptations Ellison made of I Have No Mouth, and I Must Scream, as well as the way he became involved in those projects.

I haven’t had the pleasure of reading Charles Beaumont, but I know him precisely because of this episode. I haven’t seen “Kick the Can” either. I haven’t been able to watch all of Rod Serling’s The Twilight Zone episodes, but I hope to own them all on Blu-ray someday.

Whenever I would sit down to watch an episode of The Twilight Zone back then... it was an incredible ritual, and I would always come away absolutely delighted.

 

[R. von Pnaklendorf]

I’ve watched and listened to this interview (I have it playing in the background) countless times, and honestly, this man was on another level. It’s almost prophetic, and I remember feeling that it was epic the first time I saw it—especially when they asked him about this new show that was about to premiere on television called The Twilight Zone.

The rest is history.

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[cannibal cop]

The Midnight Sun is a good apocalyptic story. Besides the most familiar ones (To Serve Man, etc), those I tend to remember usually involve mysterious airplane incidents or spaceflights gone wrong, like The Arrival, King Nine Will Not Return, and I Shot an Arrow into the Air.

You can find original scripts and quite a few informative pieces about Serling and the original series in the Twilight Zone Magazine, many issues of which can be found on the Internet Archive. A terrific resource, really, perfect for dipping into at random whenever you have ten or twenty minutes to kill.

 

[R. von Pnaklendorf]

The Midnight Sun is a good apocalyptic story. Besides the most familiar ones (To Serve Man, etc), those I tend to remember usually involve mysterious airplane incidents or spaceflights gone wrong, like The Arrival, King Nine Will Not Return, and I Shot an Arrow into the Air.

You can find original scripts and quite a few informative pieces about Serling and the original series in the Twilight Zone Magazine, many issues of which can be found on the Internet Archive. A terrific resource, really, perfect for dipping into at random whenever you have ten or twenty minutes to kill.

It's incredible—I had no idea there was a magazine dedicated to The Twilight Zone. I know there are quite a few books out there about the series, as well as The Night Gallery (which I haven't had the chance to watch yet). Honestly, Rod Serling is incredible. I'm going to look into that magazine you mentioned... I wonder if there are any copies for sale on eBay. I've always wanted to get my hands on some The Twilight Zone material. The closest thing I can get here is this volume, which contains the story "Perchance to Dream" and, as the subtitle says, "and other Stories from The Twilight Zone." I think it's a translation of an English-language volume.



Edit: Damn, I’m flipping through it… there are some incredible authors involved in that magazine. It has the same vibe as some of the others I already knew, like the ones from Warren Publishing… amazing.

 

[cannibal cop]

It's incredible—I had no idea there was a magazine dedicated to The Twilight Zone. I know there are quite a few books out there about the series, as well as The Night Gallery (which I haven't had the chance to watch yet). Honestly, Rod Serling is incredible. I'm going to look into that magazine you mentioned... I wonder if there are any copies for sale on eBay.

It’s more of an all-around fantasy/horror magazine inspired by the legacy of Serling and The Twilight Zone than one purely dedicated to them, so there’s a lot of art and fiction in there too that captures something of the unique mood of the show. Much coverage of Night Gallery, too, I believe, including individual episode summaries for the entire series. There was also a sister publication called Night Cry that was mostly just fiction and art, and issues of that can also be found in the Archive.

I've always wanted to get my hands on some The Twilight Zone material. The closest thing I can get here is this volume, which contains the story "Perchance to Dream" and, as the subtitle says, "and other Stories from The Twilight Zone." I think it's a translation of an English-language volume.

That appears to be a reissue of this Penguin volume.

Looks like a good collection. It misses a couple of my favorite Beaumont stories, but it also contains quite a few that I haven’t read.

I once had a slim paperback of stories Serling wrote for the series, which included The Midnight Sun. In fact I read that one years before I got to see it. I think there was a line of those paperbacks featuring stories written for or adapted for the show.

Yes, there were, and here they are:

Series: Twilight Zone Collections

www.isfdb.org

 

[doug]

I don't know why, but "Nick of Time" really made an impression on me when I watched it as a kid. The narrative of the seductive nature of superstition as well as the creepy devil's face on the fortune telling machine really touched something in me. Another Matheson screenplay.