Three Episodes Of The Twilight Zone That Will Haunt You Forever
"Smoke for pleasure - smoke Chesterfields" say the deep and unequivolcally smooth voice of Mr. Rod Serling, host of the eery 1959 TV show The Twilight Zone. And damn did that make me want a cigerette.
Besides being able to sell ice to Eskimos, Rod Serling had the immense power to terrify in this black and white fantasy/horror/mystery hybrid of a TV show, where ordinary people find themselves in extraordinarily astounding situations that they each try to solve in a remarkable manner. With twists that M. Night Shamalayan wouldn't even see coming, The Twilight Zone is the epidome of classic with over five seasons that helped to catapult some of Hollywood's most famous and revered actors into stardom.
For those uncultured swine out there, The Twilight Zone is the first in a series of Black Mirror type anthologies that showcases the world in a way that it isn't. The weird and wacky storylines have entertained for years, but there are a few that are just too terrifying and culturally significant to ignore. Here are some of the most nightmarishly episodes available:
Nightmare at 20,000 Feet
Us 90's kids clearly remember the "Treehouse of Horror" episode in The Simpsons where Bart Simpson finds a gremlin on the side of the school bus, but no one believes him while it tears the vehicle apart. Well, "There's a gremlin on the side of the bus!" actually came from The Twilight Zone episode Nightmare At 20,000 Feet. As episode three of The Twilight Zone's season five, this episode helped launch William Shatner of Star Trek fame into the stratosphere - almost quite literally, as good old Shat discovers some sort of terrifyingly ugly and low budget creature tearing apart the plane he is a passenger on. As no one believes Shatner's claims that something is tamepering with the plane mid-flight, he then decides to take matters into his own hands.
Five Characters In Search Of An Exit
"Where are we?" said in a gruff voice would go on to became a staple phrase around my household after watching this episode, and you'll be hard-pressed if it doesn't happen to you too. In this episode, which is episode 14 of season 3, five strange characters wake up in a random space together. Each stranger is remarkably different - one is a ballerina, one a bagpiper, one an army Major, one a clown, and one a homeless person - and they form a strange bond as they try to determine where they are and how they can get out of the room. With an incredibly noticable yet also M. Night style twist at the end of the episode, you'll be thinking about these five characters in search of an exit for years to come.
Time Enough At Last
Season one, episode 8 of The Twilight Zone haunts me to this day. In a quintessential Twilight Zone episode, a bookish bank teller craves time alone from his horrible wife, miserable job and general cock-blocking style circumstances of his life. All he wants to do is read. I get it. But be careful what you wish for. In this episode, a nuclear explosion destorys the world around this bookworm, who is absolutely delighted to find that he has all the time in the world he desired to be with his literary tomes.
And then his fucking glasses break, leaving him blind as a bat.
For some reason this unfortunate turn of events left me devestated for this poor man. Like, ridiculously so. And I remained that way, until Futurama thankfully did a spoof where he proclaims his "eyesight isn't that bad" before his eyeballs fall out. Moving on to say that "atleast I can still read brail" his hands fall off.
It strangly comforted me. But watching these three episodes will not leave you comforted at all! Let me know what Twilight Zone episode haunts your waking life in the comments section below,
