The 15 Best "Twilight Zone" Episodes

Before sci-fi and fantasy shows like “Star Trek” and “Lost” there was “The Twilight Zone.” Created by the genuis that is Rod Serling, the TV series ran from 1959-1964. The show often featured famous movie and TV stars and let the audience’s imagination run wild with thought-provoking, ironic scripts. Below, my fifteen favorite episodes (ranked chronologically by season and episode):

*CONTAINS SPOILERS*

SEASON 1

“Third from the Sun” (Episode 14) - Synopsis: In order to save their families from an upcoming nuclear war, two scientists (Fritz Weaver and Joe Maross) steal the experimental spaceship they’ve been working on and set off into space to find a new planet to call home. The twist: The planet the two families head for is…Earth! Why it’s awesome: Like several “Twilight Zone” episodes, this one suggests that if aliens were to exist, they would most likely resemble humans.

“People Are Alike All Over” (Episode 25) - Synopsis: An astronaut (Roddy McDowall) lands on Mars and the Martians welcome him by providing him with all of Earth’s comforts. The twist: The “home” the Martians give to the astronaut is actually an exhibit in a Martian zoo where he will be put on display! Why it’s awesome: Even aliens sometimes have ulterior motives.

“A Nice Place to Visit” (Episode 28) - Synopsis: A robber (Larry Blyden) is shot by a policeman, dies, and is brought to heaven where he becomes bored and wishes to be transferred to hell. The twist: The man is in hell! Why it’s awesome: Proof of the saying “Be careful what you wish for.”

“The After Hours” (Episode 34) - Synopsis: A woman (Anne Francis) shopping in a department store visits the store’s nonexistent top floor, where the mannequins come to life. The twist: The woman is actually one of the mannequins! Why it’s awesome: Even inanimate objects have feelings? (When I worked in a department store, I noticed that several customers’ young children truly believed that the mannequins were real people!)

SEASON 2

“The Howling Man” (Episode 41) - Synopsis: A man (H.M. Wynant) becomes lost and spends the night in a castle, and when he hears the shrieking of an imprisoned man he decides to free the man. The twist: The imprisoned man is actually the Devil! Why it’s awesome: Proof of the phrase “devil in disguise.”

“Eye of the Beholder” (Episode 42) - Synopsis: An ugly woman (Donna Douglas) undergoes plastic surgery, and when the results are unsuccessful, the doctors tell her she’ll have to go live in a special place for ughly people. The twist: The woman is beautiful all along; the doctors are the ugly ones! Why it’s awesome: Beauty really is in the “eye of the beholder.”

“A Penny For Your Thoughts” (Episode 52) - Synopsis: When a banker (Dick York) flips a coin which lands upright, he suddenly gains telepathic powers, which threaten his mental status. The twist: When the man knocks down the coin, his telepathic power is gone! Why it’s awesome: Dick York (who plays the husband on the 1960s TV series “Bewitched”) and the other actors turn in first-rate performances.

SEASON 3

“Nothing in the Dark” (Episode 81) - Synopsis: A reclusive elderly woman (Gladys Cooper) lets a wounded man (Robert Redford) into her house, where he helps her to peacefully confront her fear of mortality. The twist: The man is actually Death! Why it’s awesome: Robert Redford makes Death sexy.

“The Dummy” (Episode 98) - Synopsis: A ventriloquist (Cliff Robertson) is haunted by the voice of his dummy. The twist: The dummy is actually the ventriloquist! Why it’s awesome: Who controls who? (This episode reminds me of a Halloween episode of “Family Matters,” in which Urkel is transformed into a dummy; as a nine-year-old, it scared the heck out of me.)

SEASON 4

“Miniature” (Episode 110) - Synopsis: A lonely man (Robert Duvall) sincerely believes that the dolls in a museum’s dollhouse are alive. The twist: The man turns into a doll so he can fall in love with a female doll! Why it’s awesome: Robert Duvall turns in a great sympathetic performance.

SEASON 5

“Nightmare at 20,000 Feet” (Episode 123) - Synopsis: An airplane passenger (William Shatner) recuperating from a recent mental breakdown believes he has spotted a gremlin on the plane’s wing; he tries to convince the crew that the gremlin is damaging the plane. The twist: Although the crew thinks the passenger is crazy, there is evidence of damage! Why it’s awesome: Two words: William Shatner.

“Living Doll” (Episode 126) - Synopsis: A man (Telly Savalas) is disturbed by the fact that his stepdaughter’s talking doll verbally threatens him; he tries to “kill” the doll. The twist: The doll ends up killing the man! Why it’s awesome: The predecessor to the “Chucky” movies (which I admittedly have never seen).

“Number 12 Looks Just Like You” (Episode 137) - Synopsis: A woman (Collin Wilcox) comes of age in a society where she is forced to undergo plastic surgery, but she does not want to conform. The twist: The woman ends up conforming anyway! Why it’s awesome: The episode is actually set in 2000, the year the writers predicted plastic surgery would become popular; were they accurate or what?

“Queen of the Nile” (Episode 143) - Synopsis: A beautiful former film star (Ann Blyth) is interviewed by a journalist (Lee Philips) who cannot understand why she hasn’t aged. The twist: The actress kills the journalist and literally steals the youth from him! Why it’s awesome: The death scene is creepy as heck.

“The Masks” (Episode 145) - Synopsis: When an ill old man’s (Robert Keith) family becomes eager for him to die so that they can inherit his fortune, he makes them don masks. The twist: When the family members remove their masks, they discover their faces have been permanently disfigured! Why it’s awesome: If the prospect of your sin literally showing up on your face isn’t enough to dissuade you from greed, what is?