This is one of the most suspenseful episodes, with a taught, eerie atmosphere, using excellent effect of long silences.ġ9. Alan burns the keepsakes, which panics the wife, but he thinks it’s superstitious nonsense. You see the villagers believe the Dam will displace them, and are rumored to use black magic to stop its construction. His wife brought back several items which were given to her by a local shaman for protection. This episode concerns Alan Richards, whose company is building a large dam in Africa.
I’ll also have links below to the amazing Twilight Zone Blu-ray sets (which are 50% off until midnight July 5th!!). For those who haven’t seen these episodes, I’ll leave them spoiler free. Be sure to check the Syfy schedule to see which episodes you can catch this year. In anticipation, I’ve picked my Top 20 favorite Twilight Zone episodes ( a difficult task, given there’s 156 to choose from!). And his clipped, wry narrations remain imbedded in pop culture. Back in that era, censorship was prevalent, but he cleverly explored controversial issues allegorically. And the show has endured for a reason the stories were compelling, the acting was pointed, and the writing, directing, and music were at a level usual reserved for cinema.Īnd Serling’s social commentary was part of the appeal. Its eerie mood cast a unique spell and there was always a twist ending to keep you guessing.
TWILIGHT ZONE MARATHON TV
I got hooked on the Twilight Zone in the eighties during a local tv marathon. The Twilight Zone remains the best show ever made in television history.Ĭreator Rod Serling’s classic fusion of sci-fi, horror, and fantasy has blown people’s minds ever since its debut in 1959. It’s easily my least favorite episode to date.It’s almost that time of year again! Syfy Channel will once again air its annual July 4th Twilight Zone Marathon. I hate to say it, but unless you’re in the mood for some Twilight Zone silliness, I’d stay away from this one. It’s a great idea and holds up well technically, but the main character is irritating and more creative uses could’ve been found with the watch. Overall, “A Kind of Stopwatch” just feels like a wasted opportunity. I just wish they had gone with a different tone instead of comedy, or at least transitioned from it midway through. I couldn’t figure out if it was the people staying perfectly still or a trick of the camera, but it was pretty cool. I also liked the effect of people and things being frozen, especially when McNulty interacted with them. The concept of a stopwatch that stops time is neat and, had it been wielded by a more interesting character, allows for a lot of possibilities. And I especially didn’t care about how he ends up in the end.Īll that said, this episode does have a couple things going for it. Because of this, I didn’t care about his need for attention and only found that more annoying about him. Even Serling’s opening monologue depicts him as an annoyance. Not a single person in this episode likes him, except for maybe the man who gives him the watch.
He’s loud, doesn’t shut up, and seems to have no life beyond inadvertently annoying others. I can easily say he’s the most annoying character I’ve come across so far. And the twist ending only serves to make me wish it’d been preceded by a more interesting story.Ī large part of that problem is the main character, McNulty. I can understand using the watch for silly pranks, but it felt like much more could’ve been done with it. Unfortunately, keeping the episode 99% comedic screamed “missed opportunity” the whole way through for me. The acting was over the top from pretty much everyone and there were a couple humorous moments. This was easily the most lighthearted episode I’ve seen yet.
Will he get the attention he wants, or will he still be considered a loser in the end? McNulty soon discovers the watch can stop time itself and uses it as a means to try and get attention. He gets fired from his job and runs into a strange man at his local bar who offers him a stopwatch as a gift. Patrick McNulty is an utter loser with a loud mouth. Welcome back to my Twilight Zone Marathon! If you had the ability to freeze time, what would you do? This episode explores the concept of controlled time and its uses.
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