10 Scariest Twilight Zone Episodes
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With Get Out mastermind Jordan Peele’s Twilight Zone reboot fast approaching on the horizon, and the New Year and SyFy’s annual TZ marathon soon upon us, we at TalkHorror think everyone is double-due for a countdown of the very best classic series episodes for horror fans - the ones that even 50 years later, can still manage to send a chill down our spines. For those of you too scared (or too bored - no judgments) to peek - here’s a cheat sheet:
10. The Howling Man
9. And When The Sky Was Opened
8. The After Hours
7. Perchance to Dream
6. The Midnight Sun
5. The Dummy
4. The Jungle
3. Twenty-Two
2. Living Doll
1. It’s a Good Life
And five honorable mentions, mostly pushed off the list for time:
The Obsolete Man offers some truly nightmarish scenes of dystopia in its intro and outro, but between the two, the majority of the episode is actually more inspiring than horrific
The New Exhibit is one of the most blatantly horror episodes of the Zone, and offers scarier mannequins than those seen in The After Hours. But Martin Balsam’s portrayal of a man going mad seems a little too flippant to convey the horror that well
Nightmare as a Child establishes a superb framework for suspense, it just doesn’t quite have enough time to really build on it before the reveal has to be made
Nightmare at 30,000 Feet is a classic, and I know what they say about questioning the logic of a Twilight Zone episode… but certain decisions made throughout the episode were too hard to swallow to fully suspend disbelief
Come Wander With Me features one of the few lyrical pieces written for the Twilight Zone, and it is a haunting one. But the main protagonist is such a dumb little cad it makes him nearly impossible to sympathize with, which kills the mood
Outro theme credit to Remix Maniacs’ “The Twilight Zone”! - บันเทิง
I never found the original Twilight Zone cheesy. It has always been an awesome classic.
Truttle Bear The 80's version and early 2000's version was wayyy more cheesy in my opinion
They might seem cheesy to some people these days, because they launched a bunch of great actors. Hey, there's Robert Redford! Kojak! Ellery Queen! Ellie May Clampett! Captain Kirk! My favorite Martian! But no, they weren't and aren't cheesy to me.
There’s another version?
Truttle Bear - I found so many great life lessons in Twilight Zone. Karma is the repeated lesson...
Some, not all.
EASILY ONE OF THE GREATEST TV SHOWS OF ALL TIME
phantom collector- The Twilight Zone is in my top ten TV drama shows of all time!
@@jimmalachowsky4052 MINE TOO ITS AN AMAZING SHOW THANKS FOR THE REPLY
My Favorite TV Show, love it..!
100%
Top five.
For me, the scariest episode was the one where William Shatner saw a gremlin on the wing of the plane he was flying, and no one would believe him. Scared the crap out of me as a kid.
Ahhh same I forgot what’s it’s called... it’s something like “nightmare at 10,00 feet” or something
That one was the best by far !
That one scared me
I believe its called “Nightamre at 20,000 feet”! Great episode, definitely one of my favorites!
The 1983 movie with this in it was scary too
'Night Call' is by far the scariest Twilight Zone episode for me ( where the old woman receives mysterious phone calls at night ). I remember watching it as a kid, and the moment where we see the fallen telephone wire is lying on the gravestone scared the life out of me! Still watch that episode to this day, and it still scares me.
That one scared the Hell out of me.
Thanks for ruining it for me.
I was waiting for them to lisr Night Call. I was scared to death to answer our phone as a kid. It could've been Brian!!
Yes, that was a really good episode. Gave me shivers every time I saw a graveyard.
Jacques Tourneur as director and Gladys Cooper as star didn't hurt. But even they come second to the brilliant story.
All Twilight Zone fan’s please stand up🙋🏻♀️
🤦🏾🙋🏾
I can't. I'm stuck inside my android!
🧒
Night Gallery was good too
🙋🏿♂️
3 minutes in and was driven insane by the repeating notes of music.
That's a new Twilight Zone episode coming out.
Apollyon iii
Frizzurd He didn't mean it drove him insane for being scary, it drove him insane because of the rapid repeating.
+Fallout yup
You beat me. I bailed at 2:20
"''To Serve Man', it's a cookbook!" Best shocking ending.
THAT ONE
Yes it is
There was a simpsons homage to this episode 😎
I consider 'To Serve Man' to be the best tomato surprise story* ever broadcast.
But the comic brilliance (admittedly morbid) of the punchline negates the horror, so it's not my best candidate for Scariest Ep.
* long tale building up to a revelation that changes everything
The scariest to me because of the surprise ending.
"Shadow Play". Where the guy in jail is waiting for his execution by electric chair, and after he is executed, wakes up in the same cell reliving the whole scenario again, but all of the other characters have switched roles. ie: the janitor is now the judge...... Unbelievable writing (& excuse the pun) and execution 😁.
The bad side of groundhog day...
Funny, that's an episode I don't remember.
Herb Sherman yes. One of my favorites and scary as well.
Something that makes you ponder about are own existence🤔
That one freaked me out for a while when I was younger
The episode "Where is everybody" still gives me chills to this day, just the very idea of being the only person left alive in the world is terrifying to me.
Rawk Hawk I actually like the idea of being the only person left. If all the animals and birds are still around at the same time, I'm good 👍🏻
It scared me the first time I watched it
That was the first episode ever
Midnight sun's so fucked
I would actually like that except that there would be no one around to provide certain daily services
The one where a tiny UFO landed on the roof of a lonely old lady house. After she destroyed the ship, we later found out that the tiny visitors were from Earth and the old lady was just a frightend giant alien.
Olin Detroit The Invaders! Agnes Moorehead
@@halkingsbury8795 Yep, a great episode, and Moorehead won an Emmy for her performance or some TV award. Not one word spoken by her; she was an exceptional actress. Orson Welles' favourite actress in his infamous 1940s movie, Citizen Kane, considered by many, the greatest movie of all time.
that one's my favorite!!
SPOILER ALERT! 😆
@@donkeykidtim 🤣
New Years eve, Twilight Zone Marathon begins. A tradition in my household.
Yes, look forward to it every holiday season. Dont watch them all, but always watch some.
It was my son’s and my tradition, too. I miss doing that with him
They do it on my "Twilight Zone" broadcast network on July 4th weekend - they call it "Rod, White and Blue." A lot of these very episodes are usually on. The one that freaked me out that is NOT here is the one with Agnes Moorhead where she played with NO dialogue but a one woman performance where she fought off invaders from another planet. Come to find out she is one of a giant race where "aliens" from Earth have landed on another planet, and she kills them all.
Same here.
I am looking forward to this Jan 1 '22.
One of the great things about the classic Twilight Series was just how much variety it offered. One episode could be scary, the next episode could be sci-fi with a social message and the next episode could be an odd light-hearted story. Basically there's something for everyone.
Beautifully put-- the new medium, with America's best writers-- from radio -- with our best talent --- and thank Goodness for us that execs were willing to take risks back then without the fear of losing their job by 6pm that same say over a gigantic expensive flop they greenlit, but were too exhausted to remember. When you had "the Ford Hour" or the " Westinghouse hour", the stakes between the producers and the sponsors would be for that performance of that show only -- a quick turnaround, low budgets, and accountability -- no wonder the quality was so consistent -- the Twilight Zone team were all veterans of Live TV's Best-- Kraft Playhouse 90, You Are There, etc... these tight-knit teams knew everyone else's job, bc the show had to go on the air no matter what-- if the gaffer wasn't there -- someone else had to do it -- bc that airtime had to be filled. You got a lot of real Pros coming up that way. And most important, they didn;t worry if different lobbies complained. The Twilight Zones were not afraid of being called hokey or maudlin. The Robot Grandmother Episode was one of the most heartwrenching episodes I remember-- including modern television .... I cried for her when I was little. The show seems to have touched everyone in every master emotion. Wow.
I wrote an essay about the golden age of television, and I did a compare and contrast between the twilight zone, and Alfred Hitchcock‘s horror hour I believe it was called. The thing about Rod Serling is he was a short story. Writer in the magazines didn’t like the spin he was putting on these stories. He was offering too much social commentary, and spinning it into a sci-fi thing, so they kind of scooted him off to television which was the new thing and figured he wouldn’t go far with his weird stories. Come to find out he had an audience. He developed a cult following and then from there the show just blew up. It is currently 2023 and I can still sit down in front of the TV and watch episodes of the twilight zone that I have seen many times and still get the heebie-jeebies scared out of me.
I always thought that the one about the old lady who kept getting phone calls and it was coming from the cemetery was the scariest one.
Pretty awful, yup !
Yeah. That guy's voice is still creepy today. Scary when I watched it as a kid and still is!
Night Call - Starring Gladys Cooper 1964
Pam Lyles yeah, a telephone line had fallen onto a grave lol.
"I always do as you say" I found it sad, the old woman chased her husbands ghost away.
I also liked the one where the old rich man is about to die and he calls his relatives over and puts a condition on the inheritance they should get. They have to wear an ugly looking mask until midnight if they want the money. While they are wearing it, he points out how horrible each and everyone of them is and has been to him and then at midnight he dies. When they remove their masks, happy to have the inheritance, they realize that their faces have taken the ugly shape of the masks....forever!! I don't remember the name of the episode but that really freaked me out when I first saw it!
The episode is simply called "Masks"
luccaderby Sounds brilliant. Another `episode like it is with Inger Stevens.
Yes one of my all time favs Back then they sure could act👍
That episode had me absolutely horrified as a kid. I just saw the scene of their faces and screamed. Ran away and cried for my mom.
Nature/nurture.
"And When the Sky Was Opened" is easily one of the scariest, most utterly unnerving episodes of TZ. It was mysterious in a cold, gut-wrenching way.
Existential terror. It was a gut-punch when I first saw it. Just like the ending of the Mist.
"Stopover in a Quiet Town" Everything was fake it was empty trees were fake no people nothing and then to find that a little girl laughing with a giant hand scoops them up and her father says " be careful with your pets, I brought them all the way from earth"
This one is one of my favorites!
That one always stuck with me. It's the one I always re-watched the most.
One of my fav epeisodes!!
First one I think of also😳 gee Louise over 20;yrs later 🤣😂🤣😂👍. 🙏✌️🇺🇸
M
I no.
No
"The Monsters Are Due On Maple Street" - real life horror
That one was funny.
@@josephclegg3562 Bullcrap. Monsters are Due on Maple Street was TERRIFYING. That cute little suburban street turns into the Purge.
@@Athenafjd9 This episode might've actually served as a minor inspiration for THE PURGE.
I almost forgot that one, one of my favorites, cause that's how humans truly react to that situation with suspicion and cruelty.
What about the shelter, I think that was the name, it was a similar situation, neighbors friendly in the beginning. Then there was alarm of a nuclear attack and everyone turned on each other.
"Five Characters In Search Of An Exit" - the fact there is virtually no set, other than that cylinder, is unnerving, especially when watched for the first time.
One of my favorite episodes and I think often overlooked
that ones so amazing
My favorite episode. The ending was just so bizarre.
derby1884 ..... Yes they were in hell 🔥 I know they were dolls in the end! 😲
@Jonehones In your scenario, we have no ending. If there is no ending, then why watch the show.
My favorite twilight zone episode is death’s head revisited. In that episode a former SS commandant returns to the concentration camp he once ruled with an iron fist and took glee in torturing prisoners in for some sick nostalgia. However, the ghosts of the men he killed put him on trial for his crimes.
Great episode
How about judgment night where the U-Boat Commander has to nightly relive the experiences of passengers of a ship he sank.
Yeah. Good one too.
I agree...it’s my favorite as well!
Agreed 100%
The two episodes that scared the dog-living shite out of me as a kid were Last Train to Willoughby and Eye of the Beholder. The one that ripped out my soul was Time Enough At Last; I'm still heartbroken for poor Henry.
Last train to Willoughby is a favorite of mine .
Night Call scared me. The faint "hellooo.....helloooo" got me.
I'm shocked Eye of the beholder wasnt on this list.
Yeah, Beemis, especially if you're a reader yourself, does hurt. But try watching it again with the idea that he had it coming, which I now think was Serling's real intent
@@nicholasschroeder3678 that was definitely the intent
Rod Serling was a Masterful writer and storyteller.
Many of the best Twilight Zone episodes were written by Charles Beaumont.
Most of the time, but some of his stories were duds.
@@MrBiscuits2 Ha! That remark is as clueless as the guy you got it from.
@@NelsonMontana1234 Yes it is,Biden had a part on TZ but forgot to go..
@@NelsonMontana1234 Rod Serling wrote like 99 out of 156 episodes.
The midnight sun is easily the scariest for me. Just the sheer horror and feeling of impending doom horrifies me.
The music also really helped induce anxiety ! That’s the episode where the earth was moving closer to the sun right?
@@Sonicxis4ever For most of the episode, yes. But at the end, it's revealed Earth is moving away from the Sun and is slowly freezing to death!
The lady was in bed running a high fever dreaming about the earth going towards the sun. It was actually snowing outside.
@@jimhuffman9434 I thought this was such a good plot twist! Although I did look it up and it's most likely that the earth out of orbit would move towards the sun then away because of the sun's gravitational pull...I still think the idea of the earth slowly becoming colder and colder is more terrifying. I adored the ending.
Same. The whole concept of impending doom and nowhere to hide on earth is absolutely terrifying.
The Hitchhiker episode by far is the scariest of all. And a close second was the one with the little girl called Markie who saw her mother murdered. Both were so suspenseful. But the one where Robert Redford plays death and he tricks the old lady into letting him inside her house was both creepy and sad.
I always thought it was a happy ending. Death ain't so bad after all, don't spend your life being afraid of it.
Markie was HER. Markie was the little girl who saw herself as an adult and the man tried to murder her.
I love how in Midnight Sun" ends with the girl waking up thinking "thank god it was just a dream" But then you hear Mrs Bronson and a doctor talking, and it's revealed Earth has in fact left it's orbital position. The only difference is that Earth is not heading toward the Sun. Instead Earth is headed away from the Sun and is slowly freezing to death!
Both scenarios are horrifying. If I had to choose I'd choose the cold. But I'm glad neither is currently happening.
"To Serve Man... It's, it's, it's a cookbook!" That was chilling.
Second place.
still good to watch today, even though you know what's coming. The TERRIFIED woman calling out in alarm and anguish, as she delivers that line: ……."IT'S.....A COOK BOOK"!!!!!!!
It is also the same twist C. S. Lewis uses in 'The Silver Chair'.
That was my first experience with the Fourth Wall.When he turned and addressed the audience I almost jumped out of my seat!!!!
I agree. It's one of the best with a lot of meaning
The twilight zone to this day is STILL ahead of its time!
To bad Rod Serling died to early sure he could of done more great work. I think a lot of the movies we have taken the Twilight zone episodes like the toys in the drum. The Talking doll.. Chucky.
joseph frank
Yea you see it all over t.v. & movies today, alot of it stems from this series.
Byron Herrera Plenty of people have tried imitating it since--Black Mirror being the latest attempt--but their stories are too grounded in the time periods they are made. The 1980s TZ revival had genuinely good and/or scary episodes but there's not a single moment when I'm not thinking "That's so '80s." Even with some dated touches here and there, I NEVER feel like that with the OG TZ series at its best.
Goosebumps reminds me of The Twlight Zone because Goosebumps did some storys close to Twlight Zone
Some haunting hour episodes.
The Monsters are Due on Maple Street is the one episode that still sticks with me today. How something could go wrong and how everyone around you who are normally cordial and pleasant, if not outright friends, can turn on you in an instant. The thought that people you deal with and trust on an everyday basis could be the first to point their finger at you is the root of scary.
I've experienced that very same scenario firsthand and my god was it a punch in the face! Figuratively and literally
Mob mentality at its finest. Excellent episode.
That episode was my introduction to the serieis when my 7th Grade Teacher (Mr. Kuppersmith/Henry Clay Middle School in LA) made us watch it for an assignment. It became my favorite black and white tv series afterwards. That episode will forever stick with me.
"To Serve Man" and "The Howling Man" are my 2 favorites and they both have the same theme in common... BE CAREFUL WHO YOU PUT YOUR TRUST INTO
Ahhh yes! I was scrolling and scrolling waiting to see if “ To Serve Man” would be mentioned. One of my favorites for sure. Very impactful.
"It's a Cookbook!" One of the Scariest lines ever.
Surprisingly not on the list?
It wasn't frightening. It was a twist.
No there's better shit than that. I mean it's a great example of irony, to say it's one of the scariest lines ever is ridiculous I mean it was a good episode and it was scarier in my opinion then now I can't remember all the fucking names cuz you know really starting to irritate after hours it was scarier than that one but hitchhiker was scarier than both and yada yada yada I've already made enough comments if you care you can go look. But you know to serve man and the Obsolete Man two great examples of they're two of the best but they're not the scariest
@@germyw agreed it was a very good episodes of good example of irony and it was a great plot twist but it wasn't really scary
One of the funniest lines ever in my opinion.
th-cam.com/video/NIufLRpJYnI/w-d-xo.html
When I was younger I vowed never to get on any train that had a train station stop in Willoughby, and I'd never go near any girls who had talking dolls!
"My name is Talky Tina, and you cannot run from me!"
I still have trouble buying my daughter certain dolls because of talky Tina. I do it, but they are creepy.
My sisters name is Tina
And she is a Evil spoiled MONSTER..far from a Living Doll
We have a neighbor Tina who never stops talking. Always call her talky Tina. She is a great person who would do anything for you.
We have a Willoughby here in Ohio. Seriously, been there several times
"The Mystic Seer" episode starring William Shatner. His debilitating reliance on a "Fortune telling" machine in a old style Cafe that he can't leave alone because of it's vague answers, shows how a person's superstitions can become enslaving. It's even more pitiful in that it shows another couple come in after they narrowly escape and they have possibly been held hostage by the table-top nick-nack for an even longer time.
Nick of Time.
Well narrated and interesting. I watched every episode you recommended. Thanks 👍
were you born yesterday
I don't know how you could listen to 17 minutes of 4 notes from the Twilight Zone theme repeated endlessly. I couldn't do it.
@@jamesmcinnis208 i didnt think it was that bad, but normally i just have youtube on in the background, so i guess its not the same
Heck yeah! I'm glad I could inspire you to check out some Zone. I've been marathoning it again, myself. Which was your favorite episode?
@@TalkHorror Mine was Monsters are due on Maple Street!
the scariest twilight zone is a one hour long episode called 'the new exhibit' when the owner closes down his museum of infamous killers made of wax and his employee gets to take them home and put them in his basement and one by one they come to life and commit murder...
You know I vaguely remember that episode but it's not on Netflix for some reason
@@bd3966 Netflix does not have the season 4 hour-long episodes. However, when I got the one-month trial to Paramount Plus, I was able to finally see the episodes I hadn't seen before.
@@bd3966 Hulu has it
Rod was a genius !!. So many of subsequent horror movies rehashed or stole his story lines .....
MrBargill Do remember his fellow writers Richard Matheson and Charles Beaumont. Serling certainly did at an awards ceremony where the show won, inviting them to come on up so they could slice into like a turkey.
MrBargill Who saw the 🎥
CHILD'S PLAY and recognized
Chucky as "Talking Tina" ?
@@billmurray7473, Chucky may have been inspired by Talky Tina, but I'm pretty sure he was more evil. Tina only killed someone who more-or-less had it coming.
@@alicewilloughby4318 it was still inspired by talky Tina. They just made Chucky more sinister
@@johnathonhaney8291 Right - many TZ episodes from Richard Matheson. Serling was brilliant in putting it all together but I don't think tht he actually wrote too many.
I like seeing all of the famous actors when they were younger, acting in The Twilight Zone.
My comment exactly to someone else who responded. Those of us who are huge fans of classic t.v. and movies can appreciate this genre. Robert Redford, Martin Balsam, Agnes Moorehead, Robert Duval, Telly Savalas, Inger Stevens, and so many more who went on to great, working careers.
While on the subject of the show, I just want to comment about another episode which starred one of my crushes, William Shatner, in which he was flying on a plane ("Nightmare at 10,000 Feet") and kept seeing a "creature" on the wing. Well, I gotta say, that furry costume (a wet gorilla?) the actor was wearing was a hoot! AND the face of the "creature" had the same mask/features from a couple other episodes (I pick up on stuff like that as others pick up on production errors on movie sets...I'm anal that way....oh well). But, hey, it's all good and still classic and still fun.
What amazes me the most is how they were able to pack so much creepiness into a 30-minute episode. Actually, probably more like 22 minutes when you figure in the commercials.
HOW TO SERVE MAN Was a classic reminder or How a Wolf appears in Sheep's Clothing. One of the all time Greats!!
@surfitlive I don't eat dogs, cats, horses... ya know pets we normally take to the veterinarian 🤔 But I get it...
Always be wary when strangers go out of their way to "help" you...
Inspiration for the series "V"?
Reminds me of BLM today. The title sounds nice until you read what it really stands for!
And it's still debated as to whether or not it's a Biblical end-time cautionary tale.
“The Dummy” creeped me out as a small child, but “Midnight Sun” freaked me out the most as an adult.
Turns out not to be global warming but rather global freezing
I like the less-known one where a young Robert Duvall gets fascinated by a dollhouse and the lives of the dolls. The ending was great.
Also the one where Joseph Wiseman (Dr. No) plays a super rich guy who will let people into his bomb shelter, but they have to beg, and it's like a test of will and character.
I ve not seen yet that completely but it's freak me out
That music that plays throughout Midnight Sun really freaked me out. My favorite series ever.
@@wilnnn5 lets watch it together
Surprised Night Call wasn't included.An old lady recieving calls in a storm from her dead husband buried in a nearby cemetery was a classic scary episode.Enjoyed countdown.Great episodes mentioned.
Definitely the scariest one to me
I like "The Monsters are due on Maple Street". It shows how fragile we are as Humans when we are challenged without are conveniences.
A movie "The Trigger Effect" takes that premise and runs with it. Also pretty frightening. Similar to The Shelter also.
The pilot episode; "Where is Everybody", is creepy as hell.
Absolutely, the whole episode is just unnerving and the ending really hit me hard, its definitely one of my favourite episodes.
How do you think I feel as I am the only person alive and all of you are figments of my imagination?
It's a fine thing you've done Anthony.Could ya wish it out into the Corn field for me? That kid scares the living daylights out of me.On the new Twilight Zone they had a follow up with Cloris Leachman again playing the now grown up boys mother and he has a daughter.The apple doesn't fall far from the tree.Even though nothing compares to the original,this was a good follow up.The first Twilight Zone episode was scary as well with no one in a town with a man who didn't know who he was.A couple of night gallery episodes were good as well.Rod Serling was always a step ahead of his time.
Partially because she was so beautiful,Arlene Martel,A Bronx Beauty was so mesmerizing in 22.Room for 1 more honey.Wow!So exotically beautiful and so scary.She was also Spock's Wife on Star Trek and was the Female lead in the outer limits episode, Demon with a glass hand, opposite Robert Culp as male lead.Its a classic.Rod Serling cast a lot of young and fine actors in the Twilight Zone.
True
The episode with Gladys Cooper where she's an elderly shut-in and her phone begins to ring every night. Then we learn that the caller is her long-dead boyfriend Brian, whom she accidentally killed because she insisted on driving all those years before. When she finally realizes it was her old BF (after she had screamed at him to leave her alone) she is taken to the cemetery by her nurse (as she was paralyzed in the accident.) Then she realizes that the phone line was hanging down broken, right at his grave. She then receives one last call from "Brian" and he promises to never bother her again, which saddens and upsets her until she begs him not to leave her. It is SCARY and CREEPY and a little bit sad. Cooper was in several episodes and was always absolutely incredible in every single one of them.
It's the episode, "Night Call."
@@sarcasticallyrearranged Yep. Either that or Night Caller. Gladys Cooper was in several episodes as well as some Alfred Hitchcock Presents episodes. Even in her 70s+ she was still so beautiful and SO amazing.
The episode with the civil war guy running away to get to his wife and the ending was not just sad it was heart breaking
"An Occurrence at Owl Creek Bridge." A multiple award winning (Oscar, Cannes, BAFTA) French film of an Ambrose Bierce short story. Rod Serling gave it a wonderful introduction at the head of the telecast. Easily one of the finest short films in history. I felt a kaleidoscope of emotions until that ending.
Saw this short film in an elementary school class. Don't even remember what class it was, but remembered the film vividly 60+ years later. Never knew it was Rod Serling.
Rod had nothing to do with the making of this film. It was simply "borrowed" for a TZ episode. The only time that happened.
It's awesome that The Twilight Zone is such a ubiquitous experience. Everyone, regardless of age, seems to have fond memories of the original run. Everyone can look to it for something unsettling, something that will rattle your feeling of safety. I never hear anyone call it overrated when it comes up. You mention The Twilight Zone, and everyone wants to pitch in what their favorite episode was (mine was The Silence). It's a monolith of surrealist horror that everyone who has experienced western society can come together and stand in awe of. It is not merely a cultural touchstone, it is THE cultural touchstone. And behind it, one of the most eloquent philosophers to walk the earth.
Rod Serling and his writers were ahead of their times in order to come with such incredible stories back in the day.He was also socially ahead in that he cast an all star cast of black actors called the big tall wish which was unusual back then but would be welcomed nowadays.We used to look forward to be able to watch episodes every Friday nights.Some classics can not be replaced and this is one of them.
The scariest Twilight episode I ever saw is the one I’m living in right now in 2020!!!!!!!
2 months later this comment only stronger
I'd love to see what kind of episodes Rod Serling would make in this modern era. They would probably become classics in their own right.
dude, this had me laughing out loud !
kathryn McElroy uh oh, your stupidity is showing!!!
Matchless
Don't forget all the episodes that were absolutely charming. The one with Art Carney about becoming Santa Clause, the one about the school teacher forced into early retirement who then has a visit with ghosts of his former students and realizes how much impact he had, the one about the man and his dog going to Heaven and almost being tricked into entering Hell, etc. Sorry, I don't remember the titles.
All great episodes. But, the one with the "old man" and "old woman" and the dog and trying to trick the old man into going to Hell, is my favorite episode.
Very true indeed.
Excellent episodes. "THe Night of the Meek", "Changing of the Guard" (my personal favorite), and "The Hunt".
The wishing pool was touching as well
Night of the meek..
My absolute favorite episode, though it isn’t scary, is The Hunt, where the old man goes hunting with his dog! Beautiful episode! Thank you for this compilation! I happen to think the howling man is for me the scariest!
I love that one!
Also, one word, "MARCIA" sends chills down my spine.
Eat a snickers. You're scared when you're hungry.
I remember watching "The Eye Of The Beholder" episode when I was little, and it absolutely traumatized me.
Same here! I was five years old and wasn’t expecting those pig faces, which me and my sister call them! My sister and I still talk about it to this day! Same with “Masks’, another one that scared me!
and when they had the "reveal" of what she looked like...voila!...it was Donna Douglass that played Elly May Clampett of the Beverly Hillbillys. Initially when it first aired, I didn't notice little things about the various scenes.
Just like other stuff as you grow and learn, you pick up on stuff and ask..hmmm. with this episode it was all the gauze used to cover her face...OMG..what all THAT necessary (ha ha ha). I, too, am a huge fan of the show. Watch the marathon whenever one's on. So many good actors appeared on it through out the decades and made several appearances in different episodes. Hats off to Mr. Serling and other writers, directors, producers.
It was thought provoking but certainly not scary.
@@jenniferdjaslowskj993 Elly May, the main reason I watched The Beverly Hillbillies every week
@@nicky29031977 When you're a child it is.
I feel like “the monsters are due on maple street” is underrated
The lateness of the hour. Where the daughter is sick of having robot servants then finds out she's a robot
Anyone else have the Mandela Effect memory of it being "Talking Tina"? not "Talky Tina"? Holy!
Yes, I was just telling some that “Talking Tina” was my favorite episode. I was little when I watched the show. 🤷🏽♀️🤔
The creepy Mandela effect stuff is like the freakin Twilight Zone... lol
And yes, I've been confused about that cause I don't know if it's supposed to be Talking Tina or Talky Tina.
“Will the Real Martian, Please Stand Up” scared me the most as a kid 😟
I KNOW RIGHT I WAS SUPER UNNERVED WHEN HE HAD FOUR HANDS AND THEN WHEN THE DINER DUDE SHOWED THAT HE HAD A THIRD EYE I JUST TURNED OFF THE TV CUZ IT WAS REAAAALLY CREEPY FOR ME
I was 12 years old when I saw that episode. Everything was fine (even the guy with 3 arms) until...Haley, the counterman took off his cap to reveal his third eye! Scared the living wits outta me! Love that episode!
OMG! That never really scared me, but it is one of my top 5 favorite episodes!! LOVE IT!!!!
That was the very first episode of the twilight zone that I saw. It was late, my mom and sisters were asleep, and it scared me to death. I think I stayed up all night because I was too scared to go to sleep. Recently, I had my boys watched it with me...they didn't find it as frightening as I did, but they loved it.
That is one of my Favorite episodes Great Twist Ending!!!!!
My vote for the scariest Twilight Zone episode ever? The one entitled "Little Girl Lost." Creeps me out to this day whenever I watch it. Imagine being the parents of this little girl and having her disappear into another dimension - a dimension beyond your reach. Hearing her voice but unable to physically reach out and touch her. Having no idea how to save her. Imagine the horrors. This is my vote for the creepiest "Zone" of all time.
I'll have to re-read the short story - I have the Richard Matheson collection.
I thought this would be on the list as it was the creepiest one for me and my sister as kids. After watching this one, we were afraid to sleep especially by the walls thinking we would fall in.
IIRC, that episode inspired "Poltergeist".
I think that episode really opened my mind to different dimensions at a very early age. I thought it would be neat to suddenly have these black holes or dimensions appear spontaneously anywhere, anytime, and anyplace.
The theory of how cryptids appear and people sometimes disappearing without a trace could be related to this Twilight Zone episode
As a 9 year old kid myself, at the time, this episode scared the hell out of me.
Most likely not the scariest, but the most impactful for me was The Obsolete Man. Rod's epilogue at the end was a warning to us all regarding the State.
Why don't you watch the episodes that deliver logical horror realization?
"The Dummy" with Cliff Robertson gave me the creeps!
Saw something like it on tales from crypt with bobcat goldthwait and Don tickles.
That's my favorite episode.
This was my favorite TV show as a kid in the '60s. I used to sit in a chair behind my father to watch it so that when it got scary I could hide behind him!
Susan Jordan I sat next to my Grandma and snuggled up to her in the really scary moment
Susan Jordan this is my favorite show as a kid of the 2010s!
cool video but my god man, why did you have that twilight zone riff playing the WHOLE TIME? you are a crazy person
joey4track agree. Very annoying.
I know. We definitely dropped the ball on that one, but as we progress, so do our editing skills so you can believe it won't happen again. Trust me, we're always learning. And thanks for much for watching the video and enjoying it despite the shortcomings with the audio. 😀
Seriously
Is there any way you can correct it? I couldn't get through the whole thing -- that perpetually looping Twilight Zone intro drove me nuts!
It was very unsettling, but very effective with the theme of the video.
Having watched the original episodes in 1959, my favorites are “ And when the sky was Opened ”, “ Walking Distance, “ and “ It’s A Good Life. “ Because of Serling's writing and other contributors, the stories hold up today. As well, the actors were extraordinary in delivering their roles. I still get a visceral chill when Hutton points to the non-existent bed and says, " Oh, my God! " Being at the crossroads of radio and television productions, a veritable who's who of great talents were available for the Twilight Zone. Although I have watched the new TZ by Peele, I have not seen anything comparable to the original series. And of course, Rod's intros and outros are iconic!
The scariest thing Serling ever did was "The Doll" from Night Gallery. Still scares me. That doll was SO scary looking.
The Masks.
Ultra creepy.
But they deserved it.
I almost forgot about that one, but I didn't pity them at all, they got what they deserved.
so totally agree specially little junior, 😁
That's one of my favorites.
True Karma at it's finest!!
One of the best ones ever...
Twilight Zone was Amazing TV. Rod was a Genius story teller.
Just imagine if H.P. Lovecraft helped to write this show
Just the music from Night Gallery sacred me as a kid. Can you imagine Rod telling his kids bedtime stories?
I was totally freaked out as a child. For me it was the episode with Billy Mumy It’s a Good Life, and also the episode with the little girl trapped in the wall. And of course To Serve Man was a freak out too. As I got older I realized how brilliant the series truly was but I was still scared. 😆
My son when 6 years old saw "To Serve Man," with me, and he thought the Aliens were real and was scared the aliens would come for him to eat
I totally forgot about the little girl trapped in a wall! That was another amazing story!
Top 16 1980s Twilight Zone Episodes | The Best Twilight Zone Episodes in the 80sth-cam.com/video/UCKpUC8sqQo/w-d-xo.html
When i was a little girl, i saw the talking Tina episode while visiting my relatives in memphis......it has haunted me ever since! Its still scary~
Heck yeah. It's an unforgettable episode, there's no doubt about that.
"I'm talking Tina!" lol Yeah that was creepy. Kojak got it in the end.
my favorite !
I saw it in high school, and still had to pause a couple times.
I ended up feeling sad for the guy, I don't know why.
"The Midnight Sun" was one of the very best, IMO.
Seriously...this episode really freaked me out!
That episode is my favorite!
and the end just made me WTF
@@septembersapphire347 Lois Nettleton was GREAT in this. Lots of talented performers in the series!
Yes lord. That's number one for me. That was the scariest. I'm still afraid to watch that episode until this very day.
So many of these stories stick with me YEARS after seeing them. Brilliant storytelling!
The Howling Man sent cold chills down my spine.
still does!
Down mine, too!
I loved the episode where the father leaves his covered wagon to go up over the hill looking for medicine for his sick child and ends up in a little town 100 yrs in the future!!
"A Hundred Yards Over the Rim," a largely underrated but still beloved classic of season 2!
'A hundred yards over the rim' with Cliff Robertson. "Dear God, how can it be nineteen hundred and sixty two when it's really eighteen hundred and forty seven?!"
This episode (in 2020) was created 58 years ago. I just watched it for the first time since 1962. It is amazing how well I remember these episodes. As I recall it was on around 10pm Friday nights.
This was a great time-slip episode. Another was “The last flight” where a WWOne pilot lands at a airbase 40 years later. And another where a jetliner keeps jumping back and forth in time.
The one where the little boys grandmother dies and than she calls him on the phone 😱
I agree. That grandmother calling was really creepy and horrifying.
Yep, another creepy classic!
What episode was that
@@sadboy5791 long distance call episode 58
The little boy was Billy mummy. From lost in space.
To Serve Man was VERY frightening when I was a kid. I met Richard Kiel and told him that he scared me long before we ever shook hands. His palm was as big as my whole hand. RIP Richard. It was a pleasure meeting and greeting with you. I found out that we are both Michigan natives!
I always thought "The Shelter" was one of the creepiest, precisely for it's lack of a supernatural element. The only thing that exhibits itself is everyone's paranoia that turns friends and neighbors into nightmarish monsters intent on harming you.
Reminds me of Covid . neighbors turning on neighbors
*"My name's Talking Tina, and I hate you"*
Yeah, that was a good one!!!!!!🙌
Or " My name is talking Tina Phuck You"!!+😁😄🤗👍
My name is talking Tina and I hate you because you keep playing that music over and over and over again
My name is Talky Tina and Im gonna Kill yew!
👁👁
Yeah that one was a little skurry lol I already have issues w/inanimate object that have faces/eyes lol then they start talking?! Oh No! Gotta go🏃🏃🏃
Night call with the old woman being called by her dead ex was terrifying, too
Yes!!!😳
That one is very creepy! I think his name is Brian. You told me to leave you alone! Something like that. It’s been so long I can’t exactly remember. Haha 😆
Dec Magnet it was Brian
@@decmagnet2072 I remember exactly what Brian said to Elva at the end. "You said 'Leave you alone.' I always do what you say." How sad it was that she lost Brian twice all because she wanted to be the boss in their relationship!
The one episode where this Sherif/Cowboy was dared to put a knife on a killer’s grave during a windy night. Then his friend thought he supposedly trip and died because he planted his knife on his coat when the wind blew it over. While the sister of the killer said her dress is blowing in the same direction but it’s not over the grave, suggesting her brother reached out and grabbed the sherif to his death.
"It's a Good Life" is like "The Bad Seed" on steroids.
Ahhh...back when you could watch entertaining shows on TV without being subjected to endless "reality" shows.
or a burst of ten mindless commercials; usually it was just one annoying guy, selling used cars!!
or when a commercial is shown twice in a row
"To Serve Man" scared the bejesus out of me, as a kid!
Same for me. Gave me nightmares when I was a kid, but it was my dad's favorite episode. Hahahaha.
It's a COOK BOOK!!!! 8
@@Redrum101896 It was my mom's favorite episode lol
Lol yeah I was probably 10yrs old or younger when I watched that and I remember freezing up. To serve man, it’s a cook book 😱
I was frightened by it’s a good life
Midnight Sun scared the hell out of me when I first saw it. The way the heat was just driving them all insane, and then the thermometer cracks and the painting just begins to melt... you could just feel this oppressive dread that there was no escape, no hope and nothing to do but wait for the end. That was horrifying.
Surprised the one with the dead Grandma who keeps calling her Grandaughter on the toy phone wasn't here. That still scares the living crap out of me.
That's what I'm saying!!! That is by far 100% the scariest episode. It's so upsetting and twisted but so brilliantly written and directed at the same time. I'm really shocked it's not here.
What's the title of that one?
@@hibiscuspetals02 I actually don't remember the title, sorry. It's in either season 2 or 3
"Long Distance Call" and starred Billy Mumy as the grandson.
The scariest episode for me was “Long Live Walter Jameson”. idk why but the last five minutes of the episode terrified me. the fact that all that was left of his body was his suit and dust was scary.
The most terrifying one for me was always "Time Enough at Last".
I love them all but one of my top favs is "The Mirror" when the guy could see his assassins in the mirror
@@ingodwetrust7648 That ending was epic!
@@egyptsflame8368 yes indeed it was..i been watching since i was a kid lol
My favorite episode.
@@ericcross7863 Mine too!
Great video! Honorable Mention: The one with the dead grandmother who calls her grandson on his toy phone still deeply disturbs me to this day... shivers thinking about it
Shewwwwww. That IS a scary one.
The boy tried to kill himself.
He'd rather be with his grandma instead of both parents? That's really scary. My parents come before everyone else
@@DoubeEdged7His name was Billy played by Bill Mumy.
Dude turn off that looping music!
“The Midnight Sun” is one of my favorites. They’re all amazing, but especially during these times of “social distancing” and shelter-in-place living, “The Midnight Sun” is eerily prophetic
Mine Too!!!!!
My favorite
i feel like a lot of the episodes are prophetic. or maybe we just haven't evolve as a society as much as we lead ourselves to believe
I also felt that The Shelter seemed prophetic. Mostly when hate and racism erupted during the crises. At the end when the crises was over everyone wanted to get back to normal. The doctor, however, told them their idea of "normal" will never be restored. He then went on to say that they destroyed each other without a bomb. I feel that with all the hate, racism and violence going on we are destroying each other as much as the Coronovirus is destroying us!
Melissa Cooper
I agree with you 💯
Thanks for sharing, I remember all of these! There’s another one that is about a man who wants to read but life gets in the way. He’s in a bank vault when the area is hit by a bomb. Of course he’s feeling desolate walking over the crumbling buildings but then sees a sweet site-a library fill of books. He sits down to start reading and his glasses fall off and break. Good one!
Time enough to last starring Burgess Meredith
ultramann
@@debbieanne7962 "Time Enough AT Last." One of Meredith's many roles.
Perchance to Dream is my favorite episode but also the most terrifying. I’ve had a bad heart since I was young, and my dreams are so intense I can’t always get out of them even when I’m completely aware I’m dreaming.
Oh, shit. That would be a nightmare.... NO pun intended.
@@TalkHorror it can be: thanks for this video, more people should watch the twilight zone
This episode is truly slept on, no pun intended. 1nce we get over the so called popular episodes, we get to realize just how good these other episodes are...
These are all good choices for scariest Twilight Zone episodes. However, "Nightmare at 20,000 feet" still scares me when I see it. When I was a child, it absolutely terrified me. Another one that had a completely surprise ending was "A Stopover in a Quiet Town."
"And When The Sky Was Opened" has to be about the most underrated one. All three actors are very good, but Rod Taylor is nearly perfect in it.
Alex Grant.
That one horrified me. One by one they disappear and no one remembers that there were three Astronauts that went up to space and came back. Just by them disappearing like that shook me.
And the other two were both Shatner episodes and Classics. One with the diner and creepy fortune Teller telling them not to leave.
And the other was my favorite where the Gremlin creature was attacking the engine of the plane. When he opens the little window and that Ghoulish creatures face is looking back at him that made me jump! Then he asks for witnesses and that damn thing jumps away every time making him look crazy!
He finally gets his revenge on the creature by shooting it dead. I swear I would do the same damn thing although I’d probably get swept out the plane and get sucked up into an engine with my luck.
Rod Serling had a great imagination and was a great writer at times! RIP Serling
This episode was brilliant and I can imagine it was even more scary during the time it aired back in '59 because this was BEFORE space travel, so no one really knew if this would really happen or not. Rod was a genius.
Rod Taylor was underrated.
@@jackgrattan1447 Extremely. He was as good in light comedies as something like this. And of course almost anything else.
To serve man had a nice plot twist, it was a very scary episode especially in black and white.
Second place dude.
One of the greatest twists of all time. Also very well-directed.
One of my faves was not exactly a scary one but about the convict who fell in love with a robot
The lonely.
I think "To Serve Man" suffers from being one of the most parodied episodes ever. I saw the twist coming because Is aw the Simpsons episode about it before. Still a classic though.
I loved "Twenty-Two" in the fact that as cryptic and horrifying as it can be, sometimes the twilight zone can save a life.
Long Distance Call with Billy Mumy was one of the creepiest episodes to me.
For me "The Shelter" was the scariest. Because it was, and remains, quite possible. The panic and turning on each other as doomsday approaches was far more pronounced than either "Midnight Sun" or other similar themed episodes such as "The Monsters are Due on Maple Street".
The other one that freaked me out when I was a kid was "The Arrival". When the FAA guy commits to testing his theory by sticking his arm out and slowly walking towards the spinning propeller of a DC-3 to prove it's all in their minds had me wigging out when I was young.
Normal human beings can be the worst monsters given the chance. And we want alien beings to contact us why? They may show up one day and look at us and say why should we come here? You beings are scary and you need to learn how to control yourselves first and then maybe we'll come back...
Fantastic... the monsters are due on maple street... the fear...
The shelter was VERY scary.
I love the Twilight Zone but I will never forget one night in Nigeria ( I was eleven years) when minutes after watching an episode, there was the usual but random power cut....and I had to go to bed in a room by myself...in complete darkness save for a kerosene lantern that gave me nothing but ominous shadows for company ffs!
That's fucking terrifying
Which episode?
Wow.....SCARY as hell!
Lmaoooo I get you man 😂😂😂
That's pretty badass you're lucky
I would love to see what Rod Serling would write about what we are living in today. 'The Shelter" is one of my favorites
"The Shelter" is one of my favorites as well. It is a brilliantly written and solidly acted episode. It shows how thin the veneer is between a rational human being and a desperate animal.
The living doll episode scared the crap out of me as a kid. Had to sleep in my sisters room that night 😂
My favourite is The Odyssey of Flight 33. Now whenever I get in a plane I look out the window and think about the dinosaurs
Having lived many years near LaGuardia Airport and the World's Fair site, I liked this one a lot.
I love your choices, analyses, and editing, but i didn't really want to hear the twilight zone riff for almost 20 minutes straight
Thanks so much! Sorry about the audio. We're learning as we go so we won't make that mistake again in the future.
Would you consider reuploading the video without the theme? Or if time permitting, remixing it so that with each episode featured, you play a sample of the score featured in each episode.
That's the REAL horror
thanks for reminding me I want it as a ring tone!!! thanks!!!!!
Hm... what riff?
Awesome video! So many thrills throughout the series. The Hitchhiker was scary to me.
The short story "It's a Good Life" by Jerome Bixby was written about 10 years before the TZ episode was broadcast. It is much more disturbing & terrifying than what television was able to air in that time period.