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Fun Fact: Rod Serling once invited viewers to submit scripts for potential Twilight Zone episodes. He was flooded with over 14,000 scripts, and he actually got around to reading 500 of them. However, apparently only two were any good, and he couldn't even use them because they didn't fit the format of the show.
He should have had someone send a reply to them saying something like: "This idea is good, but it doesn't fit the format of the show, so despite it being good I can't use it, thank you for your contribution though."
Serling *nailed* the narration for The Twilight Zone. His tone, his cadence, his writing, they all come together to make one of the most iconic voices in TV. It's all perfectly calculated to make you *feel* the shivers crawling down your spine. The show wouldnt have been as iconic and lasting without that perfect voice.
Both "The Twilight Zone" and "The Outer Limits" have great openings that draw you in, but while "The Outer Limits" always claims; "we are now in control of the transmission" to draw you in the two openings; "There is a fifth dimension beyond that which is known to man..." and "You are about to enter...The Twilight Zone." While both started around the same time one focused more on sci-fi while the other also explored more esoteric storylines
@@andrewmalinowski6673I completely forgot about The Outer Limits. Which is wild cause I even remember some of the weirder, darker story shows like Monsters and Tales from the Dark Side.
@@poolhalljunkie9 It's easy for me to remember "The Outer Limits" because I essentially grew up watching the 90s version of the series, "Beyond Belief: Fact or Fiction," a few episodes of "Tales from the Crypt" (mostly remember the Cryptkeeper puppet more than the episodes), and "Ripley's Believe it or Not" though sci-fi wise it was; "Transformers," "Star Trek" (TNG-ENT), "Stargate: SG-1," and "Earth: Final Conflict"
The way he looks makes it work too. He’s well dressed, serious, handsome, and seems to tread the middle ground between friendly and intimidating. Could not have picked a better man for the role.
Twilight Zone is literally timeless. It's not a gimmick to say these stories take you to other worlds, a Twilight Zone. The best way to describe the stories is that they're modern-day Fairy Tales. Sometimes they're an aesop, sometimes they're just pure fiction. Sometimes they scare, sometimes they inspire. Every writer can learn from a timeless classic like thism
It is an incredible show. Both for the stories and the impact they've had. I'm sure somewhere somebody's done a thesis on the cultural impact of the show. Especially for the people that have never watched it, and may have no idea where something they're familiar with came from.
I’ve only ever seen the episodes that end with either a reality shattering introspection of human nature and society that are still relevant today ‘or’ some random ass plot twist where the narrator goes “yeah anyways would that be fucked up or what?”
I'm 23, and have grown up watching The Twilight Zone. Mostly due to having parents who loved watching classic TV series. It quickly became my favorite show to watch, and still is excellent to go back and watch. I ended up getting a box set of all the episodes on Blu-ray and even found Night Gallery on the shelf next to it. There is something entrancing about how Serling writes.
Have actually watched Twilight zone and even as a child in the 90s and early 2000s was thoroughly entertained even through all the old timey-ness. What an excellent series! So happy to see you finally covering these masterpieces!
A few 'revisits' were done in the early-2000s with Forest Whittaker as the host, and if you haven't listened to the radio dramas they're good too. I haven't seen more than a few episodes, or the Paramount+ revival but the radio dramas either reinvigorate the older episodes as you just need to imagine the scenes or use familiar actors but there was a special radio drama called "2012" that aired around 12/21/12 and was well-done
Submitted for you approval: the twilight zone is authentically some of the best television ever made. Notably, while Rod fully wrote a very large percentage of the episodes, others were written by notable authors such as Richard Matheson, Ray Bradbury and Ambrose Bierce. Either as adaptions of previously published short stories, new works made specifically for the show or both. Rod also produced a couple other series that were somewhere in the TZ ballpark, a tv series called the Night Gallery, which was similar in nature, though it suffered a bit from studio meddling, and the radio play series Zero Hour - which is freely available in podcast form (as are a surprising range of other radio show series)
"The Twilight Zone" was way ahead of its time. The episodes are still challenging to viewers, and the twists are still thrilling. Good writing stands the test of time. Rod Serling deserves the accolades he got.
Rod Serling's "thoughts can be weapons' closing monologue really gave me a chill. Weaponization of thoughts is more prevalent today than its ever been.
as far as i can tell, the black and white of the twilight zone was part of the aesthetic. it added to the feeling that you were leaving your own world to view something... *other*
Color television shows took a while to catch on. I think it wasn't until the 1970s that full color took over. Before then, most people owned black-and-white television sets, and color sets were expensive. Of course, the makers of B&W television shows (and movies) knew how to make the medium work for them. And when everything clicked? Who needs color?
@@julietfischer5056 I agree. TZ Outer Limits, first seasons of Lost in Space, Man from Uncle and Wild Wild West. All in black and white and all awesome.❤❤❤
It definitely was part of the aesthetic, but a good deal of that was due to the technology of the time and money, rather than pure artistic choice. Still, it worked really damn well. That's one of the reasons, in fact, why I never really got around to watching any of the Twilight Zone remakes--it just doesn't _feel_ the same in color.
I used to watch Twilight zone reruns as a kid. Also the shows inspired by it like Tales from the Crypt, Tales from the Darkside and The Outer limits. Its been a inspiration of mine for a long time.
I’m 72 so I grew up with The Twilight Zone. For some reason Eye of the Beholder was one of the few where my family guessed the ending. But I remember loving how eerie it was, even if it made me think long past the episode ending. Also, Alfred Hitchcock Presents which did a heck of a job with Dahl’s Lamb to the Slaughter (although they had to tack on an ending where the crime could not pay. Hitchcock left that to his commentary afterwards.
Finished watching all the Hitchcock Presents (30 minute shows) on Roku Channel. Disliked every part where the people were 'caught' after the show ended. I figured he had to put that on there because 'crime doesn't pay'.
Great video! As a Gen-Xer growing up in the 70s and 80s, The Twilight Zone was still a staple of late night TV broadcasting. As a Sci-Fi geek from that era, you watched anything you could get! I think that show was just embedded into the creative DNA of young creatives who grew up with it, and that’s why so many references and call-outs happened from the 80’s onward. It’s just a classic, amazing piece of media history.
Same here. Besides ST:TOS, my favorite shows to go back and rewatch are Twilight Zone and Combat! (World War 2 series). I'm a Gen X and sci fi geek from all the way back to toddler years (I even vaguely remember staying up with my father to watch Star Trek, though I was only three by the last season) I was such a well known geek in high school back when we were rare that I saw Return of the Jedi nine times in the theater only because groups of people kept buying me a ticket to go with them in case they "don't understand something in the movie." Anyhow, when I go back to watch Twilight Zone, the stories and acting hold up well even to my now jaded sensibility. Some of the lighter, sillier episodes are even more touching now that I'm older, such as "I Sing the Body Electric", "The Hunt", and "Nothing in the Dark". Compare that to, say, the original Battlestar Galactica which I adored in jr high, but now to me is so face scraping bad I find it unwatchable even for a nostalgia kick.
Me too! (More like '80s and part of the '90s, but still Gen X). But I never got around to seeing Twilight Zone until like, the 2010s.... ...but MAN am I ever glad I finally watched it. Even the ones that scared the pants off of me. ESPECIALLY the ones that scared the pants off of me. It's so good. It's been the source of so many tropes, memes, parodies and jokes for decades now, for a damn good reason.
There were Twilight Zone marathons on a bunch of cable channels for Halloween, Thanksgiving and New Year's around 2007-2015 ish. Even BBC would throw it on once and awhile. It's definitely more widespread than "sci fi buffs"
@@BeeWhistler I don't know if 'almost no one' has watched a full episode, but I'd also believe that more than half of all people weren't in a position to be watching cable between 2005-2015 on a holiday, or at 5am when it came on. And it's been 60 years since the original series went off the air, the number of people who saw a non-syndicated episode was maybe 1 in 12.
I agree! He was a brilliant writer. This episode made me feel old. I think I've seen them all! It was one of like 4 things that ever came in on my family's tv - usually Gilligan's Island, Munsters, and some variations of the news. Late at night was all about Tales of the Crypt Keeper and Weird TV
It will not be forgotten. I am young myself but my Dad introduced the show to me. My brother has already introduced some of the episodes to his daughter & I'll do the same when I have children. It is an amazing piece of history.
The two scariest episodes to me are the one where the earth is getting closer and closer to the sun, and the one about the soldiers who fly in the experimental plane that goes missing and when they get back to earth, they start to disappear one by one.
The Midnight Sun... That was scary enough as a kid with a rudimentary understanding of global warming. Now as an adult living in a world where every summer is getting hotter and the weather becoming more and more wild and unpredictable, one wonder in fear how much longer we have before we start seeing a similar breakdown...
@@hestiathena4917 - Well the good news is that, compared to the nightmarishly sudden warming in that story, the current rate of global warming is far slower. ...Which means that looming slide into total disaster will be gradual and subtle enough that the stubborn morons that got us into this mess will be able to safely ignore the growing threat for 20-30 years, thus snuffing out the last hope we had of implementing the preventative measures that we desperately needed *decades* ago, until the effects finally grow too massive to ignore but it's too late to do anything about it and everything violently spirals out of control. Oh, and unlike that story, we have the internet, so we can make memes about the senseless demise of our species. So that's a plus.
Rod Sterling is one of the voices of the era. Everytime an episode comes up, it reflects the wrongs and uncannies of the world we live in today. From Images to Lives to Wishes to Racism and Social Classes to Fear - It's always a chill down the spine
I always thought that it a short story written by, idk Ray Bradbury if I recall. I remember reading it in school and thinking that the Twilight Zone adapted it. A part of me still believes that, though now I have my doubts
I'm shocked you guys were initially resistant to watching this. I watched The Twilight Zone as a child in the 90s and I still watch it to this day. It was ahead of it's time...an absolute masterpiece. I'm glad you approached it with an open mind.
My favorite episode was, “Death’s Head Revisited”. Because that was one of the few episodes where they showed Justice coming upon those who deserve it. My other favorites are: 1. Night Of The Meek, 2. Changing Of The Guard, 3. Eye Of The Beholder {For true beauty is found within),
"And When the Sky Was Opened" is my favorite episode. Although, it's always been my favorite show by a long shot, so I don't have an episode that I don't enjoy.
I had to go look it up and no wonder you had nightmares. The whole opening bit is nightmare fuel! The 70s did have some of the creepiest movies and shows, though. It's like they'd fully broken away from censorship but hadn't yet learned to reign themselves in a little. Even our kid shows were the stuff of nightmares.
It is nice to see you giving some love to one of the television shows that shaped my childhood. My dad was old-school scifi nerd and made sure I watched the Twilight Zone when I was a kid in the 1980s.
The Twilight Zone Episode, "22" that had that famous line "Room for one more, honey" gave me nightmares as a little kid. They used to show the series every weeknight and all evening on new years.
Twilight Zone is my favorite tv show to this very day. Rod Serling, Richard Matheson, and so many others contributed to this masterpiece. From weird to horrifying, uplifting to ironic, it had everything.
I'm really surprised you hadn't watched it before, Talebot! It seemed right up your alley! I grew up watching it, so I got to experience it before experiencing other series spinning its themes.
I'm not a sci-fi buff but I have actually watched twilight zone. Every episode being a story with an often strange twist was amazing for its time, really ahead of the curve because I feel like it it was the only thing of its kind. It simultaneously could not have happened at any other time in TV history but was also a show that never should have happened. I'm amazed it ever existed, but I'm glad it does.
A lot of people have seen it. It did happen at other times in history and there were other shows like it, maybe not exactly but in a similar vein. In the 60s they had The Outer Limits and Alfred Hitchcock Presents. I think there were others. In the 80s there was a new Twilight Zone series, as well as Tales from the Crypt, Tales from the Dark Side, and Amazing Stories. I think there were also more then. I can understand not hearing about most of those... but I can't understand why he thinks hardly anyone has seen the original.
@@BeeWhistler In the 50's there was - Suspense, One Step Beyond, Studio One plays, Alfred Hitchcock Presents and although not released back then "The Veil" with Boris Karloff was all filmed and has since been released, they all pre-date TZ. The 60's had - Thriller, 'Way Out, Kraft Mystery Theatre, The Alfred Hitchcock Hour (sequel to presents), The Outer Limits, Kraft Suspense Theatre, Journey To The Unknown and Rod Serling's Night Gallery (technically started in '69 with the pilot). In the 70's you had - Shadows Of Fear, Tales Of Unease, Ghost Story (also known as Circle Of Fear) The Frighteners, Dead Of Night, Leap In The Dark, Thriller (the Brian Clemens one), The Evil Touch, Orson Welles' Great Mysteries, Shadows, Beasts, A Twist In The Tale, Supernatural, The Next Step Beyond, Armchair Thriller and Tales Of The Unexpected. In the 80's - Hammer House Of Horror, Darkroom, West Country Tales, The Agatha Christie Hour, Shades Of Darkness, Tales From The Darkside, Hammer House of Mystery and Suspense, Scene Of The Crime, The New Alfred Hitchcock Presents, The Ray Bradbury Theatre, The 80's Twilight Zone, Amazing Stories, Freddy's Nightmares and Tales From The Crypt. In the 90's - Mistress Of Suspense (also known as Chillers), Are you Afraid Of The Dark, Chiller (not to be confused with Chillers), The Outer Limits remake, Goosebumps, Bone Chillers, Twisted and Ghost Stories. In the 2000's - Night Visions, The Nightmare Room, a second Twilight Zone remake, Master's Of Horror, Two Twisted, Nightmares And Dreamscapes and The Haunting Hour. I haven't kept track of the 2010's from Black Mirror to Guillermo Del Toro having one to a fourth Twilight Zone, this isn't a complete list anyway, there is a bunch in every decade not included here and some I opted to leave out like Faerie Tale Theatre and Ghost Stories for Christmas cause they weren't quite TZ enough despite some similarities.
The Twilight Zone really feels like an Strange fever dream forced with an magical spell on the Tv. Its like a way to have the effect you get from Drugs, without ever Touching them
I was born in '74 and watched the original "Twilight Zone," "Outer Limits," and "Night Gallery" every chance I got. Later, we got "Twilight Zone" reboots, along with "Amazing Stories," Monsters," and countless other shows inspired by the original. OG "Twilight Zone" is "must watch" TV. Wonderful for family time.
I'm twenty-five and it was my dad who got me into watching the Twilight Zone growing up. Rod Serling was a literary genius, and we'll honestly never see a talent like his again.
I do the same thing. When I run into the problem of not being able to decide what to watch, I will inevitably say to myself: "looks like it's time to watch Twilight Zone" and I end up watching the whole series again over the span of a few weeks.
Same here and when I want to explain to someone that TZ is more than just a horror themed show I ask them to watch the very last episode "The Bewitchin' Pool" with it's mix of drama and fantasy that to me was just a way to talk about suicide (not sure this is common sense anyway)
"have you ever *actually* seen 'the twilight zone'?" makes me feel old, and I was born in the 80's... There were day-long marathons, everyone from the 60's talked endlessly about it (like "friends" from the 90's)
Im 34, I watched it because it was on TV all the time, back in our era, you couldnt really pick what you were watching, you had just the choice the time slot. Which usually ended up being Psi/history Channel, Toonami/adult swim.
Finally someone is talking about this show! It's probably one of my favorite shows I've ever watched, it really makes you feel like you're in that time even now
I grew up with TZ, and have literally seen every episode at one time or another. Hands down, the best dramatic TV series of all time. High marks for sci-fi as well, though it's only partially in that genre. You owe it to yourself to become familiar.
CBS sold reruns of Twilight Zone (and I Love Lucy) very, *very* cheap, so it was one of the most widely syndicated shows of the 20th century. When I was a kid in the '80s, it aired in hour-long blocks twice a day, but as with everything in black-and-white, it fell out of vogue in the 2000s. Sad because many of them still hold up and are relevant today.
The Twilight Zone wasn't even Serling's only foray into having TV series with weird and macabe societial takes! He had another series after The Twilight Zone called Night Gallery which had very much the same premise only the stories of Night Gallery tended to run more towards the supernatural rather than sci-fi. One episode of Night Gallery that haunts and delights me is "Green Fingers/The Funeral/The Tune in Dan's Cafe" which has a trio of stories inside it: a story of a haunted jukebox that only plays one song no matter what song you put in due to a tragedy that occured in the cafe, a story of a land developer seeing to oust an old woman that tells everyone she meets that everything that she plants grows, and a story of a funeral director asked to help lay a vampire to rest forevermore.
And in its own way, the Night Gallery also left its mark; how many horror games or anthologies had the conceit of a picture representing a story? Video games even do it...the Dark Anthology games by supermassive come to mind...
It still amazes me to this day how ahead of his time socially, and how good a writer, Rod Sterling was. Also, the quality of acting the show's characters had was something the later attempts at redoing the show just couldn't recapture. It's a major reasons why the original series was such a classic.
Growing up I used to watch the eponymous 1980s series (which was not in black+white), and yes its episodes were mainly slow-burn mystery/horror alegories meant to make the viewer think about themes such as cults, science, loneliness, time travel, etc.
Twilight Zone holds a special place in my heart. I used to get to watch it at my mom's when I came down to visit (was raised by my aunt n uncle, long story) but she always had either WWE, Law & Order, Star Trek, or the Twilight Zone on the old Syfy cable channel. Back when I think it was still just called the Sci Fi Channel in the later 90s.
I saw Rod Serling's original "The Twilight Zone" in real time back in the late 1950's. Back then Monochrome was the norm when it came to TV and movies, so it was "just there." From "Where is Everybody?" to "An Occurrence on Owl Creek Bridge," I took a trip into a far-from-usual world and had my mind expanded without chemical substances. "The Outer Limits" was a "soft Horror/SF" which had a "here comes The Monster!" climax.
My dad owns a dvd set of just about every season. Loved watching this show with him. One of my favorites, and you don't see its mentality or thought process in almost anything in modern TV or Cinema
There used to be a marathon on either Christmas or new years I don't remember. I used to watch it with my dad because he loved it as a kid. I miss him. This show is a great memory
One of my history teachers showed us two episodes of the Twilight Zone, one was the alien imposter episode. The other was about an American suburban neighborhood when the US detected Spotnick, and thought it might be the start of a nuclear war. I liked them. They illustrated fears of the 2nd Red Scare and the Cold War.
So many classic episodes. It's hard to narrow down my favorites. Of course, there's the time honored stories like To Serve Man, Will the Real Martian Please Stand Up, and Living Doll. Some my own picks are The Invaders, The Hunt, and The Bard. The Bard in particular because it's a fantastical comedy, which was somewhat rare in Twilight Zone episodes. Many of the themes still find a lot of relevance today. Number 12 Looks Just Like You, for example, is a commentary on social conformity - something with which we still struggle. The Silence is also a well known story, if not the details then at least the overarching premise, and it has no supernatural elements in it at all - it could really happen. Sometimes scary, sometimes funny, always thought provoking.
When I was little, my mom would watch marathons of Twilight Zone just about every holiday and it *always* amazed me that this ancient show could still be good. I learned super early never to talk about it to anyone else though cause no one wanted to talk about some ancient black and white show from ages ago. It was just a weird family tradition she did every holiday. So, yeah, super glad you got a chance to "find" them Talebot because they really are worth watching even today. 😁
After my family got Netflix I binged all the way through the series more than once as a kid. I've made a habit of going back to my personal favorite episodes like a well whenever my writing diverges into the wild and weird. Rod Serling has one of my favorite quotes on writing. "Writing is easy, you bend over a piece of paper, and you bleed."
I'm old and grew up watching The Twilight Zone. It had a profound impact on me, my imagination and the way I view the world. I can't wait to see what you have to say about it.
Just so you know, some of us grew up watching shows on the "tee-vee" where your only options were "what was on" and a good number of the shows were still in black and white. There may be more of us that you seem to think. Anyway, glad you finally got to experience this classic!
Same. I loved watching this as a kid, but I will admit I was initially skeptical it would be any good, since it does look so old. I only found out years later that it was made to look that way, and wasn’t actually as old as I had assumed it to be. I think there are an awful lot of people who watched this in syndication, more than the video creator realizes. I’ve never sat down to watch the “box set,” or sought it out on streaming, but I have never met a person who hadn’t seen an episode (if the topic were to come up naturally, even with a stranger, I was never told “I’ve never seen that”).
Yeah, I don't usually go in for "these kids today" bullcrap but when we have someone under a certain age saying no one ever saw something that literally everyone saw when I was growing up, I start screaming at them to get off my lawn. I guess I don't understand anyone, at any age, making the sweeping generalization that their experience is universal.
I saw the new version of this and the outer limits as a kid and this was sometimes on when my grandparents watched the "old channel" with game shows. It's really good, I don't even like the new tech one black mirror since twilight zone did it better.
My first proper introduction to The Twilight Zone was on Netflix back when it was LoveFilm and you had to mail order dvds. Same way I found Monty Python and the Time Bandits.
Watching The Twilight Zone is like reading a book of old science fiction and horror short stories. Some episodes have stuck with me my entire life (I’m in my 40s), and some were forgettable, but it’s worth it for the gems. Edit: Seriously, read any collections of old spec. fic. you come across. There are some great stories out there!
11:32 I am in absolute awe. First time hearing it made my brain dumb insane amount of serotonin. Such extremely nuanced philosophical statement in such incredible writing is simply unbelievably glorious. I'm definitely going to watch twilight zone.
Watched Twilight Zone as a child, and LOVED it (when I wasn't scared out of my young gourd, anyway). Another fantastic classic show from the same period is Dragnet. You might think that it's just a super dry "cop drama" that just recites the facts of the matter. But Joe Friday absolutely sells the "drama" part, and because of its style, the entire show somehow carries a weight and gravitas to it that modern cop dramas just don't have to them.
@@julietfischer5056Yea some construction or maintenance guy comes in to tell her that they are demolishing the buildings to make way for something else.
I would also recommend the outer limits, it has a similar idea to twilight zone, but goes harder into the sci-fi and fantasy themes with equally thought-provoking stories
Absolutely concur. Some great storytelling managed on a low budget and short timeframe, at least in the classic episodes. And it isn't that hard to enjoy either series, now that we don't just watch whatever's broadcast on TV with no choice. In an episodic, anthology series like this the solution is simple: if it's a bad episode, or one that feels dated in a bad way, skip it and start the next. These shows were extremely uneven, but you just find the episodes worth watching and leave the rest.
There is nothing wrong with your television set. Do not attempt to adjust the picture. We are controlling transmission. If we wish to make it louder, we will bring up the volume. If we wish to make it softer, we will tune it to a whisper. We will control the horizontal. We will control the vertical. We can roll the image, make it flutter. We can change the focus to a soft blur, or sharpen it to crystal clarity. For the next hour, sit quietly and we will control all that you see and hear. We repeat: There is nothing wrong with your television set. You are about to participate in a great adventure. You are about to experience the awe and mystery which reaches from the inner mind to... The Outer Limits
Two Twilight Zone episodes stuck with me the most; the After Hours (the mannequin story) and the Invaders. Those are among the six full episodes of the Twilight Zone I watched as a kid. They spooked me but enjoyed thoroughly. Ironically, those two are among the six episodes I watched fully that was constantly referenced in high school and college.
Seriously, classic Twilight Zone is a classic for a reason. Sometimes it can be deep, profound, and of its time. And sometimes it can be goofy, funny, cringy, and cheesy.
My parents were big fans so we watched reruns a lot when I was growing up. My mom would tell some of the stories when my girl scout troop was camping. I've occasionally found the original stories that some episodes were based on.
I love this channel, truly amazing. It’s something unique and different from the usual documentary/story driven channels I’ve seen. Creativity at its peak
I used to watch Twlight Zone on the SciFi channel all the time in high school and college back around 08. It really does hold up and I echo encouraging everyone to check it out.
Went through a whole re-watch a few years ago. It struck me how so many of them depicted important lessons that we _still_ haven't learned, even 50-60 years later.
@@Mr.Goodkat I didn't mean that quite so... *much*, and literally. What I was alluding to is the fact that these messages are sent so much in popular media (a phenomenon only observed in modern times), and yet we haven't learned, at least much. Also saying that 50-60 years isn't much when compared to the amount of time that humans have been around in terms of human progression and evolution isn't quite so absolute anymore, since, since the 20th century humanity has been progressing and evolving faster than ever before.
My mom and aunt binge this show every new year's, and with good reason; it was great then, and even better now, barring some cultural/technological shifts.
My little brother is really into old movie and shows. And he watched the twilight zone while I was around and I found myself gravitated towards paying attention to it. It demands your full attention and it will keep it
There were later episodes in color, once color was more available for television. But yes, I've watched Twilight Zone. I consider it a more family friendly alternative to Tales From the Crypt on cable. The Talky Tina episode freaks me out and I first saw it as an adult.
i discovered the twilight zone on netflix over a decade ago, right when streaming became a thing, at age 11. i was soon gifted the complete box set and it’s been a deep fascination for me ever since. i still haven’t seen every single episode. anyway my love for the twilight zone is endless and i have been incredibly annoying to everyone around me about it ever since ❤
I haven't finished the Twilight Zone yet but when I started watching it I was immediately hooked! Tbh a lot of what you mentioned that you could "guess" the plot before it happened was something I couldn't guess at all, and this is coming from someone who enjoys writing and theory, character arcs etc. Maybe I can't think of such things right away but I still enjoy the Twilight Zone immensely! It has a captivating charm, and that intro plus Rod Serling giving his intro/outro speech (especially how powerful they are when related to social commentary, making you think),great stuff every single time.
Twilight Zone just permeates so much of pop culture that anyone has surely seen at least a reference or a parody of it at some point. Just try and count how many times it pops up in the Simpsons' Treehouse of Horror segments.
I remember seeing some episodes. I specifically remember the one where there's a sales man who sells people what they Need before they know they do. OH, I also remember the pilot that traved through time.
I have watched the Twilight zone multiple times, both the highlights and just the whole series once or twice and I absolutely adore it. I wish I could write as well.
What a coincidence in a few days im doing a twilight zone marathon but im not going to sleep until im done just to see if i can do it. Inspired by the great fomic series Welcome to Eltingville
Always watched the Twilight Zone with my dad in the 2000s on one of those old television channels that are dedicated to retro television. Probably my favourite memories when him & I speculated about the concepts in the show. Miss you dad. ♡
I got hooked ever since my 7th grade English teacher assigned us to read the script of, The Monsters are Due on Maple Street. I still remember the horror as I read the twist at the end. The Twilight Zone is timeless.
@@BeeWhistler well, in all fairness, well know isn't the same as everyone has seen it. As he was saying in the video, most people nowadays know it only through pop culture references and parodies, without ever having seen the original series.
Oh yeah haha even though i have watched TZ many times, when you showed the Rod Serling intro i again literally got goose bumps! It amazes me the power that this writing and presentation still has. A quality that cannot be quantified.
Hello 2002 baby here my mother who grew up in the 80s watched this a lot and I ended up always next to her watching them. I always thought that some had too goofy effects to pay attention but in elementary school we watched "the obsolete man" and my mom never treated me as a stupid child and guided me through the experience. From that episode on I took the show and most media I consumed much more seriously and enjoy deep conversations with those I love. Thank you Rod Serling.
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Correctly From from 1959 to 1964.
Im 37. When I was much younger I used to watch it . Was so good
Now you got to do Outer Limits and Black Mirror :D
The sponsor is all well and good in a vacuum; but I don't like the idea of spending 80,000 hours doing damage control for billionaires. That is the only real reason capitalists would sponsor this; it doesn't hold them accountable, or change the system in any meaningful way.
Did you know that Rod Sterling also owned the network?
Fun Fact: Rod Serling once invited viewers to submit scripts for potential Twilight Zone episodes. He was flooded with over 14,000 scripts, and he actually got around to reading 500 of them. However, apparently only two were any good, and he couldn't even use them because they didn't fit the format of the show.
no most people have seen it not sure why you would think that
How amazing would an A24 produced biopic about Sterling be!?
@@derekmatzek9551....... Simply, Awesome
He should have had someone send a reply to them saying something like:
"This idea is good, but it doesn't fit the format of the show, so despite it being good I can't use it, thank you for your contribution though."
Cool , I loved TZ n still rewatch but can't get into any modern TZ the black n white really holds me n it was great as an late 70s kid
Serling *nailed* the narration for The Twilight Zone. His tone, his cadence, his writing, they all come together to make one of the most iconic voices in TV. It's all perfectly calculated to make you *feel* the shivers crawling down your spine. The show wouldnt have been as iconic and lasting without that perfect voice.
The producers initially wanted the narration done by Orson Welles. They couldn't afford his salary so Rod did the intros and outros.
Both "The Twilight Zone" and "The Outer Limits" have great openings that draw you in, but while "The Outer Limits" always claims; "we are now in control of the transmission" to draw you in the two openings; "There is a fifth dimension beyond that which is known to man..." and "You are about to enter...The Twilight Zone." While both started around the same time one focused more on sci-fi while the other also explored more esoteric storylines
@@andrewmalinowski6673I completely forgot about The Outer Limits. Which is wild cause I even remember some of the weirder, darker story shows like Monsters and Tales from the Dark Side.
@@poolhalljunkie9 It's easy for me to remember "The Outer Limits" because I essentially grew up watching the 90s version of the series, "Beyond Belief: Fact or Fiction," a few episodes of "Tales from the Crypt" (mostly remember the Cryptkeeper puppet more than the episodes), and "Ripley's Believe it or Not" though sci-fi wise it was; "Transformers," "Star Trek" (TNG-ENT), "Stargate: SG-1," and "Earth: Final Conflict"
The way he looks makes it work too. He’s well dressed, serious, handsome, and seems to tread the middle ground between friendly and intimidating. Could not have picked a better man for the role.
Twilight Zone is literally timeless. It's not a gimmick to say these stories take you to other worlds, a Twilight Zone. The best way to describe the stories is that they're modern-day Fairy Tales. Sometimes they're an aesop, sometimes they're just pure fiction. Sometimes they scare, sometimes they inspire.
Every writer can learn from a timeless classic like thism
It is an incredible show. Both for the stories and the impact they've had.
I'm sure somewhere somebody's done a thesis on the cultural impact of the show. Especially for the people that have never watched it, and may have no idea where something they're familiar with came from.
My favorite episodes are the aesops like nothing in the dark
So it's like black mirror 😅
@@slyfox7452 Why do you guys keep calling them aesops?, he used animals in all his fables and how does nothing in the dark resemble his stuff?
I’ve only ever seen the episodes that end with either a reality shattering introspection of human nature and society that are still relevant today ‘or’ some random ass plot twist where the narrator goes “yeah anyways would that be fucked up or what?”
I'm 23, and have grown up watching The Twilight Zone. Mostly due to having parents who loved watching classic TV series. It quickly became my favorite show to watch, and still is excellent to go back and watch. I ended up getting a box set of all the episodes on Blu-ray and even found Night Gallery on the shelf next to it. There is something entrancing about how Serling writes.
Yeah, I've also got the full TZ and NG sets. Lol. Been my favorite show for literally my entire life. 😂
Have actually watched Twilight zone and even as a child in the 90s and early 2000s was thoroughly entertained even through all the old timey-ness. What an excellent series! So happy to see you finally covering these masterpieces!
Yeah, it's not as obscure as he thinks it is.
A few 'revisits' were done in the early-2000s with Forest Whittaker as the host, and if you haven't listened to the radio dramas they're good too. I haven't seen more than a few episodes, or the Paramount+ revival but the radio dramas either reinvigorate the older episodes as you just need to imagine the scenes or use familiar actors but there was a special radio drama called "2012" that aired around 12/21/12 and was well-done
Exactly same
Submitted for you approval: the twilight zone is authentically some of the best television ever made.
Notably, while Rod fully wrote a very large percentage of the episodes, others were written by notable authors such as Richard Matheson, Ray Bradbury and Ambrose Bierce. Either as adaptions of previously published short stories, new works made specifically for the show or both.
Rod also produced a couple other series that were somewhere in the TZ ballpark, a tv series called the Night Gallery, which was similar in nature, though it suffered a bit from studio meddling, and the radio play series Zero Hour - which is freely available in podcast form (as are a surprising range of other radio show series)
"The Twilight Zone" was way ahead of its time. The episodes are still challenging to viewers, and the twists are still thrilling. Good writing stands the test of time. Rod Serling deserves the accolades he got.
Serling is timeless in the manner of Shakespeare and Dickens.
People say something is ahead of its time when they don't have anything interesting to say about the topic
@@510tuberyou're ahead of your time.
@@katherineheasley6196 I can see why you think the show is challenging.
@@510tuberthat's how things that are ahead of their time are.
Rod Serling's "thoughts can be weapons' closing monologue really gave me a chill. Weaponization of thoughts is more prevalent today than its ever been.
as far as i can tell, the black and white of the twilight zone was part of the aesthetic. it added to the feeling that you were leaving your own world to view something... *other*
Color television shows took a while to catch on. I think it wasn't until the 1970s that full color took over. Before then, most people owned black-and-white television sets, and color sets were expensive.
Of course, the makers of B&W television shows (and movies) knew how to make the medium work for them. And when everything clicked? Who needs color?
@@julietfischer5056 I agree. TZ Outer Limits, first seasons of Lost in Space, Man from Uncle and Wild Wild West. All in black and white and all awesome.❤❤❤
@@nunyabizness6595- _Lost in Space_ had a good first half of the first season. Then things got silly.
It definitely was part of the aesthetic, but a good deal of that was due to the technology of the time and money, rather than pure artistic choice.
Still, it worked really damn well. That's one of the reasons, in fact, why I never really got around to watching any of the Twilight Zone remakes--it just doesn't _feel_ the same in color.
Black and white adds a good light and shadow contrast quality. It's something that just wasn't possible in color tv and is still hard to replicate now
I used to watch Twilight zone reruns as a kid. Also the shows inspired by it like Tales from the Crypt, Tales from the Darkside and The Outer limits. Its been a inspiration of mine for a long time.
Did you watch Night Gallery
The intro to Tales from the Darkside used to freak me out so bad when I was a kid. I'm sure you probably remember Monsters too, right?
I’m 72 so I grew up with The Twilight Zone. For some reason Eye of the Beholder was one of the few where my family guessed the ending. But I remember loving how eerie it was, even if it made me think long past the episode ending. Also, Alfred Hitchcock Presents which did a heck of a job with Dahl’s Lamb to the Slaughter (although they had to tack on an ending where the crime could not pay. Hitchcock left that to his commentary afterwards.
Finished watching all the Hitchcock Presents (30 minute shows) on Roku Channel. Disliked every part where the people were 'caught' after the show ended. I figured he had to put that on there because 'crime doesn't pay'.
@@petertrudelljr- The moral guardians didn't want bad guys getting away with their misdeeds.
Rod Serling's home town ... if ever you've been there, the whole show makes sense. Every. Single. Episode.
Having grown up there I wanna say I feel attacked, but you're right
Great video! As a Gen-Xer growing up in the 70s and 80s, The Twilight Zone was still a staple of late night TV broadcasting. As a Sci-Fi geek from that era, you watched anything you could get! I think that show was just embedded into the creative DNA of young creatives who grew up with it, and that’s why so many references and call-outs happened from the 80’s onward. It’s just a classic, amazing piece of media history.
Same here. Besides ST:TOS, my favorite shows to go back and rewatch are Twilight Zone and Combat! (World War 2 series).
I'm a Gen X and sci fi geek from all the way back to toddler years (I even vaguely remember staying up with my father to watch Star Trek, though I was only three by the last season) I was such a well known geek in high school back when we were rare that I saw Return of the Jedi nine times in the theater only because groups of people kept buying me a ticket to go with them in case they "don't understand something in the movie." Anyhow, when I go back to watch Twilight Zone, the stories and acting hold up well even to my now jaded sensibility. Some of the lighter, sillier episodes are even more touching now that I'm older, such as "I Sing the Body Electric", "The Hunt", and "Nothing in the Dark". Compare that to, say, the original Battlestar Galactica which I adored in jr high, but now to me is so face scraping bad I find it unwatchable even for a nostalgia kick.
Exactly. I remember watching reruns of it in the 1980s.
Me too! (More like '80s and part of the '90s, but still Gen X). But I never got around to seeing Twilight Zone until like, the 2010s....
...but MAN am I ever glad I finally watched it. Even the ones that scared the pants off of me. ESPECIALLY the ones that scared the pants off of me. It's so good. It's been the source of so many tropes, memes, parodies and jokes for decades now, for a damn good reason.
i just realised i've been completely futurama-fied. everytime you were about to say "the twilight zone", my brain substituted "the scary door"
Hey, look at that weird mirror
At least I can read in braille...
As much fun as Futurama has with stuff, I do think that in 1000 years, we'll still be watching those types of shows.
Help me Eva Braun!
Or the Scary Mirror.
There were Twilight Zone marathons on a bunch of cable channels for Halloween, Thanksgiving and New Year's around 2007-2015 ish. Even BBC would throw it on once and awhile. It's definitely more widespread than "sci fi buffs"
Yeah, I was really surprised at that. He usually has quality analyses but to assume that because he hadn't seen it, almost no one had? Disappointing.
I think they still do it on new years
@@BeeWhistler I don't know if 'almost no one' has watched a full episode, but I'd also believe that more than half of all people weren't in a position to be watching cable between 2005-2015 on a holiday, or at 5am when it came on. And it's been 60 years since the original series went off the air, the number of people who saw a non-syndicated episode was maybe 1 in 12.
New years on channel 5, holiday marathons
Serling was a genius. It’s sad that, from your video, younger people haven’t watched it and it’s going to eventually be forgotten.
I agree! He was a brilliant writer. This episode made me feel old. I think I've seen them all! It was one of like 4 things that ever came in on my family's tv - usually Gilligan's Island, Munsters, and some variations of the news. Late at night was all about Tales of the Crypt Keeper and Weird TV
It will not be forgotten. I am young myself but my Dad introduced the show to me. My brother has already introduced some of the episodes to his daughter & I'll do the same when I have children. It is an amazing piece of history.
Twilight Zone will never be forgotten. I can guarantee you that. Even if it only survives with me and my children, and their children. Lol.
I am 14 now and my 4th grade teacher played the Twilight Zone for us after school. He even taught us cursive. Super old and tall I remember
For a second I thought the title was “I finally watched twilight” and I looked at the thumbnail and went, “yeah that seems s about right.”
Talk about underated! You just won the internet my good sir! 😂😂😂
Same I only watched this video cuz I thought I was about to see wolves and vampires😭
same
Underrated comment
@@orangotheorange your fucking pfp lmao
The two scariest episodes to me are the one where the earth is getting closer and closer to the sun, and the one about the soldiers who fly in the experimental plane that goes missing and when they get back to earth, they start to disappear one by one.
The Midnight Sun... That was scary enough as a kid with a rudimentary understanding of global warming. Now as an adult living in a world where every summer is getting hotter and the weather becoming more and more wild and unpredictable, one wonder in fear how much longer we have before we start seeing a similar breakdown...
I had nightmares about the one where the kid gets stuck in the wall/other dimension. I was 5 when I saw it, and I really thought it could happen.
@@hestiathena4917 - Well the good news is that, compared to the nightmarishly sudden warming in that story, the current rate of global warming is far slower.
...Which means that looming slide into total disaster will be gradual and subtle enough that the stubborn morons that got us into this mess will be able to safely ignore the growing threat for 20-30 years, thus snuffing out the last hope we had of implementing the preventative measures that we desperately needed *decades* ago, until the effects finally grow too massive to ignore but it's too late to do anything about it and everything violently spirals out of control.
Oh, and unlike that story, we have the internet, so we can make memes about the senseless demise of our species. So that's a plus.
The first one is just your average Arizona summer
Fellow Midnight Sun enjoyers spotted
Having the intro sequence be in black and white was a nice touch
Kinda overused for the time tbh. It's the iconic music that sells the nice touches.
Rod Sterling is one of the voices of the era. Everytime an episode comes up, it reflects the wrongs and uncannies of the world we live in today. From Images to Lives to Wishes to Racism and Social Classes to Fear - It's always a chill down the spine
All my kids saw "The Monsters are Due on Maple Street" in social studies.
It's what got me into Twilight Zone.
They shouldn't have taken that show from Netflix.
I saw it too! Excellent commentary.
@@athenapromachos3027It's on Disney plus now, and on Amazon.
I actually read a transcript of the script in a 5th or 6th grade literature textbook
I always thought that it a short story written by, idk Ray Bradbury if I recall. I remember reading it in school and thinking that the Twilight Zone adapted it. A part of me still believes that, though now I have my doubts
I'm shocked you guys were initially resistant to watching this. I watched The Twilight Zone as a child in the 90s and I still watch it to this day. It was ahead of it's time...an absolute masterpiece. I'm glad you approached it with an open mind.
Fun fact him and his wife would always do safety measures to ensure at least one parent was able to be there for their kids such as taking flights
My favorite episode was, “Death’s Head Revisited”. Because that was one of the few episodes where they showed Justice coming upon those who deserve it. My other favorites are:
1. Night Of The Meek,
2. Changing Of The Guard,
3. Eye Of The Beholder {For true beauty is found within),
"And When the Sky Was Opened" is my favorite episode. Although, it's always been my favorite show by a long shot, so I don't have an episode that I don't enjoy.
Rod Serling did a similar series in the 70s called The Night Gallery. Just a few bars of the opening theme were enough to give me nightmares.
Pretty sure its the night gallerys theme thats used for all those spooky short videos popping up lately.
The was one episode called Silent Snow, Secret Snow that I still remember from the first showing. I was disappointed when that series ended.
I had to go look it up and no wonder you had nightmares. The whole opening bit is nightmare fuel! The 70s did have some of the creepiest movies and shows, though. It's like they'd fully broken away from censorship but hadn't yet learned to reign themselves in a little. Even our kid shows were the stuff of nightmares.
Love the Night Gallery❤. Next is the Outer Limits
It is nice to see you giving some love to one of the television shows that shaped my childhood. My dad was old-school scifi nerd and made sure I watched the Twilight Zone when I was a kid in the 1980s.
The Twilight Zone Episode, "22" that had that famous line "Room for one more, honey" gave me nightmares as a little kid.
They used to show the series every weeknight and all evening on new years.
Twilight Zone is my favorite tv show to this very day. Rod Serling, Richard Matheson, and so many others contributed to this masterpiece. From weird to horrifying, uplifting to ironic, it had everything.
S1 E2 One for the Angels has the single greatest depiction of Death as a person in fiction
I always thought that Robert Redford’s “Death” from nothing in the dark was a little better.
My favorite episode.
Discworlds death is pretty good imo
Death of the Endless is the best, but it's a pretty good one.
@@buggobricksYeah, hot and cute Death ftw. I do agree about Discworld's Death, though. I also like the one from Death Takes a Holiday.
I'm really surprised you hadn't watched it before, Talebot! It seemed right up your alley!
I grew up watching it, so I got to experience it before experiencing other series spinning its themes.
I'm not a sci-fi buff but I have actually watched twilight zone. Every episode being a story with an often strange twist was amazing for its time, really ahead of the curve because I feel like it it was the only thing of its kind. It simultaneously could not have happened at any other time in TV history but was also a show that never should have happened. I'm amazed it ever existed, but I'm glad it does.
A lot of people have seen it. It did happen at other times in history and there were other shows like it, maybe not exactly but in a similar vein. In the 60s they had The Outer Limits and Alfred Hitchcock Presents. I think there were others. In the 80s there was a new Twilight Zone series, as well as Tales from the Crypt, Tales from the Dark Side, and Amazing Stories. I think there were also more then. I can understand not hearing about most of those... but I can't understand why he thinks hardly anyone has seen the original.
@@BeeWhistler In the 50's there was - Suspense, One Step Beyond, Studio One plays, Alfred Hitchcock Presents and although not released back then "The Veil" with Boris Karloff was all filmed and has since been released, they all pre-date TZ.
The 60's had - Thriller, 'Way Out, Kraft Mystery Theatre, The Alfred Hitchcock Hour (sequel to presents), The Outer Limits, Kraft Suspense Theatre, Journey To The Unknown and Rod Serling's Night Gallery (technically started in '69 with the pilot).
In the 70's you had - Shadows Of Fear, Tales Of Unease, Ghost Story (also known as Circle Of Fear) The Frighteners, Dead Of Night, Leap In The Dark, Thriller (the Brian Clemens one), The Evil Touch, Orson Welles' Great Mysteries, Shadows, Beasts, A Twist In The Tale, Supernatural, The Next Step Beyond, Armchair Thriller and Tales Of The Unexpected.
In the 80's - Hammer House Of Horror, Darkroom, West Country Tales, The Agatha Christie Hour, Shades Of Darkness, Tales From The Darkside, Hammer House of Mystery and Suspense, Scene Of The Crime, The New Alfred Hitchcock Presents, The Ray Bradbury Theatre, The 80's Twilight Zone, Amazing Stories, Freddy's Nightmares and Tales From The Crypt.
In the 90's - Mistress Of Suspense (also known as Chillers), Are you Afraid Of The Dark, Chiller (not to be confused with Chillers), The Outer Limits remake, Goosebumps, Bone Chillers, Twisted and Ghost Stories.
In the 2000's - Night Visions, The Nightmare Room, a second Twilight Zone remake, Master's Of Horror, Two Twisted, Nightmares And Dreamscapes and The Haunting Hour.
I haven't kept track of the 2010's from Black Mirror to Guillermo Del Toro having one to a fourth Twilight Zone, this isn't a complete list anyway, there is a bunch in every decade not included here and some I opted to leave out like Faerie Tale Theatre and Ghost Stories for Christmas cause they weren't quite TZ enough despite some similarities.
I grew up watching reruns of The Twilight Zone. I have never felt that it stopped being relevant.
The Twilight Zone really feels like an Strange fever dream forced with an magical spell on the Tv. Its like a way to have the effect you get from Drugs, without ever Touching them
Fever dream? How wen it makes sense
@@AnglephileSwedenGerman I reffered to the Feeling you get while watching and not what Happens
I was born in '74 and watched the original "Twilight Zone," "Outer Limits," and "Night Gallery" every chance I got. Later, we got "Twilight Zone" reboots, along with "Amazing Stories," Monsters," and countless other shows inspired by the original.
OG "Twilight Zone" is "must watch" TV. Wonderful for family time.
One of my fav memories was watching the Twilight Zone every new years with my family and talking about the episodes.
I'm twenty-five and it was my dad who got me into watching the Twilight Zone growing up. Rod Serling was a literary genius, and we'll honestly never see a talent like his again.
Over the last 50 years I've watched the entire series uncountable times. Your video reminds me it's time to watch it again.
I do the same thing. When I run into the problem of not being able to decide what to watch, I will inevitably say to myself: "looks like it's time to watch Twilight Zone" and I end up watching the whole series again over the span of a few weeks.
Same here and when I want to explain to someone that TZ is more than just a horror themed show I ask them to watch the very last episode "The Bewitchin' Pool" with it's mix of drama and fantasy that to me was just a way to talk about suicide (not sure this is common sense anyway)
"have you ever *actually* seen 'the twilight zone'?" makes me feel old, and I was born in the 80's...
There were day-long marathons, everyone from the 60's talked endlessly about it (like "friends" from the 90's)
Im 34, I watched it because it was on TV all the time, back in our era, you couldnt really pick what you were watching, you had just the choice the time slot. Which usually ended up being Psi/history Channel, Toonami/adult swim.
28 here and yeah, it was even on ABC and BBC sometimes as well as regularly hitting the paid cable channels
@@inuendo6365 Honorable mention to Outerlimits too.
Finally someone is talking about this show! It's probably one of my favorite shows I've ever watched, it really makes you feel like you're in that time even now
I grew up with TZ, and have literally seen every episode at one time or another.
Hands down, the best dramatic TV series of all time. High marks for sci-fi as well, though it's only partially in that genre.
You owe it to yourself to become familiar.
CBS sold reruns of Twilight Zone (and I Love Lucy) very, *very* cheap, so it was one of the most widely syndicated shows of the 20th century. When I was a kid in the '80s, it aired in hour-long blocks twice a day, but as with everything in black-and-white, it fell out of vogue in the 2000s. Sad because many of them still hold up and are relevant today.
The Twilight Zone wasn't even Serling's only foray into having TV series with weird and macabe societial takes! He had another series after The Twilight Zone called Night Gallery which had very much the same premise only the stories of Night Gallery tended to run more towards the supernatural rather than sci-fi.
One episode of Night Gallery that haunts and delights me is "Green Fingers/The Funeral/The Tune in Dan's Cafe" which has a trio of stories inside it: a story of a haunted jukebox that only plays one song no matter what song you put in due to a tragedy that occured in the cafe, a story of a land developer seeing to oust an old woman that tells everyone she meets that everything that she plants grows, and a story of a funeral director asked to help lay a vampire to rest forevermore.
And in its own way, the Night Gallery also left its mark; how many horror games or anthologies had the conceit of a picture representing a story? Video games even do it...the Dark Anthology games by supermassive come to mind...
It still amazes me to this day how ahead of his time socially, and how good a writer, Rod Sterling was.
Also, the quality of acting the show's characters had was something the later attempts at redoing the show just couldn't recapture. It's a major reasons why the original series was such a classic.
Growing up I used to watch the eponymous 1980s series (which was not in black+white), and yes its episodes were mainly slow-burn mystery/horror alegories meant to make the viewer think about themes such as cults, science, loneliness, time travel, etc.
Some of those were actually stories from the original series. So you've seen both, in a way.
Twilight Zone holds a special place in my heart. I used to get to watch it at my mom's when I came down to visit (was raised by my aunt n uncle, long story) but she always had either WWE, Law & Order, Star Trek, or the Twilight Zone on the old Syfy cable channel. Back when I think it was still just called the Sci Fi Channel in the later 90s.
Rod Sterling's A Carol for Another Christmas is a superb retelling of Dickens Christmas Carol
I saw Rod Serling's original "The Twilight Zone" in real time back in the late 1950's. Back then Monochrome was the norm when it came to TV and movies, so it was "just there." From "Where is Everybody?" to "An Occurrence on Owl Creek Bridge," I took a trip into a far-from-usual world and had my mind expanded without chemical substances. "The Outer Limits" was a "soft Horror/SF" which had a "here comes The Monster!" climax.
My dad owns a dvd set of just about every season. Loved watching this show with him. One of my favorites, and you don't see its mentality or thought process in almost anything in modern TV or Cinema
There used to be a marathon on either Christmas or new years I don't remember. I used to watch it with my dad because he loved it as a kid. I miss him. This show is a great memory
One of my history teachers showed us two episodes of the Twilight Zone, one was the alien imposter episode. The other was about an American suburban neighborhood when the US detected Spotnick, and thought it might be the start of a nuclear war.
I liked them. They illustrated fears of the 2nd Red Scare and the Cold War.
So many classic episodes. It's hard to narrow down my favorites. Of course, there's the time honored stories like To Serve Man, Will the Real Martian Please Stand Up, and Living Doll. Some my own picks are The Invaders, The Hunt, and The Bard. The Bard in particular because it's a fantastical comedy, which was somewhat rare in Twilight Zone episodes. Many of the themes still find a lot of relevance today. Number 12 Looks Just Like You, for example, is a commentary on social conformity - something with which we still struggle. The Silence is also a well known story, if not the details then at least the overarching premise, and it has no supernatural elements in it at all - it could really happen. Sometimes scary, sometimes funny, always thought provoking.
When I was little, my mom would watch marathons of Twilight Zone just about every holiday and it *always* amazed me that this ancient show could still be good.
I learned super early never to talk about it to anyone else though cause no one wanted to talk about some ancient black and white show from ages ago. It was just a weird family tradition she did every holiday.
So, yeah, super glad you got a chance to "find" them Talebot because they really are worth watching even today. 😁
After my family got Netflix I binged all the way through the series more than once as a kid. I've made a habit of going back to my personal favorite episodes like a well whenever my writing diverges into the wild and weird. Rod Serling has one of my favorite quotes on writing. "Writing is easy, you bend over a piece of paper, and you bleed."
Or as Harlan Ellison put it, you tear out your guts by the hank and roll it into the platen.
Or as Harlan Ellison put it, you tear out your guts by the hank and roll it into the platen.
I'm old and grew up watching The Twilight Zone. It had a profound impact on me, my imagination and the way I view the world. I can't wait to see what you have to say about it.
Just so you know, some of us grew up watching shows on the "tee-vee" where your only options were "what was on" and a good number of the shows were still in black and white.
There may be more of us that you seem to think.
Anyway, glad you finally got to experience this classic!
The Twilight Zone was in syndication when I was a kid. I haven't watched it in a long time, but I did watch it on TV.
Same. I loved watching this as a kid, but I will admit I was initially skeptical it would be any good, since it does look so old. I only found out years later that it was made to look that way, and wasn’t actually as old as I had assumed it to be. I think there are an awful lot of people who watched this in syndication, more than the video creator realizes. I’ve never sat down to watch the “box set,” or sought it out on streaming, but I have never met a person who hadn’t seen an episode (if the topic were to come up naturally, even with a stranger, I was never told “I’ve never seen that”).
Yeah, I don't usually go in for "these kids today" bullcrap but when we have someone under a certain age saying no one ever saw something that literally everyone saw when I was growing up, I start screaming at them to get off my lawn. I guess I don't understand anyone, at any age, making the sweeping generalization that their experience is universal.
Last time I said something like this, I got called out as a boomer… I’m not even of that generation… that hurt 😔
I saw the new version of this and the outer limits as a kid and this was sometimes on when my grandparents watched the "old channel" with game shows. It's really good, I don't even like the new tech one black mirror since twilight zone did it better.
Happy to hear you took a dive into these truly timeless classics. Rod Serling was a genius in so many ways, and ahead of his time just the same.
My first proper introduction to The Twilight Zone was on Netflix back when it was LoveFilm and you had to mail order dvds. Same way I found Monty Python and the Time Bandits.
You almost have 1 million subscribers! Good for you!
MY TALEOID PLUSH FINALLY CAME IN THE MAIL YESTERDAY!!!! HALLELUJAH!!!!!
Watching The Twilight Zone is like reading a book of old science fiction and horror short stories. Some episodes have stuck with me my entire life (I’m in my 40s), and some were forgettable, but it’s worth it for the gems.
Edit: Seriously, read any collections of old spec. fic. you come across. There are some great stories out there!
11:32 I am in absolute awe. First time hearing it made my brain dumb insane amount of serotonin. Such extremely nuanced philosophical statement in such incredible writing is simply unbelievably glorious.
I'm definitely going to watch twilight zone.
You're going to OD on the happy juice then. The writing for the show is glorious.
I used to marathon the twilight zone every year on new years eve! My husband has the whole thing on DVD too
Watched Twilight Zone as a child, and LOVED it (when I wasn't scared out of my young gourd, anyway).
Another fantastic classic show from the same period is Dragnet. You might think that it's just a super dry "cop drama" that just recites the facts of the matter. But Joe Friday absolutely sells the "drama" part, and because of its style, the entire show somehow carries a weight and gravitas to it that modern cop dramas just don't have to them.
I loved the one where an old woman is the last tenet in an apartment that is about to be destroyed and a stranger comes to visit.
I don't recall the building being slated for demolition, if it's the one I'm thinking of. A _very_ young Robert Redford in that episode.
@@julietfischer5056Yea some construction or maintenance guy comes in to tell her that they are demolishing the buildings to make way for something else.
one of the first appearances of future star Robert Redford!
I would also recommend the outer limits, it has a similar idea to twilight zone, but goes harder into the sci-fi and fantasy themes with equally thought-provoking stories
Absolutely concur. Some great storytelling managed on a low budget and short timeframe, at least in the classic episodes. And it isn't that hard to enjoy either series, now that we don't just watch whatever's broadcast on TV with no choice. In an episodic, anthology series like this the solution is simple: if it's a bad episode, or one that feels dated in a bad way, skip it and start the next. These shows were extremely uneven, but you just find the episodes worth watching and leave the rest.
There is nothing wrong with your television set. Do not attempt to adjust the picture. We are controlling transmission. If we wish to make it louder, we will bring up the volume. If we wish to make it softer, we will tune it to a whisper. We will control the horizontal. We will control the vertical. We can roll the image, make it flutter. We can change the focus to a soft blur, or sharpen it to crystal clarity. For the next hour, sit quietly and we will control all that you see and hear. We repeat: There is nothing wrong with your television set. You are about to participate in a great adventure. You are about to experience the awe and mystery which reaches from the inner mind to... The Outer Limits
@@petertrudelljr And then the idiots shortened it after the first three or four episodes. Doh!😮😮😮
I watched the entire series, week by week, from its debut in 1959, onward. Great show. Hardly ever disappointed.
Two Twilight Zone episodes stuck with me the most; the After Hours (the mannequin story) and the Invaders. Those are among the six full episodes of the Twilight Zone I watched as a kid. They spooked me but enjoyed thoroughly.
Ironically, those two are among the six episodes I watched fully that was constantly referenced in high school and college.
Seriously, classic Twilight Zone is a classic for a reason. Sometimes it can be deep, profound, and of its time. And sometimes it can be goofy, funny, cringy, and cheesy.
Burgess Meredith was a brilliant actor. I love all his performances. What a talent!
My dad, who is almost 72 now, showed this to me when I was pretty young, this makes me want to watch it again with him!Thanks!!
My parents were big fans so we watched reruns a lot when I was growing up. My mom would tell some of the stories when my girl scout troop was camping. I've occasionally found the original stories that some episodes were based on.
I love this channel, truly amazing. It’s something unique and different from the usual documentary/story driven channels I’ve seen.
Creativity at its peak
I used to watch Twlight Zone on the SciFi channel all the time in high school and college back around 08. It really does hold up and I echo encouraging everyone to check it out.
Went through a whole re-watch a few years ago. It struck me how so many of them depicted important lessons that we _still_ haven't learned, even 50-60 years later.
People have been dealing with this issues for thousands of years, what is 50-60?
@@Mr.Goodkat Except now we have these messages shoved in our face so much more and more often than before and we still haven't learned.
@@Syndiate__ That's because shoving messages down people's throats is an ineffective means of changing their behaviour.
@@Mr.Goodkat I didn't mean that quite so... *much*, and literally. What I was alluding to is the fact that these messages are sent so much in popular media (a phenomenon only observed in modern times), and yet we haven't learned, at least much. Also saying that 50-60 years isn't much when compared to the amount of time that humans have been around in terms of human progression and evolution isn't quite so absolute anymore, since, since the 20th century humanity has been progressing and evolving faster than ever before.
My mom and aunt binge this show every new year's, and with good reason; it was great then, and even better now, barring some cultural/technological shifts.
I have downloaded and watched them all multiple times.
Thanks from
-Gabriel of Norway.
MY favorite episode is Night of the Meek. It's a surprisingly wholesome, heartwarming episode and I recommend it.
My little brother is really into old movie and shows. And he watched the twilight zone while I was around and I found myself gravitated towards paying attention to it. It demands your full attention and it will keep it
There were later episodes in color, once color was more available for television. But yes, I've watched Twilight Zone. I consider it a more family friendly alternative to Tales From the Crypt on cable. The Talky Tina episode freaks me out and I first saw it as an adult.
Talky Tina. I remember we saw that episode in school, and still feel shivers whenever she's mentioned.
@@valutaatoaofunknownelement197 Me too.
i discovered the twilight zone on netflix over a decade ago, right when streaming became a thing, at age 11. i was soon gifted the complete box set and it’s been a deep fascination for me ever since. i still haven’t seen every single episode. anyway my love for the twilight zone is endless and i have been incredibly annoying to everyone around me about it ever since ❤
I haven't finished the Twilight Zone yet but when I started watching it I was immediately hooked! Tbh a lot of what you mentioned that you could "guess" the plot before it happened was something I couldn't guess at all, and this is coming from someone who enjoys writing and theory, character arcs etc. Maybe I can't think of such things right away but I still enjoy the Twilight Zone immensely! It has a captivating charm, and that intro plus Rod Serling giving his intro/outro speech (especially how powerful they are when related to social commentary, making you think),great stuff every single time.
Twilight Zone just permeates so much of pop culture that anyone has surely seen at least a reference or a parody of it at some point.
Just try and count how many times it pops up in the Simpsons' Treehouse of Horror segments.
I remember seeing some episodes.
I specifically remember the one where there's a sales man who sells people what they Need before they know they do.
OH, I also remember the pilot that traved through time.
I have watched the Twilight zone multiple times, both the highlights and just the whole series once or twice and I absolutely adore it. I wish I could write as well.
oop, looks like I need to watch TZ immediately so I can enjoy your vid without spoilers XD
I'll return in a few days
"It's a cook book!" Is the only one that actually got me. (twist)
I loved that moment.
Serling was a genius.
What a coincidence in a few days im doing a twilight zone marathon but im not going to sleep until im done just to see if i can do it. Inspired by the great fomic series Welcome to Eltingville
Always watched the Twilight Zone with my dad in the 2000s on one of those old television channels that are dedicated to retro television.
Probably my favourite memories when him & I speculated about the concepts in the show. Miss you dad. ♡
I'd also like to recommend "Tales of the Unexpected" to anyone looking for a more contemporary anthology show -- mini-thrillers with twists galore!!
Or as we called it, tales of the totally expected.
@@AndrewHalliwellHeinz Doofenshmirtz, is that you?
@@sinisternorimaki And with my new twistinator, everyone in the world will find their lives plagued by unexpected plot twists!
I got hooked ever since my 7th grade English teacher assigned us to read the script of, The Monsters are Due on Maple Street. I still remember the horror as I read the twist at the end. The Twilight Zone is timeless.
1:30 Way to make me feel like a boomer just because I've watched the entire original series.
Eh, only because he sounds like a teenager for not realizing how well-known it is.
@@BeeWhistler well, in all fairness, well know isn't the same as everyone has seen it.
As he was saying in the video, most people nowadays know it only through pop culture references and parodies, without ever having seen the original series.
@johnnydarling8021 The Middle sitcom did a Halloween episode where the youngest child pretends to be Serling. Classic.❤❤❤
@@nunyabizness6595 yep, good episode
5:45 - YES I REMEMBER MUZZY! ♥
I actually looked up and rewatched the whole set of tapes on TH-cam about 2 years ago.
the First Episode i Watch Fully was "Long Distance Call".
Oh yeah haha even though i have watched TZ many times, when you showed the Rod Serling intro i again literally got goose bumps! It amazes me the power that this writing and presentation still has. A quality that cannot be quantified.
0:19 I grew up watching it.
Hello 2002 baby here my mother who grew up in the 80s watched this a lot and I ended up always next to her watching them. I always thought that some had too goofy effects to pay attention but in elementary school we watched "the obsolete man" and my mom never treated me as a stupid child and guided me through the experience. From that episode on I took the show and most media I consumed much more seriously and enjoy deep conversations with those I love. Thank you Rod Serling.
It's me, a sci-fi buff in the comments who has seen almost every episode of Twilight Zone.
This channel is so awesome that every video makes me interested in it