The Twilight Zone (1 Viewer)

[jimmyjet]

i did not have a single glitch in my blu-ray set

but i did not watch many of the extras

 

[The Drifter]

This really brings back memories - though I wasn't around when the first TZ series aired back in 1959-1964, in the mid-1980's I caught re-runs of the show late at night on one of the independent channels. The series was great - even though the effects were minimal/non-existent, the story-writing and acting was very strong.

Though everyone has heard of/seen this, Nightmare at 20,000 feet with Bill Shatner is unquestionably one of the creepiest, scariest TV episodes I've ever seen - very well done. Other notable well-known episodes included: The Hitch-Hiker, with the young woman who was being followed by that creepy little guy while she was driving.; and, It's a Good Life - about the kid who could do anything with his mind - quite horrifying.

Back in 2012, I made a point to watch the entire series. And, In particular, I enjoyed the episodes that are not necessarily well-known by non-fans of the series, i.e.:

-The hour-long, superb episode about a seeming normal man, who slowly realized that he was a robot/double with implanted memories;
-These neglected kids went into their swimming pool & ended up in a fantasy world on the other side where they were taken care of by a grandmotherly-like character;
-The episode where the hip music producer visits this back-woods area in order to track down/record a haunting singer, and ends up in a nightmare;
-After a nuclear war, the residents of a town got advice from a mysterious oracle in a cave;
-Another episode (also after a nuclear war) where two soldiers from opposing factions (played by C. Bronson and E. Montgomery) ended up becoming friends,
-The futuristic episode where boxing was done by robots.

 

[AndyMcKinney]

-These neglected kids went into their swimming pool & ended up in a fantasy world on the other side where they were taken care of by a grandmotherly-like character;

Oooh, I have always hated that TZ episode with a passion most fierce, above all others! I especially couldn't stand "Aunt T" (or whatever name that Cajun character was called). I think there's a lot of people with me on that one.

One man's trash is another's treasure, and all that!

 

[JQuintana]

Every once in a while I like to watch a few episodes of this wonderful show on Netflix. So many great stories!

I remember as a kid, just hearing the theme song come on TV creeped me out!

 

[Lord Dalek]

...you know I never I'd live to see the day I saw some guy online say he unironically enjoyed Come Wander With Me,

 

[Tom.W]

Just announced the next version of Twilight Zone.

http://blog.sitcomsonline.com/2019/01/new-twilight-zone-launches-april-1.html

I watched a few episodes of the 80's version but not the subsequent one hosted by Forrest Whitaker. It'll be interesting to see how this one does. Not sure if a paid subscription to CBS All Access is necessary to view it.

 

[TravisR]

...you know I never I'd live to see the day I saw some guy online say he unironically enjoyed Come Wander With Me,

I kinda like that episode because it's not that great. It find it interesting because it doesn't work unlike other S5 episodes like From Agnes, With Love, I Am The Night- Color Me Black, Sounds And Silences, The Brain Center At Whipples and The Bewitchin' Pool which are both bad and uninteresting.

 

[The Drifter]

Just announced the next version of Twilight Zone.

http://blog.sitcomsonline.com/2019/01/new-twilight-zone-launches-april-1.html

I watched a few episodes of the 80's version but not the subsequent one hosted by Forrest Whitaker. It'll be interesting to see how this one does. Not sure if a paid subscription to CBS All Access is necessary to view it.

I was a huge fan of the '85 - '89 TZ - though the original b&w series is obviously the most iconic, the '80's series is probably my favorite of the three (so far). I was a kid when the show was out & have vivid memories of watching many of those episodes as they were released. I watched the whole series on DVD about 7 years ago, and it really held up.

The 200X series (hosted by FW) was just OK. I saw every episode, but only liked 2-3 of them. It was the weakest of the three series so far, hands down.

Don't really have high hopes for this newest, forthcoming version - but will check it out anyway - since I'm such a huge fan of the previous series.

 

[Jeff Flugel]

...you know I never I'd live to see the day I saw some guy online say he unironically enjoyed Come Wander With Me,

Well, here's another. I like that episode, too. Not perfect, mind, but it's got some really creepy elements. I'd say there are far worse Twilight Zones...some of the so-called "comic" episodes by Rod Serling, for example.

 

[Jeff Flugel]

I kinda like that episode because it's not that great. It find it interesting because it doesn't work unlike other S5 episodes like From Agnes, With Love, I Am The Night- Color Me Black, Sounds And Silences, The Brain Center At Whipples and The Bewitchin' Pool which are both bad and uninteresting.

I think the premise of "Come Wander with Me" is good, and the cinematography and direction build up some strong atmosphere early on...its main flaw IMO is that Gary Crosby is too grating in the lead.

 

[Tom.W]

I remember seeing The Bewitchin' Pool in its first run as a nine-year old. It had a certain fascination for me, despite its flaws. Maybe it was the strong acting by the parents, especially Tod Andrews, that pulled me in. The weakest TZ for me is probably the one with Carol Burnett, no offense, Carol. That laugh track really did not fit a TZ episode.

 

[TravisR]

The weakest TZ for me is probably the one with Carol Burnett, no offense, Carol. That laugh track really did not fit a TZ episode.

One thing (probably the only thing) that makes me laugh in that episode is the bus driver who just jumps through his window after the bus changes.

 

[Harry-N]

While nearly everyone on this thread likely owns THE TWILIGHT ZONE on Blu-ray or at least DVD, there will be two marathon showings of a good chunk of the series over the New Years period. Both the SyFy Channel on cable and the DECADES channel on over-the-air TV will air approximately 48 hours of episodes of THE TWILIGHT ZONE.

Both schedules are here:
https://www.tvinsider.com/840075/twilight-zone-new-years-marathon-2019-2020-syfy-decades-episodes/

 

[Josh Steinberg]

Be warned that SyFy for the last few years has sped up the episodes in an Alvin & The Chipmunks fashion so that they could shove in more commercials while maintaining a time slot. Kinda ruins the whole thing for me.

 

[Harry-N]

I haven't had access to cable in many a year, so I cannot vouch for SyFy's presentation, but I'm not surprised to hear that. DECADES is a sister channel to MeTV and usually their worst infractions are that they might widen the image by chopping off a tiny bit of the top and bottom of the picture. And sometimes they don't with iconic shows like STAR TREK.

At any rate, this is more for those who might not have the home video versions and want to immerse themselves in some ZONEs.

 

[Hollywoodaholic]

I'm just glad they are doing the marathon and perhaps exposing perhaps another generation to Serling's creative and moral brilliance. We could use more of that these days.

 

[Hollywoodaholic]

I watched a few; the prints are okay but not HD quality. I don't notice any sped up, but they are definitely cutting to accommodate more commercials.

 

[Josh Steinberg]

I guess that’s an improvement? I just got rid of cable so I can’t compare this year to last year, but last year they were all running at a higher frame rate which allowed them to run them in less time and gave them that soap opera look. At first I thought it was just a mistake with one episode but then each one that followed was just as bad.

 

[Hollywoodaholic]

And at least SyFy isn't stretching or zooming the image like Netflix. I couldn't even bear to watch that.

 

[Josh Steinberg]

Netflix doesn’t crop or stretch TZ on their end; that may be a setting defaulting to something incorrect on the playback side.