As a kid, I was babysat by my brother who loved Sci-Fi. Since we only had one TV, and he was the oldest, I watched a lot of Sci-Fi. I came to enjoy the Twilight Zone because it didn’t have a lot of scary images. It didn’t need to; it was able to scare the bejeezus out of me, in black and white, without using blood, guts or gore. Now, as a writer, I appreciate the genius of Rod Serling. Additionally, I’ve come to see Rod Serling as visionary who, over five decades ago, wrote on topics that are surprisingly relevant today.
Which letter was the most challenging?
In previous A to Z challenges X was the most challenging, but this time it was the letter S. Not because I couldn’t find a T.Z. episode to match, but because I had about fifteen to choose from. In the end I went with a cult favorite, To Serve Man, but it was a hard choice.
Which episode was your favorite?
My favorite? I can’t really say I have a favorite, I like them all!
Besides the fact that the Sci-Fi worlds collide in this episode when James Doohan, who also plays Montgomery "Scotty" Scott, the engineer of Star Trek (1966)'s Starship Enterprise, is the dad of one of the main characters, I think it’s the fact that in Peaceful Valley miracles seem to occur due to technology. Again, Mr. Serling was ahead of his time as today’s technology really is creating the appearance of miracles.
A great, but little known, episode is No Time Like The Past. In this episode scientist, Paul Driscoll, acquires a time machine and with the help of a friend decides to travel back into the recent past to alter events and remake the present. After several failed attempts, he concludes that, “the past is sacred” and returns to his own time declaring, “… instead of continuing to fixate upon the past, he will now try to do something to positively impact the future.” With all that’s going on in our world today, I think that is still great advice.
As a mother the creepiest episode for me is Long Distance Call where a toy telephone becomes the link between a young boy and his dead grandmother. After her death she calls him on the toy telephone she gave him before her death, and beckons him to come join her. What’s creepy for me is how that episode has become a parallel to today. However, it’s not a toy telephone, it’s the internet, and it’s not dead grandmothers, it’s a variety of other things often just as bad.
Ever felt like you were in the Twilight Zone?
Yes! Haven’t we all? I wonder if that, and the thought-provoking writing, has anything to do with the longevity of the series.
What theme are you considering for the Challenge next year?
I’m not sure. I only hope I find something I enjoy as much as I enjoyed my theme this year. Blogging from A to Z on the Twilight Zone made the challenge so much fun!
Thanks, Jenn! We want the Challenge to be fun.
Co-host Ninja Captain Alex J. Cavanaugh is the author of Amazon Best-Sellers CassaStar, CassaFire, CassaStorm, and Dragon of the Stars, and his blog can be found HERE
