If The Twilight Zone is known for one thing, it’s the amazing twists that often end the episodes. These twists put the events of the episode in a greater and clearer understanding, and they often end the story on a propulsive, tantalizing, and maybe even a questionable note.
Of course, as is often the case with big plot twists, some are naturally better than others. While some twists leave you gasping for breath, some leave you crinkling your nose and asking, “Seriously?” No one said the show was perfect.
These are the five greatest Twilight Zone twists (and the five worst).
Best: To Serve Man
To Serve Man is an alien invasion story which sees the seemingly-benevolent Kanamits invading Earth and solving most of its problems. The alien race have written a book titled “To Serve Men.” It is yet another aspect of their benevolent ways, as “serve” is seemingly used to showcase their servitude to humanity. However, we later learn that the aliens are actually cooking humans into meals and that “To Serve Men” is actually a cookbook! That’s not “serving men (mankind).” They’re serving men. As food.
Worst: The Bard
In season four’s The Bard, a failing screenwriter accidentally conjures William Shakespeare using black magic and uses his talents to write a movie. It’s a silly concept with an even sillier ending. Once he is told to write a series on American history, the writer uses black magic to conjure the likes of Robert E. Lee, Abraham Lincoln, Pocahontas, and Benjamin Franklin. Even Rod Serling all but admits that the concept is stupid, calling the story “a little tall” in his closing narration.
Best: I Shot An Arrow Into The Air
Season one’s I Shot An Arrow Into the Air is very reminiscent of Planet of the Apes. The story begins with a manned spaceflight seemingly crashing on a barren and unknown asteroid. But after some violent encounters and a lot of exploring, Corey sees a sign for Reno, Nevada, indicating that they were on Earth all along! Like we said, very Planet of the Apes. But that doesn’t detract from the ending’s impact. It’s a good one.
Worst: I Dream Of Genie
In I Dream of Genie, office worker George buys a mysterious oil lamp for $20 and finds a genie inside. As you do. He contemplates various wishes and desires, but in the end decides against things like love, power, and money.
At the end of the episode, a homeless man finds the lamp and George emerges as its genie. We realize that his wish was to become the genie and help people in need. Good message, but a lame twist ending.
Best: The Invaders
Season two’s The Invaders begins with a shambled woman living in a rustic cabin. Before long, miniature alien beings land their UFO on her cabin roof and begin assaulting her with a kitchen knife and a weapon that shoots radiation. At the end of the episode, we learn that these tiny alien creatures are actually humans and that humanity has tried to invade a planet full of giant humanoid creatures. What if we’re the aliens?
Worst: The Man In The Bottle
Season two’s The Man in the Bottle is like a parody of The Twilight Zone. It’s just so ridiculous that it becomes asinine. Rather than a twist ending, The Man in the Bottle contains many mini-twists within its story. This is because the story involves a genie granting a married couple four wishes, each of which has some silly unintended consequence – like literally turning into Hitler.
Best: The Little People
The Twilight Zone is great at re-contextualizing stories. Such is the case with season three’s The Little People. In it, an astronaut named Peter Craig becomes enamored with a race of tiny aliens, grows a God complex, and begins treating them like his indentured servants.
However, a race of massive creatures as tall as mountains later land on the planet and carelessly treat Craig like the tiny alien he is. This twist has traces of The Invaders, and it is just as good.
Worst: Queen Of The Nile
Queen of the Nile concerns columnist Jordan Herrick getting to know actress Pamela Morris, who seemingly never ages. Jordan tries getting to the bottom of Pamela’s gracious aging and discovers that she may have been alive for decades. However, the closing narration informs us that Pamela Morris was actually an incarnation of Cleopatra VII and has been alive for well over 2,000 years. It’s a very goofy ending, and we know The Twilight Zone is better than that.
Best: Eye Of The Beholder
And of course, who can forget the brilliant ending to Eye of the Beholder? In this episode, a woman named Janet Tyler undergoes numerous plastic surgeries to make herself look “normal.” When the bandages are taken off, a beautiful woman is revealed. That’s twist number one. Twist number two is that this society is actually filled with horribly ugly and scary creatures, making Janet the “ugly” outcast of society. Like the title states, beauty is in the Eye of the Beholder.
Worst: Probe 7, Over And Out
With an episode title like Probe 7, Over and Out, you should have expected something really, really stupid. The story concerns as an astronaut named Adam Cook who crash lands on a mysterious planet. He befriends an alien named Norda. Later in the episode, they find a “garden,” and Norda’s real name is revealed – Eve. Adam and Eve. And the “alien planet” is actually Earth. Yes, Probe 7, Over and Out is about Adam and Eve, and it is horrible.
