Here’s the ending of The Twilight Zone’s “Four O’Clock” explained. The Twilight Zone is a groundbreaking anthology series that debuted in the late ’50s. The Twilight Zones‘ stories were often a mixture of fantasy or sci-fi tales, with creator Rod Serling often commenting on the political or social ills of the day. The show set the template for many anthologies shows to come – including the likes of Black Mirror – and is famous for its use of shocking or ironic twist endings.
Serling endured a heavy workload on The Twilight Zone, including writing most of the episodes on his own. He also had regular clashes with producers, so when the series ended in 1964, he was ready to move on. It speaks to the show’s enduring quality that there have been several revivals. This includes the 1983 movie, a 1994 TV film titled The Twilight Zone: Rod Serling’s Lost Classics and TV show reboots in the ’80s, 00s and the most recent, Jordan Peele hosted iteration.
The Twilight Zone’s “Four O’Clock” isn’t one of the show’s most celebrated episodes, and for good reason. The story revolves around Oliver Crangle, an unpleasant man who seemingly spends his days “judging” others and deeming them evil. This extends to calling people’s employers, labeling them communists, perverts or other titles to ruin their lives. He also claims to those who visit his apartment on the day the episode is set – including his landlady or an FBI agent – that at exactly “Four O’Clock” every “evil” person in the world will turn two feet tall. Despite seeming mentally unstable throughout the tale, his prediction comes true, where to his horror, he shrinks to two feet tall.
The Twilight Zone episode “Four O’Clock” is a character study of a petty, vengeful man with few redeeming qualities. The episode boasts a great performance by Theodore Bikel as Crangle, though it’s unpleasant to be in the character’s company for the entirety of “Four O’Clock.” The episode is obviously a critique on McCarthyism and those who sit in judgment of others, though The Twilight Zone “Four O’Clock” twist ending is a little harder to break down.
Is Crangle suffering some kind of total break from reality when he “shrinks” down – it should be noted that no other people are shown to confirm that other “evildoers” are affected – or does he actually possess supernatural powers? The Twilight Zone “Four O’Clock” leaves this ambiguous, but the way this twist is executed feels unsatisfying. The short story this Twilight Zone – which Simpsons parodied many times – episode “Four O’Clock” was based on went even darker with its ending, with Crangle being eaten by his pet parrot after it mistakes him for a nut; while the episode doesn’t show this outcome, that’s not to say it didn’t happen offscreen.
