10 Best Twilight Zone Episodes That Nobody Talks About

It’s not an overstatement to acknowledge that “The Twilight Zone” is among the most cherished TV series in history. However, when delving into its merits, it seems that only a few select episodes such as “It’s a Good Life,” “To Serve Man,” and others like “Time Enough at Last” and “Nightmare at 20,000 Feet” are often highlighted. While these tales, along with other standout episodes, showcase the series’ peak, there are numerous additional reasons to re-explore this timeless anthology program.

We’ve compiled a list of 10 often overlooked episodes from The Twilight Zone. These are the unsung heroes, consistently upholding the show’s exceptional quality amidst more famous episodes like “Eye of the Beholder” and “Living Doll.” You might not have heard of all these episodes before, but that’s part of the experience – just relax and prepare to venture into the mysterious realm of The Twilight Zone.

1) “Where is Everybody?” (Season 1, Episode 1)

Right from its debut, “The Twilight Zone” was running smoothly across all aspects. The inaugural episode, titled “Where is Everybody?”, expertly established the mood for the series as a whole. A man, who cannot recall his identity or location, encounters an empty town with no signs of life whatsoever. Hanging telephones and cigars still smoldering in ashtrays hint at the sudden disappearance of every resident. However, the actual truth is far more bizarre.

2) “And When the Sky Was Opened” (Season 1, Episode 11)

In the vein of “Where is Everybody?”, “The Twilight Zone” presents a related tale a few episodes later. Rather than exploring an unsettling world without humans, the astronauts in “And When the Sky Was Opened” grapple with the possibility that they might not even exist within this world.

Upon its return to Earth following a day’s absence from military radar, the experimental spaceplane X-20 finds itself short by one crew member. The issue arises because only the two surviving pilots seem to recall the presence of a third astronaut onboard…

3) “Steel” (Season 5, Episode 2)

The story revolves around the fundamental clash between man and technology, where human boxing has been banned in the future. Instead, people satisfy their fighting cravings by observing robot combatants engage in fierce battles. An ex-boxer, who finds himself in a difficult situation after his own “Battling Maxo” becomes too worn out to fight, is compelled to hide his identity and participate as one of these robotic gladiators instead.

What transpires is a desperate effort by the boxer to knock out his robotic opponent, but it ends quite unhopefully. The author Richard Matheson recognized the futility of fighting technology ahead of its time.

4) “The Midnight Son” (Season 3, Episode 10)

In “The Midnight Son,” the societal decay mirrors the scenario portrayed in “Dawn of the Dead” except instead of zombies, it’s the sun that threatens our planet. Due to an unspecified catastrophe, Earth is moving towards the sun at an alarming rate. This has resulted in food and water shortages, widespread looting, and the disintegration of civilization as we recognize it. The story takes us on a harrowing journey through the final moments before Earth becomes completely inhospitable, culminating in one of the most heartless twists ever seen in “Twilight Zone” history.

5) “He’s Alive” (Season 4, Episode 4)

Die hartkerste Zoners weten dat Seizoen 4, wanneer de serie van een halfuur naar een uur liep, in het algemeen wordt geaccepteerd als het slechtste. Een van de weinige uitzonderingen is “Hij leeft weer,” een spannend beeld van een jongeman van witte huidkleur die gedwongen wordt rechts-extrémisme aanhangig te zijn door het geest van Hitler, na een leven vol gevoel van isolatie. Dennis Hopper speelt de rol van Peter Vollmer, leider van een zwakke neo-Nazi groep, maar hij kan ook even goed spelen als een moderne incel die zichzelf tot een Proud Boy heeft geworden.

Today, the episode remains strikingly pertinent, offering numerous unsettling similarities to the resurgent hate movements that have emerged within our modern-day communities. It may prove challenging to view, yet we assure you, its impact is undeniably valuable.

6) “The Silence” (Season 2, Episode 25)

In “The Silence,” a stingy grump takes on a loquacious individual in a bet: he wagers that the talkative person can’t refrain from speaking for an entire year, with the original bet amount equivalent to $500,000 and its inflation-adjusted value now reaching $5,300,000. However, this scenario unfolds within the mysterious realm of the Twilight Zone, where there are additional complexities, such as the curmudgeon’s lack of sufficient funds to place the bet and the chatterbox resorting to drastic measures to maintain silence.

At the conclusion, reminiscent of classic “Twilight Zone” storytelling, it unfolds as a dark reinterpretation of “The Gift of the Magi,” where both characters discover that gambling, in Rod Serling’s words, is indeed an unrewarding endeavor.

7) “Number 12 Looks Just Like You” (Season 5, Episode 17)

In the future, it will be compulsory for everyone to get a transformation procedure on their 19th birthday, which alters their physical appearance to one of several aesthetically pleasing models. The series “Number 12 Looks Just Like You” portrays an unusual dystopia, teeming not with genetically mutated beings or scavengers in a desolate landscape, but with individuals who are strikingly attractive and always seem to be smiling carefree.

When eighteen-year-old Marilyn chooses against going through this change, she quickly realizes that the process isn’t discretionary. This is because there’s a psychological aspect involved which causes people to become less resistant and simpler for the government to manage.

8) “The Odyssey of Flight 33” (Season 2, Episode 18)

Picture yourself boarding what seems like an ordinary flight, headed from London to New York City. However, this trip takes an unexpected turn as you encounter turbulence unlike any other, followed by a peculiar burst of light. The next moment, the crew peers out from the cockpit and spots a dinosaur instead of familiar cityscapes – such is the bizarre journey that befalls the passengers and staff on Global Airlines Flight 33.

Flight 33’s Journey” lacks Rod Serling’s typical socially-conscious narrative, instead offering an entertaining time-travel adventure that predates this genre’s popularity.

9) “I Shot an Arrow Into the Air” (Season 1, Episode 15)

Rod Serling often employed the concept of astronauts accidentally landing on an alien planet, only to discover it was actually Earth, as the foundation for his “Planet of the Apes” script. Interestingly, he had previously used this same “it turns out to be Earth,” twist in a Season 1 episode of “The Twilight Zone”, eight years prior.

Corey, Pierson, and Donlin – the last members of an eight-person space journey – experience a crash on what they perceive as a barren asteroid and start arguing over their scarce resources right away. The situation worsens when Corey starts acting according to a survival-of-the-fittest mindset, eventually outliving all the other crew members just before spotting a Reno, Nevada sign.

10) “The Shelter” (Season 3, Episode 10)

The Shelter” stands out among other episodes of “The Twilight Zone” due to its eerie resemblance to real-life events. In this episode, the peaceful suburban gathering of the Stockton family is disrupted by the alarming news of a potential nuclear attack on the United States. The polite partygoers swiftly transform into characters reminiscent of “Lord of the Flies” as they demand entrance into the Stocktons’ fallout shelter. Trapped within, the Stockton family must fend off their once-friendly guests who have now turned violent in their desperation to survive.

It wasn’t until the crowd, eager for violence, stormed the shelter’s doors that a fresh account made it clear the “nuclear missiles” were merely benign satellites.

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2025-07-15 22:42