7 Twilight Zone Twist Endings That Still Don’t Make Sense (But One Is Actually Amazing)

by

People often describe the endings of *The Twilight Zone* as ironic, surprising, and deeply moving. While Rod Serling and his team usually crafted satisfying conclusions, not every episode perfectly stuck the landing. For every truly memorable episode like “Eye of the Beholder” or “Time Enough at Last,” there’s another where the final twist feels confusing rather than brilliant.

Being a fan of *The Twilight Zone* means accepting its imperfections – the plot holes and moments that don’t quite add up. We’ve picked out seven of the most confusing endings from the show, but even when they don’t make sense, they’re always memorable – or at least entertainingly cheesy. In fact, the most illogical ending on our list is still considered a classic.

7) “The Bewitchin’ Pool”

The final episode of the original *Twilight Zone* wasn’t a strong finish. Titled “The Bewitchin’ Pool,” it tells the story of two children escaping the unhappiness of their parents’ divorce by discovering a backyard pool that transports them to a magical cabin. There, they find Aunt T, a sweet older woman who provides a safe haven for kids from troubled homes. Ultimately, the children choose to remain in this magical world, swimming into the pool and leaving their old lives behind permanently.

The episode aims for a rare, feel-good ending like those sometimes seen in *The Twilight Zone*, and it might still connect with anyone who’s experienced their parents’ divorce. However, the details don’t quite add up. It’s unclear if the children are even alive, and their aunt’s actions could be seen as kidnapping. Is the story about foster care, gaining independence, death, or just a simple desire to escape? The behind-the-scenes issues don’t help either-the young actress had already left when they needed her to re-record some lines, so a different voice actor stepped in. When you add in some clumsy acting, reused footage, and that confusing ending, the episode ultimately doesn’t hold together.

6) “The Fear”

In a Season 5 episode, a state trooper and a woman hiding in a cabin think they’re being attacked by a huge alien creature. They discover enormous footprints and damaged roads, and eventually encounter what appears to be a giant, one-eyed monster. However, in typical *Twilight Zone* style, the “giant” turns out to be nothing more than a balloon – a trick played by tiny aliens who are only about a foot tall.

The surprising twist doesn’t work and feels unexplained. It’s hard to believe tiny aliens could cause so much damage, like toppling trees. The reveal doesn’t fit with what was established earlier, and the ending – a small, underwhelming explanation – falls flat. “The Fear” had the potential to be a thrilling and suspenseful episode, but ultimately, it’s one of the show’s least satisfying conclusions.

5) “Cavender Is Coming” 

Honestly, this episode felt like a rehash of an older Twilight Zone story, and it just didn’t quite hit the mark for me. It follows Agnes, a woman who’s really struggling, and she gets a guardian angel, Cavender, who tries to fix her life by making her wealthy and popular. But predictably, she ends up miserable with all that! In the end, he takes it all away, and she goes back to her old, difficult life, supposedly realizing she was happier being herself. It just felt a little…flat, you know?

The biggest problem with the episode is that it tells us the character is better off after everything she’s been through, but doesn’t convincingly show us why. Unlike a classic like *It’s a Wonderful Life*, where we clearly see why the main character wants to go back to his life, this episode feels incomplete and even talks down to the audience. Adding to the issues, the original broadcast included a laugh track like a sitcom, which was later removed. Even without it, though, “Cavender Is Coming” remains one of the weaker episodes of *The Twilight Zone*.

4) “Uncle Simon”

This story is strong and well-done, but the conclusion doesn’t quite tie up all loose ends. In “Uncle Simon,” a woman inherits money from her unkind uncle, with the condition that she looks after a robot made to resemble him. The robot starts behaving like the abusive uncle, hinting that his personality might have been transferred into the machine.

The show’s biggest weakness lies in its unclear handling of the money and resources. It’s never explained convincingly why Barbara wouldn’t simply take the funds and abandon the robot, or why Mr. Schwimmer would keep supporting such a harmful situation. Instead of offering clear answers, the show leans heavily into being a symbolic story. While Constance Ford delivers a strong performance and the reveal of Uncle Simon as a robot is amusing, the financial and legal aspects of the plot remain unconvincing to viewers.

3) “The Whole Truth”

This episode starts with a promising idea but finishes with one of the most illogical conclusions in the entire series. “The Whole Truth” features a car salesman who gets a cursed car that makes him unable to lie to his customers. His sales plummet, and he eventually gets rid of the car by selling it to a foreign diplomat. The episode ends with Rod Serling suggesting this one sale will magically prevent World War III.

The story hints at a diplomat preventing nuclear war simply by telling the truth, but it doesn’t explain *how* – a few more details would have made this idea more believable. The twist feels cheesy and overly political, yet it doesn’t really offer any deeper insight. While the message that politicians should be honest is good, it isn’t developed enough to be impactful. Adding to the oddness, this episode was filmed on videotape, giving it a noticeably lower quality and a soap opera feel compared to the rest of the show.

2) “Black Leather Jackets”

Stories about alien invasions are common in shows like *The Twilight Zone*, but “Black Leather Jackets” is considered one of the weakest and most debated episodes. It features three young men on motorcycles who move into a typical neighborhood, secretly intending to contaminate the water supply as a prelude to an alien takeover. One of them develops feelings for a local girl, but when the invasion starts, he leaves her behind. The episode then abruptly stops without a proper conclusion.

The episode falls flat because it doesn’t offer a compelling resolution or any meaningful takeaway. Unlike classic invasion stories like “The Monsters Are Due on Maple Street” and “The Shelter,” which explored themes of fear and groupthink, this one feels aimless, suggesting only distrust, water contamination worries, and the futility of love. The episode leaves you with more questions than answers, and the disappointing ending just makes it even more frustrating.

1) “A Kind of Stopwatch”

The Season 5 finale is really memorable, though a bit strange. A boastful character named McNulty finds a stopwatch that can stop time. As you might expect, he uses it for personal gain, but one day he accidentally breaks the watch while time is frozen. This leaves everyone and everything frozen in place, and McNulty is left alone in a silent world filled with motionless figures.

As a movie buff, I always found this story deceptively simple – just fix the watch, right? Unless this thing needed some seriously fantastical components, the character had all the time and money in the world to do it. Honestly, the story doesn’t *totally* make sense if you think too hard, but it’s so well done that it doesn’t even matter. It really drives home the message about not wasting your life chasing after selfish goals. You’ve seen this idea riffed on everywhere – *The Simpsons*, *Futurama*, even *Johnny Bravo* have poked fun at the plot hole! But Rod Serling’s original version is still the best. It reminds us that *The Twilight Zone* wasn’t about perfect logic; it was about something much more impactful.

Which Twilight Zone ending confused you the most? Leave us a comment below!

https://comicbook.com/tv-shows/news/great-twilight-zone-episodes-overlooked-best-streaming/embed/#

Read More

2025-09-22 04:11