Rod Serling’s baby has influenced popular culture for decades, and has been the basis for items ranging from comic books to stage plays to even a pinball game. The series introduced viewers to the serious side of sci-fi, as well as influenced countless artists and actors. Even today, there’s talk of a third revival of the series and another film. In preparation for the series’ 55th anniversary (and another release of the complete series on Blu-Ray and DVD), CBS and Image Entertainment have cobbled together 17 of the series’ classic episodes into a two-disc set. While I won’t go through all the episodes, I’ll give highlights, since while all these episodes are definitely essential, you probably don’t want to be sitting there for hours.

Things start off with the fifth episode from the first season, “Walking Distance”. Gig Young stars as Martin Sloan, an overworked executive longing to get back to the carefree days of his childhood, stops to have his car serviced at a gas station. Martin discovers that his hometown of Homewood is within walking distance of the gas station. After walking into town, Martin sees that things haven’t changed since he was a boy, and that in fact it’s the year 1934. While not one of Rod Serling’s favorite episodes, the focus on nostalgia and the problems it holds makes for a compelling story. Coupled with Young’s performance, Serling’s beautiful dialogue (“You’ve been looking behind you, Martin. Try looking ahead.”), and Bernard Hermann’s masterful score, this starts the set off right.

“Time Enough At Last” is the eighth episode of the first season, and concerns Burgess Meredith as Henry Bemis. Henry loves books, but the world he lives in prevents him from reading them. After an explosion that devastates his city and kills everyone save for him, Henry discovers that while he now is free to read his books, there are consequences to his wish. Exploring the theme of being careful what you wish for while also covering the difference between solitude and loneliness, Serling (basing the episode from a short story by Marilyn Venable) presents probably the most popular episode of the entire series. What makes it even scarier is the fact that in the present day of eBooks, the internet and the like, a story like this one is still very much (if not more) impactful.

In “The Eye Of The Beholder”, Maxine Stuart (and Donna Douglas) plays Janet Tyler, a societal outcast who has remained hospitalized in an effort to repair her hideously disfigured face. But after eleven operations (the maximum allowed under law), there has been no change. But just how disfigured is she? Putting a twist on the societal norms of what beauty is, the real star of this episode is the episode’s cinematography: Everyone, save for Stuart and Douglas, was filmed in shadow, heightening the suspense and making the eventual reveal of Janet Tyler’s face from under the bandages that much more striking. Director Douglas Heyes also helped things by casting the episode by having his back to the performers. The episode’s legacy is cemented with it being remade for the 2002-03 revival, as well as the numerous parodies that have ensued over the years since it’s broadcast.

Being a sucker for Orwellian stories, “The Obsolete Man” immediately hooked me. Burgess Meredith returns to the series as Romney Wordsworth, a former librarian, who is sentenced to death by the State for his obsolescence. After pleading his case to the Chancellor (Fritz Weaver) to no avail, Wordsworth requests that he be granted a personal assassin to whom he may privately disclose his preferred method of execution, as well as his death be televised. Coupled with Wordsworth’s comparisons of the Chancellor to Hitler and Stalin and the numerous themes that have become associated with totalitarian governments, the obvious message of the dangers of totalitarianism is plain to see. However, it would probably fall flat if the episode wasn’t backed by wonderful acting by Meredith and Weaver. Throw in another twist ending that is poetic and delightfully ironic, and you have another treat on your hands.

Then there’s “Nightmare at 20,000 Feet”, which was based on Richard Matheson’s short story of the same name, and directed by Richard Donner (yes, that Richard Donner), who went on to direct more episodes of the series. Starring William Shatner as Robert Wilson, this episode was remade for the Twilight Zone movie, and more recently, was parodied in The Simpsons’ Treehouse of Horror IV Halloween episode (one of my favorites). Anyhoo, the story is that Robert Wilson is flying home after six months in a sanitarium after experiencing a mental breakdown on a previous flight. While en route on this flight, he encounters a horror that has him trying to save the plane from crashing. Shatner carries this episode, doing quite well at being frightened. It’s his expressions of abject horror that help drive the panic Robert Wilson is feeling. With an excellent supporting cast including Christine White and Ed Kemmer, the only real flaw is in Nick Cravat’s gremlin makeup. This was thankfully corrected in the movie version.

So, with all these classic episodes, are there any drawbacks? Well, anyone who has been keeping tabs on the series’ continued DVD and Blu-Ray releases, you’ll know that this is more or less a cash grab. The episodes, while presented intact, are just that and nothing more, leave you wanting to grab the full seasons. The individual seasons have been out on DVD for a good five years now, and the Blu-Ray versions have been out for only two years. Really, this set’s purpose is to hype the complete series boxset that’s already out, and to milk more money from the fans. If you’re a fan of the series and haven’t gotten any of sets, spring for the complete series boxset. You’ll get far more out of it rather than this sampler. If, however, you’ve never seen the Twilight Zone before, this two-disc set serves as a great (albeit barebones) introduction.

Video/Audio:
Presented in their original 4:3 full frame aspect ratio, the transfers look almost pristine. There are a few scratches, nicks and dirt, but the overall picture is clear and shows off some great detail, even for DVD.

Audio-wise, each episode is presented in its original mono track. Like the video transfer, the audio is top-notch, although given it’s origins, lacks the punch a stereo mix would have, but that’s okay. Dialogue is clear with no distortion, and music (notably Bernard Hermann’s) is also clear.

Extras:
Given that this is more or less a sampler set, there aren’t any extras.