Twilight Zone: Mr. Denton on Doomsday

[Starbug]

Drunk time-travel is a thing, and I'm not talking about Rick & Morty

youtu.be/hCvyPRSDl2s
Although, one of them is strangely familiar...

[Nevix]

I laughed pretty damn hard at the "Dr. Who's Buying?" spoof idea.

I also like this episode some, but not too much.

It's a bit of a jaundiced view on gunslingers of the old west, but it's also a very valid perspective on them too.

There were more reasons for gunslingers and gunslinging in the old west than just reputation, but just going after the prize of "the best shooting duelist" is also not much of a prize, considering that you get to be the next target for the others who wanted the prize.

I might also be a sucker for a well written happy ending. ;p

[Rocketboy1313]

This is one of those episodes in which HD does it no favors.
After the gun gets shot out of his hand they start wrapping it with a bandage and... it is just his hand.
Couldn't have squirted some ketchup on those knuckles to sell the effect? No?

Whatever.
This is also one of those early episode that has such overt magical elements that it makes me question why "The Twilight Zone" is so often seen as a science fiction series in the popular consciousness. In the first 10 episodes, Satan, Fate, and Death all appear. Not exactly all that science fictiony.

[BunBun299]

This is one of those episodes in which HD does it no favors.
After the gun gets shot out of his hand they start wrapping it with a bandage and... it is just his hand.
Couldn't have squirted some ketchup on those knuckles to sell the effect? No?

Whatever.
This is also one of those early episode that has such overt magical elements that it makes me question why "The Twilight Zone" is so often seen as a science fiction series in the popular consciousness. In the first 10 episodes, Satan, Fate, and Death all appear. Not exactly all that science fictiony.

Science Fiction and Fantasy are two sides of the same coin. The simple definition of a Fantasy story is a story where something extraordinary happens. This could be anything from a talking dog to a full blown alternative world with wizards and dragons.

Science Fiction is the same thing. In fact, it's technically a sub genre of Fantasy. Something extraordinary happens, but in the sci fi story, there's some device that enables the extraordinary thing instead of some magic. Or at least, it pretends to be tech.

The two really are so alike that I get annoyed that pop culture seems to bound and determined to keep them separate.

[Deledrius]

The term you're looking for is Speculative Fiction.

[Independent George]

Science Fiction and Fantasy are two sides of the same coin. The simple definition of a Fantasy story is a story where something extraordinary happens. This could be anything from a talking dog to a full blown alternative world with wizards and dragons.

Science Fiction is the same thing. In fact, it's technically a sub genre of Fantasy. Something extraordinary happens, but in the sci fi story, there's some device that enables the extraordinary thing instead of some magic. Or at least, it pretends to be tech.

The two really are so alike that I get annoyed that pop culture seems to bound and determined to keep them separate.

This is a good enough point that I'm starting a thread in the general forum.

[Durandal_1707]

Whatever.
This is also one of those early episode that has such overt magical elements that it makes me question why "The Twilight Zone" is so often seen as a science fiction series in the popular consciousness. In the first 10 episodes, Satan, Fate, and Death all appear. Not exactly all that science fictiony.

The first episode is about a guy prepping to be sent into space, and hallucinating from the psychological effects of the experience. What's not sci-fi about that?

[Rocketboy1313]

Whatever.
This is also one of those early episode that has such overt magical elements that it makes me question why "The Twilight Zone" is so often seen as a science fiction series in the popular consciousness. In the first 10 episodes, Satan, Fate, and Death all appear. Not exactly all that science fictiony.

The first episode is about a guy prepping to be sent into space, and hallucinating from the psychological effects of the experience. What's not sci-fi about that?

There are science fiction episodes in the show, but there are just as many about magic is what I am saying.

When I was growing up all the ones I knew about were "To Serve Man" and "Time Enough At Last" those were the ones that got parodied the most, but American Marine magically transforms into a Japanese Soldier to understand the brutality of unnecessary combat? Hitler magically reappearing? A Genie? All of these sort of got swept away until I started seeing the show as a grown up.

Maybe if the first season had all been science fiction and the magic had shown up in later episodes to be sort of swept under the rug of popular awareness, but I sort of think that a lot of people's perceptions of the show is of more science fiction than it is.

[ChiggyvonRichthofen]

I think the expectation of what The Twilight Zone is, or how it exists in the public consciousness, comes from a) the fact that Rod Serling wrote over half the episodes, and b) a small handful of episodes define how people think about the show. The best, or most infamous, episodes (or moments) of a show often are seen as defining what the essence of that show actually is. I think this is especially true of The Twilight Zone, with the same small number of episodes having numerous thinkpieces devoted to them over the years, being taught in schools, etc.

In reality, yes, the show had much more variety than it is usually given credit for in terms of setting and the type of story it could tell, although there is unsurprisingly a number of themes that are revisited quite often.

[Rocketboy1313]

In reality, yes, the show had much more variety than it is usually given credit for in terms of setting and the type of story it could tell, although there is unsurprisingly a number of themes that are revisited quite often.

"I suck"
"I'm Lonely"
"I'm getting old"
"I'M LONELY!"
and
"Fucking people... Bunch of assholes."