Growing up in the 1970s and 1980s I was subjected to many reruns over the years. Our city-based independent television stations often ran these during the dinner hours prior to network television starting at 8PM. For that reason, I grew up watching many classic television shows from the 1950s and 1960s.

It’s a real testament to how well The Twilight Zone is written that it’s one of the few shows that I grew up watching that my kids enjoy a great deal as well. I credit that to the smart writing of the series, rather than dumbing itself down to the audience.

Rod Serling, the series creator also found a way to tackle many social issues that were verboten on network television due to the sponsors and network censors. He figured that couching topics such as racism and politics in a science fiction setting would enable him to get around the censors, and he was correct. In addition, most of the episodes finish with a twist or moral lesson that catches people off-guard. For this reason, many episodes of The Twilight Zone are among the smartest shows to come out of the era.

Unfortunately, with the release of the series on DVD, those responsible chose to cobble together three or four episodes of the series under the guise of a central theme. These episodes spanned the seasons, and as the numbers on the volumes has gotten higher, what linked them together became more and more tenuous.

Such is the case with this nineteenth volume. The first two episodes, A Most Unusual Camera and The Jungle are centered around inanimate objects that seem to have a degree of life or power. The 7th is Made Up of Phantoms has to do with modern-day men going back in time. There are no lifeless objects involved. Uncle Simon does sort of bring it back to this central theme, but only at the very end and in quite a different way.

In this regard, the way the series has been put together is quite disappointing. While the episodes have been restored quite well with excellent pictures and sound, those in charge would have been better off releasing the series in season-long boxed sets as has been done with other series. There’s also a dearth of special features, and what is there has been reproduced from one disc to the next. It would have been nice to grab some of the people who worked on this series while they are still with us and have them give some memories of working on the series, either in a featurette for the episodes or as commentary.

While it would seem that The Twilight Zone was largely able to escape the commercialization and product placement of the era, for the first time, during the closing credits for The 7th is Made Up of Phantoms, I noticed product placement with advertising for Crest and Prell on the side of the tank shown during the credits. This took me greatly by surprise.

While my children and I always enjoy watching episodes of The Twilight Zone uncut and uninterrupted, the way the series has been released is disappointing. Renting it to watch is definitely worth it, but I wouldn’t invest in the series until it’s released in a better format.

A Most Unusual Camera

Chester and Paula are in a hotel room reading the newspaper account of their burglary of an antique shop. Of all the items listed, the only one not mentioned that they stole was an antique camera.

When Chester takes a picture with the camera of Paula posing in front of the window, a picture pops out of her standing there in a mink coat. The only problem is she wasn’t wearing a mink coat when she posed. They think it’s a joke until they open a chest from the heist and find a mink coat. To test this, Paula takes a picture of the door and it shows her brother Woodward coming through it. Sure enough, he comes through although they believe him to be far away.

The three of them figure out that the camera shows what the picture framed will look like five minutes later. For a while, they think of using it to help humanity, then Woodward hears a horse race on television and gets an idea of how they can make a wad of cash. However, there is no such thing as easy money…

The Jungle

Alan and his wife Doris are in their New York apartment as he’s preparing for the day’s work. Looking for his cuff-links in her jewelry box, he finds some items she brought home with them from Africa, where his company is constructing a dam. Doris states they are just souvenirs, but Alan knows better, They were items given to her by a local shaman while they were in Africa as protection. Angered by what he perceives is a weakness of character on her part, he throws the items into their fireplace.

This gets her upset, and she insists that he not leave their apartment. When he does open the door to leave, a dead goat is outside their door.

In a meeting, he discussed the dam construction with other officers of the company. When he mentions that the natives are opposed to the construction and have vowed to fight with black magic, they all laugh. However, Alan points out how many of them have their own superstitions.

Before going home, Alan stops by a bar to have a drink with a friend. He shows his friend a lion’s tooth that Doris gave him for protection. When they go to leave, Alan finds he has left the tooth in the bar, but it’s now locked up tight. As he tries to get home, the streets are deserted, but he begins hearing jungle noises…

The 7th is Made Up of Phantoms

A scout and two U.S. Army soldiers are at Little Big Horn trying to track the Sioux for General Custer. An arrow slices into the scout and the two soldiers fire their weapons.

The shots are heard by three modern-day U.S. Army soldiers on maneuvers in the area. When they investigate, they find a teepee. As they head back to their tank, they think they hear a Native American war cry, but write it off to the wind.

However, upon returning to their base, MSgt. William Connors makes a report to his superior who thinks he is crazy. He sends them out to patrol the same area the next day. When they are out, not only do they hear the sounds of war, but also see evidence that there is a battle going on nearby. Pvt. Michael McCluskey fires into a dust cloud, and a riderless horse emerges.

The tank receives a radio call from their Captain ordering them back to the base. He sends out a recon patrol to make sure they come back.

Meanwhile, the three soldiers come across what looks like a Native settlement. As they check it out, McCluskey comes back with an arrow embedded in his back. They also can no longer find their tanks, which were found earlier by the recon patrol. They do hear the sounds of a great battle going on and prepare to join it…

Uncle Simon

Barbara Polk has lived with and cared for her Uncle Simon for many years. She has stayed with him because she is his only heir, but he is a nasty, sour old man. During a confrontation, she becomes agitated and pushes him down the stairs.

At the reading of his will, there are very explicit instructions that everything in the house is to remain intact, or Barbara will lose her inheritance. She is also to care for the last experiment her Uncle was conducting. When the lawyer goes with her to the home to find what that experiment was, they find a robot he built to act and sound like him.

Constance Ford guest stars as Barbara.


INSIDE THE TWILIGHT ZONE SPECIAL FEATURES:

• Rod Serling Bio
• Season by Season
• History of the Twilight Zone
• Reviews and Credits