The Parallel - Twilight-Tober Zone
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- Опубліковано 15 вер 2024
- "The Parallel" used a concept that's been popular for decades, but has really taken over superhero films in the mainstream as of late. Does the episode hold up to modern viewing? Find out now as Walter continues his deep dive into The Twilight Zone.
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"The Parallel" is episode 113 of the American television anthology series The Twilight Zone. In this episode an astronaut returns from a voyage to find the world not quite the same as he remembers it. It was an early example of the concept of mirror or alternate universes. The Star Trek: The Original Series episode "Mirror, Mirror" was another example, although the differences between the characters in the two Star Trek alternate universes were quite noticeable. The concept has also been used by both DC Comics and Marvel Comics in their comic books and cinematic universes.
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What did everyone think of The Parallel? Like it? Dislike it? Middle of the road?
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I liked the concept of it. Especially the part where JFK is unheard of because he wasn't president in their universe! It's like that episode of Family Matters where Carl enters an alternate timeline and discovered that Rosie O'Donnell was president instead of Bill Clinton!
Awesome!
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Multiverses are common now, but it must have been cool to see it back then when it wasn’t a common trope
I was sent to a parallel realm . A future one.. almost no love there.. and it was filled with diesel fumes it was/is a future simulation.. just how this is an older ancestor simulation.
I miss when a multiverse story that wasn't Spider-verse or Rick & Morty gave me that same sense of adventure...
This is definitely the blueprint of the parallel / evil universe. And it's done quite well
"Evil" universe? The oldest thing I've seen with one of those was that Star Trek episode, "Mirror, mirror".
Love these Alternate Reality episodes of The Twilight Zone.
Same here!!! It's better than all the other multiverse films today.
I don’t know, I’ve seen a double twist take place so many times, I think how this one ends is perfectly fine.
it's kinda refreshing to see The Twilight Zone have some happy endings once in a while
@@staceynainlab888 I agree
Yeah if it ended differently it would've been too much. The happy ending was the best
This is the episode that got me into the twilight zone. I remember being sick in the bed with the flu and didn’t have enough energy to grab the tv remote. So I was just laying there watching this episode and got hooked on the show 😂
Just imagine somebody telling you before that day that someday you would get sick, and that would improve your taste in television.
One of the gentler stories from the Twilight Zone.
And thus, the multiverse came into power 😂
This reminds me of the 2019 movie Yesterday where a struggling musician who one day wakes up to an alternate universe where The Beatles never existed! The protagonist rose to superstardom with their songs by taking the credit for them! The most surprising revelation is we discover John Lennon's fate in that universe! Since he never formed The Beatles in that universe, he got to live a happy quiet life well into his twilight years!
One of the best hour long ones! "You are not my Daddy!" Cannot wait till you review the New Exhibit!
I like his performance. These men are chosen not only for their skill but also for their ability to remain calm. His analytical approach to the situation seems realistic for a man trained to think out every possible situation that might arise during a mission. I have issues portraying hardened soldiers and astronauts as panicky and average. I've seen this in my own life experience.
So this is the episode I thank for parallel worlds?
Seriously I will never get tired of multiversal stories thank you so much Mr Sterling
This is one of the better multiverse treatments ever made. And it's one of the better S.4 episodes.
I remember the first Twilight Zone episode I watched was about parallel worlds, so this must be it. After that brief viewing, I got hooked.
I really enjoyed it but I'm also a huge sci-fi fan so it hooked me. I liked the building tension but agree - it would have been nice if he couldn't find his way home and was trapped in parallel earths forever.
HOWEVER, this is a masterpiece compared to the next installment - I dream of Jenie. OMG - could barely handle five minutes before I gave up. That episode was AGONY to watch. One of those 'it's really funny - trust me' and you are just seeing the jokes play out as if this was one of those comedy series that got five episodes before the network mercifully cancelled it.
I had no idea that Steve Forrest, the protagonist in this installment, was brothers with Dana Andrews, the protagonist in the previous episode.
My number 34 episode. Not classic, but a welcome expansion on an earlier episode about a "twin" in another universe. I also liked the hint of infidelity between the couple. Perhaps the oddest reference though, was when Gaines is talking to his friend and uses the term "outer limit(s)". The other show had not yet premiered, but certainly was known to TV execs (and, in fact "shopped" to CBS)❤
To me there is an extra layer of creepiness and intrigue from how space was thought of in an era where so little was known about it, for all anyone knew this exact situation was a possibility going out into space.
i've contemplated the ida that. somewhere there is an Earth identical to our own in every way, and we could send an astronaut there and they could send an astronaut here and their experiences would be identical in every way and they would never know they are on planets different to their own
Loved this so much back as a kid. Easily one of, if not THE favorites of the series. I was a big fan of comics especially DC (then just ending its Silver Age and shifting into its Bronze Age) and especially the notion of parallel Earths (Earth's Two being something I gobbled up whenever it showed up, which was rare, just a few time a year at best). And I'd only seen it done live in Star Trek and this but with this by far more enjoyable because it was closer to being possible thanks to being set in the real world. A lot find this too long, but I loved getting to sit back and enjoy being on "another world parallel to ours" for so long, instead of being rushed through. I did however, with time, feel that it'd have been better ending on the close-up with him hoping but not know what answer Mission Control had given him, so it'd have been still a lingering worry. And after all these decades (hallf-century+) I still rate it as one of the best Multiverse (though I hadn't heard that name yet then) shows I've seen.
This episode definitely reminded me of a lot of alternate universe stories. Which would include the multiverse trend that we've had in superhero movies recently.
Only 11 days left in the twilight tober zone for this year.
I know, I can't believe that it's over in a week and a half! 😭
Just enough to start the 5th and final season by the looks of things.
They'll get through all of Season 4 by the 27th of October. Which leaves them four days of Season 5 episodes.
_Not_ as mind blowing nor thought provoking _today_ as it was back then, but it _is_ cool to see where these commonplace tropes _started from_ and how they played out.
I love this The Twilight Zone episode!
the thing i love (and wish they delved deeper into) about this is that it gets me wondering about what changes led to what is presented today? as well as what specific differences his wife and daughter noticed, if theyre something that can even be explained.
I'm kinda surprised this show didn't use multiverse stuff more often. That's probably just my 2023 brain being used to it being so common.
Wasn't there another episode In the Twilight Zone where a guy wakes up and people don't believe he Is himself? Forget the name and season of It.
Well, it's just common in dimension C-137 and a handful of adjacent ones. You'd be surprised how uncommon this trope is in most of the rest.
@@animanga9597And the 80's show had a Christmas episode where a secretary goes to another world where everyone thinks secretaries are cool.
Oh, it was person or persons unknown. That one was creepy.@@EvenTheDogAgrees
@@animanga9597That was called "Person Or Persons Unknown." And I remember that it ended with him waking up and not knowing who anyone else is after going through the other way around!
It was a good first attempt to portray a parallel universe. A first attempt is also why other than history being a bit different and the strain put on his family; there weren’t that many imposing threats to Gaines.
The happy ending twist is fine; but it’s those “DUN DUN DUN!!!” moments that really stick with you throughout the Twilight Zone.
Makes you wonder what an unhappy ending for Gaines would’ve looked like. Because with parallel universes it has the potential to be very shocking, creepy or disturbing!
Parallel universes and alternate realities are always my favorite themes for any series
I always liked this episode because it showed an astronaut in a realistic spacecraft and not in some sort of flying saucer as most of the TZ episodes depicted astronauts.
I like how it explores the little changes in parallel universe and how those alone could be unnerving. There may not be a dystopia on the other side but the fact that your house is a different color or your job title is different can be enough.
Reminds me of the _Star Trek: The Next Geneation_ episode titled *Parallels* from the seventh and final season, and just like the _Twilight Zone_ episode with a similar title were both the 11th episode of their perspective seasons.
*Just 6 years after TZ's "The Parallel", the UK movie, "Journey To The Far Side of the Sun" hit the big screen. It is uncannily similar to this 1963 TV episode.*
This episode was essentially remade in Star Trek: The Original Series episode Mirror, Mirror. As we all know, William Shatner, Leonard Nimoy, James Doohan and George Takei appeared on both shows.
Parallel universes have always fascinated me but it's been interesting to see how wide spread its become. My first time to come across it was a book i had as a kid was called The Chronicles of Crestomancy iirc and the way it played with parallel worlds wasn't a huge plot point, but still interesting.
It's the classic trope of a pair of orphan siblings get taken in by an eccentric wealthy person with a secret and magical shenanigans occur when its found out the sister is a powerful witch. She's actually not the main character though, we mostly focus on her brother and I won't spoil what happens to him, but one thing to come up is how his sister is such a wicked and vain thing, she eventually found a way to enter a parallel universe. However it turns out there are nine connected realms and only one version can exist in each world so when she jumped borders it dragged all of her counterparts into the neighboring realms like on a chain. The new version of her has no magic but references seem to imply she came from our world where its not TOO different but the technology is due to the dependence on magic in the book's universe. Something comes up where the sister comes back for a short period and we find out she went to a world where she's treated like a goddess and when she goes back, the new girl says she found a diary by the girl who took her place in her room. Seems that girl was so awe filled and mystified by our world's simple pleasures because her world she had been saved from was a total dystopia. Knowing that, the new girl said she didn't mind staying with the protag in his world so much since she knew the girl who had taken her place would be so happy and since his sister seemed so happy with where she ended up, he thought maybe it really was for the best.
I do like the concept here where it's not like those Wonderland episodes a lot if shows do with a completely weird world that has the sane lead meeting versions of the rest of the cast, but like you said, only having subtle differences giving an air of mystery and unsettling feelings can only do so much when it has to be dragged out. I may be biased by the example above, but I think one thing that might have helped with the ending at least is if it turned out the bright light was the switch itself. Instead of him coming back and everyone asking where he went for six hours then laughing off the notion of a parallel universe before his counterpart showed up, they could have led with your suggestion that he's in yet another universe by waking up and his ground control asking if it's actually him this time. This time? Yes, because while he was gone, they've been just as confused in dealing with someone just like him saying they came from a parallel universe and he showed up right when they sent the other back! It could be left vague as to if each got back to their original homes or not by having him go home and reunite with his family since sure they're happy to see him now but so were the others before they realized something was off so we don't stick around to find out.
I always enjoyed this one.
True parallels of the twilight zone
Maggie's reaction to her "dad" just goes to show that you cannot fool a small child. They notice things that most adults never get to notice. For example, if little girl is very close to her dad, like in Maggie's case obviously, she will notice if there is something wrong.
Made me think of the 2011 movie Another Earth, though that took the minimalist route, firmly placing the concept in the background.
Reminds me of one of the best Miles O'Brien episodes of Star Trek Deep Space 9.
This episode seems to be a prototype for the season 2 TOS episode " Mirror, Mirror "
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Love your videos guys! 🎃🎃🎃🧡🧡🧡🖤🖤🖤
The series Sliders (parallel universes) gives homage to the fence and gate. When the main character slides back to his real house, he knows, because the gate creaks. IIRC, the camera shot is very similar, too.
Sliders had a couple good seasons, then it slid.
TNG S7E11 Parallels actually has a similar ending to the one you were anticipating.
Worf returns to the Enterprise after a contest, assing through a negative space-wedgie along the way. When he returns, he is thrown a surprise birthday party by Riker. The rest of the episode has Worf randomly hopping parallel Enterprises, ending with him back on his shuttle as if nothing happened.
But when he returns to the Enterprise, no party is thrown. And it's left ambiguous of the surprise party was in a parell universe, or if he's now trapped in a world that is just "close enough."
All things considered, with the name, the ship, and basic premise, it's more than likely based on this episode, or at least inspired by it!
I feel like I watch these videos only for the Plot Twist spoilers... but I can't bring myself to close the tab until I heard the narrator says "Twilight Zone" in the end
nice to see how they did this back in the day
This episode is super crazy because there is a effect called Mandela Effect where people share a different memory.
Agreed; this IMO is yet another episode that had pacing troubles and could have used the half-hour format.
I always loved that the alternate universe wasn’t evil, just slightly different than ours
Not just multiverses in general, but the specific astronaut plot was better known from Gerry Anderson's almost identical spin on it six years later, where our hero crashes "back" on an undiscovered parallel Earth, in "Journey to the Far Side of the Sun".
Either way, it would have been just tolerable at a half hour.
I wonder if the other timeline has Lee Harvey Oswald as a professional landscaper?
The bright light and the fact that when he leaves he wakes up and the fact that they say he was gone for 6 hours but he says he was gone for weeks reminds me of the Morris arc of the clone wars…and I guess contact
I think it was the first film or TV series that showed the concept of a parallel universe onscreen and in a realistic way too, the protagonist returns home, everything seems fine but over time, h discovers significant differences
That episode is more like 'The Outer Limits' than 'Twilight Zone' since they have very similar science fiction themes.
Steve Forrest was a younger brother of Dana Andrews, who starred in episode No Time Like the past. Unlike his brother, who was never a big star, Forrest was a big star both on television and in movies at the time
The Far Side of The Sun (USA) aka Doppelganger (UK). A very similar Gerry Anderson production.
Suprised you resisted the urge to add in a clip of that guy in back to the future asking “who the hell is john f kennedy “ yes that was straightforward time travel not a multiverse but itdve been funny there was a fox show called fringe a few years back that had a great alternate universe arc
That Episode is more Outer Limits than Twilight Zone, In fact, that episode belongs on The Outer Limits.
Probably a banger back in the day.
~_~
Nice multiverse narration at the end. Lol
There are a few out-of-universe parallels as well: Major Bob Gaines lives in the same house as Major Anthony Nelson, who was, if you remember, equally not taken seriously about his after-spashdown experience (series 1, episode 1). Both traveled in space in a very similar if not the same space capsule, and both had an unbelieving doctor hanging around.
One notable difference: one was played for drama and one, for comedy.
It seemed OK up till that ending. That would involve time travel as well as the multiverse given the difference in time.
I will say Sliders which was a show about the Multiverse from the 90's had a few episodes with twist endings. One, like you suggested would have been a better twist here, the main cast end up on an Earth that is similar enough to their own to make them believe they've returned home but they start to notice little changes in their lives that convince them they're still on the wrong Earth. One of the changes that was pointed out is that the fence around Que's house has had a squeak in the gate ever since he moved in that he never bothered to fix but upon returning home he noticed the gate didn't make a sound. It's a small change he didn't think much about at first till other changes started to pile up. I won't spoil everything in that episode in case you never seen it but you might enjoy that series.
There's another episode that also ends in one of the main characters fighting an evil doppelganger of himself and we're left with a rather ambiguous ending never really knowing which Professor actually ended up hopping universes with them at the end of that episode. He was later written off as the actor left the show entirely so still to this day we have no idea if the Professor who died is the same one from the beginning of the series or the evil version from that other Earth where they may have possibly traded places.
Oh and if you do watch Sliders, I suggest stopping when the Aliens start showing up. They're not actually aliens, they were added into the series because the show changed networks around that time and they wanted it to be more of an action series and less of a Science Fiction series so the writing went down hill from that point. That's also around the time that most of the original cast left the show because they didn't like the change in direction the show was going. There's only 1 cast member who actually stays on till the end and ironically he wasn't even suppose to be part of the original crew, they picked him up by accident.
Yes! I mentioned Sliders, and the squeaky gate, too, before seeing your comment. I, too, mention it got pretty bad.
I like the multiverse trope in superhero movies, I don't care how people say it's tiring, I like seeing all of my favorite heroes in one place.
And see ones I never heard of.
Its true thats a pretty super heroic theme nowadays, but dont forget that a lot of superheroes came from science fiction too
I wonder if a fan edit could make this work better by cutting down some of the repetitive scenes and cutting down closer to a traditional half hour story.
Twilight Zone is a multiverse. 😁
Dark Disney ❤
If no one had heard of JFK in the alternative universe, then who was president in their version of 1963?
They never said. All I know is if JFK was never president, then he never would've been assassinated!
This is my biggest gripe. JFK might not exist but the rest of the Kennedys, wouldn’t they?
@averageant7173 You misunderstand. The reason they never heard of JFK was because he was never president in their universe. He would still exist along with the rest of the Kennedy family, but would probably live a quiet life keeping him out of the limelight.
I think the main problem with this one is that it just repeats the same conversation about parallel worlds over and over, but never really takes full advantage of the situation. It would've been more compelling if the risks of not getting home were higher. Or if they made the differences between universes more pronounced. If they had me writing this, here's what I would suggest:
In the main universe, our hero is happily married and has a child on the way, but they're afraid that they may lose the baby due to health complications. Our hero then gets sent to the parallel world and in this alternate dimension, he learns that his alternate self is an asshole who abuses his wife (or at the very least, is emotionally unavailable). But also in this other world, they DID manage to have their kid. The mirror wife then falls in love with our hero, as she finds our hero much more kind and loving than her husband. After some debate, our hero decides that he has to try and get back to his own world, because he can't leave his "real" wife a widow (or worse, leave his wife in the hands of his abusive alter-self). But before leaving, he helps the mirror wife get the tools she needs to safely leave her bad husband. And in turn, mirror wife tells our hero that they nearly lost their daughter in this other world back when she was born, but a risky medical procedure saved her.
Our hero then gets back to his own universe, and makes it to the hospital just in time to see his daughter be born, and armed with the knowledge he got from the alternate world, he's able to save her. And meanwhile in mirror world, the bad husband comes home to see that his wife and daughter left him, with a note explaining that "a friend" helped her gain the courage she needed to finally leave him.
I think by doing something like this, there's more of a reason for why our hero got sent to another dimension. Each main player from each world gains something and/or learns a lesson from the experience. But as is, the plot just kind of meanders with nothing significantly accomplished.
The Parallel is not really one of my favorites. It's fine and has its moments, but it didn't really work for me. I think Twilight Zone did better with the parallel universe concept with the first season's A World of Difference. I think the most interesting scene is when Gaines confronts Maggie, and she admits that she knows this isn't her Daddy. It's heart-wrenching, and it is one moment that Steve Forrest does very well. I don't think that the episode was hurt too much by the hour length, although I acknowledge there is a lot of unnecessary padding, but the ending does bother me. I wonder if Serling himself had any idea how to end the episode since Gaines just suddenly returns to his universe for no reason. It did have a couple of nice little twists at the end, but how we got there doesn't really make a lot of sense.
Ironically, a few years later, Gerry Anderson would do his version of the parallel earth concept, Doppleganger, aka Journey to the Far Side of the Sun. The irony is that Doppleganger has many of the same problems the TZ episode does -- it is rather padded, the characters aren't exactly sympathetic, and it has a very odd ending that just comes out of nowhere.
(Me hearing about "Multiverse saturation" , Especially in superhero / sci-fi genre).
Please, that existed decades ago.
The only difference was that it never made it into the films and mainstream media until recently (and even then, most of them BARELY use it right. Just a quick mention and then ignore it.
Only the Spider-Verse films kinda use it right. Even other movies like Everything and Everywhere all at once BARELY start scratching the Surface and even those fall into the most mainstream cliche use of the multiverse)
6:48 Even this video points it out the concept isn't as modern as people think
Would have been a banger of a twist he had returned home, and he had a different kid or something.
0:48 ah no rod serling believes in the Mandela effect 💀
together equals
"Who the hell is John F. Kennedy?" - Sam Baines, Back to the Future
In 1955, Kennedy was still the junior senator from Massachusetts, and was five years away from running for president, so someone in Hill Valley, California in 1955 not knowing who he was is understandable. But when The Parallel was written, he was already president, so yeah, someone in the military in 1963 not knowing who he was is a big tipoff that this is literally a different universe.
Good episode. It was drawn out too long to a hour, would've been better at a half hour 😊
Hey, the It's a Wonderful Life movie gave us the famous trope of the same name, so why not this one with the Across the Multiverse trope ?
The main difference in It's A Wonderful Life is we see the alternative universe where George Bailey had never been born. While in this episode The protagonist exists in both worlds with a few slight differences.
this is one of the few hour long episodes I've seen. I misremembered it as being a half hour episode. I remember very little about it but the John F Kennedy part always stood out in my memory. it's the moment the episode confirms that he is in a universe different from our own, whereas before that the episode could have been taking place in our universe and he could have been from a parallel universe. it worked out well for the episode's longevity that Kennedy is still a well known president now. If the president at the time didn't stay well known, that scene wouldn't mean the same thing to modern audiences. people would have to google to see if the episode had the name of the actual president at the time.
Edolas and Earthland.
It was a good episode,but it got a bit confusing in the middle with too much information about the differences in the other world.
Honestly, I think this one was OK not great not as good as some of the better episodes of come before or after.
It felt like they had a good idea with this concept. It’s just they could’ve done a little more with it. But it’s solid all the way around.
This story was not meant for an hour long format obviously. That is main reason why it seemed like it was dragging on with endless loop of scenes that either repeat same plot points or do not make any sense at all. 30 minute format would have fit this story much better.
Perhaps on this parallel world, John F. Kennedy was a Navy Lieutenant who perished with his crew on PT-109.
apparalel
ground control to major Tom...
Unlike almost everything else from the fourth season, I actually really like this episode. But I agree it's also a good example, like all fourth season episodes, of blatant padding to fill out the run time. Making TZ an hour long show was one of the biggest mistakes in CBS history. Because of the run time difference, they couldn't even use these episodes in syndication rotations, with very rare exceptions.
Major Gains💪🏾💪🏾
If you were going through this phenomenon, maybe you would give this episode a better review.
beach body supermodel man
Is this review a part of the Bimmyverse continuity?
It sounds like the Mandela Effect. Rod Sterling.
This is the story of my life, minus being an astronaut. I've been Mandela'd.
What if Mulan was secretly a Mongal infiltrator for Shan Yu
Okay, so they got the multiverse thing working, but where's Marvel's heavy-handed attempt at identity politics? At no point during this episode was it implied I should feel guilty about something completely out of my control, such as my race, gender, orientation, etc... Feels like Serling dropped the ball in this one 😂
I am a big fan of What If stories. My biggest one right now is what if TR won his 3rd term for President (no Wilson) and the US sided with the Germans and the USA got into a 3 War with GB and invaded Canada?
Sorry for the sidetrack. As for this episode I enjoy it for the premise. I wish they would have shown more differences like Cars, buying food at the store, Different ppl on US currency, stuff like that, instead of repeating the same dialogue 3 times. I guess it was a cost saving measure. I like the lead actor, I remember him in the 1970s show SWAT. I thought the lil girl was whiney but small issue. I feel the big miss was with Military. Having some physical proof of a person not from "their Earth" they could have taken this episode into a McCarty type of raiding his home, tearing it apart accusing him of being a spy, he has to escape, and then is shot or hit and the screen goes to a very bright white to dark black and then we see he is back in "his world". After he lands he is a changed man, seeing how the "other world' treated him he is not very unsure of the people around him. Just my thoughts on improving the story.
Was this multiverse or counter earth?
Sliders need a reboot.
Are audiences getting sick of the multiverse concept already? And why are they acting like it's a new thing, if it's been used in comic books and other storytelling media for decades?
Meh, parallel Earths is not quite multiverse yet, especially by comic book standards. You do need bit more than just two. This kinda feels more like the movie Contact.
I would have liked it better had if the other him was seen trying to understand the situation on Earth and they get to their proper dimensions after traveling again in their spacecraft. So not bad but average. November 5th 2023 4:47 PM Central Time
the astronauts wife
A block past Maple? That's John F. Kennedy Drive
Who the hell is John F. Kennedy?
Prefer the star trek TNG parallels. I know most people seem to dislike TNG's last season but at least Star Trek knew how to make an hour (~40min) episode