The Best of Rod Serling’s Twilight Zone Scripts
Edited By Tony Albarella
Gauntlet Press
November, 2014
Reviewed by Chris Obenschain
If you have even a passing interest in The Twilight Zone, this book is worth your money. Rod Serling’s work on this series is phenomenal, and these scripts – his 10 “best” – are some of the greatest ever penned for TV. They forever changed the television landscape, creating not just an excellent, timeless show, but also serving as an unexpected outlet for some of the most effective social and political criticism of the mid-20th century. This, in a time when Hollywood censors purged all media of any controversial or critical contemporary themes, was quite an achievement.
Who can watch (or in this case, read) “Time Enough At Last” and not ponder the futility of nuclear war, or not lament the xenophobia and paranoia of the cold war after reflecting on “The Monsters are Due on Maple Street”? Even today, over 50 years after their debut, these stories are still as gripping, emotional and – unfortunately – relevant as they were back then.
The scripts themselves are beautifully written, and are every bit as engaging as the episodes on TV. You can also see the differences in what Serling wrote and what ended up on the screen. For example, in the script for “Walking Distance,” events play out in a different order than they do on the show. And while it was likely Serling himself who made the adjustment, it’s still interesting to see the overt and nuanced changes that were made in the transition from script to screen, many of which are discussed in the “commentary” essays accompanying each script.
If there’s a complaint I can make about this book it’s there isn’t enough of it. Serling wrote 92 of the show’s 156 episodes, and many classic episodes, such as “Twenty Two,” “The Hitch Hiker” and “It’s a Good Life,” are left out. But make no mistake: these scripts do cover the best of what The Twilight Zone is known for. Regardless if you’re looking for aliens, time travel, unique or other-worldly stories or post-apocalyptic narratives, you’ll approve of what’s here.
Serling’s work on The Twilight Zone is just as relevant today as when it premiered, and regardless if you’re interested in his social critique, want to study the alterations that were made in the transition to TV or simply would like a copy of some of the most important television scripts ever written, this book will make a worthy addition to your collection.
