June 8, 2023- number 30

“A Stop at Willoughby”

This was Rod Serling’s favorite episode from the first season of The Twilight Zone, and I can definitely see why.

An ad exec Gart Williams was struggling at his job, getting more stressed and anxious over everything.

“This is Gart Williams, age thirty-eight, a man protected by a suit of armor all held together by one bolt. Just a moment ago, someone removed the bolt, and Mr. Williams’ protection fell away from him, and left him a naked target. He’s been cannonaded this afternoon by all the enemies of his life. His insecurity has shelled him, his sensitivity has straddled him with humiliation, his deep-rooted disquiet about his own worth has zeroed in on him, landed on target, and blown him apart. Mr. Gart Williams, ad agency exec, who in just a moment, will move into the Twilight Zone—in a desperate search for survival“

While heading home on a train after a particularly problematic day, Mr. Williams fell asleep and dreamed of a long ago town called Willoughby. A town where everything was peaceful and tranquil, Boys went fishing. Carriages were pulled by horses. Everything seemed to go slower.

Mr. Williams could not get Willoughby out of his mind and, a second time he had the dream on the train, he nearly got off, only to be awakened by the jolt of the train.

His wife had little empathy for him. His boss kept on his back to “PUSH, PUSH, PUSH.” Everything was flying past him. He made the decision to get off the train the next time he dreamed of Willoughby.

And that is exactly what he did. Everything seemed to be peaceful and lovely.

However, this is The Twilight Zone so we were going to get a twist. It seemed that, in reality, Gart Williams, when he thought the train was stopped at Willoughby, in reality, jumped off the moving train, killing himself.

The mortuary company of Willoughby and Son picked up the body.

Great ending to this episode. I expected something magical to happen. Kind of like the Apple TV + series Schmigadoon. Instead, we get a sudden switch to tragedy and we take a sharp turn to the dark. Or is Mr. Williams still there in Willoughby, happy as he could be?

Wonderful episode.

“Willoughby? Maybe it’s wishful thinking nestled in a hidden part of a man’s mind, or maybe it’s the last stop in the vast design of things—or perhaps, for a man like Mr. Gart Williams, who climbed on a world that went by too fast, it’s a place around the bend where he could jump off. Willoughby? Whatever it is, it comes with sunlight and serenity, and is a part of The Twilight Zone.”