July 17, 2023- number 130,131

Spoilers

“The 7th is Made Up of Phantoms”

June 25, 1876 is a dark day in the history of the US Military. June 25, 1964 was a dark day in the history of The Twilight Zone.

The episode took the story of Custer’s Last Stand and had three soldiers from the show and had them tracing the path of the past, only to get stuck in it.

“June twenty-fifth 1964—or, if you prefer, June twenty-fifth 1876. The cast of characters in order of their appearance: a patrol of General Custer’s cavalry and a patrol of National Guardsmen on a maneuver. Past and present are about to collide head-on, as they are wont to do in a very special bivouac area known as….the Twilight Zone.”

It was weird because we started with three military officers from the Old West and I thought we were getting another of the Western themed episodes of The Twilight Zone. A few moments later, there was a tank and that threw a monkey wrench into the plans.

This episode gave me more specifics about the lead up to the slaughter of Custer and his men, which was fairly interesting, but the episode did not engage me in much else. It was an intriguing premise, but the overall execution of the episode felt pretty lacking.

“A Short Drink from a Certain Fountain”

A new version of Dr. Jekyll and Mr. Hyde, the idea how scientists will test their formulas on themselves… although this is a scientist testing his formula on his brother.

“Picture of an aging man who leads his life, as Thoreau said, ‘in quiet desperation.’ Because Harmon Gordon is enslaved by a love affair with a wife forty years his junior. Because of this, he runs when he should walk. He surrenders when simple pride dictates a stand. He pines away for the lost morning of his life when he should be enjoying the evening. In short, Mr. Harmon Gordon seeks a fountain of youth, and who’s to say he won’t find it? This happens to be the Twilight Zone.”

So, Harmon basically talks his brother into testing his formula on him because he wanted to be young again so he could keep up with the love of his life, his young wife Flora. Flora, btw, is one of those horrible characters from the Twilight Zone that you just hate.

Of course, it is also a Fountain of Youth trope and it turns out much like you would expect.

The relationship between Harmon and Flora was inconsistent and unlikable. There was no reason I believed that Harmon was in love with this rotten woman and I believe even less that she wouldn’t just walk out the door and return with a lawyer when the doctor threatened to have all of his brother’s money and the gifts that he gave her away from her if she did not take care of her newly ‘childish’ husband.

This one was not one of the better episodes of the show. Not much to benefit for the story.