TV Wasteland: Not Only of Sight and Sound, But of Mind (Mania.com)
By:Rob Vaux
Date: Monday, June 29, 2009
Whatever the SciFi Channel's faults--and with the transfer to "Syfy" imminent, those faults have loomed particularly large of late--there's one thing it always gets right: the 4th of July Twilight Zone marathon. It's become quite the geek tradition over the years, and its continued place on SciFi's schedule suggests that there's still some tiny worm of the station's original purpose amid all the pro wrestling and reality show idiocy. Rod Serling's groundbreaking anthology had its share of lousy episodes, where overt preachiness or poorly engineered twists overwhelmed any semblance of elegant storytelling. But when it was on its game, nothing in the history of television could approach it.
SciFi is prefacing this year's run with an interesting inclusion: the revival version of The Twilight Zone which ran on CBS in the mid-1980s. Though it couldn’t boast Serling's uniquely ironic signature and its crap-to-quality ratio was quite a bit higher, it still produced its share of memorable episodes. Grade-A talent such as Wes Craven, Harlan Ellison and Joe Dante participated, as did a number of stars in their before-they-were-famous phase. (You won't believe how young Bruce Willis looks in the series premiere.)
Episodes of the revival start Thursday, July 2, at 8:00 AM EDT on SciFi. Episodes of the original series start on July 3 at 5:00 PM EDT. Below is a list of a few highlights and personal favorites, along with their airing times:
"A Small Talent for War" (2nd half of the episode, July 2, 10:30 AM EDT)
"Gramma" (July 2, 1:30 PM EDT)
"The Shadow Man" (July 2, 8:00 PM EDT)
"I Of Newton" (2nd half of the episode, July 3, 5:30 AM EDT)
"Number Twelve Looks Just Like You" (July 3, 10:30 PM EDT)
"Mirror Image" (July 3, 11:00 PM EDT)
"Hocus-Pocus and Frisby" (July 4, 3:00 AM EDT)
"Nick of Time" (July 4, 9:30 AM EDT)
"It's a Good Life" (July 4, 2:00 PM EDT)
"The Masks" (July 4, 5:00 PM EDT)
"The Howling Man" (July 4, 6:00 PM EDT)
"Time Enough at Last" (July 4, 8:30 PM EDT)
"Eye of the Beholder" (July 4, 9:00 PM EDT)
"The Monsters Are Due on Maple Street" (July 4, 9:30 PM EDT)
"To Serve Man" (July 4, 10:00 PM EDT)
"Nightmare at 20,000 Feet" (July 4, 10:30 PM EDT)
"The Rip Van Winkle Caper" (July 4, 3:30 AM EDT)
Monday
The Phantom Menace (Spike, 6:00 PM EDT)
Look, Jar-Jar notwithstanding, it really isn't that bad. And the kids still dig it.
Tuesday
Ghostbusters (AMC, 8:00 PM EDT)
With the threat of a no-doubt crappy Part III barreling our way, let's all take a little time to remember how great the first one was with this airing on AMC.
Attack of the Clones (Spike, 6:00 PM EDT)
Okay, Attack of the Clones is likely the weakest of the six Star Wars movies, but it still features Samuel L. Jackson and his purple lightsaber bad-osity, along with Yoda's crack-addled Death Muppet routine.
X-Men: The Last Stand (F/X, 7:30 PM EDT)
Considering that Brett Ratner was at the helm, we can probably file this one comfortably in "it could have been worse" territory.
Life After People is in reruns this week.
Wednesday
RoboCop (IFC, 8:00 PM EDT)
Paul Verhoeven's sharp-as-nails sci-fi satire still works both as a brutal action film and a skewering of Reagan-era greed. IFC presents its movies uncut, so you'll get to enjoy every brain-splattering moment.
Revenge of the Sith (Spike, 6:00 PM EDT)
Even nay-sayers found things to like about the conclusion to the Star Wars prequel trilogy. We still have to suffer through the appalling Anakin/Padme romance, however.
MonsterQuest is in reruns this week.
Thursday
The Twilight Zone Marathon (SciFi, 8:00 AM EDT)
The revival series which ran from 1985 through 1989 kicks off in the morning. See the top of the article for more details.
The Listener (NBC, 10:00 PM EDT)
"Forget it Toby (Craig Olejnik). It's Chinatown." Our Hero helps solve a murder in the local Asian community while developing a relationship with the victim's sister.
Star Wars (Spike, 6:00 PM EDT)
A New Hope is a special and important movie to be sure, but let's be honest: it features a number of problems (bad dialogue, wooden acting) that people were far more willing to forgive here than in the prequels.
The Matrix (TNT, 9:00 PM EDT)
Crappy follow-ups cannot dim the undisputed awesomeness of Larry and Andy Wachowski's modern classic. Just pretend it ends when Keanu hangs up the phone.
Friday
The Twilight Zone Marathon (SciFi, 5:00 PM EDT)
The classic series picks up where the revival left off and runs through Saturday night. See the top of the article for more details.
The Empire Strikes Back (Spike, 6:00 PM EDT)
Now this is pod racing. Everything comes together in the riveting fifth chapter to George Lucas's space saga. Action, romance, the most stunning revelation in science fiction history… even some crackerjack dialogue thanks to screenwriter Lawrence Kasdan. Why oh why couldn't they all be like this?
Batman: The Brave and the Bold and Star Wars: The Clone Wars are on hiatus. Wolverine and the X-Men and Iron Man: Armored Adventures are reruns.
Saturday
Kings (NBC, 8:00 PM EDT)
David (Christopher Egan) heads off in search of the kingdom's original charter, only to uncover troubling new information about his father.
Eli Stone (ABC, 10:00 PM EDT)
Eli (Jonny Lee Miller) and Jordan (Victor Garber) get a chance to stick it to the company that fired them this week.
Return of the Jedi (Spike, 6:00 PM EDT)
The chronological finale to the Star Wars saga loses points mainly by having to tie everything up without being able to develop any energy of its own. Weigh the prospect of Princess Leia (Carrie Fisher) in her slave girl bikini against the horrors of that annoying Ewoks song, and make your viewing choice accordingly.
Broken Arrow (Fox Movie Channel, 7:00 PM EDT)
If I told you that John Woo directed a movie starring John Travolta and Christian Slater about a rogue pilot who steals nuclear weapons, and that it was actually pretty good, you'd probably laugh in my face. Yet here we are.
Sunday
True Blood (HBO, 9:00 PM EDT)
Okay, we have some confusion on whether there's a new episode this week. HBO originally slated one tonight, but TV Guide is claiming otherwise. It may have been bumped to next week because of the holiday.
Merlin (NBC, 8:00 PM EDT)
NBC, on the other hand, definitely has a new episode of Merlin, in which the titular wizard (Colin Morgan) and Lancelot (Santiago Cabrera) team up to fight an evil winged monster. Um, woot.
The Mask (ABC Family, 8:00 PM EDT)
Exactly two things make this 1994 adaptation of the Dark Horse comic book worth watching: Jim Carrey and Cameron Diaz. And how often can you say that?
Total Recall (SciFi, 6:30 PM EDT)
Paul Verhoeven strikes again with this better-than-average Arnold Schwarzenegger vehicle featuring mutants on Mars and an aerobicizing Sharon Stone. Just relax and let Kuato take the pain away…
Pirates of the Caribbean (SciFi, 9:00 PM EDT)
The first of the Pirates trilogy introduced the world to the unforgettable Jack Sparrow, courtesy of Mr. Jonathan Depp.
Series: