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THE TWILIGHT ZONE: VOLUME 43

Volume 43, released last month, is the last piece in the collection. Aside from presenting the final two episodes not yet represented in Vol.'s 1 42 ("A World of His Own" and "A Thing About Machines"), Image Entertainment also kicks in variations on the very popular "The Eye of the Beholder" and the pilot episode "Where Is Everybody?" (both of which are available on previous discs in their more conventional forms). In that regard, this last volume is for completists more than anyone else.

This version of "Where Is Everybody?," for example, features a brief introduction (i.e. pitch) by Serling to the program's prospective sponsors. Since this was the pilot episode, it was necessary to secure advertising dollars in order for the show to fly. Fans of THE TWILIGHT ZONE will love the seven-minute segment, as Serling makes his sell in his own distinctive way. He also gives tantalizing glimpses of episodes that were in the production or concepting stage at the time in fact, this is a mini-episode all its own. Again, ZONE freaks will enjoy picking out what he's talking about. (One also must wonder what the advertising suits made of Rod's whacked ideas about robot women on asteroid penal colonies and schoolmaster sharpshooters with magic potions.)

When Serling's done with the dirty business of money, the episode proper begins. Another oddity about this version of "Where Is Everybody?" is that Serling does not provide his expected voiceover here; instead, a much more conventional '50s baritone relays a variation on the familiar lead-in. The visuals of the title sequence are different as well and much more generic than what is found in the broadcast version of "Where Is Everybody?" - but once the episode begins, the familiar scripting and tone of THE TWILIGHT ZONE are all right there.

Earl Holliman carries the episode virtually on his own (and ironically enough, he carries the future of the series as well since it was this episode that sold the show) as an amnesiac who awakens to find himself in a seemingly abandoned town. He spends almost the entire episode wandering around, trying to figure out who he is and what happened to the rest of the townspeople, while his grip on sanity slowly loosens. Of course, things aren't what they seem, and Holliman and the audience are both in for a big surprise by episode's end in true ZONE fashion.

The second episode on the disc is also a recycled one. "The Private World of Darkness" is actually "The Eye of the Beholder" the only difference being the title card during the closing credits. For some reason, while the episode was titled "Eye..." when it originally aired, the "Private World..." moniker appears in the syndicated version of the episode. Hardly as interesting as the "Where Is Everybody?" variations, to say the least.

Of course, the segment is one of the most famous ZONE episodes ever. In a world much like our own, a deformed woman (Maxine Stuart) waits in her hospital bed for the bandages to be removed from her face after the most recent procedure to correct her malady. She knows that if her appearance remains unaltered, she'll be shipped off to a special camp for other outcasts who are similarly afflicted. But when those bandages finally do get clipped, we learn why "The Eye of the Beholder" is a much more appropriate title for the episode.

The two remaining segments are both new to disc. "A World of His Own" is a comedy piece, the sort of thing that sends some fans of the show up the wall. THE TWILIGHT ZONE's attempts at comedy were always hit and miss, but "World" is one of the best of its kind. Keenan Wynn plays a successful playwright who possesses a unique ability: he can conjure up anyone or anything he pleases by simply describing it while speaking into his Dictaphone. But when his wife learns that he's created a mistress for himself, things get complicated fast. The episode (which was the first season finale) ends with Serling's first onscreen appearance, a humorous bit where he actually interacts with the show's characters.

The final episode here is fairly weak and brings down the quality of the rest of this package. "A Thing About Machines" stars Richard Haydn as a curmudgeon who despises machinery and all things mechanical. Not surprisingly, the very devices he abuses manage to take their revenge on the man eventually. The segment is one-note and predictable, and representative of all that can go wrong with a TWILIGHT ZONE episode.

The extra features on this disc are the same that have been found on all 42 previous DVDs: onscreen text production notes dubbed "Inside THE TWILIGHT ZONE" which contain a Rod Serling bio, a season-by-season commentary, a history of the show, episode reviews and credits.

There are also some Easter eggs to find here, the first group of which are isolated musical scores for three of the episodes. "The Private World of Darkness," "A World of His Own," and "A Thing About Machines" all feature isolated scores it just takes a bit of poking around in the menu area to access them. This is always a great feature and one that isn't found often enough on DVD releases.

The other hidden features are original product placements and program bumpers for the same three episodes. These basically consist of ancient ads for Sanka coffee ("The perfect coffee on the modern scenes!"), Kleenex and such. Serling also shows up to promote "next week's" episode, which is fun stuff to stumble upon.

So what's next, now that you've got every TWILIGHT ZONE episode on DVD? Just wait a few years they're bound to come up with an even cooler collectible video format that will simply be a "must have." After all, remember Laserdisc?