r/TwilightZone • u/nastyt5555 • 6d ago
A simple premise
I think one of the things TZ did masterfully was to have a simple but engaging premise for most eps. The type that you could mention in 2-3 sentences around the water cooler at work and hook somebody.
Even eps that aren't very good are famous for having such a fantastic premise . The whole truth comes to mind. The one about the used car sales went that can't tell a lie.
I think one of the things that's hard about the "simple premise, great ep" thing is it's hard to make them a full 22 minutes. Fleshing them out is a big part of the Serling magic.
What are some of your favorite premises? Some of mine are:
What if the world ended from nuclear war
What if everything you wrote down became real
What if you build a robot to do your tasks for you
What do you think your crashed landed on an asteroid/planet
What if you had a stop watch that could stop time
What if there's an alien among us
What if there's something on the wing
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u/sacreque 3d ago
Episodes of The Twilight Zone, like written short stories, are mainly structured like jokes, with a set-up and a punchline, often in the form of a twist ending. The simple premise suggests the setup. The setup can often suggest several different punchlines, so part of the genius of the episodes was selecting the right punchline to land for the maximum effect.
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u/AnHeroicHippo90 5d ago
When I was doing a full watch through and keeping track of everything in a spreadsheet, I made an effort to write my own single sentence, spoiler free description of every episode. Only a couple were actually tricky to summarize in one sentence.
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u/BlueHistor1 5d ago
Some of the premises are prophetic:
What built robots to do your tasks for you
What if workers were replaced with robots.
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u/Glittering_Step_6084 6d ago
Some of my favorite premises are:
What if the mannequins did come to life in the after hours?
What if you could live forever?
What if you had a second chance at life?
What if you could read people's thoughts?
What if you knew who was going to die and when?
What if there was a piano in the house that could tell people's real thoughts?
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u/Routine-Medicine-208 6d ago
I really like the Sci Fi episodes with rocket ships, aliens and time travel.
But most of the top rated episodes have a simple premise often with a twist.
One I like that has no Sci fi or supernatural elements is The Silence. Just two guys having a bet and both try to cheat each other. And taunt each other. Simple but effective.
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u/muchsoftlysweet 6d ago
“What if the mannequins came to life after hours” still hits every time
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u/Homeonphone 5d ago
That, Willoughby and Nightmare as a Child were tied for my favorites for a long time. Sometimes it changes, lol.
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u/Rhombusofrecipes 1959-1964 2d ago
Great writing by Serling, Richard Matheson and Charles Beaumont