We rank The Twilight Zone episodes that featured future Star Trek stars.
Star Trek and Twilight Zone defined science fiction television in the 1960s. Both portrayed scenarios where the characters were forced to decide how they would handle a specific problem. Like with Star Trek, Twilight Zone never really showed what the correct way forward was, often times pulling a bait and switch where the hero does the “right” thing, only to have a less-than-optimal resolution.
This was later expanded upon in Star Trek, where many episodes tackled problems within society by showing all relevant points. So the shows did have a lot in common, but they also, at times, shared a cast.
Fans may not realize this, but four of the core Star Trek: The Original Series actors appeared on The Twilight Zone before Star Trek ever went into production. Trek stars who made their bones on Twilight Zone included the obvious one, William Shatner, who was the only member of Trek to star in two different episodes. Then you had Leonardy Nimoy and James Doohan, who many remember. Lastly was George Takei, who most may not realize, as his episode wasn’t officially aired until 2004 due to the content of the episode.
So which of the five episodes that Trek actors featured in is truly the best?
5. A Quality of Mercy (Leonard Nimoy)
Leonard Nimoy didn’t feature too strongly in this episode, which isn’t surprising, as he was hardly a name when the episode was shot in 1961. The episode features a professional military man, trying to justify his recent promotion, ordering his men to kill a group of Japanese soldiers who are ill and weak but he’s met with pushback from his soldiers. He then gets teleported to a different time, where he is now a subordinate to a Japanese officer, who is planning on doing something very similar several years prior.
Nimoy’s lack of a roll hurt its standing for sure, and there’s good reason for that. When you’re evaluating an episode based on Star Trek characters and their roles within the episode, you want them to have a big part. If not, you want the episode to be extraordinary. This episode failed to meet both criteria.
It’s a janky episode, with a solid plot, but nothing else to remember it by. The series is often known for its twists and shock endings, like the “To Serve Men” cookbook revelation. A Quality of Mercy’s twist wasn’t much of one and things end on a dower note.
4. Nick of Time (William Shatner)
Many remember William Shatner screaming about gremlins on a wing, but that wasn’t his first appearance on The Twilight Zone. Don (Shatner) and his wife Patricia end up in a diner in nowheresville Ohio, where they find a fortune-telling machine that will tell them their future for just a penny. Don becomes obsessed with the machine but his wife Patricia eventually talks him out of his obsession, getting him to leave the diner and the city. This is then juxtaposed by an older couple who keeps coming back unable to break their reliance on the device.
It’s a fine episode and one that may be more timely today, as it tackles the idea of being obsessed with technology and the fear of the unknown, which many deals with today in spades.
3. The Encounter (George Takei)
George Takei plays Arthur (Taro) Takamori, a man who’s looking for work, and arrives at the house of a former World War II vet, named Fenton. Fenton owns a mysterious samurai sword, that allows those who wield it to see things, as well as compels people to admit the truth. It’s revealed that both men have guilt about their involvement in the war, with Fenton having murdered a Japanese soldier out of cold blood during the war, and Taro having to live with the fact that his father was a traitor and was partially responsible for the bombing at Pearl Harbor.
The ending of the episode sees Taro murder Fenton and then commit suicide due to the influence of the blade. The episode tries to highlight how carrying guilt will kill you, but it was a bit too on the nose. Though, the acting in the episode was superb.
2. Nightmare at 20,000 Feet (William Shatner)
William Shatner’s Bob sees a gremlin on the wing of a plane, no one believes him, and he slowly goes insane. It’s classic, though not exactly the social commentary many fans of The Twilight Zone are used to. It’s this high due to it being a classic.
1. Valley of the Shadow (James Doohan)
A man named Phillip arrives in a small town that is extremely secretive. It’s revealed they have advanced technology that could make the world a better place, but they refuse to share, as they feel mankind would just use it as a weapon. After attempting to test Phillip, the city finds that he is what they feared he was, a man who would use the devices as weapons and thus banish him from the city after erasing the memory of his time there.
Doohan doesn’t have a lot of lines in this, but the episode is among the best, just for the twist at the end. It may be a bit obvious now, but the first time through, the betrayal really hits.