"The Twilight Zone" Best episodes in order
listing all 156 original Twilight Zone episodes in order of how good I think they are (my opinion as if I were a critic)
(It's my favorite show, but some episodes are by memory of ages ago and may change slightly as I re-watch them).
(It's my favorite show, but some episodes are by memory of ages ago and may change slightly as I re-watch them).
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156 titles
- DirectorJohn BrahmStarsBurgess MeredithVaughn TaylorJacqueline deWitA henpecked book lover finds himself blissfully alone with his books after a nuclear war.
- DirectorRichard DonnerStarsWilliam ShatnerChristine WhiteEd KemmerA man, newly recovered from a nervous breakdown, becomes convinced that a monster only he sees is damaging the plane he's flying in.
- DirectorRichard L. BareStarsLloyd BochnerSusan CummingsRichard KielAn alien race comes to Earth, promising peace and sharing technology. A linguist and his team set out to translate the aliens' language, using a book whose title they deduce is "To Serve Man."
- DirectorDouglas HeyesStarsRod SerlingAnne FrancisElizabeth AllenA woman is treated badly by some odd salespeople on an otherwise empty department store floor.
- DirectorRobert ParrishStarsRod SerlingJames DalyHoward SmithTired of his miserable job and wife, a businessman starts dreaming on the train each night, about an old, idyllic town called Willoughby. Soon he has to know whether the town is real and fancies the thought of seeking refuge there.
- DirectorJames SheldonStarsJohn LarchCloris LeachmanDon KeeferOn an isolated family farm, a young boy with vast mental powers, but lacking emotional development, holds his terrified family in thrall to his every juvenile wish.
- DirectorRichard C. SarafianStarsTelly SavalasMary LaRocheTracy StratfordA frustrated father does battle with his stepdaughter's talking doll, whose vocabulary includes such phrases as "I hate you" and "I'm going to kill you".
- DirectorDouglas HeyesStarsJohn CarradineH.M. WynantRobin HughesSeeking refuge from a storm, a traveler comes upon a bizarre abbey of monks, who have imprisoned a man who begs for his help. When he confronts the head monk, he is told that the man is the Devil, and he must decide whom to believe.
- DirectorDouglas HeyesStarsMaxine StuartWilliam D. GordonJennifer HowardA young woman lying in a hospital bed, her head wrapped in bandages, awaits the outcome of a surgical procedure performed by the State in a last-ditch attempt to make her look "normal."
- DirectorRobert StevensStarsRod SerlingGig YoungFrank OvertonA man, fed up with where he's at in life, finds himself not only in his old hometown, but back to the time when he was a boy.
- DirectorAlvin GanzerStarsInger StevensAdam WilliamsLew GalloA young woman driving cross-country becomes frantic when she keeps passing the same man on the side of the road. No matter how fast she drives, the man is always up ahead, hitching her for a ride.
- DirectorLamont JohnsonStarsLarry GatesJoseph BernardJack AlbertsonA suburban dinner party is interrupted by a bulletin warning of an impending nuclear attack. As the neighbors scramble to prepare themselves, they turn against the one family that installed a permanent bomb shelter.
- 1959–196425mTV-PG8.9 (6.2K)TV EpisodeDirectorRon WinstonStarsRod SerlingClaude AkinsBarry AtwaterOn a peaceful suburban street, strange occurrences and mysterious people stoke the residents' paranoia to a disastrous intensity.
- DirectorWalter GraumanStarsRobert DuvallPert KeltonBarbara BarrieMousey misfit Charley Parkes finds the world unfolding before him in a museum doll house to be more real than his boring job and overbearing mother.
- DirectorRichard L. BareStarsWilliam ShatnerPatricia BreslinGuy WilkersonA pair of newlyweds stopping in a small town are trapped by their own superstition when playing a fortune-telling machine in a local diner.
- DirectorJack SmightStarsRod SerlingJack WardenJohn DehnerA convict, living alone on an asteroid, receives from the police a realistic woman-robot.
- DirectorMitchell LeisenStarsRoddy McDowallSusan OliverPaul ComiFearing the worst, the lone survivor of a crash-landing on Mars finds the native inhabitants, to his relief, very hospitable indeed, but there's a catch.
- DirectorJohn BrahmStarsRod SerlingVera MilesMartin MilnerWhile waiting in a bus station, Millicent Barnes has the strange feeling that her doppelganger is trying to take over her life.
- DirectorElliot SilversteinStarsBurgess MeredithFritz WeaverJosip ElicIn a future totalitarian society, a librarian is declared obsolete and sentenced to death.
- DirectorRalph NelsonStarsKeenan WynnPhyllis KirkMary LaRocheA writer demonstrates he can control reality simply by dictating changes.
- DirectorTed PostStarsHoward DuffDavid WhiteFrank MaxwellA businessman sitting in his office inexplicably finds that he is on a production set and in a world where he is a movie star. Uninterested in the newfound fame, he fights to get back to his home and family.
- DirectorJack SmightStarsBarbara NicholsJonathan HarrisFredd WayneWhile in the hospital recovering from overwork, Liz Powell keeps dreaming about going down to the hospital morgue.
- DirectorRichard L. BareStarsFritz WeaverEdward AndrewsJoe MarossTwo families of Government employees plan to steal a spaceship and travel to another planet just prior to a nuclear war. They must also deal with a stooge who wants to stop them.
- DirectorBuzz KulikStarsJack KlugmanJonathan WintersDee SharonA frustrated pool champion has beaten everyone. Everyone except one man - the legendary Fats Brown. Brown is dead and the champ can only curse his name. But guess who just walked in.
- DirectorJack SmightStarsArt CarneyJohn FiedlerRobert P. LiebAfter a derelict Santa Claus is fired on Christmas Eve, he finds a mysterious bag that gives out presents. With this bag he sets out to fulfill his one wish - to see the less fortunate inherit the bounties of Christmas.
- 1959–196425mTV-PG8.7 (4.3K)TV EpisodeDirectorMontgomery PittmanStarsJohn HoytJean WillesJack ElamFollowing a frantic phone call about a crashed spaceship, two policemen try to determine who among the bus passengers at a snowed-in roadside diner is from another world.
- DirectorAlan Crosland Jr.StarsSteve ForrestJacqueline ScottFrank AletterAstronaut Robert Gaines returns from space to a world that is not exactly the one he left from.
- DirectorJohn BrahmStarsRichard LongFrank SilveraShirley BallardPaying homage to It's a Wonderful Life (1946), David Gurney wakes up to another ordinary day. Except today, nobody knows who he is including his own wife Wilma.
- 1959–196425mTV-PG8.3 (5.1K)TV EpisodeDirectorDouglas HeyesStarsRod TaylorJim HuttonCharles AidmanThree astronauts return to Earth after seemingly having made an encounter that dooms them and their craft to erasure from existence itself.
- DirectorRobert StevensStarsEarl HollimanJames GregoryPaul LangtonMike Ferris finds himself alone in the small Oakwood town and without recollection about his name, where he is or who he is. Mike wanders through the town trying to find a living soul.
- DirectorRon WinstonStarsBarry NelsonNancy MaloneDenise LynnA hung-over couple awaken to find themselves not only in a strange house, but in a deserted town, where nothing is as it should be.
- DirectorMontgomery PittmanStarsElizabeth MontgomeryCharles BronsonRod SerlingTwo survivors of an apocalyptic battle, a man and a woman from opposing sides, approach each other suspiciously.
- DirectorJustus AddissStarsJohn AndersonPaul ComiSandy KenyonPassing through the sound barrier, a commercial airliner inadvertently travels back in time.
- DirectorWilliam F. ClaxtonStarsKenneth HaighAlexander ScourbySimon ScottA World War I British fighter pilot lands at an American air base in 1959 France.
- 1959–196425mTV-PG8.5 (3.9K)TV EpisodeDirectorLamont JohnsonStarsSusan HarrisonWilliam WindomMurray MathesonAn Army major awakens in a small room with no idea of who he is or how he got there. He finds four other people in the same room, and they all begin to question how they each arrived there, and more importantly, how to escape.People seem to either love this episode or hate it, no in-between. Maybe the reason I love it is the first time I watched it I had to do it with the sound off and found it fascinating that way and also missed the last 5 minutes. I couldn't wait to watch it again to hear what in the world these characters were talking about and what their connection was to be together.
- DirectorAlan Crosland Jr.StarsMaggie McNamaraMary MundayDavid MacklinMovie star Bunny Blake receives a ring from her hometown which is giving her warnings to come home while she flies cross country.The first time I watched this episode I was confused by the ending. Now I think it is a touching ending and one of the best episodes. For some reason it took me decades to realize the title of the episode had to do with her wearing a ring and not her job.
- DirectorDouglas HeyesStarsCecil KellawayJeff MorrowDon DubbinsThree astronauts touch down on an asteroid, where they discover a world of people that appear to be frozen in time. Confused, they theorize as to why everyone is motionless, until a man springs to life and explains.
- DirectorDon MedfordStarsJack KlugmanRoss MartinFred BeirAn interplanetary expedition from Earth finds an exact duplicate of their ship and themselves crashed on the planet they were surveying. Should they stay or risk taking off and crashing?
- DirectorStuart RosenbergStarsDennis HopperLudwig DonathPaul MazurskyA tiny neo-Nazi organization struggles pathetically to succeed in a big city. A mysterious figure begins to ruthlessly guide a young, insecure U.S. Nazi leader, and the group begins to draw more attention.
- DirectorLamont JohnsonStarsErnest TruexRussell CollinsJohn MarleyAn old man living in a rest home thinks he's found the secret of youth in children's games.
- DirectorLamont JohnsonStarsGladys CooperWilfrid Hyde-WhiteCecil KellawayA young American couple, the Ransomes, who are trying to salvage their troubled marriage, insist on booking passage on an old trans-Atlantic cruise liner. But other passengers try to persuade them to disembark immediately.
- DirectorJohn BrahmStarsRod SerlingNehemiah PersoffDeirdre OwensIt's 1942, and a man finds himself on a ship in the Atlantic, not knowing who he is, nor how he got there. He does know the ship will soon be attacked by a German U-boat.
- 1959–196425mTV-PG6.8 (5K)TV EpisodeDirectorMitchell LeisenStarsRod SerlingIda LupinoMartin BalsamBarbara Jean Trenton is a faded film star who lives in the past by constantly re-watching her old movies instead of moving on with her life, so her associates try to lure her out of her self-imposed isolation.
- DirectorJohn BrahmStarsAnn BlythLee PhilipsCelia LovskyA reporter interviews a Hollywood movie queen who has a secret to her eternal beauty.
- DirectorElliot SilversteinStarsDiana HylandMarsha HuntPhilip OberAn engaged heiress is terrorized by a middle-aged woman on a horse pleading with her not to go through with her impending marriage.
- 1959–196451mTV-148.1 (2.1K)TV EpisodeDirectorBuzz KulikStarsJames WhitmoreTim O'ConnorJames BroderickThe first human space colony is about to be rescued from the forsaken planet they've been on for three decades. But their leader's having a hard time accepting that change will happen when they get back to Earth.
- DirectorJustus AddissStarsDana AndrewsPatricia BreslinMalcolm AtterburyA scientist attempts to use a time machine to prevent tragedies, both in world history and in his own past.
- DirectorRobert ButlerStarsJackie CooperMorgan BrittanySarah SelbyWhen Irish ventriloquist Jonathan West cannot find any work, his dummy Caesar suggests that he turn to burglary.
- DirectorAbner BibermanStarsCliff RobertsonFrank SuttonGeorge MurdockVentriloquist Jerry Etherson is convinced that his dummy, Willie, is alive and evil. He locks Willie in a trunk and makes plans for a new act with a new dummy. Too bad he didn't clear those plans with Willie first.
- DirectorRichard L. BareStarsSusan GordonJ. Pat O'MalleyNancy KulpJenny and the other kids don't realize that the kindly yet magical old duffer they play with in the park is really an intergalactic fugitive hiding out till two serious men come looking for him, asking questions that test their friendship.
- DirectorJames SheldonStarsDick YorkJune DaytonDan TobinGaining telepathic abilities when his coin lands on its edge, bank clerk Hector B. Poole learns about the difference between other people's plans and fantasies.
- DirectorStuart RosenbergStarsDewey MartinEdward BinnsTed OtisOrder breaks down between three surviving crewmen whose rocket ship crashes on an unknown world with limited water and supplies.
- DirectorPaul StewartStarsSarah MarshallRobert SampsonCharles AidmanAwakened in the middle of the night by the cries of his daughter, a father enters the girl's room to find that she has vanished - even though he can still hear her crying out for help.
- 1959–196425mTV-PG6.6 (2.8K)TV EpisodeDirectorDouglas HeyesStarsJoe MantellWilliam D. GordonRod SerlingSmall time criminal Jackie Rhoades must face both his past and his conscience while waiting for his next assignment.
- DirectorRichard DonnerStarsMartin LandauJohn van DreelenBob KelljanA defector is trapped in a hotel room and given three hours to find a hidden bomb.
- DirectorJohn BrahmStarsLarry BlydenSebastian CabotJohn CloseWhen bad guy Henry Francis Valentine dies in a shootout with police, he wakes up in the next world where his every wish is granted forever, and ever.
- DirectorRichard L. BareStarsRod SerlingDick YorkWilliam ReynoldsA U.S. Army lieutenant serving in the Philippines during WWII develops a harrowing ability to see in the faces of the men of his platoon, the men who will be the next ones to die.
- DirectorJohn BrahmStarsMartin BalsamWill KuluvaMargaret FieldA wax-museum employee fights to preserve five figures of famous murderers.
- DirectorDon MedfordStarsPeter FalkWill KuluvaAntony CarboneA Central American revolutionary comes into the possession of a mirror that shows him his potential assassins.
- DirectorJohn BrahmStarsDennis WeaverHarry TownesWright KingAdam Grant is trapped in a recurring nightmare, in which he is sentenced to death by execution. He tries to convince the people around him that they are imaginary and that they will cease to exist if the execution is carried out.
- DirectorDavid Orrick McDearmonStarsAlbert SalmiRussell JohnsonThan WyennWhen a 20th-century scientist tests out his time machine he accidentally retrieves a murderer from 1880, saving him from the hangman's noose. Unaware of the man's history, the scientist attempts to acclimatize him to his new surroundings.
- 1959–196425mTV-PG8.3 (2.7K)TV EpisodeDirectorRobert EnricoStarsRoger JacquetAnne CornalyAnker-Spang LarsenDuring the American Civil War in 1862, a condemned Confederate prisoner, Peyton Farquhar, is due to be hanged by Union troops.
- DirectorBoris SagalStarsHarold J. StoneFredd WayneNoah KeenFederal aviation investigator Grant Sheckly must deal with a mystery when a plane lands at an airport without pilots, passengers or luggage.
- DirectorElliot SilversteinStarsJames GregoryJoanne LinvilleRex HolmanWhile headed home, a Confederate soldier meets an anguished woman at the end of the Civil War.
- DirectorDavid Orrick McDearmonStarsRussell JohnsonPaul HartmanBartlett RobinsonAt a prominent club in Washington, D.C., a socialite argues about whether it would be possible to change history by traveling back in time. When he leaves the club he finds himself in 1865, on the night that President Lincoln will be shot.
- DirectorDavid GreeneStarsBarry MorseJoan HackettDon DurantSadistic and hated theater critic Fitzgerald Fortune buys a player piano that has the power to reveal the souls of all who hear it.
- DirectorIda LupinoStarsRobert KeithMilton SelzerVirginia GreggWealthy Jason Foster is dying and he invites his greedy heirs to a Mardi Gras party where they must wear the masks he specially had made for them or else be cut off from their inheritance.
- DirectorAlvin GanzerStarsRod SerlingJanice RuleShepperd StrudwickA schoolteacher keeps seeing a strange little girl in her apartment building.
- DirectorDouglas HeyesStarsJohn McIntirePatricia BarryGeorge GrizzardA young man obsessed with winning over an uninterested beauty gets more than he bargained for when he buys a love potion to gain her affection.
- DirectorAlan Crosland Jr.StarsJames CoburnJohn AndersonJosie LloydIn a post-apocalyptic settlement in 1974, the inhabitants' survival is dependent on the advice of an unseen man living in a nearby cave. This dependence is tested when a band of soldiers descends on their town.
- DirectorAllen ReisnerStarsRod SerlingDan DuryeaMartin LandauThe town drunk in the old-west faces his past when Fate lends a hand.
- DirectorJack SmightStarsInger StevensJohn HoytIrene TedrowThe daughter of an inventor objects to their "perfect" home where they are waited on by mechanical servants.
- DirectorDon MedfordStarsJoseph SchildkrautOscar Beregi Jr.Karen VerneA former German SS captain returns to Dachau concentration camp and begins reminiscing on the power he enjoyed there, until he finds himself on trial by those who died at his hands.
- DirectorJohn BrahmStarsHarry TownesPhillip PineRoss MartinA man who can change his face to look like other people uses his ability to improve his life, regardless of his effect on others.
- 1959–196425mTV-PG8.1 (2.7K)TV EpisodeDirectorAbner BibermanStarsCollin Wilcox PaxtonRichard LongPamela AustinIn a future society, everyone must undergo an operation at age 19 to become beautiful and conform to society. One young woman desperately wants to hold onto her own identity.
- DirectorAnton LeaderStarsKevin McCarthyEdgar StehliEstelle WinwoodA father forbids a history professor from marrying his daughter when he discovers that the captivating lecturer is actually an immortal who has lived for thousands of years.
- 1959–196425mTV-PG7.0 (2K)TV EpisodeDirectorAlan Crosland Jr.StarsRon FosterWarren OatesRandy BooneOn June 25, 1964, three Army National Guard soldiers on maneuvers near the Little Big Horn battle site find themselves unwittingly involved in Custer's Last Stand.
- DirectorDouglas HeyesStarsAgnes MooreheadDouglas HeyesRod SerlingWhen a woman investigates a clamor in the attic of her rural house, she discovers a small UFO with little aliens emerging from it. Or so it seems.
- DirectorHarold D. SchusterStarsArthur HunnicuttJeanette NolanRobert FoulkUpon returning from a coon hunt, Hyder Simpson discovers that no one can see or hear him because he has passed on.
- DirectorJames SheldonStarsPhilip AbbottLili DarvasPatricia SmithA toy telephone becomes the link between a young boy and his dead grandmother.
- DirectorDon MedfordStarsLuther AdlerVivi JanissJoseph RuskinA luckless couple stumbles upon fortune when a genie materializes from a bottle in their antique shop. The genie grants them four wishes but warns them, prophetically, to be careful what you wish for.
- 1959–196451mTV-147.2 (1.8K)TV EpisodeDirectorDavid Lowell RichStarsAlbert SalmiJohn AndersonWright KingAging tycoon William Feathersmith is bored with life and makes arrangements through a devilish travel agency to return to the Cliffordville of his youth and start all over again.
- DirectorRalph SenenskyStarsRobert SterlingPat CrowleyBurgess MeredithA man sells his soul to the Devil to save his failing newspaper and gets more than he bargained for.
- DirectorPerry LaffertyStarsDavid OpatoshuEd NelsonNatalie TrundyA reporter stumbles into a peaceful town where miracles seem to occur due to technology and the townsfolk won't let him leave.
- DirectorStuart RosenbergStarsBarbara BaxleyFrank OvertonIrene DaileyIlse, the orphaned daughter of telepathic parents must learn to speak and deal with a world she cannot communicate in.
- DirectorBoris SagalStarsFranchot ToneLiam SullivanCyril DelevantiAnnoyed by a club member's constant chatter, a man bets him he cannot remain silent for a year, living in a glass enclosure in the club basement.
- DirectorTed PostStarsRichard BasehartAntoinette BowerHarold GouldColonel Adam Cook, stranded on a distant planet with no hope for rescue, meets a woman who is the sole survivor from another planet.
- DirectorAnton LeaderStarsLois NettletonBetty GardeTom ReeseWhen Earth deviates from its normal orbit, getting closer to the sun, two women try to cope with increasingly oppressive heat in a nearly abandoned city.
- DirectorBuzz KulikStarsDean StockwellAlbert SalmiRayford BarnesHot-shot new Lieutenant Katell tries to make his mark on the last day of World War II in the Pacific and gets a unique perspective on his actions.
- 1959–196425mTV-PG6.9 (1.8K)TV EpisodeDirectorRoger KayStarsEd WynnCarolyn KearneyJames T. CallahanAn old man believes that his life will end the moment his grandfather clock stops ticking.
- DirectorJustus AddissStarsSimon OaklandOscar Beregi Jr.Lew GalloAfter successfully stealing a gold shipment, a group of criminals and their scientist accomplice put themselves in suspended animation in a remote desert cave. When they awaken decades later, complications ensue when their truck is destroyed.
- 1959–196425mTV-PG7.1 (2.3K)TV EpisodeDirectorMontgomery PittmanStarsJames BestSherry JacksonEdgar BuchananA young man wakes up during his own funeral and wants to know what the hell is going on. The townsfolk are glad to see him back, but they begin to wonder if he's a man - or something else.
- 1959–196451mTV-146.1 (1.6K)TV EpisodeDirectorAbner BibermanStarsPat HingleNan MartinRuth WhiteToymaker Horace Ford is increasingly preoccupied with memories of his childhood, endangering his job and marriage - but a visit to his old neighborhood brings a haunting encounter, suggesting the time was not as idyllic as he remembers.
- DirectorDon MedfordStarsRod SerlingJack KlugmanJohn AndersonA suicidally despondent trumpet player finds himself in a bizarre world where he seems to be invisible to everyone, except for one helpful other musician.
- DirectorJohn BrahmStarsPhyllis ThaxterAlex NicolWallace RooneyNewlywed Alex Walker finds himself being pulled back to his childhood and back to his widowed mother in the house where he grew up.
- DirectorWilliam F. ClaxtonStarsJoe MarossClaude AkinsMichael FordOn a desolate planet, two astronauts discover an entire society populated by incredibly small beings. One of the astronauts decides to rule the society as a god.
- DirectorRobert Ellis MillerStarsDonald PleasenceLiam SullivanPhilippa BevansAfter being forced to retire, Professor Fowler contemplates suicide when he doesn't feel he's made a difference in the world.
- DirectorRobert FloreyStarsRobert LansingMariette HartleyEdward BinnsBefore leaving on a decades-long solo mission, astronaut Douglas Stansfield meets a woman and falls in love.
- DirectorLamont JohnsonStarsGladys CooperRobert RedfordR.G. ArmstrongAn old woman has fought with death a thousand times and has always won. But now she finds herself afraid to let a wounded policeman in her door for fear he is Mr. Death. Is he?
- 1959–196425mTV-PG8.1 (3.2K)TV EpisodeDirectorBuzz KulikStarsCliff RobertsonJohn CrawfordEvans EvansA settler from a wagon train in 1847 sets off to find something to help his ill son and stumbles into 1961 New Mexico.