Streaming The Twilight Zone this Fourth of July? Here are a few episodes people don't talk about enough.

The Fourth of July. Fireworks, hamburgers, hot dogs, and ... The Twilight Zone? If you're anything like me, Rod Serling's timeless show is as much a part of your July 4th traditions as sparklers and barbecues. Growing up as a kid, I only recall Twilight Zone marathons on Thanksgiving Day (in San Diego, it showed on channel 5 KTLA). The Syfy channel started showing marathons of the show on New Year's Eve and the Fourth of July a few years back (and apparently, the tradition of a Star Spangled marathon is older), and for some folks, it has become a staple of their holiday traditions. It's one of those things, as a fan, you don't always realize, that there's a whole lot of people out there who like the same stuff as you, and it's an awesome realization.

If you know me, you know I love the Twilight Zone, for my money, it's one of my top three favorite TV shows of all time and one of the greatest TV shows ever made (I'm such a dork for it, a student once compared me to Tobey McGuire's character in Pleasantville,, a person obsessed with an old television show). Serling's idea was to tackle modern problems under the veil of science fiction and horror, knowing full well that if he addressed the hot-button issues of his era directly, the censors would cut his episodes to ribbons. The result is a masterpiece of storytelling that continues to influence pop culture today. It features great actors with some of the best acting you'd see on television in the late 50s, early 60s, and features plots that still resonate today. Not every episode is great. While there are so many that are poignant, a few that are genuinely scary, there are also several that are just downright cringey, and that's okay, because the cringe is coated with a bit of nostalgia, too, that makes even those iffy episodes worth watching.

For the most part, it seems as if most of us all love the same episodes: "To Serve Man," "The Monsters Are Due On Maple Street," "Time Enough at Last," "The Living Doll," and so on.

This Fourth of July, if you're planning on watching The Twilight Zone in between your hot dogs and Grand Finales, here are a few episodes that I feel don't get talked about a lot, and if you haven't seen them yet, you should try.​

1. "Nightmare as a Child" (Season One, Episode 29)

"Nightmare as a Child" is an example of The Twilight Zone being ahead of its time, the episode being all about the scars of unresolved trauma and repressed memories. In it, a woman named Helen meets a curious little girl sitting on the stairwell outside her apartment. This little girl, eccentric and serious, seems to know a lot about Helen, things she shouldn’t know. Things take a turn when a former neighbor, Peter Selden, arrives and has a genuinely creepy conversation with Helen. It seems as if he lived in the building when she was young, delivering the oh-so-creeperish line of, “I had a terrible crush on you when you were a little girl.” In short, the reappearance of this scary old neighbor and strange little girl has something to do with Helen’s past and a trauma she experienced when she was just a child. When the trademark Twilight Zone surprise ending comes, it probably isn’t too big of a surprise, especially for a modern audience, but it works. This episode, which originally aired in 1960, deals with some heavy mental issues without naming them, and is pretty dark, even for a TZ episode. 

2. “The Changing of the Guard” (Season 3, Episode 37)

​“The Changing of the Guard” centers on Professor Ellis Fowler (Donald Pleasence), an aged English Literature teacher who has been in the classroom for 51 years. When he is told by the school that he must retire, he questions his life’s work, ultimately deciding that he’s spent the last 51 years doing nothing that made a difference, and decides to end his life. Naturally, the Twilight Zone has other ideas, convincing him not to in the way only it can.

Pleasence is terrific as the elderly Professor Fowler in another fine example of how the show could secure some of the best actors of its age, which is of course a credit to Serling's writing, the brilliance of which is showcased in this episode. For man who, as far as I know, never taught in a classroom, he somehow captures perfectly the Dark Night of the Soul that all teachers eventually face as they wonder if what they do makes any difference. A must-watch, and it’s a Christmas episode, so watch it around the holidays.

​3. “An Occurrence at Owl Creek Bridge” (Season Five, Episode 22)

​Arguably one of the most unique episodes on the show, “An Occurrence at Owl Creek Bridge” was not originally produced for television. It is actually a short French film adaptation of the short story by Ambrose Bierce of the same name. The winner in the Best Short Film category at the 1962 Cannes Film Festival and Best Short Film at the 1963 Academy Awards, it was picked up by Serling and shown as an episode of the show in 1964.

 Originally written in 1890, the story follows Peyton Farquhar, a sympathizer with the South during the American Civil War who is about to be executed by Union troops for tampering with a bridge (If memory serves me from the story – he helps blow it up). As he is hanged

from the tree the rope breaks and he makes a mad dash through the countryside to get back home while being pursued by Union troops.

The “surprise ending” isn’t much of a surprise, at least to modern audiences, but remember that the source material was written in the 1800s. The episode is beautifully shot, and while some of the music is a little cringy, you can see why it won such high honors. And even as an English teacher and a librarian, I believe the episode is better than the original story.

4. “Come Wander With Me” (Season Five, Episode 34)

Singer Floyd Burney comes to a small country town in search of new material, where he hears a woman singing a haunting tune about two young lovers who meet in the woods. Thinking it’ll be a hit, he offers to buy the rights, but she refuses. The song, “Come Wander

With Me,” ultimately is telling the story of the episode itself, the woman, Mary Rachel, adding to it as the drama unfolds. The Rayford Brothers, one of whom is Mary’s husband-to-be, arrive on the scene thinking poor old Floyd was trying to steal his woman and start

hunting him.

The story of the song, which is truly haunting and creepy, turns out to be prophetic. This is an episode I had never seen until a few years back and can’t believe I’d missed it for so long.

5. “The Encounter” (Season Five, Episode 31)

“The Encounter,” starring Neville Brand as Fenton and a very young George Takei as Arthur, has become one of my favorite episodes. It tackles PTSD, generational trauma, the ghosts (both literal and metaphorical!) of war, and racism like a superbly written one-act play.

Recently fired, divorced, and alcoholic World War II veteran Fenton pays young Arthur to come cut his grass. What plays out is a well-written, well-acted two-man show where both men confront the demons of the past – Fenton with his own actions during combat and his

lingering racism against the Japanese, and Arthur facing the actions of his father. There is a paranormal element to this episode, but frankly it is unnecessary, it would have played just fine without it. At its core, it's about two men suffering the effects of war long after its past, and while their “encounter,” as it were, could be one of understanding and reconciliation, it ends up revealing that some wounds and prejudices go to do. Oh, and if you've never seen this episode, it is likely due to the fact that it was pulled from syndication due to its content, not becoming public again until 2016, which is why someone like me, who's been watching Twilight Zone Marathons for over 40 years, had never seen it until about then.  It’s brilliant.

6. “A Nice Place to Visit.” (Season One, Episode 28)

After career criminal "Rocky" Valentine is shot and killed by a police officer, he wakes up in the afterlife, an afterlife in which he can have anything his heart desires. Led by his personal "angel" Pip (whom Rocky calls Fats), Rocky is given a plush, penthouse apartment in a lavish hotel/casino, has a harem of beautiful women, and everything he touches turns to gold. At first, Rocky loves his own personal heaven, but the longer he is there, the more boring it becomes. As a lifetime thrill-chaser, there's no excitement in winning every time you make a bet, never having an element of risk to anything he does. He asks Fats for help in figuring out why he was sent here and not the "other place."

This is a fun, relatively unserious episode featuring good performances by Larry Blyden as Rocky and Sebastian Cabot as Mr. Pip/Fats. Though satirical, even a bit tongue-in-cheek, the themes of the episode, like most Twilight Zone episodes, are provocative: how much is too much? What does it really mean to get everything you? This one has become a must-watch for me.

7. “The Midnight Sun” (Season Three, Episode 10)

This is another episode that isn't often on the shortlist of favorites, and frankly, it is one I love. It is also one of the few Twilight Zone episodes in which the "surprise" ending is not only not very satisfying, but is perhaps a bit too much.

Norma, a young artist, and her landlady Mrs. Bronson are stuck in their New York apartment building as the world outside literally bakes. Something has happened to the Earth's orbit, and the planet is getting hotter and hotter. Much of the city outside is deserted, and much of the episode feels like a two-person play, with decent performances, great makeup, and set design that makes a viewer feel like they're in the apartment with them as the end draws nearer.

I won't spoil the ending. It starts promising, but then suffers from a page or two of too much writing. Had the episode ended a couple minutes earlier, it might be on that shortlist of greats.

Honorable Mentions

If you get through these seven and if The Twilight Zone is new to you, here are a couple other ones you should check out. 

"I am the Night -  Color Me Black"

"The Big Tall Wish"

"The Masks"

"The Fever"

There are so many more I can mention, but these should get you started. Happy Fourth of July!