S2, Ep 26: “Shadow Play”
(The electric chair awaits a recently convicted man, but not all is as it seems)
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1️⃣ Storyline:

With stories like “Elegy” and “Rip Van Winkle”, I’m willing to give solid points simply for a cool premise. Other times, a concept may be simple but if the execution is great I’ll score it fairly well. Here, we get both. The idea behind the episode AND the way it’s brought to life is fantastic; I wish I could give more than 10 points for this category.   The story is also so multilayered, especially for a 25-minute production! Each time I rewatch, I notice new things. 

Score: 10/10 

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2️⃣ Atmosphere:

Some scenes do have me feeling like I’m watching a play rather than living inside the world of an episode. Otherwise, the atmosphere is very good. The jail cell housing our protagonist, Adam Grant, gets progressively more claustrophobic as the episode wears on. The home of the district attorney really feels like an authentic suburban house, not a set. And the overall vibes of the entire narrative leave the viewer feeling so discombobulated and gaslit, it reminds me of a Hitchcock film in that way. 

Score: 8/10

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3️⃣ Existential Terror: 

To be Adam Grant is to live in a personal hell, day after day. That’s a 10/10. And it’s made even worse by the fact that he *should* be able to snap out of it, but he can’t…

Score: 10/10

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4️⃣ Creepiness:

The shot of the electric chair, man that gives me chills. I’m surprised it was allowed in 1961, to be honest. There isn’t anything else “creepy” here but I’ll give some points for that moment alone. 

Score: 4/10

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5️⃣ Lesson:

This is a rare Twilight Zone that truly doesn’t have much to say in the way of ethics or morals. I mean there’s the subplot of the newspaperman trying to convince the DA to do the right thing, I suppose? But that feels less like a message for the viewer and more like a necessary part of the story. 

Score: 2/10

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6️⃣ World-Building:

In an episode about a made-up world, the world building the writers give us is quite good. There was a huge opportunity here to give us shallow, wooden characters and a bare-bones aesthetic and that’s not actually what we get. Bravo!

Score: 8/10

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7️⃣ Acting:

Everyone is great. Seriously, EVERYONE. I have no complaints. Dennis Weaver is out of his mind in multiple scenes, and on the surface it looks like overacting, but it makes sense! He’s genuinely starting to lose his marbles, and gets hysterical in a way that feels honest. 

Score: 10/10

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8️⃣ The Human Condition:

Beyond the commentary on dreams (which is fantastic, and some of my favorite dialogue in any Twilight Zone ever), “Shadow Play” does touch on many areas of the human experience, but not in a very intimate way. Still, I love the emphasis on a very primal terror that besieges all of us at times - becoming stuck in the clutches of a nightmare. 

Score: 6/10

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✅ Total Score:
 58

I mostly detest “it was all a dream!” stories. This, however, is the inverse of that; the dream *is* the story. The pacing can get bogged down just a tick for a couple of the prison moments, but mostly this is almost a perfect episode. The numeric score won’t quite represent that because it doesn’t have as much to say about humanity and ethics as some other great TZs, but that’s ok. “Shadow Play” is fantastic television and really keeps you sweating the whole way through. 

What do you think? 🤷🏼‍♂️ Which category do you most agree with, and which category do you most hate my opinion on? Let me know! I want your feedback. 🙌🏼

Breaking down the episode “Shadow Play” - 8 categories, 1 final score