The Twilight Zone (2019): The Twilight Zone: Six Degrees of Freedom
May 3, 2019 9:56 AM - Season 1, Episode 6 - Subscribe

A space crew preparing for the first human flight to Mars is faced with a life-altering decision...and its consequences.

The Twilight Zone heads to Mars, with the fate of humanity on the line (Noel Murray for TV/AV Club, rating this a B+)
Some of the best Twilight Zones of the Rod Serling era are enduring classics not just because of what they were about, but how. It’s not just the twist endings of “Time Enough At Last” or “To Serve Man” that make them great. The performances, the writing, the visual design… Those are why fans who’ve seen these episodes a dozen times still put the remote control down when they surf past them again.

I wouldn’t say that “Six Degrees Of Freedom” is a great Twilight Zone episode. The plot’s too simple, and the twist doesn’t quite land. But it has that deeply felt, lived-in quality that makes episodes like “Nick Of Time” timeless. It’s an easy episode to watch… and that matters, given that its 54-minute running time is (as has been the case throughout this series) unnecessarily long.
Two songs featured in the episode, identified on Tunefind.
posted by filthy light thief (2 comments total) 1 user marked this as a favorite
 
Here's the Great Filter article on Wikipedia, and a short article on the six degrees of freedom.

On this episode: one of the better ones from the new season, but I agree with Noel Murray: too long for what it delivered.
posted by filthy light thief at 10:00 AM on May 3, 2019


I was kind of meh on this series until this episode. This was really gripping and intense. I felt like it didn't even need the twist to be a good episode of television. Maybe it wouldn't be The Twilight Zone without the twist, but good TV generally.

Just generally, I'd like to say that I really like Peele in the Rod Serling role. His on-screen narration carries just the right degree of gravitas with hints of foreboding. The episodes don't always live up to it, but his on-screen contribution is wonderful.
posted by DevilsAdvocate at 9:37 AM on June 30, 2019


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