"The Twilight Zone" Teacher's Aide/Paladin of the Lost Hour (1985)

User Rating:

7.1/10   

Directors:

Gilbert Cates
Bill L. Norton

Writers:

Steven Barnes (writer) (segment)
Harlan Ellison (short story "Paladin") (segment)

TV Series:

"The Twilight Zone" (1985)

Original Air Date:

8 marraskuu 1985 (Season 1, Episode 7)

Genre:

Sci-Fi | Fantasy | Mystery | Thriller | Horror

Plot:

"Teacher's Aide": A teacher at a tough inner-city school is possessed by a malevolent spirit. "Paladin of the Lost Hour": An old man with a special watch bonds with a tormented veteran. |

Plot Keywords:

Water | Electric Shock | Temptation | Demonic Possession | Lightning

Cast

Adrienne Barbeau	...	Miss Peters (segment "Teacher's Aide")
Adam Postil	...	Wizard (segment "Teacher's Aide")
Miguel A. Núñez Jr.	...	Trojan (segment "Teacher's Aide") (as Miguel Nunez)
Josh Richman	...	Fury (segment "Teacher's Aide")
Fred Morsell	...	Hugh Costin (segment "Teacher's Aide")
Brian Robbins	...	12th Grader (segment "Teacher's Aide")
Sarah Partridge	...	Student Teacher (segment "Teacher's Aide")
Richard Brainard	...	Younger Brother (segment "Teacher's Aide")
Al Christy	...	Security Guard (segment "Teacher's Aide")
Noelle Harling	...	Amanda (segment "Teacher's Aide")
Danny Kaye	...	Gaspar (segment "Paladin of the Lost Hour")
Glynn Turman	...	Billy Kinetta (segment "Paladin of the Lost Hour")
Corkey Ford	...	Punk #2 (segment "Paladin of the Lost Hour") (as Corky Ford)
John Bryant	...	Punk #1 (segment "Paladin of the Lost Hour")
Mike Reynolds	...	Cigar-Smoking Driver (segment "Paladin of the Lost Hour")

Trivia:

Neither "Teacher's Aide" nor "Paladin of the Last Hour" have opening narrations. Notably, the closing narration to "Paladin of the Lost Hour" does not end with the words "the Twilight Zone".

A possessed teacher transforms students to learn!/And a heartfelt favor of a remembered glimpse!

Episode 7 of "The Twilight Zone" from the CBS 1985-1986 season featured two segments and both were pretty good and touching in memory. They were "Teacher's Aide" and "Paladin of the Lost Hour". I will give my take and view on each.

"Teacher's Aide" stared veteran B movie cult actress the sexy Adrienne Barbeau as an inner city high school teacher Miss Peters who teaches English at a school that's run by a tough and nasty group of students that are both thugs and gang members. She desperately wants to make a difference, yet the challenge is tough then something strange happens. Outside the school one day while breaking up a fight on the yard an up above statute of a demon like gargoyle is struck by lighting and upon her looking up at it's eyes they reflect to her and it's like she becomes possessed! Now the discipline and command of respect comes from students, really a neat way to handle things. Overall good story and concept, making all of us wonder what it would be like to have some kind of special powers that we could use at our jobs to make people do what we want them to. Plus it's always great to view Barbeau.

The second segment "Paladin of the Lost Hour" is very emotional, touching, and sentimental. It's the tale of a widowed old man(Danny Kaye) who oddly holds the last hour of his world in a magical timepiece clock, and upon an attempted mugging at a cemetery site he's rescued by a Vietnam vet. As the tale unfolds both become good friends even though different as daylight and dark, as the old man reads books and the ex vet is a night store clerk yet a bonding and warming friendship develops. Each man starts to care and connect with one another as the Vietnam vet reveals a hard and guilty like secret something in the end the old man helps him with! Really a touching and moving story that makes all of us wish we had one more chance to say goodbye or see a loved one one last time.

Overall one of the better episodes of the series that's well done, neat, touching, and memorable.