At the Pecos Proving Grounds, physicist Robert Barton and Carl Eberhardt are working on Operation Torch. The goal is to light up the night sky, enabling glaciers to melt and fertile fields to wither even faster they do now. Dr. Smiley has been dispatched from Washington to observe the test and determine if there is a way to tax the new illumination.
Carl shows Dr. Smiley the rocket which contains a “beautifully simple” method of producing light. It is actually quite complex, at least in the number of words, but sounds good to someone who knows nothing about science, like me or the SFT producers.
Meanwhile, in the nearby town of Springdale, real estate developer Sam Gilmore is very upset about the latest person to buy in his new development. He proudly proclaims, “I restricted against everything I could think of!” Somehow, though, he neglected to restrict against “a convicted criminal — a jailbird!” I’ll bet he thought the ** ahem** other restrictions would keep out the criminal element.
The resident who sold Matt Brander his house had to know he was a criminal. His trial was in all the papers back when people read them. The Trumpian Gilmore wanted this to be “the finest development anywhere, with the finest people.”
Afraid that property values will plummet, he plans to run Brander out of town. His partners point out that this is illegal. Mr. Law N. Order now says, “The law has nothing to do with this! We’ll use my truck and we’ll dump his stuff right out in the desert!” Self-awareness is not among Laurel Manors’ amenities.
Gilmore picks up a baseball bat and asks his partners how they can care so little about a scumbag living in their community. Then he pulls a nylon stocking over his head and insists they join him in the attack that night when no one can see their identities. Self-awareness is not among Laurel Manors’ amenities.
His partners agree to help him terrorize Brander into leaving. Gilmore isn’t sure of their loyalty, though, so demands that they take an oath. They repeat after Gilmore, swearing their loyalty like a couple of kids, or Masons (Free, not Brick).
The next morning we see Brander — hey, it’s Star Trek’s Dr. McCoy! — and his wife standing amidst the horrific mess, the debris, oh the humanity! Wait, the Gilmore gang has not attacked yet; it is just moving day mess. Brander vows to his wife they will not be run out of their new home!
Back at the Pecos Proving Ground, the boys launch their rocket successfully, However, it doesn’t fall to earth as scheduled. That night, Springdale is illuminated by a “substitute sun”. Washington instructs them not to self-destruct the rocket. It goes on lighting up the sky all night.
Well, old man Gilmore sees this localized phenomenon as a sign. He tells his posse, “Last night we were going to pull a dirty trick. But it didn’t get dark, you see! It didn’t get dark!” He sees this as an opportunity to do the right thing. He calls off the attack. Maybe he’ll also get out of the real estate developer business and shave off that pencil-thin mustache. He leads his bois in a new more inclusive oath. Coincidentally, the rocket burns out at just that moment, plunging Springdale into normal nighttime darkness.
The episode was nothing special, although I did like how they tied the stories together. But it was worth it just to hear Pencil Thin Mustache again.
Other Stuff:
- Yesterday’s AHP about a guy who couldn’t go to sleep starred the same guy who was in a TZ episode about a guy afraid to go to sleep. Today’s SFT is about an unnaturally lengthy day; there was a TZ about an unnaturally lengthy night. I got nothing for this.
Cheers to Dennis Weaver! He is like the TV Gene Hackman — if he is in a show, you can trust it will probably be pretty good. He was in a couple of a long-running series [1] and a ton of other stuff. Somehow he managed to do it without overdosing, beating up his wife, or condescendingly mouthing off about issues he didn’t understand. Best of all, at some point, he just went away. Whatever happened to actors like that? Oh yeah, they went away. [2]
Weaver finally decides to see a psychiatrist. He reveals that his wife died in a fire a year ago. He tells the doctor of a recurring dream — wait, I thought he never slept. He dreams of his wife Linda in their old house.
Weaver realizes that his insomnia did not begin until Fletcher was released from the military hospital in Maryland (oh why the hell can’t they just say Walter Reed?). Despite making 20 years of progress in their first session, Weaver is not cured. That night he is tossing and turning in bed again. He picks up a paperback but the phone interrupts him. It is Fletcher, saying he is in town. He menacingly says, “You know why I’m here, don’t you Charlie?”
I’m not sure if this happiness was to set up the next scene, or if I’m just getting tired. It is pretty creepy, though. The next day, Scout meets Danny at the trailer. Scout invites Danny to go exploring. Danny says his mother told him to stay there until she got home. Scout says, “I talked to your mother” and Danny skeptically says “You did?” Scout says they’re all going to have dinner at his house, and they walk off onto the woods. In fact, it is so chillingly creepy that I’m not sure that was their intention.
Carl goes to a Halloween party thrown by his friend Bob. He is quickly busted by Bob because he was not invited. Seems Carl just got a divorce and Bob’s wife decided Carl should not be invited. Bob might be costumed as Lincoln, but he sure lacks Abe’s backbone.
Carl goes into the kitchen and hurls a pumpkin against the wall. He is witnessed by another guest in leather thigh-highs, platinum hair, and a plain white cat-like mask. She overheard Bob & Linda, and sides with Team-Bob, which is a warning sign right there. Bob asks what she is dressed as. She answers, “a body-bag . . . a synthetic shell with a corpse inside.” It might not read like much, but it is a beautiful response in context. Kudos.
They have the sex. At Carl’s suggestion, they leave the masks on. There is gratuitous nudity of Carl’s butt and appropriate nudity of Molly’s boobs. She tells him to really go at it and take his aggression out on her, but all he really does is some enhanced humping. That’s enough for Carl to get a little girly, remove his mask and blurt out his real name and occupation. It only takes about 2 minutes before he is his old violent self. Granted, in those 2 minutes, he did find her collection of sawed-off human faces, so maybe this time he is justified.
C’mon, who doesn’t love Joe Pantoliano? 
Stan wraps up tonight’s show by talking to a regular caller who is having a breakdown. The man is distraught over his body being occupied by a parasitic alien. Stan advises the caller to put himself out of his misery. The man misunderstands and temporarily puts himself in more misery as he pulls out a lighter and goes up like a Vietnamese monk in the radio station parking lot. As he dies, Stan witnesses a glowing alien emerge from the body and zoom off.
Not a lot going on here. OK, some humans are possessed by aliens. Where’s the suspense like in The Thing? Where is the mystery like Invasion of the Body Snatchers? Where is the futile chase like