7 of 7 people found the following review helpful:
5.0 out of 5 stars
Once more, into the zone, September 30, 2009
This review is from: Twilight Zone: 19 Original Stories on the 50th Anniversary (Paperback)
It's hard to believe that it is 50 years since the Twilight Zone debuted on TV. I do confess that I was not there when it appeared in September of 1959, but I do have memories of watching the series in the various incarnations. In black and white, the fantastic worlds seemingly ruled over by a sentient being with a sense of the ironic were often frightening, and always thought provoking.
With the death of Sterling in 1975, his wife Carol has maintained the Twilight Zone as a viable, contemplative property. Now, she and 18 authors have combined to present a veritable feast of the fantastic, a smorgasbord of the sensational, and a collection of the eclectic that capture the spirit of the series. Authors Whitley Strieber, Kelly Armstrong, R L Stine, Timothy Zahn, Tad Williams, Carole Nelson Douglas, Mike Resnick, Lezli Robyn, Earl Hammer, Joe R Lansdale, Allan Brennert and a host of others lead us by the proverbial hand into the zone. There is no art, just a literary collection that opens the theatre of the mind.
Right from the start, we enter the Twilight Zone for an adventuresome read. "Genesis" by David Hagberg tells the story of a young Rod Serling in a 1944 wartime experience that truly is a Genesis, a beginning. "A Haunted House of Her Own" takes us into a world of self destination. "On the Road" is so very cool that you have to travel your own life to understand it. "Benchwarmer" is charming. "Truth Or Consequences" is twisted, yet it keeps you going right until the very end. My favorite story is "Puowaina" by Brennert. It is sensitive, and far seeing. Given a new TV production, this would be a spectacular episode ready for an Emmy. The rest of the book is tantalizing, and ends with "El Moe" by Rod Serling himself. How else could you end such a collection?
I highly recommend this collection of TZ tales. 50 years is a long time, and still Serling inspires.
Tim Lasiuta
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6 of 7 people found the following review helpful:
4.0 out of 5 stars
You unlock this door..., September 24, 2009
This review is from: Twilight Zone: 19 Original Stories on the 50th Anniversary (Paperback)
"The Twilight Zone" is in many ways a time capsule, a fly preserved in amber, of the specific politics and cultural touchstones of the late '50s and early '60s. However, it remains timeless, and still culturally relevant today on the eve of its 50th anniversary. Even now, with much of its audience born after the original series was taken off the air, everyone remembers "that one with...". Although many episodes from the original series no longer withstand modern scrutiny (due to subpar writing, or a story/theme that's fallen out of date), the bulk of the stories remains vivid and compelling.
Enter this anniversary anthology of 19 stories written in the style of the "Zone", published under the Serling family banner; Rod and his brother Robert account for two stories, and Rod's widow is listed as editor. Here, then, is an episode-guide's eye view of what to expect from this collection:
GENESIS by David Hagberg: An unfortunate opening act; the "twist" is obvious from the 3rd page and the story really amounts to no more than hero worship.
A HAUNTED HOUSE OF HER OWN by Kelley Armstrong: More of a YA short story than something genuinely scary, but the last three sentences may be the best "sting" to any story in this collection.
THE ART OF THE MINIATURE by Earl Hamner: Hamner wrote several episodes of the original "Zone" and also created "The Waltons". Ends on a shocking image but the story employs no logic to get there.
BENCHWARMER by Mike Resnick & Lezli Robyn: TZ wasn't all scares and chills; it also produced several moving, bittersweet human dramas. This tale of imaginary childhood friends adds to that latter tradition.
TRUTH OR CONSEQUENCES by Carol Nelson Douglas: Seems to be a rote rewrite of "The Hitchhiker" from the original TZ (itself a remake). The closing narration here alludes to W. Somerset Maugham and the Talmud, but that's not enough to distinguish the story from its predecessor.
PUOWAINA by Alan Brennert: A bittersweet ghost story from a well-regarded contributor to the '80s TZ revival.
TORN AWAY by Joe R. Lansdale: A voodoo tale with a "Lights Out"-inspired shadowy ending, interestingly set in East Texas and told from the POV of a rural sheriff.
A CHANCE OF A GHOST by Lucia St. Clair Robson: Reminiscent of the 1980s "Alfred Hitchcock Presents" revival, this is a love story of a retiree and her haunted cane. The cane goes to interesting lengths to protect its new owner.
THE STREET THAT FORGOT TIME by Deborah Chester: The closing twist lacks any sort of logic. Perhaps an explanation of why this gated community from Hell would want to turn its inhabitants into zombies might have made the last page more memorable.
THE WRONG ROOM by R.L. Stine: Again, the twist isn't very logical, but it's a great Stephen King style haunted-hotel setup.
GHOST WRITER by Robert J. Serling: This isn't so much of a twist as a bit of historical irony, as told from the perspective of a short-sighted speechwriter.
THE SOLDIER HE NEEDED TO BE by Jim DiFelice: A "Dumbo's Magic Feather" story about an unlucky U.S. soldier fighting in Afghanistan. Pretty solid.
ANTS by Tad Williams: A Hitchcockian tale about a murderous spouse trying to fool the cops, with a great "gotcha!" last paragraph.
YOUR LAST BREATH, Inc., by John Miller: A pale rewrite of the short story "What You Need" (later adapted for the original TZ series), in which a reporter investigates an exclusive business.
FAMILY MAN by Laura Lippman: TZ meets "The Office", when fate plays several tricks at once on a smarmy middle manager.
THE GOOD NEIGHBOR by Whitley Strieber: Like some of the strongest TZ episodes, a thinly veiled racial allegory about a social climber who goes all KKK on his alien neighbors and lives to regret it.
EL MOE by Rod Serling: A leftover Serling script treament about an unlikely Mexican freedom fighter.
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1 of 1 people found the following review helpful:
3.0 out of 5 stars
Not Quite the Twilight Zone, August 8, 2011
This review is from: Twilight Zone: 19 Original Stories on the 50th Anniversary (Paperback)
It was a clever idea to produce a special book to commemmorate the 50th anniversary of the TV series written
and produced by Rod Serling. The fact that his wife put her name to the project undoubtedly helped attract
stories and a publisher. If the reader anticipated some original scripts from the famous TV series, or other
previously unpublished stories written by the Master himself, the book may be disappointing. It is in fact a collection of stories written specially for this project by other authors, somewhat in the style of Rod Serling.
The quality of the contributions varies. Several of the stories are very clever and offer just the right
degree of suspense, quirky imagination and bizarre happenings to qualify for this sort of effort. Others are less successful, and a few are downright tedious. Fairly good summer beach-time reading in any case. This is a book you can dip into, put down, and go back to, suppressing the occasional yawn and enjoyoing the occasional "frisson" .
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