This is what I would consider a perfect Twilight Zone episode for a very simple reason: None of its time is wasted and everything within the episode works to build upon and support its main premise. There are other Twilight Zone episodes that have very strong moments but then the ending will fall flat or the premise stops being used correctly, but this one gets it right.
What would happen if you realized you were slowly being erased from reality?
This episode has some of the best acting in it where an astronaut is stumbling around trying to find evidence that his best friend exists, only to wind up at a bar all alone hoping that this is all just a prank... but soon realizes that it is all real. His friend is gone and no one remembers him. There is a lot of good drama in this scene and many of the others.
Another great thing about this episode is that the narrator knows when to shut-up. I know this sounds sacrilegious, but The Twilight Zone as a series has a big issue with spoiling the premise of the episode in the various narrations that pop-up. "It's a good life", "The Last Flight", and "Mr. Denton on Doomsday" are all examples of episodes where too much is revealed too early. This episode keeps things quiet, because its tension relies on not knowing what is going on.
The ending is also really good, because it has that creepy vibe where everyone in the world is oblivious as to what happened except the audience. We know the truth, but everyone else has forgotten it.
On a final note, some people have criticized this episode because "the mechanics of what is happening" is never explained, but that is irrelevant to the story. All you need to know is that, "the astronauts got somewhere where mankind was never meant to go, and now they are being erased from reality for their actions."
What would happen if you realized you were slowly being erased from reality?
This episode has some of the best acting in it where an astronaut is stumbling around trying to find evidence that his best friend exists, only to wind up at a bar all alone hoping that this is all just a prank... but soon realizes that it is all real. His friend is gone and no one remembers him. There is a lot of good drama in this scene and many of the others.
Another great thing about this episode is that the narrator knows when to shut-up. I know this sounds sacrilegious, but The Twilight Zone as a series has a big issue with spoiling the premise of the episode in the various narrations that pop-up. "It's a good life", "The Last Flight", and "Mr. Denton on Doomsday" are all examples of episodes where too much is revealed too early. This episode keeps things quiet, because its tension relies on not knowing what is going on.
The ending is also really good, because it has that creepy vibe where everyone in the world is oblivious as to what happened except the audience. We know the truth, but everyone else has forgotten it.
On a final note, some people have criticized this episode because "the mechanics of what is happening" is never explained, but that is irrelevant to the story. All you need to know is that, "the astronauts got somewhere where mankind was never meant to go, and now they are being erased from reality for their actions."