Syfy To Host New Years ‘Twilight Zone’ Marathon

Starting tomorrow at 9am EST, Syfy begins its annual ‘Twilight Zone’ marathon. Running for a total of 45 hours, the marathon features a total of 80+ classic ‘Twilight Zone’ episodes (there are a few repeats in the lineup). If you’re tuning in and out over New Years Eve, I’d like to point out some of the highlights of the marathon that you might want to take a half hour out of your drinking and partying with friends and family to enjoy.

My top five personal picks from the New Years Eve half of the marathon, in order that they air, are…

‘I Am The Night – Color Me Black’ (December 31 – 12pm)
When the sun stops shining, a small town must deal with the consequences and philosophize the meaning of the darkness.

‘Five Characters in Search of an Exit’ (December 31 – 9:30pm)
In this magical episode, five characters (a soldier, a ballet dancer, a hobo, a bagpiper, and a clown) awaken in a giant metal cylindrical room with no doors, no windows, and no idea how they got there. As they attempt their escape, the group reveals a twist that questions the nature of their reality.

‘Nick of Time’ (December 31 – 10pm)
This is one of my favorite classic episodes featuring William Shatner. The other is ‘Nightmare at 20,000 Feet’ which airs at 11:30pm on January 1st. This tale features Shatner as half of a newlywed couple who discover a fortune telling machine that can accurately predict the future and must decide whether they really want to know what things may come.

‘The Midnight Sun’ (January 1 – 12am)
This classic tale begs the question: What really makes something important. It follows Norma and her landlady Mrs. Bronson. The ladies are the only two people left in an abandoned city as the Earth hurtles towards the sun and the temperatures rises at an unbearable rate.

‘Walking Distance’ (January 1 – 1am)
One of my personal favorite episodes of ‘Twilight Zone’ ever, ‘Walking Distance’ tells the story of a man who, while travelling across country on a business trip, find himself face to face with a portal to the town of his youth. The man meets his younger self and, upon returning to his own time, realizes the importance of the limited time that we’re given in our lives.

The full Syfy ‘Twilight Zone’ marathon schedule:

December 31:
9:00 AM – Escape Clause
9:30 AM – In Praise Of Pip
10:00 AM – Ring-a-ding Girl
10:30 AM – And When The Sky Was Opened
11:00 AM – The Silence
11:30 AM – The Hunt
12:00 PM – I Am The Night – Color Me Black
12:30 PM – The Rip Van Winkle Caper
1:00 PM – Queen Of The Nile
1:30 PM – Caesar And Me
2:00 PM – Probe 7 Over And Out
2:30 PM – Mr. Dingle, The Strong
3:00 PM – A Kind Of Stopwatch
3:30 PM – The Little People
4:00 PM – A Hundred Yards Over The Rim
4:30 PM – The After Hours
5:00 PM – Little Girl Lost
5:30 PM – A Game Of Pool
6:00 PM – Long Distance Call
6:30 PM – A Most Unusual Camera
7:00 PM – Stopover In A Quiet Town
7:30 PM – Number Twelve Looks Just Like You
8:00 PM – A Penny For Your Thoughts
8:30 PM – I Sing The Body Electric
9:00 PM – Night Call
9:30 PM – Five Characters In Search Of An Exit
10:00 PM – Nick Of Time
10:30 PM – Night Of The Meek
11:00 PM – Kick The Can
11:30 PM – Where Is Everybody

January 1:
12:00 AM – The Midnight Sun
12:30 AM – People Are Alike All Over
1:00 AM – Walking Distance
1:30 AM – I Shot An Arrow Into The Air
2:00 AM – Two
2:30 AM – Uncle Simon
3:00 AM – A World Of His Own
3:30 AM – Hocus-pocus And Frisby
4:00 AM – The Lonely
4:30 AM – A Short Drink From A Certain Fountain
5:00 AM – A Thing About Machines
5:30 AM -The Arrival
6:00 AM – The Sixteen-millimeter Shrine
6:30 AM – The Brain Center At Whipple’s
7:00 AM – Judgement Night
7:30 AM – The Last Rights Of Jeff Myrtlebank
8:00 AM – The Four Of Us Are Dying
8:30 AM – The Jeopardy Room
9:00 AM – Black Leather Jackets
9:30 AM – A Piano In The House
10:00 AM – A Nice Place To Visit
10:30 AM – Twenty-two
11:00 AM – King Nine Will Not Return
11:30 AM – The 7th Is Made Up Of Phantoms
12:00 PM – The Grave
12:30 PM – Death’s Head Revisited
1:00 PM – One For The Angels
1:30 PM – The Old Man In The Cave
2:00 PM – It’s A Good Life
2:30 PM – Dead Man’s Shoes
3:00 PM – The Hitch-hiker
3:30 PM – The Dummy
4:00 PM – Third From The Sun
4:30 PM – The Invaders
5:00 PM – The Bewitchin’ Pool
5:30 PM – The Midnight Sun
6:00 PM – The Masks
6:30 PM – The Howling Man
7:00 PM – The Odyssey Of Flight 33
7:30 PM – Living Doll
8:00 PM – The Obsolete Man
8:30 PM – Eye Of The Beholder
9:00 PM – Time Enough At Last
9:30 PM – A Stop At Willoughby
10:00 PM – The Monsters Are Due On Maple Street
10:30 PM – To Serve Man
11:00 PM – Will The Real Martian Please Stand Up
11:30 PM – Nightmare At 20,000 Feet

January 2:
12:00 AM – The Shelter
12:30 AM – Mr. Bevis
1:00 AM – Mr. Denton On Doomsday
1:30 AM – The Fever
2:00 AM – Nightmare As A Child
2:30 AM – What’s In The Box
3:00 AM – The Prime Movers
3:30 AM – Mr. Garrity And The Graves
4:00 AM – Perchance To Dream
4:30 AM – Long Live Walter Jameson
5:00 AM – What You Need
5:30AM – Man in the Bottle

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