tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-1318310043864039191.post6931136514433988506..comments2024-03-20T15:28:13.030-05:00Comments on The Twilight Zone Vortex: "The Last Flight"JPhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/14808904189056290207noreply@blogger.comBlogger13125tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-1318310043864039191.post-84862637043657305852019-08-01T11:32:29.376-05:002019-08-01T11:32:29.376-05:00Great catch! Yes, I remember the snooty advertisi...Great catch! Yes, I remember the snooty advertising executive with the glasses that tried to convince George to wear the dress shirt with the attractive lady assistant. Now I remember Kenneth Haigh was the same guy! I must have seen a Hard Day's Night about 20x as I am an avid Beatles fan, as well as a TZ fan!<br />Anonymoushttps://www.blogger.com/profile/08314582582238025846noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-1318310043864039191.post-56882394963467971002019-03-17T06:04:38.172-05:002019-03-17T06:04:38.172-05:00Although it's not the scoop of the century, so...Although it's not the scoop of the century, some people, like me, being both a TZ, and a Beatles fan, certainly find what I'm about to open up as fascinating enough. The Last Flight marks THE only episode in all of the Zone history where the lead would, in a modest role, work with the Beatles some five years later in their screen debut ,"A Hard Day's Night'. Kenneth Haigh would play a fashion consultant that failed to come to agreement with George Harrison on the consultanr's idea of the latest mens' fashion trends. Haigh does NOT receive credit for his role in the Beatle movie, though, but he's said to have been the one doing that part. and I recognized him. naruto65https://www.blogger.com/profile/12170480906969053086noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-1318310043864039191.post-84603328892537104712019-03-17T06:04:37.808-05:002019-03-17T06:04:37.808-05:00Although it's not the scoop of the century, so...Although it's not the scoop of the century, some people, like me, being both a TZ, and a Beatles fan, certainly find what I'm about to open up as fascinating enough. The Last Flight marks THE only episode in all of the Zone history where the lead would, in a modest role, work with the Beatles some five years later in their screen debut ,"A Hard Day's Night'. Kenneth Haigh would play a fashion consultant that failed to come to agreement with George Harrison on the consultanr's idea of the latest mens' fashion trends. Haigh does NOT receive credit for his role in the Beatle movie, though, but he's said to have been the one doing that part. and I recognized him. naruto65https://www.blogger.com/profile/12170480906969053086noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-1318310043864039191.post-84293630716695286792019-03-17T05:17:34.446-05:002019-03-17T05:17:34.446-05:00Although it's not the scoop of the century, so...Although it's not the scoop of the century, some people, like me, being both a TZ, and a Beatles fan, certainly find what I'm about to open up as fascinating enough. The Last Flight marks THE only episode in all of the Zone history where the lead would, in a modest role, work with the Beatles some five years later in their screen debut ,"A Hard Day's Night'. Kenneth Haigh would play a fashion consultant that failed to come to agreement with George Harrison on the consultanr's idea of the latest mens' fashion trends. Haigh does NOT receive credit for his role in the Beatle movie, though, but he's said to have been the one doing that part. and I recognized him. naruto65https://www.blogger.com/profile/12170480906969053086noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-1318310043864039191.post-30714684539934979352018-11-02T15:28:12.343-05:002018-11-02T15:28:12.343-05:00I too agree with poster John K that the episode ha...I too agree with poster John K that the episode has excellent dialog and is the quintessential character study. I like the lines where Lt. Decker tells the Cpt he had no idea that the Americans were so advanced..I also like the end of the episode where Decker "decks" the Captain and the other men and jumps into his plane only to have a pistol pointed to his head by the Air Force captain. Decker says to fire away then because he could not live anymore as a coward and the Captain backs off and Decker takes the plan up into the air and goes through the same cloud formation that landed him in present day 1959 (for that time period anyway) and back into 1917 and saves "Old Lead Bottom". The last scene is where Vice Admiral MacKay recalls the air-fight where Decker seemed to disappear in a cloud thinking he desserted his comrades only to come back again with guns firing. Then, when the American Captain presents MacKay with Decker's belongings (ID, flying pin), he is incredulous and says, "Where in the Devil did you get those"...A very underrated episode for sure! Anonymoushttps://www.blogger.com/profile/08314582582238025846noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-1318310043864039191.post-15014532623536767262017-10-25T04:17:21.254-05:002017-10-25T04:17:21.254-05:00It's a solid episode for sure. The dialogue is...It's a solid episode for sure. The dialogue is really good and Haigh carries the episode well. This one always felt more like a Serling episode than a Matheson episode. Maybe its because of Serling's association with war-related episodes or his fascination with airplanes but it seems like one that would have fit his personality well. I actually don't think I have seen it since I wrote this review but I believe I'll give it another viewing sometime very soon. As always, thanks for an informed and thoughtful comment, John.Brian Duranthttps://www.blogger.com/profile/02724290376009803159noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-1318310043864039191.post-91438315378475268342017-10-21T02:23:26.870-05:002017-10-21T02:23:26.870-05:00I just watched The Last Flight again and the quali...I just watched The Last Flight again and the quality dialogue was what struck me this time. Yes, Decker's reaction to the U.S. air base of 1959 seems a bit too reserved, given the "shock" of what he's actually seeing (gigantic jets, helicopters, all dwarfing his little fighter plane), but no matter. The episode had to get the job done, and as a character study it's quite good. Decker's admission of cowardice was both moving and credible; Kenneth Haigh really sold it. The paradox of his being alive in 1959 and his friend Mackaye, presumably dead, now a senior air officer, is nicely dealt with, and this brings out the hero in him. It's more of a moving little drama than a true fantasy episode.john kenrickhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/00710666533854296630noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-1318310043864039191.post-90507698312343841042017-02-12T16:14:52.493-06:002017-02-12T16:14:52.493-06:00According to our Genre Guide to the series, 19 epi...According to our Genre Guide to the series, 19 episodes concerned time travel. That's tied with "Enchanted Objects" for most episodes on the same theme. <br /><br />"Walking Distance" is probably the best time travel episode. I'd also throw in "Execution" as a quality take on the theme. "Death Ship" is sometimes regarded as a time travel episode. Matheson's original story is included in the Vandermeers's definitive anthology on the subject, The Time Traveler's Almanac (2013). I placed "Death Ship" under "Death and the Afterlife" in our Genre Guide. JPhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/14808904189056290207noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-1318310043864039191.post-69173102848162403312017-02-12T15:46:23.750-06:002017-02-12T15:46:23.750-06:00I definitely agree that the time travel theme grew...I definitely agree that the time travel theme grew tiresome pretty quickly but it's one that can be approached many different ways, so it's understandable that the show would return to it so often. "The Last Flight" is pretty solid but it's not my favorite time travel episode. If I had to pick one I would probably go with "Walking Distance." "A Hundred Yards Over the Rim" is also really good.Brian Duranthttps://www.blogger.com/profile/02724290376009803159noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-1318310043864039191.post-1063604681840551102017-02-11T20:46:00.181-06:002017-02-11T20:46:00.181-06:00My daughter thought the pilot had "the cutest...My daughter thought the pilot had "the cutest accent." This episode had the virtue of being the first time travel episode. The gimmick quickly wore thin...galacticjourneyhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/02350935794214027433noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-1318310043864039191.post-73257827575637542082016-05-11T03:34:07.274-05:002016-05-11T03:34:07.274-05:00Speaking of wings, Brian, having just watched The ...Speaking of wings, Brian, having just watched The Last Flight again, and having thoroughly enjoyed it,--TV shows were so well made back then, and I mean built--I was reminded of just how many "Zones" were airborne, whether literally or figuratively, including, of course, space travel. The series began with the prospect of space travel with Where Is Everybody?, and there are a number of other airborne sequences early on. Height, and I don't mean the physical stature of human beings (though sometimes, yes, as as The Little People, The Invaders, Last Night Of A Jockey, I suppose the ventriloquist dummy eps, even Stopover In A Quiet Town).<br /><br />Or maybe Rod Serling had a fascination with things vertical; and maybe a fear as well. Even the all indoors The After Hours has that department store top floor that doesn't exist, the creepy elevators. The Lateness Of the Hour, the Talking Tina ep and Uncle Simon prominently feature staircases. In Ring-a Ding Girl Bunny Blake is killed in a plane crash. Hazel Court and Mark Richman encounter tiny aliens and their big balloon in the underrated The Fear.john kenrickhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/00710666533854296630noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-1318310043864039191.post-71795898802413539122016-02-21T14:23:40.011-06:002016-02-21T14:23:40.011-06:00I agree with you, John. The show was still growing...I agree with you, John. The show was still growing its wings at this point and "The Last Flight," while still a good, solid episode, doesn't adequately represent Richard Matheson's voice on the show, which tended to be bleak and unsympathetic. And Kenneth Haigh does do a great job here. Thanks for checking out the site!Brian Duranthttps://www.blogger.com/profile/02724290376009803159noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-1318310043864039191.post-2488663341571089832016-02-21T05:14:33.650-06:002016-02-21T05:14:33.650-06:00Good acting helps save The Last Flight from medioc...Good acting helps save The Last Flight from mediocrity, as does its You Are There vibe, which makes it feel like a true story, maybe an entry in the One Step Beyond series. Kenneth Haigh is particularly good as Decker. His light, amiable presence makes his character all the more sympathetic. The ending is wistful, and the tone overall is gentler than in later episodes in the Twilight Zone. The show was still finding itself, trying a little of this and a little of that in its early entries, of which this is one.john kenrickhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/00710666533854296630noreply@blogger.com