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I'm aware that a whole lot of people are familiar with the Twilight Zone as being an old school, scary, sci fi, anthology series. <:/ and though it's not entirely fair to make that assumption, as many of the episodes are fantastical, lighthearted, or even comical...iiiiiit's not entirely wrong to assume that the Twilight Zone has some creepy stuff either. >w>
So in the spirit of Halloween month,
I'm going to be suggesting some episodes to check out for anyone who wishes to get a little spook or just wants to peak their interest a bit.
:]
It's an old show from the 1960's yes, so the effects will be hokey and the colloquialisms will be laughable, and a lot of things will be outdated, but it sure gives you a feel of that traditional, corporate, technological, civilized incivility, cold-war era time period. x}

I'll be suggesting an episode every day. (Or try to) x} And yes, I will be trying to focus on the more spooky ones! Or the ones I find to be the most creepy or unnerving. >w> People may or may not have seen some of these before, so please keep spoilers in spoiler tags. I know the twists can be lame and predictable sometimes, but they're still fun.
I think Seasons 1, 2, 3, and 5 are up on Netflix to watch, but I live in the US so, I'm not sure Netflix is the same in other parts of the world. :/ Season 4 is available on Amazon Prime Video, however, I believe you do have to pay for it, so I'll try not to include Season 4, even though season 4 has some pretty creepy stuff! >w> <3

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Let's start with one of the more obvious ones when someone thinks of scary Twilight Zone episodes...

Living Doll

Of course, toys that come to life are nothing new today, but back then, it was probably too fantastic a concept to even dwell on. So when it occurs in the Twilight Zone, it's both alarming and unnerving to say the least. Nowadays horror has mastered the full frightfulness of living toys with movies like Child's Play, Poltergeist, Dead Silence, Anabelle and Puppetmaster, in which the inanimate objects have such unnatural movement and behaviors that are murderous and horrifying.

Back in the early 1960s though, to see that would likely be traumatizing to full grown adults, let alone children. x}
In Living Doll, the Doll, Talky Tina, conveys her character through her speech rather than move unnaturally. She doesn't really do anything scary by today's standards, except maybe threaten and end up vanishing from the places she was left in. She just sort of moves her head and arms back in forth in a robotic sort of way, and opens and closes her eyes.

This episode is a favorite simply because of her sweet little voice threatening a grown man with a rotten mean-spiritedness towards his step-daughter and his wife for getting her the doll. Talky Tina herself is actually kinda sassy despite being a guardian to the sweet little girl that loves her. xD Just the fact that she's alive and realizes the step-dad is an asshole and is probably abusive, kind of makes her a heroic force of retribution, as well as the creepy subject of focus. (:] Fun fact: I actually dressed up as Talky Tina for one Halloween. :/ Don't have any pics unfortunately tho..)

Additionally, the music in this particular episode is probably the creepiest I've heard compared to any Twilight Zone episode's musical score. :D It was composed by the legendary Bernard Herrmann and is one of his more creepy works I think. If you're familiar with the Psycho theme and the famous string shrieks during the shower scene, then you're familiar with Bernard Herrmann. >:D That was totally his music.

Season 5. Episode 6. Living Doll. Check it out. ;}

[Or don't, if you don't want to. :] *shrug* Up to you! ^-^]

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Perchance to Dream

Alright, comin' right at ya with the nightmare episode here. It's not nightmare inducing, it's literally about a re-occurring nightmare. /x{ This Season 1 episode was one of the only episodes that I was surprised somehow got on the air. 8[ It baffles me. There's spooky imagery, I guess somewhat revealing dancing sequence going on, and it's one of the more creepy and weird episodes, simply because it delves into the world of the dream, which happens to be a circus fair. A creepy episode to say the least, it's also one of the more earlier, character-narrated sort of episodes which usually had that narrative element tied in, during Season 1.

There's not really a scary clown or jumpscares or anything in it at all, but there is a sort of a scary "cat girl"? And maybe a sudden spooky scream in there? She's pretty and she's seductive but she is wicked and possibly evil in nature. I think the music in this episode too is very fitting in the way that it evokes panic and the fear of the escalating nightmare, akin to a heart beating faster and faster.

This episode by itself has two twists. But I won't spoil them. >.> I'll just mention that the scariest thing is probably the dream sequences themselves. And that you'll likely feel pretty bad about who they're happening to as well. 8/ Because in a sense, it's relatable, especially if you had any re-occurring or feverish nightmare before, where you dread going to sleep, and wake up drenched in sweat.
Season 1. Episode 9. Perchance to Dream. B] Watch just before bed, if you dare.

[Alternatively, watch this one with care, as it is sorta dealing in suicidal death, and also with frightful sequences. Although, I'm sure if this episode were re-made today, >~>; it'd likely be difficult to sit through. You can skip this one though if you'd like.]

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The Thirty-Fathom Grave

My top favorite spooky episode of the whole series, because it managed to give me a little chill down my spine and a nervous grin on my face. This episode is a little longer than the other episodes being it's from the fourth season and everything is longer in the fourth season..but it's engaging from beginning to end!

It ties two separate premises together and is essentially one deep ghost story.
It's best not to spoil in it's entirety, but I will say that it is one of the more spookier episodes centering around phantoms and fathoms. >w>
Of course, it was made in the 1960's post war era, but I think it still really holds up today. :o With the military handling operations professionally, and shedding light on war guilt and PTSD, it's kind of ahead of it's time.

I recommend this episode if you want a good ol' fashioned ghost story spook with a little bit of mystery. Written by Mr. Rod Serling himself, who was a veteran in WWII btw.
Season 4. Episode 2. The Thirty-Fathom Grave. Cannot recommend this one enough, because it's so spooky and classic. >w>
("I'll try not to include season 4." ...*includes season 4 three days later* xD)

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The Invaders

This episode is special because it's got some of the least amount of dialogue in a Twilight Zone episode. It relies on visual story telling, through action, and sound to build up suspense into terror.

The invaders has a twist though that is a little distracting if you're trying to guess, so, it's best to watch this one without thinking about the end of it. :] It just makes it scarier. I will say, it was difficult to find a scary episode in Season 2 as most of them don't dive into a terror sort of feel. :/ But this one, with it's music and the woman's acting makes it so dramatic and terrifying.

If you've ever had a home-alone experience where somehow an animal or a pest was invading your space and you are deathly afraid of said animal or pest, the same feeling echoes out in this episode. 8{ Only, it's not an animal or something familiar terrorizing the woman.

Season 2. Episode 15. The Invaders. Give it a watch if you haven't before. It's really best to watch it without thinking too hard about what the twist would be. :]

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The Dummy

Going back to that idea of inanimate things coming to life, this episode has more of a performing spin to it. Before the days of R.L. Stein and Goosebumps, and Slappy the Dummy, (if you're familiar is an evil dummy brought to life by magic.) there was Jerry and Willy. This episode in particular is sort of a predecessor of creepy dummies in horror. There are some that have come before, like in Alfred Hitchcock Presents, but also some I'm sure, that feature living dummies, but for comedic effect.

This episode is both comical and creepy, as you sort of get a sense that Jerry is extremely nervous and feels like he's lost his mind, but also see him being funny with another dummy and having a talent for ventriloquism. Willy the dummy is like many ventriloquist dummies that poke rude jokes at the guy in control as part of the act, and has a cheeky way about him. Although, he does have the most maniacal laughter I've ever heard in a twilight zone episode. O-O It's a bit disturbing how broken and almost inhuman it sounds.

Yes, this episode has a hokey twist that isn't really fully explained, and yes, the episode has little to go on with the effects of making the dummy move and talk on his own, but as creepy as it is, it's got it's funny moments here and there that make me crack a giggle or smile.
Can you imagine how terrifying it would be to know that something you've been working with in entertainment as a prop, suddenly came to life, and no one will believe you? >.>;

Season 3. Episode 33. The Dummy. Come for laughs. Stay for a nightmarish battle of control. B] Don't forget to hold your applause for the end.

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Night Call

Inspired in part by one of the many chilling short stories written by Richard Matheson, comes this creepy episode. It's lead character is an old lady living alone, with only the occasional company of only her caretaker. Most of the strange things happen at night, and during a thunderstorm. Classic haunted castle/house sort of vibe with those old lighting and thunder effects. The episode also involves a telephone, and the weird calls coming from the other end of the line, which is now commonplace in horror as a staple prop for delivering someone terrifying calling.

One of the best things about this particular episode is it's dramatic presentation in camera shot and in acting, to really show the fear of picking up that phone, and that feeling that perhaps you aren't as alone as you think you are. It's not terrifying by means of gruesome happenstance or frightful effects, but the terror here is more like that of a ghost story, which sends chills up your spine. However, unlike some of the more fantastical elements and scares of most other Twilight Zone episodes, this one in particular comes with a small grain of unbelievable truth.

I'm not saying the story and the thing that occurs is based on a true event, but...>.> believe it or not, there have been similar occurrences that the episode Night Call mirrors very closely. Even going into the modern day, with your everyday cell phone. <u< It's kinda spookier knowing that it has happened, and might happen again to someone, sometime, somewhere..

Season 5. Episode 19. Night Call. Watch it if you dare. And if by chance your phone is ringing or vibrating with a call during the episode, I sure hope the number calling is in your contacts. B}

[Note: <X'D There's a weird bit in the episode that sounds kinda oddly suggestive but it's not supposed to be, I promise. It's always a little funny to giggle at though for me.]

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The Fever

The Fever is one of those scary episodes that both revolves around insane impossible hallucination, and the suffocating power of gambling addiction. It's got some great over-the-top acting, and some humor here and there. The Fever refers to an illness Rod Serling describes as a most inoperative, deadly life-shattering affliction. He is speaking of gambling addiction and in the episode it is portrayed as giving money and hope and your entire being to a slot machine.

This is a good one to watch in particular because it really gets creepy towards the end with the name of the character being beckoned over and over. In fact, my baby brother was afraid of this episode for a while, in part due to the metallic, crinkling, dark voice in the episode. xD

Season 1. Episode 17. The Fever. If you gamble, always gamble responsibly. 8[ And never ever let it get the better of you!

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It's a Good Life

This famous episode has a certain kind of terror transfixed in it. It's special as it's the only episode in the series with Rod Serling calling for a different kind of introduction. The world the characters live in is in itself a prison and a nightmare. This is one of my favorite episodes and I watch it sparingly, since it is so famous and I typically see it played in marathons on TV all the time.

In a nightmare scenario that could only be cooked up in The Twilight Zone, Billy Mumy plays the 6 year old boy that is the warden and king of the prison. You can imagine all the things an undisciplined 6 year old child could do that would be both innocent and under the circumstances, be absolutely troublesome. But take that child and give him godlike powers, suddenly, you'd be on eggshells just to keep on his good side. It's a good episode that also focuses on the boy's imagination and child-like wonder and joy, in the form of horrific and twisted creations. What feels real is the little boy's dictation and manners, which is exactly how a little kid thinks and speaks, which makes you so thankful that children don't have mind powers like setting people on fire spontaneously. 8[

The best part of this episode is saved for the end, when it's someone else's birthday party, and the mood is anything but celebratory or peaceful. You can really feel the unease of everyone in this episode but that of the little boy. And in turn, sort of makes you uneasy, or at least upset that the is kid being a little selfish dictator.

Season 3. Episode 8. It's a Good Life. Most horrifying thing is likely the way the boy punishes the guy who upsets him. Let's just say, he was a very bad man, but he was right about the boy being a monster.

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Twenty-Two

Twenty-Two is another dream related episode, with a fever dream that happens again and again. It's one of the only Twilight Zone episodes that was shot on video instead of the television cameras, and gives it a creepier, closer-to-reality sort of feel to it. It's interesting to take this episode and compare it to Night Call, in which both episodes include a woman being terrorized by things, but one is a repeated dream and the other is a repeated phone call. Another parallel to note is that both uneasy and frightful instances are not as they seem at first glance.

The scariest thing about this episode is not the dancer's fright at her nightmare which assuredly would be a nightmare to you too if you were to find yourself stuck in that same dream. It's not even the dreadful feeling that the dream is bound to happen again, and when it does it'll still be as scary as it was the first time. No.

The most frightful thing about the episode is saved for it's twist at the end, which eerily also matches up with real-life accounts of people having near identical experiences. This I guess, is another spooky parallel drawn to Night Call. :] That this sort of weird and scary occurrence has happened to people in real life and still in our time.

Season 2. Episode 17. Twenty-Two. Give it a watch, and if you have ever found yourself in the midst of an actual repeating nightmare, this one might be a little too relatable. >.>

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And When the Sky was Opened

Another Richard Matheson short story based episode, this particular story centers around more than one person as the fear is passed on. I don't think I know of a scarier Twilight Zone episode personally to be honest. o_o The terror here is most uncomforting and most distressing. Not because it's real or possible, it's actually impossible..but can we say that for certain? >~>; The terror here comes from some unknown force that's a feeling, it's unseen and it's unstoppable. The greatest fear, is fear of the unknown after all.
Way before Thanos snapped his fingers and suddenly people just disappeared into dust and vanished into oblivion, the concept of being erased was present here in Matheson's own imagination. But with a slightly more horrifying effect coming with the erasure.

I won't give away this episode, because it's best to watch it yourself to get the horrific vibes. The acting is great, and a little over the top, but it certainly communicates the sheer fright the characters are going through. I will say, it's about a crew of three military pilots that were hospitalized after they crashed back to earth in an experimental aircraft, after disappearing from radar. I won't say what soon takes place after they recover from their injuries. Just that, whatever happens, is possibly one of the scariest sci-fi/horror concepts I have ever seen. o_o;

Season 1. Episode 11. And When the Sky was Opened. The terror here is psychological and fictional, but it far surpasses the fears of being killed, tortured, eaten, trapped, or cursed. It surpasses zombies, demons, ghosts and insects. It's subtle and it's slow, and it is unrecognizable. But it is unstoppable and it is tenacious. Just try not to think about all the missing person cases in the world. >-> And if you do, be thankful if the person missing still has a name..

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Shadow Play

Wow, a lot of these are just centered around dreams aren't they? o-o
This episode, likewise about a nightmare, but it's not only a repeating one, it's one the main character can't seem to wake up from. It's an interesting nightmare that he has to live through time and time again, like a song on repeat, over and over. While at the same time, no one seems to believe his story that he's in a dream and everyone is a dream person. The acting is great in this, and conveys the torment and the agony the man is feeling every moment of the episode.

The horror in this is felt through the dread that there is no escape and there is nothing you can do in time to change things. The man is simply stuck, and though there really isn't a twist, there is a hope expressed that changing the dream is possible.

The cinematography in this is also interestingly shown. With one sequence of a vision inside his head shown, and the focus on characters close up as things start to get more concerning and intensify. As well as the classic score used in most of the other Twilight Zone episodes, Bernard Herrmann does it again, with both subtle and quiet unease in his music. The episode also knows when to have the background silenced, and the music inserted. It flows together well in harmony, and gives you a slight dream-like doubt that, maybe reality isn't as it appears to be..

Season 2. Episode 26. Shadow Play. It's silly of course that we would all be living inside someone's dream, and that is the nature of reality. But it's a frightful thing, >u> to be questioning reality. This is more of a psychological horror than a spooky one. Give it at watch [or not. No pressure.] start to finish.

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The Midnight Sun

If there were ever an episode about the ultimate waking nightmare, this is it. Imagine the hottest day you've ever experienced...now imagine it didn't end when night came. And along with it, burns, dehydration, water shortages, electricity and power shortages, heat strokes, and people growing more desperate and mad with the harsh heat. In this episode there is horror in the fears of others, and the danger presenting itself in the form of extreme heat, slowly cooking humanity to death.

It really goes to show you, that life is so fragile in space, in our solar system. It'll make you glad that we're still snugly held firm in our goldilocks zone orbit. Although, it doesn't touch on Global Warming, it sure as hell paints out a disturbing picture of the consequences. 8{ (heh, paints. just noticed how appropriate that is, given that the episode revolves around a painter and her neighbor.)

This episode was written by Rod Serling, and the classic terror of awaiting doom and torment is not usually something he dabbles with, but in this case, he knows how to get under the skin and into the mind. >:] The acting itself is great, and genuine. You can relate to the characters well, even in a cool air conditioned place, but especially in a hot place. You can feel their sweat and exhaustion, and you can share in their terror, if you let yourself think what dangerous, murderous heat would really be like to stand. 8[

Season 3. Episode 10. The Midnight Sun. A portal of terror that's sure to make you sweat. <.< and wonder if hell might actually be closer than everyone thinks..
Scariest bit of this episode is the heat reaching temperatures beyond the boiling point, and if you've had a really bad fever, or maybe passed out in extreme heat, the lady screaming in agony one last time might be kinda terrifying. 8/

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Nightmare at 20,000 Feet

This very well known episode hardly needs an introduction. I don't really like drawing even more attention to this one, as it's so well known and the "American Pie" of Twilight Zone episodes. Meaning that it's probably the most well known episode that upstages the rest of the series while also being quite a good episode.

Though Richard Matheson's original story is far more frightful and intense, this episode was the one to bring it to life and essentially to fame. William Shatner is the leading role in this episode and it certainly earned him some acting props, especially before he found his lifelong career in acting in Star Trek.

Though the gremlin is a bit silly-lookin' and Shatner's reactions a bit goofy at times, this episode is all about fright, paranoia and anxiety. I think the best thing to remember when watching this, is that it is happening on an airplane during a storm. Not only is that horrifying by itself, as turbulence might become more likely, but add a creature to the mix, and what you get is truly a nightmare.

Season 5. Episode 3. Nightmare at 20,000 Feet. The scariest thing in this; Possibly that fantastic musical score once again, highlighting the terror and the anxiety perfectly. :]

[Merskelly Metalien]

The After Hours

This particular episode of the first season is one many might recall for the creepiness. I won't spoil much, because the twist is kinda important. I'll just say, it's an episode that keeps some people up at night, and others not so much. o.o Especially if you're the sort of person who gets tripped up with "the uncanny valley".

This episode is one of the only ones without much of a musical score, except for the department store music and some music at the end I believe. It may or may not have been intentional, but I think it works with the scenes in making them a bit more unsettling. I think if some creepy score were added in, it would seem more creepier, but also might come off as a little hokey, and have too much of a horror theme, which Rod Serling didn't always want. He wanted the viewer to feel terror for the character, not to be scared out of their wits that they'd stop watching. Because he wrote this episode, I think he wanted the atmosphere to be still and quiet much like a real department store would be after closing hours, therefore any movement is shadowy, mysterious and frightening, communicating something unusual and unknown, and that was his favorite trick to use. Not people's fear of something happening, but the fear of the unknown.

The fear is known in this, but it's unknown why the terror is happening, until the twist is revealed at the end.
Season 1. Episode 34. The After Hours. Feel free to browse, check it out, and get it giftwrapped. :]

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Long Distance Call

This episode wigged me out as a kid. O-O I won't lie.
And I'm beginning to notice a sort of correlation between Phones and Weird Terror in the Twilight Zone. /8{ Maybe Rod Serling just found phone calls kinda creepy. I can't blame him, they're machines with disembodied voices of the people you know coming out of it. >-> Weird.

Anyway, this episode is a good one. Like Twenty-Two, it's shot on video and in a single home set. It stars a very young Billy Mumy who was Anthony in It's A Good Life, the one I talked about earlier. :] He's also recognized as Will Robinson, the little boy in the Sci-fi series Lost In Space. Just a fun fact.

The whole unsettling emotion around this episode is how strong the ties of love are between a young boy and his old grandmother. It's sweet and sad and innocently eerie. You'll have to see it for yourself. There's no twist in this one per se', but it shares in it's creep factor with Night Call and Living Doll.

Season 2. Episode 22. Long Distance Call. The terror in this episode is less sinister but nonetheless, unsettling. Especially if you've ever seen a child talk to someone on their toy telephones, and seems to be having an actual conversation. o-o;