(screenplay writer and directed listed after each entry)
Episode 1: Battleground
This one is a fun homage to one of the most beloved Twilight Zone episodes, The Invaders. If you've watched much of the Twilight Zone you remember that one, where little spacemen are accosting some old woman and there isn't a word spoken during the whole episode. Battleground is just the same, no spoken dialouge, little people accosting someone (in this case William Hurt). It is a neat episode and a nice take on the old story.
D - Brian Henson
S - Richard Christian Matheson
Episode 2: Crouch End
This episode is a Stephen King take on the extra-dimensionality-madness of the Cthulu mythos. It does a nice job considering it only has one hour's time. It's cool to see Claire Forlani in a role like this. I give this episode a thumbs up, it's a decent episode for what it is.
D - Mark Haber
S - Kim LeMasters
Episode 3: Umley's Last Case
In many ways, this idea has been done before, even the relative concept has been done in Star Trek: NG, including the era. The story is sappy, a bit silly, and has a touch of sadness. It was a good contrast to Crouch End. I had a fun time watching this episode, I even enjoyed the way it worked out, add in William H. Macy and that makes the series is 3 for 3 in my book. This one rounds out the first disc and does a good job of it.
D - Rob Bowman
S - April Smith
Episode 4: The End of the Whole Mess
This story asks the age-old, "Am I my brother's keeper?" This episode is a wonderful exploration of that question in a number of unorthodox ways. It is also a wonderful cautionary tale of a genius' ambition to right the wrongs of the world. Livingston and Thomas are great in their roles and bring life to this intriguing story. Although not a tale of horror or even of suspense, The End of the Whole Mess is very good teleplay that gets my approval.
D - Mikael Salomon
S - Lawrence D. Cohen
Episode 5: The Road Virus Heads North
Tom Berenger stars in this very "Stephen King style horror". I am not a huge fan of this genre of movies/books/short stories. I find S.King a much more talented writer when he isn't writting his style of horror. I'm not sure I can even discribe "Stephen King horror", but I know it when I see it, and this is it. A little bit Sometimes They Come Back and a little bit of King's own narcissism make this episode a yawn fest. Skip it, it's been done before and better.
D -Sergio Mimica-Gezzan
S - Peter Filardi
Episode 6: The Fifth Quater
Now here is one that surprised me. It had no elements of anything supernatural or even that weird, yet it had suspense and heart. Perhaps it wasn't the greatest tale of the ex-con who wants to turn straight but is pulled back in, but it was darn good. I liked the characters in this peice a lot, they made the plot propel forward with a gritty determination. A good story, decent acting, good direction, a well done addition to the series, if a great deal different. That makes 5 out of 6 worth watching so far.
D - Rob Bowman
S - Alan Sharp
Episode 7: Autopsy Room 4
This feature, much like the first one in the series, is an homage to another old teleplay. Autopsy Room 4 nearly identical in setup to an episode of Alfred Hitchcock Presents called Breakdown. The Nightmares and Dreamscapes version is a little lighter in tone than the earlier one. This story is alright, nothing special about it really, the original is better.
D - Mikael Salomon
S - April Smith
Episode 8: You Know They Got a Hell of a Band
Is it some kind of law that some one from Wings has to be in every Stephen King production at this point? Anyway... The story here is a rather weird and boring one. It's not frightening enough to be a horror, it's not funny enough to be a comedy, and it's not interesting enough to waste your time on if you have bothered to read this review. Skip it.
D - Mike Robe
S - Mike Robe
* I guess that brings th series to 5 good and 3 not so good for the series. Not so bad for Stephen King in my opinion. It was definitely no Twilight Zone or its ilk, but worth a watch if you got some time to spare, though I would just rent the first 2 discs. *
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