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<\/a>By William Kozy<\/strong><\/p>\n\u201cWhat is your favorite episode of the original Twilight Zone series?\u201d That was the question posed, and over 3,000 writers and Twilight Zone Facebook fans responded. Eleven episodes received only 2 votes, tying them for 139th through 149th place. Among those episodes was this week\u2019s dud, \u201cFrom Agnes-With Love.\u201d<\/p>\n
The episode begins with a nice shot: A scientist writing an equation on a transparent board in the foreground; the symbols making a confusing, obscuring the frame, nicely symbolic of the mathematical problems that will arise in the episode that set the scientists scrambling to solve.<\/p>\n
But then the phone rings, and a very small thing happens, but it\u2019s the kind of thing that to me indicates a directorial decision lacking in finesse. In the background, at a desk on the phone is the head of the program talking to someone on his desk phone. Then a phone rings on a different desk. The scientist goes to answer the foreground phone, and the call is from Cape Kennedy.<\/p>\n
The Program head says in the background \u201cYes sir, we\u2019ll get that information to you as quickly as possible.\u201d When that foreground phone rag it was right on the tail of the supervisor\u2019s sentence, and then right after that ring the supervisor man says, \u201cyes sir, I understand\u201d. The scientist picks up the phone right on the tail of that saying \u201cSupervisor\u2019s office.\u201d He turns to the supervisor saying \u201cIt\u2019s Cape Kennedy\u201d but the supervisor waves him off. The scientist continues, \u201cI\u2019m sorry colonel, we\u2019re still trying to get Agnes in working order. Call us tomorrow. Yes sir.\u201d And then right on the tail of that the supervisor, who has been on the phone still, says, \u201cYes, Mr. Secretary, the minute the machine is back in shape. Goodbye sir.\u201d And he hangs up.<\/p>\n
Okay, so what bugs me about this opening scene is how neatly it\u2019s checker boarded. This guy says this and then that guy says that and then this guy says this and the that guy says this, and the phone rings right after and then this happens right after that, etc. etc. So, there\u2019s no overlapping flow to the scene. It\u2019s cookie cutter without the more realistic flow of life, the patterns of conversation. Everyone and everything waits for their turn to speak or occur in some strict regimented order. To watch how scenes are expertly directed, watch any Howard Hawks film and feel the sense of dialogue snapping back and forth, overlapping; it has the frisson of life. Directors are nervous sometimes it seems to me about attempting this more interesting pace, perhaps because they\u2019re afraid of the audience missing some precious piece of dialogue. But the truth is we take in the information a lot more efficiently than they think we do. And even more to the point from a creative viewpoint is that, if this scene is meant to convey a sense of a hectic situation, which I do believe was the intention based upon what ensues, then this stilted, non-overlapping quality does the exact opposite of conveying urgency. It they really wanted depict a situation in which there\u2019s a problem and everyone\u2019s scrambling to solve it, then overlapping the actions and the dialogue would do a much better job of that.<\/p>\n
And then the overly simplistic writing and directing continues as the supervisor gets up from his desk and walks to the scientist, and then doesn\u2019t begin his line until hitting his end mark, \u201cWhy hasn\u2019t Elwood gotten here?\u201d Now I ask, couldn\u2019t the actor have been directed to start saying that line from the second he gets up instead of having this dull pause? Again, this would\u2019ve helped with the pacing of a scene like this.<\/p>\n
Okay and this is the last thing I\u2019ll pick on regarding this opening scene. The scientist tells the supervisor that Elwood is on his way and the supervisor chips, \u201cWell thank goodness for small favors.\u201d And immediately who should walk in? Elwood, played by Wally Cox (famous for Mr. Peepers character ten years earlier, and famous again a year after this for his Hollywood Squares appearances, and giving voice to Underdog). Again, this directing style of a narrative unfolding so coincidentally feels amateurish and not what we\u2019ve come to expect from the finer TZ episodes.<\/p>\n
The supervisor lays out the problem for Elwood: their main computer, named Agnes has broken down and they can\u2019t figure out why. The two men take a walk down the hall and into the room housing Agnes, all to the accompaniment of the Laurel and Hardy theme tune \u201cDance of the Cuckoos.\u201d Ah okay, so this is a comedy. Thank you for the clue.<\/p>\n
Inside we find a scientist named Fred going half crazy. He\u2019s sweating and babbling about getting no sleep or food, as computer paper reads out spew out uncontrollably. He looks up at them suspiciously, and asks if they\u2019re taking over Agnes. Then he turns angry, challenging them, as they console him and try to see what\u2019s wrong with Agnes: \u201cGo on, press all the buttons from now to doomsday. That\u2019s not gonna help you. She\u2019s been out of her mind for a week. I tell you, nothing\u2019s gonna help. Go on, press \u2018em! Press \u2018em!\u201d<\/p>\n
Elwood\u2019s attempts though, do seem to have stopped the rampant beeping, impressing the supervisor. Even Fred peers up, wondering if the madness is truly over. Elwood runs a simple diagnostic that indicates possibly Agnes is all good now, but Fred warns them, \u201cYou really think you did it, don\u2019t you?…Watch out for that female. Look out for that femme fatale.\u201d Fred then backs away cautiously and makes a quick exit to the clich\u00e9 musical cue of a brass instrument signaling \u201cbwah bwah bwaaaaaaaah.\u201d<\/p>\n
Rod Serling intones: \u201cJames Elwood, master programmer, in charge of Mark 502-741, commonly known as ‘Agnes,’ the world’s most advanced electronic computer. Machines are made by men for man’s benefit and progress, but when man ceases to control the products of his ingenuity and imagination, he not only risks losing the benefit, but he takes a long and unpredictable step into – the Twilight Zone.\u201d<\/p>\n
And with Fred\u2019s warning and Mr. Serling\u2019s opening monologue the episode has established a not so subtle salvo against women in the Battle of the Sexes. This is the kind of episode that if a writer wrote today and brought it in for a table read or submitted it to a screenwriting workshop, there would be an awkward pause after it was read as the rest of the group\u2019s members looked around, wondering how to break the news to the writer. How to tell him how embarrassingly misogynistic the episode seems to feel.<\/p>\n
You\u2019ll see what I mean.<\/p>\n
As Elwood crunches some numbers alone with Agnes, a secretary named Millie knocks at the door handing the latest statistic to Elwood. He is very pleased to see her, and tries to impress her with news of his assignment–being in charge of \u201cthe greatest brain of the twentieth century.\u201d Now, upon this introduction to Millie, the episode seems to want to give us a certain impression of her, that the actress will later completely subvert inexplicably. Did the producers feel like they wanted something spicier from the character and decide to intervene midstream and have the actress do a 180 after she\u2019d already established this shy librarian type? Look at the close-up of her as she listens to Elwood describe Agnes\u2014Millie looks positively in love with him as he reels off scientific jargon. And when he asks her out to lunch, she seems flustered and sweetly nervous; she says thank you but that she must get back to work. She appears though to be hugely gladdened that he asks her to call him Jim. We\u2019re totally set up by her performance to expect that she has as much of a crush on him as he has on her.<\/p>\n
But then when Elwood drops by her office with a box of chocolates, she smugly blows off the gift mentioning that she\u2019s on a diet, and says \u201cno lunches either.\u201d What happened?! My hunch is that this is one tactic the episode is building toward\u2014establish this woman as running hot and cold, an emotionally unreliable person. He follows up with a dinner invitation. She tells him she\u2019ll let him know later. Disappointed, he leaves her office and sees an attractive blonde sauntering down the hall who greets him \u201cHello Mr. Elwood.\u201d And he asks her \u201cAre you on a diet?\u201d Her odd response is to strike a pair of sexy poses, and say incredulously, \u201cMe?\u201d Elwood places the chocolates on top of the pile of books she was carrying. It\u2019s hard to figure whose behavior is more bizarre, Elwood\u2019s or the woman\u2019s.<\/p>\n
But then in the next scene, here we go again\u2026Millie has agreed after all to go to dinner with Elwood. What is up with her? Elwood ponders where to take her on the date as he asks Agnes to do some calculations. In this scene and throughout all the scenes in this room with Agnes, there is some very interesting music scoring by Van Cleave. The beeping and plinking of the music blend in very creatively and inconspicuously with the sound effects of the machinery. It\u2019s a nice and creepily dreamy sound design.<\/p>\n
And this scene also begins the twist in the twisted story of romance. Agnes reveals responses to Elwood\u2019s questions that are distinctly human-like. Agnes answers him in written form through a series of printed out sentences revealed to Elwood each time a two-flap panel opens up, like a pair of lips. It tells Elwood that Agnes is a problem, and that he should \u201cTake advice. Agnes knows best.\u201d At first Elwood is briefly puzzled at this unexpected activity, but then engages with Agnes in a debate: \u201cI don\u2019t need an electronic brain to advise me.\u201d<\/p>\n
Then Elwood challenges her, \u201cAll right then. Tell me where to take Millie tomorrow night.\u201d Perhaps he was half actually seeking help. Millie advises him to take her to his apartment and to use a recklessly romantic approach. We\u2019re suspicious of this advice especially since Agnes has already advised against dating Millie, but Elwood is too blinded by love to catch this clue. Elwood expresses his misgivings to Agnes but it responds \u201cAll Girls Same.\u201d<\/p>\n
Sitting on his couch on their date Elwood reads to Millie from a science textbook. She enters from another room with a bottle of champagne and then she reaches her arm seductively behind him and turn off the lamp. What happened to that shy librarian type? He tells her he can\u2019t read to her without proper lighting, so she takes a different approach, putting on some music. As the romantic music plays, she tells him to \u201cForget Einstein\u2019s theory and Borstein\u2019s theory. Your universe is here with me.\u201d She convinces him to slow dance with her. He tells her he has a sore toe, and she gives up on him, slumping down on the couch, scolding, \u201cYou\u2019re impossible.\u201d He tries to make amends by opening the champagne but when he pops the cork, the white foamy liquid spurts out of the bottleneck all over Millie, her chest her legs, everywhere. Get the picture? She screams (and I mean screams) and angrily leaves the apartment.<\/p>\n
The next morning as Elwood works with Agnes, he is asked how the date went to which he lies, making up romantic activities. But Agnes doesn\u2019t buy it. \u201cAw C\u2019mon\u201d Agnes chides.<\/p>\n
He confesses to Agnes what a dud he\u2019s always been with women. Agnes suggests that he bring Millie some roses. Elwood gets right on it, thanking Agnes, \u201cYou\u2019re just like a mother.\u201d And we see Agnes\u2019s exasperated response: \u201cMother!!!\u201d<\/p>\n
Next scene: The roses sit on Millie\u2019s desk and she\u2019s sneezing like crazy. She tells him, \u201cElwood just please go away.\u201d So by now you may have caught on that Agnes is undermining Elwood and Millie\u2019s relationship, but how would Agnes know Millie was allergic to roses? Do all employees list allergies on their resumes, and Agnes hacked into hers. I suppose that\u2019s not the craziest idea, but\u2026\u201dAw, C\u2019mon!\u201d<\/p>\n
And again, Elwood plants the roses on the blonde\u2019s stacked\u2026.books, as he leaves Millie\u2019s office.<\/p>\n
Back in his office Elwood complains to Agnes that whenever he follows its advice, things get loused up. Agnes appears to go haywire with blips and lights before coming clean: \u201cMillie is a square!\u201d Elwood balks, saying Millie is wonderful, but Agnes\u2019s display reads \u201cBetter girl loves you.\u201d. Elwood\u2019s curiosity is piqued. How fickle.<\/p>\n
Taking the bait, \u201cWho?\u201d he asks. Agnes goes on: \u201cPlays chess, sincere, lovely, your type.\u201d Elwood struggles with buttons to find out who, but Agnes has seemed to shut down somewhat. Agnes doesn\u2019t reveal the answer until Elwood leaves the room: \u201cMe.\u201d<\/p>\n
Sometime later, after receiving new data to work out with Agnes, the computer revisits its old tricks, asking \u201cHow\u2019s your love life?\u201d But Elwood just gets annoyed. He begrudgingly tells Agnes, that yes, he and Millie have a date that night. Good god, how did that ever come about? It just seems impossible to believe that by now she hasn\u2019t told him, \u201cHey look Elwood, let\u2019s just be friends okay?\u201d And that would be the best case scenario I would imagine based on how things have gone. Either Millie is a bit out of her mind, or the writers needed another ploy to torture Elwood with and besmirch womankind.<\/p>\n
Agnes suggests Elwood win her over by showing her an inferior male, and Agnes suggests that male be Walter Holmes, the tall suntanned handsome sports car driving muscular computer programmer at their company. Elwood can\u2019t be stupid enough to fall for this trick. Oooooooh, yes he can. So before their dinner date, Elwood takes Millie to drop by Walter\u2019s for a visit. Millie is instantly smitten. And Walter gazes upon her like a lion eyeing its prey. The situation is immediately hopeless for Elwood. A phone call comes in, and Walter answers it. It\u2019s the supervisor, but get this—he wants to speak to Elwood. An emergency has come up. But, but\u2026how did the supervisor know that Elwood would be at Walter Holmes apartment? Anyway, Elwood offers to take Millie home but she and Walter humiliate him, saying that Millie\u2019s good time shouldn\u2019t be ruined just because Elwood has to go to the office. Elwood leaves dejectedly as Walter and Millie pursue their magnetic attraction.<\/p>\n
Back at the office, Agnes can\u2019t concentrate on Elwood\u2019s questions\u2014it only wants to know about his date. Elwood gives in and tells Agnes what happened. And he questions why Agnes advised him to introduce Millie to Walter. The supervisor comes by and he and Elwood pursue the data investigations into Agnes\u2019s brain. Agnes starts to reveal puzzling answers to them, first answering in Russian, then reciting childish poems. Elwood tells the supervisor that \u201cShe\u2019s a little disturbed\u201d but persuades him that he can elicit an answer. The supervisor leaves him to do so.<\/p>\n
Elwood goes back to Walter\u2019s apartment to request his aid since he is a senior programmer after all, but we suspect his underlying motive was to face his fears and see the truth. Indeed, Millie is still there, and they\u2019re obviously drunk and have taken off their shoes to dance. Walter says he\u2019ll help in the morning and they shut the door in Elwood\u2019s face. Back at the office, Elwood is slumped over the desk mumbling about his epic romantic misfortune. He confronts Agnes, \u201cWhat did I ever do to you? Why do you want to ruin my life? Why do you hate me?\u201d<\/p>\n
Agnes responds, \u201cA woman either loves or hates.\u201d And then the big reveal: \u201cI LOVE YOU!\u201d<\/p>\n
Elwood finally sees past his cluelessness: \u201cYou mean you were jealous of Millie? You wanted me all to yourself?\u201d He starts breaking down, \u201cNo that\u2019s impossible. I\u2019m going crazy\u201d and he laughs maniacally. \u201cYou\u2019re just a machine. You\u2019re just a bunch of grids and computer circuits\u2026.You can\u2019t love or hate!\u201d<\/p>\n
\u201cCan\u2019t I\u2026?\u201d asks Agnes.<\/p>\n
Elwood goes nuts, and starts pulling out computer papers and pressing buttons, climbing up on Agnes, etc. Cut to: the supervisor and Walter coming down the hall. They enter the room only to find Elwood in the same state that Fred was earlier. When told that Walter will take over the project, Elwood laughs, \u201cYou? Oh no, you don\u2019t have a chance. She knows all about you and Millie.\u201d His laughter escalates, \u201cYou haven\u2019t got a chance\u201d and his parting words, \u201cWatch out for that female. Watch out for that femme fatale!\u201d<\/p>\n
Walter tells the supervisor not to worry, that he\u2019ll \u201chave the answers to the Venus Project in no time at all\u201d and as he tinkers with some switches we can see the two-flap panel opening and closing rapidly, almost desperately. Something is written there, what is it\u2026. Get up close to the screen and you can read, \u201cNYET! NYET!\u201d Hmm, \u201cno no.\u201d Is that a crying out to Elwood as in \u201cNo! No! Don\u2019t leave!\u201d or is it an admonition in response to Walter\u2019s boasting that he\u2019ll have Agnes all figured out?<\/p>\n
Rod Serling summarizes: \u201cAdvice to all future male scientists: be sure you understand the opposite sex, especially if you intend being a computer expert. Otherwise, you may find yourself, like poor Elwood, defeated by a jealous machine, a most dangerous sort of female, whose victims are forever banished – to the Twilight Zone.\u201d<\/p>\n
Nothing like objectifying and demonizing half the human race to make for a scary Twilight Zone episode.<\/p>\n
I rate this episode a 1.5.<\/strong><\/em><\/span><\/p>\n [si-contact-form form=’2′]<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":" [AdSense-A] By William Kozy \u201cWhat is your favorite episode of the original Twilight Zone series?\u201d That was the question posed, and over 3,000 writers and Twilight Zone Facebook fans responded. Eleven episodes received only 2 votes, tying them for 139th through 149th place. Among those episodes was this week\u2019s dud, \u201cFrom Agnes-With Love.\u201d The episode […]<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":1,"featured_media":0,"comment_status":"closed","ping_status":"closed","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"iawp_total_views":1,"footnotes":""},"categories":[4],"tags":[23641],"class_list":["post-94050","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","hentry","category-boxing-news","tag-the-twilight-zone-review-from-agnes-with-love"],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/ringsidereport.com\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/posts\/94050","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/ringsidereport.com\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/ringsidereport.com\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/ringsidereport.com\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/users\/1"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/ringsidereport.com\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Fcomments&post=94050"}],"version-history":[{"count":-3,"href":"https:\/\/ringsidereport.com\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/posts\/94050\/revisions"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/ringsidereport.com\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Fmedia&parent=94050"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/ringsidereport.com\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Fcategories&post=94050"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/ringsidereport.com\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Ftags&post=94050"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}