The Twilight Zone: Mr. Denton on Doomsday (1959)
Season 1, Episode 3
10/10
Harsh, realistic Western becomes ironic tale of hope
22 January 2007
Warning: Spoilers
This episode ,from the fall of 1959, was televised at the same time as other regular Westerns were appearing in large numbers nightly. It begins as a story that could easily have been played on Gunsmoke, but takes a detour into the fantastic. The result is a powerfully realistic portrayal of a down and out drunk, reduced to being the town joke, who reclaims his dignity and self worth by the end.

It's a rare opportunity to see veteran character actor Dan Duryea play a nice guy, when most of his career was based on sleazy,cowardly, back stabbing villains. Martin Landau plays the type of character that Duryea was famous for, as the sadistic gunman who enjoys kicking Denton around. He makes the hairs on the back of my neck rise every time I see this episode, he is so creepy.

This episode isn't shown that often, but it's well worth seeing, as both a good TZ story, and a fine drama on its own.
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