Demon with a Glass Hand

One of the advantages of watching the science fiction videos before the power of inserted special effects took over is that the plot and dialog make the story, not eye-popping action. That is true of every story in "The Outer Limits Series," including this one. Robert Culp plays Trent, a man sent back through time in an attempt to save humanity from the Kyben, a species from another planet that is determined to wipe out all of humanity. Several of the Kyben have also come back through a time portal in an attempt to kill him. Trent's only advantage is a powerful computer that resides in his glass left hand. However, the computer is incomplete, as not all the fingers are present, which limits its processing power. While there are many Kyben, they are vulnerable to the bullets in Trent's gun and they can be forcibly and violently sent back to the future against their will. Written by science fiction giant Harlan Ellison, this story is largely an installment of the legend of the hero that never dies, a protector of humanity that will take on all threats, domestic and extremely foreign in origin. In this tense story, lighting, shadows, facial expressions and the quality of the set are used to develop the story rather than CGI. While this form does have weaknesses, the viewer runs no risk of overload of their visual apparatus. One can consider this story as a predecessor of the "Terminator" series.

An astonishing episode. I've seen dozens of Outer Limits eps and really had no idea one could be as intriguing, profound, and even tragic as this. I've now watched it a second time and the plot was as gripping as the first, plus a lot of details stand in clearer relief now. It certainly doesn't lack for atmosphere either!

No need to belabor the details of the narrative (others have completed that task) but in my view this ep redeems the entire series. It's made with the quality and care one normally associates with motion pictures, and the storyline and theme stand the test of time quite well, unlike so much sci-fi and fantasy-fi from the era.

A pleasant surprise, highly recommended.

PS: Don't read any spoilers!

This one I liked - from the very first time it was viewed. It has power - with powerful actors & actress. You "feel" the force of the episode - and brace for the surprise ending. When first viewed - it held me spellbound -all the way to the end. We just sat there & thought about it. It was awesome that people could's imaginations could bring this to the screen with such skill. It made me jealous - how they could dream this up & I couldn't. This episode endeared me to the "Outer Limits" forever. It's really incredible they could find just the "right people" in the right scenes with just the "right lines" - When VCR's came out - saw my chance to watch these episodes over & over again - and never tire of them. But - I still remember that night in the early 1960's - when we were held spellbound by this episode - a standard by which other episodes should be judged - absolutely loved it. Thank very much for the privilege of letting me comment.

Michael ml2348@att.com

I beg you to remember that this was written when most TV fans thought of science fiction as Buck Rogers or Flash Gorgon. The ideas and concepts were way ahead of their time for TV. Today we laugh at the special effects and Cosme's but also remember that TOL was made on a very tight budget. lighting effects and camera angles were used with he music to try and add the confused feeling that Trent and Consuelo were enduring. All in all it worked by 60's standards.

You can poke holes or take exception to certain issues that were not addressed but hey, they only had an hour (about 48 minutes without commercials). All in all I feel this is one of the most ingenious and in some ways eerie plots in early TV scifi. It has rightfully earned its place in the hearts of scifi fans.

I met Robert Culp in 2010 at the Palm Springs Film Noir Festival. He had white hair, but was still unmistakable.

He was having dinner and was rather angry I interrupted. I said, "Mr. Culp. please forgive me for interrupting you dinner, but this is probably the only chance I'll have to get an autograph." I guess my humble tone of voice was enough to calm his anger. I didn't mention "I Spy," or "Bob & Carol & Ted & Alice," which everyone thought would make him a star. I said "the one thing I've never forgotten was your performance in "The Demon With A Glad Hand." He replied "Oh, yes." Then he looked up at me rather pensively--thinking I was going to start a long conversation. I had already been told not to do that. I said "Thank you Mr. Culp, I love your work," and walked away. He evidently had a short fuse and I wasn't going to provoke a scene. Ten stars for "The Demon" and ten stars for the man.