Chameleon (The Twilight Zone)

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“Chameleon”
The Twilight Zone episode

Scene from "Chameleon"
Episode no. Season 1
Episode 2, Segment 3
Written by James Crocker
Directed by Wes Craven
Guest stars Terry O'Quinn : Curt Lockridge
John Ashton : Chief Bradley Simmons
Ben Piazza : Dr. Vaugh Heilman
Steve Howell Bassett : Gerald Tyson
Original airdate October 4, 1985
Episode chronology
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"Dreams for Sale" "Healer"
List of Twilight Zone episodes

"Chameleon" is the third and final segment of the second episode of the television series The New Twilight Zone. A space shuttle returns from a mission and NASA discovers that something unusual has been picked up. They discover that they have a shape-changing alien in their holding tank that poses a danger to all.

Contents

[edit] Synopsis

The episode starts with the US space shuttle orbiting the earth. The shuttle TV camera starts to malfunction, and they can't get it to work or follow any orders, so it's shut off. Back on earth, two technicians are working on the shuttle after it has landed. One of them, Crew Chief Simmons (John Ashton), detaches the camera, about the size of a large shoebox, to take it to be repaired. He picks it up, a blue light flashes, and he suddenly disappears. The box falls to the ground, and the other technician calls for an emergency alert. The box is put in an isolation chamber. As the scientists are discussing what could possibly have happened to the technician, there is a bright flash in the isolation chamber, and suddenly Simmons is back again, but the box is gone. He asks to be let out, and gets quite angry about the situation, but the scientists don't know what to think.

They review the tape of the box changing into the man, but are stumped. Simmons tells them his name, ID number, and everything personal they ask, but they don't trust him. He tells them he has to get out, and when they ask why, Simmons disappears in another flash of light and a woman stands in his place, begging them to let him out. One of the people says that it's Simmons' wife Kathy, and they realize that the creature can assimilate memories and change its organic structure at will. When Kathy begs them to let her husband go, one of the scientists asks her where her husband is, since she's alone in the iso tank. Caught in a mis-step in judgment, the creature gets flustered and looks around, trying to cover up its mistake. The blue light flashes again, and Simmons reappears; he starts breaking things inside the isolation tank, until the scientists pipe in sleeping gas. He slumps to the floor, but after one of the doctors goes in, he gets up, takes the doctor's hand, and they both disappear in a flash of blue light. In their place sits a nuclear bomb. The people on the outside remember, too late, that the doctor who went in was once a bomb expert for the US nuclear team.

Another scientist, Curt (Terry O'Quinn), goes in and tries to reason with the creature, saying that it will probably survive the explosion, but the people in the complex won't. When the timer reaches zero, the doctor appears again and runs out through the open door. Curt runs after him, catching up to him at a launch platform, and begs the creature to let the doctor and Simmons go; the creature says that they aren't prisoners, but stay because of a thirst for knowledge. The creature asks Curt to come with them, join them in the adventure, but Curt can't find the courage. Curt then asks why the creature came to earth; "Just curious", it replies, before changing into a glowing gaseous cloud and flying away into the night sky.

[edit] Closing narration

“ Imagine yourself a visitor to many worlds, drifting on the solar wind, a thousand voices singing in your memory. Now imagine you're this man, who can only guess at the wonders he might have known, wonders that exist for him now only as a riddle from The Twilight Zone. ”

[edit] See also

[edit] References/External link