Premiering all the way back in 1959, The Twilight Zone shocked and frightened audiences with its terrifying tales of aliens, monsters, the unknown, and much more. Hosted by the beloved Rod Serling, The Twilight Zone was a showcase of fantastic storytelling that dealt with topical events and deep social themes. Some episodes have even managed to have a lasting impact on current film and television culture, with many a series taking direct inspiration from the many fine plot details of the show. There have been many attempts since the original run to revive the Twilight Zone, but not to the same level of success, with Jordan Peele’s 2019 incarnation as the latest example.

Updated: November 2022: To keep this article fresh and relevant by adding more information and entries, this article has been updated by Dylan Reber.

An anthology series, each Twilight Zone (a phrase used to describe a surreal experience, aptly chosen) episode stood alone, often making use of different casts (though Rod Serling was a fixture). With more than five seasons that blended horror, science fiction, and fantasy, The Twilight Zone has many fantastic episodes, with some ranking highly in TV Guide's Top 100 Television episodes of all-time (per Netflix Junkie). So, here are the top Twilight Zone episodes, ranked. Be warned, spoilers ahead:

Related: Twilight Zone Reboot Canceled after Two Seasons

10 S1/E16 - The Hitch-Hiker

Twilight Zone The Hitchhiker
CBS Television Distribution

The 16th episode of the first season, "The Hitch-Hiker" is a stirring example of suspense and dread. The episode follows a young woman on a cross-country road trip to visit her mother. But, while on her trip, she is followed by a mysterious male hitch-hiker, who continually asks her for a ride no matter how many times they stop. While the main fear shown in the episode is being stalked and filled with dread, the real fright comes when the end of the episode reveals that the young woman died halfway during her trip, and the hitch-hiker is actually Death, who has come to claim her.

9 S5/E6 - Living Doll

The Twilight Zone Living Doll
CBS Television Distribution

The precursor (and possible inspiration) to the famous horror character Chucky was Talking Tina, the living doll. When a step-father’s child gets herself a new doll, the doll immediately begins to terrorize the man in defense of the daughter. Hearing the doll talk on her own accord and behave like she has a life of her own is quite horrifying; "Living Doll" was Twilight Zone horror at its finest.

8 S1/E36 - A World of His Own

A World of His Own
CBS Television Distribution

A drastic tone change from the rest of the series, "A World of His Own" was a more comedic episode than The Twilight Zone was generally known for. A man is able to create anything he wants by simply speaking about it into his recorder (including erasing his creations and starting over), and when one of his creations figures that out, trouble starts to brew. The episode ends with the man jokingly breaking the fourth wall and erasing host Rod Serling from existence.

7 S2/E29 - The Obsolete Man

A scene from The obsolete man
CBS Television Distribution

With a story that echoes Franz Kafka's "The Trial," "The Obsolete Man" presents a dark totalitarian future in which human beings are put on trial for being "obsolete." Romney Wordsworth is one such man, and he finds himself at the mercy of the state, sentenced to death in a trial that can only be described as a mockery of justice. But Wordsworth is able to turn his execution to account, fighting totalitarianism to the very end.

6 S1/E11 - And When the Sky Was Opened

A scene from And when the sky was opened
CBS Television Distribution

This brilliant episode explores the lives of three men who, suddenly and without warning, cease to exist. It's a frightening possibility to consider, and one The Twilight Zone handles thoughtfully. "And When the Sky Was Opened" seems to ask us: if no one remembers you, did you ever really exist? It leaves us to ponder, without an easy answer, how we might respond if we looked in the mirror and saw nothing reflected.

5 S1/E22 - The Monsters are Due on Maple Street

A scene from The monsters are due on maple street
CBS Television Distribution

Another masterclass in horror storytelling, "The Monsters are Due on Maple Street" is a simple tale of a neighborhood descending into paranoid fantasies and turning on one another over the threat of an alien invasion. While playing on the theme of a neighbor becoming an enemy, the episode also manages to create fear without showing the aliens until the very end of the episode. It's a powerful commentary on the United States during the Cold War and the deterioration of trust.

4 S2/E6 - Eye of the Beholder

The-eye-of-the-beholder-1
CBS Television Distribution

One of the episodes with deeper meaning in The Twilight Zone series, and featuring one of its best plot twists, "Eye of the Beholder" follows a young woman about to get cosmetic surgery that will allow her to fit in and look like the normal population (via Old Gold and Black). But it is revealed that the woman actually has a standard human face, while the rest of the population has been modified to have pig snouts. While not the scariest episode, the way "Eye of the Beholder" handled the stress of beauty standards was done particularly well.

3 S1/E8 - Time Enough At Last

Time Enough at Last Twilight Zone
CBS Television Distribution

A simple enough story: a man who is obsessed with books wants to read all the time, to the point where it inhibits his marriage, his social life, and his tasks at work. While on break at his job, he goes into a vault to read a book, and, while he reads, a nuclear bomb destroys the outside world. The man is thrilled, because now he has all the time in the world to read; but before he can, he drops his glasses. Without them, he is blind. The episode ends in heartbreak as the man struggles to find his glasses, though moving farther away from their location all the while.

Related: Hardest Hitting Twilight Zone Endings

2 S3/E24 - To Serve Man

Oz Perkins as Kamanit #2 in The Twilight Zone.
CBS Television Distribution

The 11th ranked episode on TV Guide’s Top 100 Television Episodes of All-Time, "To Serve Man" is a story of a race of aliens (known as the Kanamits) who come to Earth offering humanitarian aid. They leave their book on how-to improve life on earth, decoded to mean “To Serve Man," which makes everyone believe that they are here to help. As relations develop between the Kanamits and the humans, the rest of the book is decoded, revealing it to be a cookbook on how to "serve" man as a dish. Arguably one of the top episodes of the series, it certainly has the best plot twist of any.

1 S5/E3 - Nightmare at 20,000 Feet

nightmare at 20000 feet
CBS Television Distribution

This episode encapsulates every factor that makes the Twilight Zone what it is: horror, science-fiction, monsters, human psychology, and mental health; "Nightmare at 20,000 Feet" is the best representation of TheTwilight Zone's special appeal. Robert Wilson, a man who just got out of a psychiatric hospital, is on a flight home with his wife. During the flight, he sees a mysterious creature tearing up the wing of the plane. No matter how much he tries to alert the attendants, they don’t believe him. So, he takes matters into his own hands, which tragically causes the plane to land early, sending Wilson right back into a psychiatric hospital. In classic Twilight Zone fashion, the episode ends by showing the plane's wing torn apart, meaning that Wilson was correct after all. The Twilight Zone is a series filled with over a hundred episodes of horror, plot twists, and masterful story-telling. The above episodes are the standouts of the series, and are what best represent the strengths of this classic television series.