Walking Distance

Description: Season 1, Episode 5

Air Date: October 30, 1959

Plot Summary: A man visits the town he grew up in only to discover he has been transported back in time to when he was a child.

Review: I think this is one of the more underrated episodes as its deeper message tends to be overshadowed by the lack of explanation and questionable antics along the way. We have a man, named Martin, who we can assume was a forerunner to the yuppie generation, who returns to his hometown to get away from it all. They probably should have elaborated on what his problem was, but, in the grand scheme of things, perhaps it doesn't matter. After leaving his car with a mechanic, Martin walks the rest of the way to the town--thus, walking distance as he claims, although I believe there's a secondary meaning to this. Upon arriving in town, which is clearly the same one from "Where is Everybody?," Martin reminisces about the good ol' days. Funny enough, just as he is reminiscing about the way things used to be, the audience can admire it as well. Ten cents for a soda float? Sign me up for that shit.

It's not too long before Martin realizes that it's not that the little town hasn't changed, but he has literally been transported back to the past. I should note that Ron Howard has a bit role here as a kid Martin comes across. Martin then runs into his childhood self and scares him off due to appearing as a lunatic. Wanting to approach the situation in the most illogical way possible, Martin goes to his childhood home and whines to his mom about him being her son. Yeah, ingenious strategy there, dude. After doing whatever off screen (probably chugging down a few floats), Martin returns later that night in an attempt to prove his identity to his parents with his identification and contents of his wallet. Typically, the mom is irrational as hell and bitch slaps Martin leading him to run off to find his younger self. Again, Martin seemingly tries to approach the situation in the dumbest way possible as he chases after his younger self on a carousel. Through shenanigans, the younger version hurts himself which does in fact hurt the future self...so he can alter time. Eventually Martin's dad shows up and explains that he believes Martin's story about being from the future. You think they will get all emo with each other, but Martin's dad plays it stoic and explains to Martin that he had this past already and he should allow the younger version to experience it for himself. The dad also gives the sound advice that perhaps Martin has been looking back too much and should start to look forward. I really liked this moment and these are words of wisdom for anyone.

Magically, Martin returns to the present day of the town and now has to pay a whopping 35 cents for a float. Oh no, say it ain't so! Deciding he's had enough, Martin goes back to the mechanic and gets his car as Mr. Serling closes us out in with more words of wisdom. Basically, the lesson is just because you're old doesn't mean you can't enjoy the things you did as a kid and, in a manner of speaking, you're only as old as you feel. The thing I loved most about this episode is the way the music complements each scene with a whimsical feel, and of course that longing sensation. I usually like these kind of retrospective situations as you analyze your past and how it affects you currently. Overall, its a nice little episode that provides an insightful message that was as important then as it is now.

Bonus: At the end, who is that little hottie hanging out at the ice cream shop? She's not in the credits so that's unfortunate. Even Martin is scoping her out! I don't usually like the look of pre-80s girls, but every so often there is an exception. Does anyone recognize this chickadee?