Rod Serling’s originalThe Twilight Zoneseries is responsible forsome of sci-fi history’s most famous twist endings, with one season 3 episode standing out for its remarkably dark implications. Many ofThe Twilight Zone’s best episodesdeal with uncomfortable and difficult aspects of humanity related to subjects like death, fear, paranoia, existential crises, faith, and morality, such as fears of flying in “Nightmare at 20,000 Feet” or fighting death’s inevitable arrival in theRobert Redford-starring “Nothing in the Dark.” Thematically connecting these stories are the dangers and harsh realities that come with mankind facing the unknown and unexplainable.
To highlight the darkness associated with these themes,The Twilight Zone’s greatest episodes often incorporated shocking twist endings to further elevate the stories’ scares afterward. Some of the show’s most iconictwist endings include “The Hitch-Hiker”’s death reveal, “The Eye of the Beholder”’s definition of beauty, and “Time Enough at Last”’s devastating glasses shocker, with certain episodes having much darker future implications for its characters. ArguablyThe Twilight Zone’s most disturbing sci-fi ending twist comes from “To Serve Man,”with the episode’s title taking on dual meanings after an alien race’s real intentions with mankind are revealed.
The Cookbook Twist In “To Serve Man” Is One Of The Twilight Zone’s Darkest Endings
Among the series’ darkest final twists is inThe Twilight Zoneseason 3, episode 24, “To Serve Man,” whichconcludes with some disturbing cannibalistic implications. The episode focuses on a man named Michael Chambers, a cryptographer for the U.S. government who is tasked with deciphering a book given to mankind by an alien race known as the Kanamits. When the Kanamits arrive, they tell the inhabitants of Earth that their only motives are to share their advanced technology that will end warfare while helping to curb energy and food shortages. The aliens keep their promise, and eventually bring humans to their planet.
The episode is based on the 1950 short story of the same name by Damon Knight.
Once mankind begins to drop their skepticism about the Kanamits and embrace their new “Utopia,” Chambers’ employee, Patty, finally decodes the book,To Serve Man. As Chambers boards the Kanamits’ ship, Patty frantically tries to keep him from going, asshe discovers thatTo Serve Manis actually a cookbook, rather than a book about altruistically helping and improving humanity. In theessentialThe Twilight Zoneepisode’s ending, Chambers tells audiences that the Kanamits intend to cook and eat all of humanity, before Chambers himself reluctantly submits to the Kanamits’ orders and cannibalizes his fellow man.
The cannibal twist ending inThe Twilight Zoneseason 3remains one of the iconic series’ most disturbing reveals, and there are plenty of darker implications layered into the story of “To Serve Man.” Not only is mankind forced to survive through cannibalism, but they’re doing so simply to gain more nutrition and delay the inevitable of being cooked and eaten themselves. Furthermore, humanity’s eventual downfall is partially due to its own naïveté of trusting the Kanamits’ and dropping its guard, while alsoignoring the reality that solving problems of war, energy shortages, and famine requires ridding the world of humanity.
The Twilight Zone’s Big “To Serve Man” Twist Has Been Parodied & Referenced Countless Times In Movies & TV Shows
The twist ending in “To Serve Man” was incredibly shocking upon its TV debut in 1962, and it’s never really left the broader pop culture conscience in the time since. Over the years, the praisedTwilight Zoneepisode has been referenced on numerous occasions by iconic horror, sci-fi, and comedy TV shows and movies, withmany such callbacks featuring Patty’s revealing line, “It’s a cookbook!”
For instance, inBuffy the Vampire Slayer’s season 7 premiere, Dawn ends a conversation with Buffy by saying, “The stake is not the power. To serve man is a cookbook. I love you. Go away.” In the animated sci-fi seriesFuturama, the robot Bender wears a chef’s apron that says “To Serve Man,” while a segment ofThe Simpsons’ season 2 “Treehouse of Horror” episodeparodies and subverts the twist with an alien cookbook that ultimately readsHow to Cook for Forty Humans.
“To Serve Man” is far from the onlyclassicTwilight Zoneepisode to leave a lasting influenceon popular culture, but it’s certainly among the most famous sci-fi twists in TV history.Jordan Peele’sThe Twilight Zonerebootseries even includeda spiritual sequel to the episode in the season 2 finale, “You Might Also Like,”in which the Kanamits return with another plan to destroy humanity. After more than sixty years, the continued presence and influence of “To Serve Man” in pop culture is a testament to the groundbreaking nature ofThe Twilight Zone’s dark twist endings.
