This is one of those Twilight Zone episodes I first saw as an adult well after it first aired back in the Sixties. It's probably a good thing I didn't catch it when I was nine years old, because the Howling Man's transformation into his alter-ego at the end of the story looks pretty chilling (and real) even to this day. "The House on Haunted Hill" spooked me for quite a spell back in those days, so it's better I grew up some before seeing this one for the first time.
It's probably best not to dig too deep into the details of the story though, as this devil found himself imprisoned not once but twice by what would be considered a far less skillful adversary. Especially the second time around, notice no explanation was offered on how David Ellington (H.M. Wynant) did it. But it's not that important, as the story conveys how Satan's influence in the world goes beyond good and evil. The master of deceit will take credit for war, pestilence, poverty and a whole host of ills that have plagued man throughout the ages.
By the time you make it to the end of the episode however, you'll wind up yelling at Ellington through the TV screen for being such a dope about leaving the housekeeper alone with Beelzebub. I mean really, what chance was she going to have? More simplistic than ironic for a Twilight Zone finale, and made way too easy for the Great Deceiver.
It's probably best not to dig too deep into the details of the story though, as this devil found himself imprisoned not once but twice by what would be considered a far less skillful adversary. Especially the second time around, notice no explanation was offered on how David Ellington (H.M. Wynant) did it. But it's not that important, as the story conveys how Satan's influence in the world goes beyond good and evil. The master of deceit will take credit for war, pestilence, poverty and a whole host of ills that have plagued man throughout the ages.
By the time you make it to the end of the episode however, you'll wind up yelling at Ellington through the TV screen for being such a dope about leaving the housekeeper alone with Beelzebub. I mean really, what chance was she going to have? More simplistic than ironic for a Twilight Zone finale, and made way too easy for the Great Deceiver.