This is another "what if we lived forever?" Twilight zone episode, like "Long live Walter Jamison", but this one is not nearly as good in several ways. Both episodes' "live forever" characters' names are Walter, I wonder if that was just a coincidence. Between the two, Walter Jamison was more interesting, intellectual, insightful, and was a lot more human. Bettecker's biggest fault in this episode is presented later on in the episode, but even in the beginning, he doesn't stop whining and complaining. I understand that he's supposed to be a hypochondriac but do we need to see him repeat everything he means three different times in different words over each point he makes in non-stop motor mouth fashioned? Such as in response to his disagreeing with the doctor about how he's not fine, I.e. "the doctor's a quack! Here I lie on the brink of death and he writes up vitamins for you! He tells me that I'm fine but he writes vitamins for you! He writes vitamins for you while I sit here with a life expectancy of 20 minutes! Might as well sign the death certificate now doc!" Then he continues to rattle on about his whispering wife, the drafts from the windows, about how his wife is wasting her time talking to that quack doctor, etc. Then he rambles to his wife about why a man has to die, why life is so short, and those things, mind you, are good comments and questions in an episode like this. They just really should've made Walter's talking a bit slower and less whiny, and cut down his repetitiveness.
Then enters this episode's version of the devil with the ability to grant Walter's wish on not dying, of course with the big catch of giving up his soul. Walter: "my soul!!?" Devil: "you won't even know it's gone". How many times have we heard that line in this particularly themed plot? A near parallel exchange was spoken in "Bedazzled" between Brendan Frasier and Elizabeth Hurly's devil. I've noticed how there are different character traits though between different film or TV show episode's versions of death or the devil. Like in TZ episode "A pitch for the angels", Death came across as a more plain, straight laced serious type of character, where here, the devil is sort of a wise cracking, 'blabbering cheerfully but with a bargain' type of character. Well, either way, they suddenly appear in the main character's bedroom ready to present their proposition.
Once Walter has signed the deal, he throws all his medications out the window and is suddenly a changed man. No more of the whiny, hypochondriac Walter which is good, but a little later on though, he really sinks low. Walter for a while becomes bulletproof and starts living a life of scamming for money such as jumping in front of buses, trains, etc., and then suing them for settlements. Then, after failing to kill himself by drinking bleach and cleanser in the bathroom, he finally explains to his wife what is really going on with him. Walter's wife here, I believe is the same actress from "The fever", as the wife of the husband with the slot machine addiction on their free Las Vegas trip. After that, the episode really takes a turn for the worse, he pushes his wife off the top their 20 story apartment building, kills her, and doesn't even feel remorse for it or even sorry for what he did. All he cares about is wanting to give the electric chair a whirl because he still can't find any excitement in his life. That whole deal just did not sit well with me. This episode set up the main character to be a hypochondriac who was scared of dying who wanted to find a way for eternal life, they did not set up a character to be a thoughtless killer who would kill his wife just because he was bored and then just shrug about it. I guess there was one line I found semi amusing. Walter's wife to Walter: "Why don't I make you some potato pancakes". Walter: "You're a potato pancake, you're as tasteless as a potato pancake".
Then enters this episode's version of the devil with the ability to grant Walter's wish on not dying, of course with the big catch of giving up his soul. Walter: "my soul!!?" Devil: "you won't even know it's gone". How many times have we heard that line in this particularly themed plot? A near parallel exchange was spoken in "Bedazzled" between Brendan Frasier and Elizabeth Hurly's devil. I've noticed how there are different character traits though between different film or TV show episode's versions of death or the devil. Like in TZ episode "A pitch for the angels", Death came across as a more plain, straight laced serious type of character, where here, the devil is sort of a wise cracking, 'blabbering cheerfully but with a bargain' type of character. Well, either way, they suddenly appear in the main character's bedroom ready to present their proposition.
Once Walter has signed the deal, he throws all his medications out the window and is suddenly a changed man. No more of the whiny, hypochondriac Walter which is good, but a little later on though, he really sinks low. Walter for a while becomes bulletproof and starts living a life of scamming for money such as jumping in front of buses, trains, etc., and then suing them for settlements. Then, after failing to kill himself by drinking bleach and cleanser in the bathroom, he finally explains to his wife what is really going on with him. Walter's wife here, I believe is the same actress from "The fever", as the wife of the husband with the slot machine addiction on their free Las Vegas trip. After that, the episode really takes a turn for the worse, he pushes his wife off the top their 20 story apartment building, kills her, and doesn't even feel remorse for it or even sorry for what he did. All he cares about is wanting to give the electric chair a whirl because he still can't find any excitement in his life. That whole deal just did not sit well with me. This episode set up the main character to be a hypochondriac who was scared of dying who wanted to find a way for eternal life, they did not set up a character to be a thoughtless killer who would kill his wife just because he was bored and then just shrug about it. I guess there was one line I found semi amusing. Walter's wife to Walter: "Why don't I make you some potato pancakes". Walter: "You're a potato pancake, you're as tasteless as a potato pancake".
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