As we make our way into the fifth dimension tonight, all of us will become acutely aware that there are fewer days ahead than there are behind.

Because together we've explored four seasons and 120 episodes of the Twilight Zone, all through its highs and lows and some diversions along the way.

But with that came a punishing schedule.

And as we know, despite having some of the best writers in the medium working on the Twilight Zone,

Rod Sailing had still written 75 of those 120 episodes.

But he himself said,

by the end I was writing so much

that I felt I had begun to lose my perspective

on what was good or bad.

So in 1963 when CBS renewed the Twilight Zone for a fifth season, the question was could it maintain

the quality?

Perhaps one advantage going forward was that season 5 was to revert back to the classic

Twilight Zone running time.

The longer episodes didn't translate to larger viewing figures, and even today those longer

running times are a sticking point for some fans.

So reverting back to the classic running time was a good idea, but would it be enough?

Mark Zichri and the Twilight Zone companion says that season 5 is where the show lost its vitality

and that the quality of the writing slipped badly.

But he does go on to say that a Twilight Zone that was a shadow of its former self was still better than anything else out there.

Now whether I agree with that statement or not we will see with time,

but what is unmistakable is that this is a time of change.

As we've taken this journey we've been introduced and met important names along the way.

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