A Small Talent for War
Encyclopedia
"A Small Talent for War" is the second segment of the fifteenth episode from the first season (1985-1986) from the television series The New Twilight Zone
.
The episode menu on the Region 4
DVD release erroneously displays the segment name as "A Small Talent of War".
) from an alien
race arrives to claim to have genetically engineered Humanity. He directly challenges the United Nations
to prove Humanity's worth, displeased over their "small talent for war". He then tells them that Mankind has failed to produce the potential that the aliens nurtured in them thousands of years ago, and as a result, all life on Earth will be destroyed in 24 hours. With the survival of Humanity at stake, the UN hurriedly establishes an accord for lasting global peace and presents it to the emissary.
However, the emissary was, in fact, seeking a greater talent for war, as the aliens routinely breed warriors to fight for them across the galaxy. Humanity's "small talent" for war (crude weapons, petty bickering over borders) is not significant enough to be of any use to them, and worst of all, the ultimate goal of Humanity is peace. As the ambassador calls down a fleet of spaceships to destroy the Earth, he praises the humans for their "delightful sense of the absurd", and his parting comment repeats the dying words attributed to several English-language actors: "Dying is easy, comedy is hard".
, starring Lloyd Bochner
about a seemingly benevolent race that helps man turn earth into a paradise and whose climatic line is "The book... To Serve Man. It ... it's a cookbook!"
The New Twilight Zone
The Twilight Zone is the first of two revivals of Rod Serling's acclaimed 1950/60s television series of the same name. It ran for two seasons on CBS before producing a final season for syndication.-Series history:...
.
The episode menu on the Region 4
DVD region code
DVD region codes are a digital-rights management technique designed to allow film distributors to control aspects of a release, including content, release date, and price, according to the region...
DVD release erroneously displays the segment name as "A Small Talent of War".
Synopsis
An emissary (John GloverJohn Glover (actor)
John Soursby Glover Jr. is an American actor, perhaps best known for a range of villainous roles in films and television, including Lionel Luthor on the Superman-inspired television series Smallville.-Personal life:...
) from an alien
Extraterrestrial life
Extraterrestrial life is defined as life that does not originate from Earth...
race arrives to claim to have genetically engineered Humanity. He directly challenges the United Nations
United Nations
The United Nations is an international organization whose stated aims are facilitating cooperation in international law, international security, economic development, social progress, human rights, and achievement of world peace...
to prove Humanity's worth, displeased over their "small talent for war". He then tells them that Mankind has failed to produce the potential that the aliens nurtured in them thousands of years ago, and as a result, all life on Earth will be destroyed in 24 hours. With the survival of Humanity at stake, the UN hurriedly establishes an accord for lasting global peace and presents it to the emissary.
However, the emissary was, in fact, seeking a greater talent for war, as the aliens routinely breed warriors to fight for them across the galaxy. Humanity's "small talent" for war (crude weapons, petty bickering over borders) is not significant enough to be of any use to them, and worst of all, the ultimate goal of Humanity is peace. As the ambassador calls down a fleet of spaceships to destroy the Earth, he praises the humans for their "delightful sense of the absurd", and his parting comment repeats the dying words attributed to several English-language actors: "Dying is easy, comedy is hard".
Closing narration
Themes
This episode is based loosely on the original series episode To Serve ManTo Serve Man
"To Serve Man" is a science fiction short story written by Damon Knight. It first appeared in the November 1950 issue of Galaxy Science Fiction and has been reprinted a number of times, including in Frontiers in Space , Far Out and The Best of Damon Knight...
, starring Lloyd Bochner
Lloyd Bochner
Lloyd Wolfe Bochner was a Canadian actor, usually playing the role of suave, rich leading men.- Career :...
about a seemingly benevolent race that helps man turn earth into a paradise and whose climatic line is "The book... To Serve Man. It ... it's a cookbook!"