The Parallel
Encyclopedia
"The Parallel" is an episode of the American television anthology series The Twilight Zone
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However, inconsistencies quickly pop up. His own daughter senses he is not the same person, his house has a white picket fence he's never seen (even though his wife stated they had it when they bought the house), everyone keeps calling him Colonel
(confirmed by the rank insignia on his uniform) when he knows he's a Major
, and he insists the President of the United States
is John F. Kennedy
— a man nobody else around him has ever heard of. Gaines concludes that he's slipped into a parallel universe
and tries to return to his space capsule, but blacks out again before he can do so.
He immediately finds himself back in orbit, and lands his craft safely. He is prepared to write the whole thing off as a nightmare, but controllers on the ground subsequently receive another transmission — from Colonel Robert Gaines…
The Twilight Zone (1959 TV series)
The Twilight Zone is an American anthology television series created by Rod Serling, which ran for five seasons on CBS from 1959 to 1964. The series consisted of unrelated episodes depicting paranormal, futuristic, dystopian, or simply disturbing events; each show typically featured a surprising...
.
Synopsis
An astronaut, Major Robert Gaines, is orbiting the Earth in his space capsule. However, at one point the systems malfunction and he blacks out, waking up on Earth. He appears to be none the worse for his experiences, and is released to the custody of his family.However, inconsistencies quickly pop up. His own daughter senses he is not the same person, his house has a white picket fence he's never seen (even though his wife stated they had it when they bought the house), everyone keeps calling him Colonel
Colonel
Colonel , abbreviated Col or COL, is a military rank of a senior commissioned officer. It or a corresponding rank exists in most armies and in many air forces; the naval equivalent rank is generally "Captain". It is also used in some police forces and other paramilitary rank structures...
(confirmed by the rank insignia on his uniform) when he knows he's a Major
Major
Major is a rank of commissioned officer, with corresponding ranks existing in almost every military in the world.When used unhyphenated, in conjunction with no other indicator of rank, the term refers to the rank just senior to that of an Army captain and just below the rank of lieutenant colonel. ...
, and he insists the President of the United States
President of the United States
The President of the United States of America is the head of state and head of government of the United States. The president leads the executive branch of the federal government and is the commander-in-chief of the United States Armed Forces....
is John F. Kennedy
John F. Kennedy
John Fitzgerald "Jack" Kennedy , often referred to by his initials JFK, was the 35th President of the United States, serving from 1961 until his assassination in 1963....
— a man nobody else around him has ever heard of. Gaines concludes that he's slipped into a parallel universe
Parallel universe (fiction)
A parallel universe or alternative reality is a hypothetical self-contained separate reality coexisting with one's own. A specific group of parallel universes is called a "multiverse", although this term can also be used to describe the possible parallel universes that constitute reality...
and tries to return to his space capsule, but blacks out again before he can do so.
He immediately finds himself back in orbit, and lands his craft safely. He is prepared to write the whole thing off as a nightmare, but controllers on the ground subsequently receive another transmission — from Colonel Robert Gaines…