1.40 --- To See the Invisible Man

Directed by : Noel Black Written by : Steven Barnes (story by Robert Silverberg) Starring : Cotter Smith, Karlene Crockett First aired : 31st of January, 1986. In near future, one of the worse crimes a man can commit is being heartless and incompassionate. Mitchell Chaplin (Cotter Smith, K-9, X-Men 2) is the latest recipient of such punishment, and his sentence is one year of public invisibility. And to make my point early, he's not made invisible a la H.G. Wells, he is just branded on his head - and everybody must ignore him. At first, Mitchell is rather thrilled with the prospect of this, but he soon starts to feel remorseful about it. Unable to strike conversation with anyone, even a blind man, he starts to crack up from loneliness. Even fellow invisibles are barred from talking to him. One night, few months away from the end of his sentence, he is mowed down by a car on the street. Mitchell is in incredible pain, however, he is denied medical service. Time passes, and the day finally arives - he is relieved of his sentence, his mark of invisibility lifted. Four months later, he's a man reformed, back at work and loved by everyone. Walking back home from work, Mitchell is suddenly confronted by the "invisible" girl who he met during his sentence (Karlene Crockett, Dallas) - she is still punished, and he can't talk to her. But, having tasted isolation himself, Mitchell is now too good - he breaks down and hugs the girl, and in turn condemns himself. *** While not incorporating any frightening critters or serial killers, this episode tickles perhaps one's deepest fear - the fear of isolation. And not only that, but it also touches the fear of losing your civil liberties, and makes this already good episode even better. Also, the finishing touch reminded me of A Clockwork Orange, minus the "redemption" part. Cotter Smith is excellent in the title role, his downfall from smug jerk to good samaritan thoroughly believable. I would also like to single out the score for this episode, composed by Craig Safran. Mainly performed by futuristic sounding synths, Safran's work perfectly accompanies Mitchell's plight, reminiscing the score Tangerine Dream did for Kathryin Bigelow's stylish modern vampire story, Near Dark. And if you haven't seen Near Dark, well, consider this a recommendation.