"A Most Unusual Camera" is the tenth episode of the second season of The Twilight Zone, and was first broadcast in December of 1960. It starred Fred Clark and Jean Carson as husband-and-wife thieves Chester and Paula, and Adam Williams as Paula's also larcenous brother Woodward.

Chester and Paula have just pulled off a successful burglary of an antiques store, and are disappointed to find that all of the stolen material is worthless. But one item seems of interest: a polaroid type camera. After playing around with it, they realize that it takes pictures of the future. This is confirmed when they take a picture of the door of their hotel room, which shows Paula's brother Woodward, who they believe to be imprisoned, entering. Slightly later, he does indeed enter and now three petty criminals with out much wits have to figure out how to make money off a camera that captures the future. And, indeed, they do, but since this is a Twilight Zone episode and they are petty criminals, the fortune they find from the camera does not come without a price.

This is so far one of my favorite episodes of the second season. This episode could have been done so many different ways, and the idea of a device that gives us knowledge of an unavoidable future is certainly an idea that can lend itself to some dread. But instead this episode is done as slapstick: the vain and stupid criminals arguing over the best way to make money out of the magical camera lends itself to some great comedic possibilities. I have felt that some Twilight Zone episodes depend too much on a gimmick, foregoing drama in favor of a plot that is resolved through a forced twist. This episode, however, takes the gimmick and runs with it,and it works.

While several Twilight Zone episodes have dealt with time travel, and in fact the previous episode did, this is one of the first that really deals what would later be called the "timey-wimey" aspects of time travel. The camera presents images of the future, images that can become self-fulfilling prophecies. While it isn't explored in-depth due to the episode's comedic nature, it still adds another interesting aspect to the episode.

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