Nightmare (1998 ''The Outer Limits'')
| "Nightmare" | |
|---|---|
| The Outer Limits episode | |
| Episode no. |
Season 4 Episode 20 |
| Directed by | James Head |
| Written by | Sam Egan based on the original teleplay by Joseph Stefano |
| Production code | 82 |
| Original air date | August 14, 1998 |
| Guest appearance(s) | |
|
Adam Harrington as Billy Valentine | |
"Nightmare" is an episode of The Outer Limits television show. It was first broadcast on Friday August 14, 1998, during the fourth season. It is a remake of "Nightmare" (1963), an episode of the original series.
Opening narration
| “ | While some prisoners of war show bravery beyond the call of duty, others succumb to an enemy often more formidable than the one which captured them. | ” |
Plot
During a war with the planet Ebon, a group of Earth soldiers are sent to deploy a top-secret device on an uninhabited planet near enemy territory. Captured there, the soldiers undergo physical and psychological torture by an unseen enemy. The prisoners become suspicious of each other when their captors claim they have received cooperation, and physical wounds from torture are healed after interrogation.
Eventually, Kristin Anne O'Keefe, one of the primary designers of the device, is forced to activate the device so the enemy can use it for themselves, but sets the device to go off. It is revealed that they were on Earth the whole time being tested, and now that the device has been turned on, which was supposed to be impossible, it cannot be turned off and they have doomed the planet.
Closing narration
| “ | In our efforts to plumb the depths of our psychological endurance, we may do more than drive ourselves to the breaking point... we may destroy the very world we’re seeking to protect. | ” |
Dedication
The closing credits was dedicated to the late Leslie Stevens, who died three months prior to the episode's broadcast.