The Twilight Zone - The Rip Van Winkle Caper

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Introducing, four experts in the questionable art of crime: Mr. Farwell, expert on noxious gases, former professor, with a doctorate in both chemistry and physics; Mr. Erbie, expert in mechanical engineering; Mr. Brooks, expert in the use of firearms and other weaponry; and Mr. De Cruz, expert in demolition and various forms of destruction....

Serling's opening monologue really gives us a brief description of each character involved in a gold bullion train heist, those with certain skills that came in handy in order to orchestrate such a caper. What each of these four doesn't anticipate are the ensuing complications that will deprive them from enjoying their cache.

Death Valley gets the nod again as four thieves, carrying quite a cache of gold bars, hide away their loot in a hidden cave with a stone door that pulls open using a rope. Inside the cave are four sleep chambers with the ability of suspended animation, provided to the thieves so they can awaken years later when the authorities would have abandoned their search for the gold. Farwell (Beregi, who would later lend his best performance on this show as an evil Nazi returning to the "museum of torture", in "Deaths-Head Revisited") has concocted this unique plan, with his knowledge in gases, chemistry and physics coming in handy, while his cohorts, De Cruz (Simon Oakland, much stressed news editor of "Kolchak, the Night Stalker"), Brooks (Lew Gallo), and Herbie (John Mitchum) get the benefits of the sleep machine so they can later partake (supposedly) in the riches of the gold once they awaken. But will the gold still have the same worth in a hundred years as it does in 1961?

Once again, the scorching sun beating down in the desert, no honor among criminals (in this case, thieves), the desire for water and its price when desperately needed, and the consequences of greed and avarice feature significantly in another episode of The Twilight Zone. Oakland is particularly loathsome, eyeing to have all the gold if possible, exploiting his canteen of water as Beregi hobbles behind sweating, huffing and puffing, and clinging to whatever energies the gold's value provide. Oakland seizes upon a back turned to run over Gallo while his attentions are elsewhere with a car before leaping out of the car while it careens off a cliff...Oakland smile, happy with himself, considering Gallo's death caused by a "car wreck". Unfortunately for Mitchum, his chamber was "disturbed" by a cavernous rock that smashed the glass, leaving him dead, just skeletal remains!

Serling's narration gives the viewer each of the four's skill-set and why they each functioned so well in the heist, experts in weapons, demolition, and mechanics. While Farwell is the mastermind and brains of the heist and later suspended animation, he aligned himself with De Cruz, much to his detriment. As sometimes happens, when there is something precious and desirable (whether it be monetary or necessary for survival) typically one among a gang takes the initiative to "dwindle the numbers" in his favor. I guess viewers / fans might see parallels to "I Shot an Arrow Into the Air", as there are casualties involved when the selfish think only about their own welfare. That the gold is worthless in 2061 is the big twist, clever and ironic as intended, and all four crooks perished for absolutely nothing. Beregi is actually not the monstrous among these thieves, more of a genius who allowed greed to overtake good sense. Oakland is from the get-go a cretin, never to be trusted, always concerned only for his own situation. Gallo and Mitchum are minor bit players disposed of by the plot rather quickly in favor of seeing Oakland and Beregi trekking under the hot sun, water in exchange for gold bars, eventually leaving one dead while another collapses from thirst/starvation just as he encounters assistance. The future-car being from "Forbidden Planet" is a cool addition (that movie was a prop outlet for The Twilight Zone!), as the husband and wife consider how this "poor dead soul" ended up out in the desert on his own. I never felt they could use Death Valley enough...it is just an outstanding location, the perfect bleak backdrop to tell stories of survival and peril. But the story is honestly quite simple and not all that particularly distinctive. But the direction gets the most out of the use of greed as a motivational device that destroys those wanting to be rich, rich, rich.