TZ Post SYFY Marathon - The Hunt

 The Hunt - I remember how touched I was when I first watched "The Hunt" all the way back in the 90s when I was around 16. Just an old man and his dog, out coon hunting, drowning as a result when the wrong jump in the lake caused the accident that took their life. I think this kind of episode won't reach as many folks as it used to. This will probably be viewed as old hat, too old fashioned, quite dated. An old man (Hunnicutt), his dog, Rip, and his old woman (Jeannette Nolan), living in the mountains in their log cabin, nearly married 50 years. She saw omens, Hyder Simpson (Hunnicutt) didn't heed to them, and despite her pleas not to go hunting, he went ahead with Rip, and the rest is an accidental drowning, and a man and his dog in limbo on their way to either Heaven or Hell (basically the film's afterlife looks very much like the mountains Hyder and Rip always lived, returning home to find two neighbors in overalls and dirty hats burying Rip, proceeding to find Nolan in black grieving the loss of her husband before he is taken in a wood box to be buried himself) based on a walk on Eternity Road. The episode takes place entirely within a land of green, trees, wood, and meadows, a land that produced a simple life for a simple marriage. The marriage was of love and comfort, and eventually Hyder comes across Foulk's gatekeeper, denying his dog Rip access to what he calls heaven...Hyder refuses to go anywhere without Rip. Despite Foulk's objections and continual nagging for Hyder to come along and leave Rip behind--even claiming he'll take Rip in perhaps later--Hyder isn't about to go to any Heaven that doesn't allow his beloved dog. The love between a man and his dog (and the love of a long marriage) is just central to this episode's power and I just won't ever resist the charms of the folksy nature of this. I think a certain kind of audience will love it while others will probably feel alien to it based on the characters involved in the episode. When "The Hunt" is over, I just let out a sigh every single time. I feel right at home here. When Dupont arrives, all personable and friendly, telling Hyder that he escaped Hell because of Rip, it confirms that his best friend was every bit worth defying an eternity that rejects a dog. The music in Twilight Zone so often punctuates the gravity of whatever drama is unfolding or punches home the emotional potency of the subject matter. I think this episode has such a romantic view of what eternity could be like...why not Hyder and Rip--and eventually his Old Woman--together in a Heaven that has square dancing and coon hunting? Okay, again, perhaps this episode isn't for everyone, haha.