Zoned Out: Act Break

On this Saturday, let's find out the answer to an age-old mystery courtesy of...

In this Tale, a man gets a wish in a weird way.  The only thing weirder is what happens next!

Our Hero- the guy on the left- is a poor Playwright pestered for rent by Mario here.

He goes home and starts working with his partner.  They get really passionate about their work.

So passionate, in fact, that our hero barely realizes that his friend just had a heart attack!

Now here's where things get odd.  His dying friend hands our hero an amulet, which he explains that he got from some Buddhist Monks.  Its power: granting one wish.

Instead of using it to heal his friend, our hero wishes that he had the perfect writing partner!

He's suddenly not in his Apartment and he looks different.

He does get a new partner: William Shakespeare!

He lets slip that he knows about the man's plays, so the Bard wants to know more.

Inadvertently, Shakespeare grabs the amulet and says that 'He wishes that he would tell him about the Plays.'  This makes his wish come true and now our hero is magically-forced to write all of the plays (which he now knows line for line).  The End.

Eegad- this is weird!  The whole thing is not played seriously, so it kind of works.  How did a New York Playwright end up helping some Monks and receive a magical amulet?  How does it work?  Why did his vague wish send him to the time of Shakespeare and transform him?  It doesn't make much sense, but whatever.  That is kind of the point, I think.  It is goofy and ridiculous.  Besides that, it is well-acted.  It is worth noting that the same guy who plays our hero's partner also plays Shakespeare in this, adding a Peter Pan-like element to this.  If you like silly, light-hearted Tales, this is for you.  If you like your Twilight Zone to just be serious, you won't.  I'll take care of that itch next week.  For now, let's just enjoy the fact that we solved the mystery that Frontline first examined back in 1989...

Next week, let me show you the opposite side of the spectrum with a serious Segment.  When is a test a matter of life and death?  Stay tuned...