History Recap / TheTwilightZoneS1E28ANicePlaceToVisit

[[quoteright:350:https://static.tvtropes.org/pmwiki/pub/images/83159d5040350d358c047890a99b759d.jpg]]
[[caption-width-right:350:''[[Music/{{Eagles}} "You can check out any time you like, but you can never leave..."]]'']]

->'''Creator/RodSerling''': "Portrait of a man at work, the only work he's ever done, the only work he knows. His name is Henry Francis Valentine, but he calls himself Rocky because that's the way his life has been: rocky and perilous and uphill at a dead run all the way. He's tired now, tired of running or wanting, of waiting for the breaks that come to others but never to him, never to Rocky Valentine. A scared, angry little man. He thinks it's all over now, but he's wrong. For Rocky Valentine, it's just the beginning."

Air date: April 15, 1960

Henry Francis "Rocky" Valentine (Larry Blyden), currently in the middle of his "job" (robbing a store), stops when he hears a police siren and starts to make a break for it. He runs into an alley and opens fire on the "lousy screws" in pursuit while trying to scale a fence. He's hit several times in the back and falls to the ground. He comes to, seemingly alive and well, with a fat man in a white suit (Sebastian Cabot) standing over him, calling his name. He wonders how "Fats," who informs Rocky that he can call him "Pip", knows his name. Pip simply states that it's his job to know. He also knows several facts about Rocky's life, including details about his childhood. Pip makes the situation plain: it's his job to see that Rocky's taken care of and given anything he could want. All of this for nothing in return. Rocky is disbelieving, but after a demonstration that his bullets will do Pip no harm, he works it all out: he died in that alley, and now that he's getting anything he can ask for from a kindly old man in a white suit, he must be in Heaven. This realization, combined with a luxury apartment, a million dollars in loose bills, and "a dame that never quits", changes his tune.

Soon after, Rocky is living it up in a casino, rolling in the dough and winning round after round. He lives the highlife, with Pip giving him anything on demand. While it's all wonderful, Rocky can't quite figure out how a crook like him managed to get through the pearly gates. He asks Pip if they have a hall of records nearby, which they do. Since "it's always open," Rocky and Pip head to the hall of records and pull up Rocky's file. With such wonderful notes as "[[BadPeopleAbuseAnimals Age of 6, slaughtered small dog]]," Rocky wonders if there's been some sort of misunderstanding. Pip assures him there's been no mistake, and he's right where he's supposed to be. Rocky brushes it off--if it don't bother [[{{God}} the Big Man]], then it don't bother him none.

Sometime later, Rocky is back at the casion, winning again. It's the same back at his fancy pad, his dames are getting dull and he wins a game of pool on the first stroke. He summons Pip to explain his boredom. Pip perhaps he would be happier if he went back to his old ways as a crook. This gets Rocky excited for some potential action. Pip would have it "exactly as he requested", changing Rocky's mood. He'd "know" that having a robbery set up in advance wouldn't be the same and it's eating him up. He goes into a frenzy, telling Pip, "I don't belong in Heaven, see? I want to go to [[{{Hell}} the other place]]." Pip then tells Rocky [[https://youtu.be/Su1Rdw3SRHY?t=173 the truth about his situation]]: "Heaven? Whatever gave you the idea you were in Heaven, Mr. Valentine? ''This '''''is''''' the other place''!!" As the realization dawns on Rocky's face, he frantically tries to open the now locked door while Pip laughs maniacally at his fate.

----
!!A Nice Place to Trope:
* AndThenWhat: Rocky runs into this dilemma early on, not knowing what to do now that he has everything he ever wanted. It's the first sign that it's actually a punishment.
* BeardOfEvil: Pip's beard is initially meant to project an air of godliness, fitting in with the initial presentation of Rocky's fate as being heavenly, only for it to get turned on its head when Pip reveals that Rocky's actually in Hell, turning his facial hair into a way of accentuating his status as his personal tormentor.
* BewilderingPunishment: Rocky doesn't know that his ultimate fate ''is'' a punishment...at first.
* BloodlessCarnage: No blood appears on Rocky anywhere when he's shot dead -- especially since Pip states that Rocky [[BoomHeadshot was hit in the head]]. The censors would never allow it on television at the time.
* BrooklynRage: Rocky is from Brooklyn, and speaks in a very thick accent.
* CompleteTheQuoteTitle: "...but I wouldn't want to live there."
* CoolAndUnusualPunishment: Rocky's personal hell may be boring, but at least there's no lake of fire.
* DeadToBeginWith: Rocky dies just two minutes into the episode.
* DivinelyAppearingDemons: Though he looks nice and godly, Pip is anything but a guardian angel.
* DisproportionateRetribution: When he was six years old, Rocky slaughtered a small dog that bit him.
* DrivenToMadness: Just before Pip tells him the truth about where he is, Rocky has grown so irritated with his “paradise” that he says he’ll go nuts if he has to stay for one more day.
* EnfantTerrible: In addition to killing the dog, Rocky stole 14 toys from a store, organized a street gang, and broke into a bike shop, all before he turned ten.
* EvenEvilHasLovedOnes: Rocky fondly remembers his childhood gang, calling them a great bunch. He also asks Pip about the whereabouts of some of his fallen criminal friends, wanting to see them again. These are about the only times he's thinking of someone other than himself.
* EvilLaugh: The episode ends with Pip doing one after saying the WhamLine.
* ExactWords
** Rocky calls Pip an angel. Pip never describes himself as an angel, merely a guide. It can also be interpreted that Rocky was right when he called Pip an angel, [[FallenAngel just not the kind he thought]].
** Rocky mentions the place he's in must be Main/{{Heaven}}. Pip says, "Something like that." Only one major difference.
* FatBastard: The overweight Pip, who Rocky even nicknames "Fats", is actually a demon who is amused by Rocky going mad with boredom.
* FatalFlaw: Rocky's {{Pride}} and {{Greed}}. He wanted everything in life and did nothing but take, now he's stuck in a paradise where he gets everything he ever wants. He always wins. He has beautiful women for miles around. He has money lining his pockets, but he becomes bored. Even when Pip offers to arrange for him to lose and endure some hardships, Rocky's pride stands in the way and he still isn't satisfied. Because of his self-absorbed ambition and greed, he will suffer from boredom in his IronicHell for eternity.
* FauxAffablyEvil: Pip turns out to be a demon who is only being courteous and obedient to screw with Rocky by making him live with boredom for all eternity. He drops the affable facade at the very end when he breaks out laughing after delivering the WhamLine.
* FreudianExcuse: Possibly. As the opening narration states, Rocky calls himself as such because he's lived an exceptionally difficult life, an uphill climb filled with struggles and poverty, and he’s bitter that he never got a lucky break. He seems unable to grasp the idea of getting whatever he wants for free, saying that nothing is free and "anything I got in this lousy world, I had to drag out of it". It's not a stretch to see his angry, selfish behavior as a result of his tough upbringing.
* FluffyCloudHeaven: How the CelestialBureaucracy is depicted, albeit stark.
* GangOfBullies: When he was eight years old, Rocky started a street gang called the Angels.
* HamToHamCombat: Sebastian Cabot and Larry Blyden take turns seeing who can out-ham the other.
* HellOfAHeaven: {{Subverted|Trope}}; Rocky ''thinks'' this is where he's ended up, and that's why he wants to go to [[AHellOfATime the other place]]. Of course, his "paradise" actually [[ThisIsntHeaven is the other place]].
* ImmuneToBullets: Pip, to Rocky's absolute bewilderment.
* IronicHell: Rocky is a greedy, sociopathic hedonist who wants to be rich and date beautiful women, and is bitter that he never got a lucky break and had to struggle for everything he ever got. As a result, he winds up in an afterlife where he always wins and he instantly gets everything he wants, but grows insanely bored with the lack of challenge and surprises.
* ItsAllAboutMe: Rocky is clearly very self-absorbed.
* KarmicTwistEnding: Turns out that Rocky was in Hell all along.
* KickTheDog: Rocky killed a small dog who bit him when he was a kid, and expresses no remorse for the act when recalling it as an adult.
* LackOfEmpathy: When Rocky goes through his record and sees the part about him killing the small dog at the age of six, all he has to say for himself is “Why not? It bit me”.
* LightIsNotGood: Pip has white hair and wears a white suit, but he’s secretly a demon.
* TheMagicPokerEquation: Rocky is playing poker with his women. One of them draws a straight flush only for Rocky to win with a royal flush. Justified in this instance as part of Rocky's IronicHell is that he can never, ever lose at something unless he specifically asks to. Which, in of itself, take away from the risk of the situation because the outcome of losing would have been ''pre-planned''.
* MsFanservice: Valentine's women, whom he calls "The Dolls."
* MundaneAfterlife: The afterlife appears to be just like the living world, except everything always goes right for Rocky. He enjoys it at first, but eventually grows disillusioned with the endless pleasure.
* NoChallengeEqualsNoSatisfaction: Rocky's eternal punishment. He grows very frustrated and exasperated that every roulette round is a win, every card hand is a win, even the first shot on a billiards table results in all the balls sinking with one strike. Every woman is a hot babe who's perfectly willing to have sex with him. Even when he wants to rob a bank, he knows he will get away and hates the idea that Pip has to plan in a chance he would get caught because it will still feel fake to him. Turns out it wasn't the material and money that Rocky was seeking, it was the exciting challenge and the pleasure of taking from others that gave him satisfaction.
* NotDistractedByTheSexy: Subverted at first, where Rocky is very attracted to the beautiful women who show up to adore him. Played straight near the end, where one of the women asks Rocky in a sultry voice if there’s anything else she can do for him, while smiling and giving him bedroom eyes. Rocky responds “Yeah, get out of here, I’m sick of looking at ya”.
* NotUsingTheZWord: The afterlife Rocky ends up in is never explicitly referred to as "Hell", although he does believe it to be Heaven at first and says as much. It's only referred to in the finale as "the other place".
* PersonalizedAfterlife: Rocky asks Pip if he could meet up with some of his old outlaw friends who died before him, but he is told that his afterlife is his own "personal domain" separate from theirs. Not only does this fit with the idea of each person's hell being tailormade to make them as miserable as possible, but if Rocky were to be able to spend time with "real" people other than Pip, he likely wouldn't grow bored with it as quickly.
* TheSociopath: In life, Rocky was a selfish, remorseless criminal and a thrill seeker who enjoyed the pleasure of taking from others, which is what makes his IronicHell so strong. What's the most effective punishment for someone who likes to take from others? Put him in a place where people will happily give him anything he wants.
* SpiritualAntithesis: Think the nonstop party world where all your desires are instantly satisfied would be a great place to spend the afterlife? The ''Series/BlackMirror'' episode "[[Recap/BlackMirrorSanJunipero San Junipero]]" agrees!
* StealthHiBye: When Rocky dials P-I-P, Pip appears without warning over his shoulder. Averted at the CelestialBureaucracy, as Pip simply vanishes in plain view.
* TailorMadePrison: This is the KarmicTwistEnding. Rocky considers getting everything he wants as someone in [[CelestialBureaucracy the afterlife making a mistake]], considering he was a crook all his life, but he decides that he doesn't care "if the '[[{{God}} guy upstairs]]' doesn't mind'." When Rocky asks if he can get together with his old gang, Pip tells him that his afterlife was made specifically with him in mind, [[PersonalizedAfterlife meaning he gets to enjoy everything he wants by himself]]. However, [[VictoryIsBoring he starts getting bored]] when [[NoChallengeEqualsNoSatisfaction he finds no challenge in getting anything he wants when he wants]], and when Pip suggests setting up a heist where he may get caught, Rocky shoots down the idea because knows he'll get away. Rocky tells Pip he doesn't deserve to be in {{Heaven}} and asks him to take him to "[[{{Hell}} the other place]]," and [[WhamLine Pip responds that he is in]] ''"[[ThisIsntHeaven the other place]]."''
* ThisIsntHeaven: The famous twist ending: the place Rocky was sent to after dying, where he has his every desire granted, is actually Hell.
* ThrillSeeker: Rocky. Sadly, his eternity loses its luster very, very quickly...
* TroublingUnchildlikeBehavior: Rocky was a thief and gang leader even as a child. He even slaughtered a small dog when he was only six, just because it hit him.
* VictoryIsBoring: Why Rocky's paradise is an IronicHell. Rocky initially finds joy in his inability to lose after a lifetime of struggles and failure, only to slowly grow disenchanted with the fact that everything he does always goes exactly as he intends it.
* VillainProtagonist: Rocky is a self-absorbed, violent, and quick-to-anger thief who shows no remorse for committing crimes or harming other living creatures. He does become slightly nicer after thinking he's in heaven, though.
* WantingIsBetterThanHaving: Rocky doesn't want money or luxury or beautiful women just handed to him. What he wants is the thrill of 'taking' those things. Too bad his new accommodation doesn't allow that.
* WhamLine: "Whatever gave you the idea you were in Heaven, Mr. Valentine? This ''is'' the other place!"
----
->'''Creator/RodSerling''': "A scared, angry little man who never got a break. Now he has everything he's ever wanted and he's going to have to live with it for eternity, in The Twilight Zone."

* BewilderingPunishment: Rocky doesn't know that his ultimate fate ''is'' a punishment... at first.

* DeadToBeginWith: Rocky dies within the first two minutes of the episode.

* IronicHell: Rocky is a greedy, sociopathic hedonist who wants to be rich and date beautiful women, and is bitter that he never got a lucky break and had to struggle for everything he ever got. As a result, he winds up in an afterlife where he always wins and he gets everything he wants, but grows insanely bored with the lack of challenge and surprises.

* LonelyAtTheTop: Rocky is at the top of the world, getting everything he ever wanted and more, but he quickly grows bored and ultimately miserable with his constant success.

* NoChallengeEqualsNoSatisfaction: Rocky's eternal punishment. He grows very frustrated and exasperated that every roulette round is a win, every card hand is a win, even the first shot on a billiards table results in all the balls sinking with one strike. Every woman is a hot babe who's perfectly willing to have sex with him. Even when he wants to rob a bank, he knows he will get away and hates the idea that Pip has to plan in a chance he would get caught because it will still feel fake to him. Turns out it wasn't the material and money that Rocky was seeking, it was the sheer pleasure and thrill of taking that gave him satisfaction.

* FreudianExcuse: Possibly. As the opening narration states, Rocky calls himself as such because he's lived an exceptionally difficult life, an uphill climb filled with struggles and poverty, and is bitter about how he never got a lucky break. He seems unable to grasp the idea of getting whatever he wants for free, saying that nothing is free and "anything I got in this lousy world, I had to drag out of it". It's not a stretch to see his angry, selfish behavior as a result of his tough upbringing.

* TheSociopath: In life, Rocky cared for nothing and [[ItsAllAboutMe nobody but himself]], and was a thrill seeker who enjoyed the pleasure of taking from others, which makes his IronicHell so strong. What's the most effective punishment for someone who has done nothing but take? Give him anything and everything he wants.

* AndThenWhat: Rocky runs into this dilemma early on, not knowing what to do now that he has everything he ever could've wanted. It's the first sign that it's actually a punishment.

* DeadToBeginWith: Rocky dies in the first minutes of the episode.

* EvenEvilHasLovedOnes: Rocky fondly thinks back on his childhood gang, calling them a good group. He also asks Pip about the whereabouts of some of his fallen friends, wanting to see them again. This is about the only time he's thinking of someone other than himself.

* FreudianExcuse: Possibly. As the opening narration states, Rocky calls himself as such because he's lived an exceptionally difficult life, an uphill climb filled with struggles and poverty, and is bitter about how he never got a lucky break. He seems unable to grasp the idea of getting whatever he wants for free, saying "anything I got in this lousy world, I had to drag out of it". It's not a stretch to see his angry, selfish behavior as a result of his tough upbringing.

* IronicHell: Rocky is a sociopathic hedonist who treats other people as mindless machines to be used up for his own, shallow pleasures. As a result, he winds up in an afterlife where everyone is a mindless automaton who only exists for his immediate pleasure.

* KickTheDog: Rocky killed a small dog who bit him while he was a kid, and expresses no remorse for the act when recalling it as an adult.
* LackOfEmpathy: When Rocky goes through his record and sees the part about him killing the small dog at the age of six, all he has to say is “Why not? It bit me”.

* VictoryIsBoring: Why Rocky's paradise is an IronicHell. Rocky initially finds joy in his inability to lose after a lifetime of high risk, only to slowly grow disenchanted with the fact that everything he does always goes exactly as he intends it.
* VillainProtagonist: Rocky is a self-absorbed, violent, and quick-to-anger thief who shows little remorse for harming other people. He does become slightly nicer after thinking he's in heaven, though.
* WantingIsBetterThanHaving: Rocky doesn't want money or luxury or women just handed to him. What he wants is the thrill of 'taking' those things. Too bad his new accommodation doesn't allow that.

* FatBastard: Pip is a sadistic demon who appears as an overweight man.
* FatalFlaw: Rocky's {{Pride}} and {{Greed}}. He wanted everything in life and did nothing but take, now he's stuck in a paradise where he gets everything he ever wants. He always wins. He has women for miles around. He has money lining his pockets, but he becomes bored. Even when Pip offers to arrange for him to lose and endure some hardships, Rocky's pride stands in the way and he still isn't satisfied. Because of his self-absorbed ambition and greed, he will suffer from boredom in his IronicHell for eternity.
* FatBastard: Pip, who Rocky even nicknames "Fats", is actually a demon who is amused by Rocky going mad with boredom.

* FreudianExcuse: Possibly. As the opening narration states, Rocky calls himself as such because he's lived an exceptionally difficult life, an uphill climb filled with crime and poverty, and is bitter about never having the chance for anything else. He seems unable to grasp the idea of getting whatever he wants for free, saying "anything I got in this lousy world, I had to drag out of it". It's not a stretch to see his selfish behavior as a reaction to his tough upbringing.

* KickTheDog: Rocky killed a dog who bit him while he was only six years old, and expresses no remorse for the act when recalling it as an adult.

* TroublingUnchildlikeBehavior: Rocky was a thief and gang leader even as a child. He even slaughtered a small dog when he was six.

* TroublingUnchildlikeBehavior: Rocky was a thief and gang leader even as a child. He even slit a dog's throat when he was six.

* ExactWords:
** Rocky calls Pip an angel. Pip never describes himself as an angel, merely a guide.
*** It can also be interpreted that Rocky was right when he called Pip an angel, [[FallenAngel just not the kind he thought]].

We open on Rocky Valentine (Larry Blyden) in the middle of his "job," robbing a store. He stops when he hears a police siren and starts to make a break for it. He turns into an alley and opens fire on the "dirty screws" that are in pursuit while trying to climb a fence. He's hit several times in the back and falls to the ground. He comes to, seemingly alive and well, with a fat man in a white suit (Sebastian Cabot) standing over him, calling his name. He wonders how "Fats," who informs Rocky that he can call him Pip, knows his name. Pip simply states that it's his job to know. He also knows several facts about Rocky's life, including his childhood. Pip makes the situation plain: it's his job to see to Rocky's comfort and give him anything he could want. All of this for nothing in return, at all. Rocky is disbelieving but after a demonstration of that his bullets will do "Fats" no harm, he works it all out: he died in that alley and now here he is getting anything he can ask for from a kind old man in a white suit, he must be in Heaven! This realization, combined with "a dame that never quits" and a million bucks in loose change on a whim, he changes his tune.

We cut to Rocky living it up in a casino. He's hot tonight and rolling in the dough, winning round after round. He lives the highlife, with "Fats" giving him anything on demand. It's all wonderful, except for one thing: he can't quite figure out how a crook like him managed to get through the pearly gates. He asks "Fats" if they have a hall of records around this place, which they do. So they go there, "it's always open," and pull up his file. With such wonderful notes as "[[BadPeopleAbuseAnimals Age of 6, slaughtered small dog]]," Rocky wonders if there's been some misunderstanding. Pip assures him, there's been no mistake. He's right where he's supposed to be. And Rocky brushes it off--if it don't bother [[{{God}} The Big Man]] then it don't bother him none.

We cut back to the casino. Rocky is winning again. He ''always'' wins. It's the same back at his fancy pad, the dames are getting dull and he wins a game of pool on the first stroke. He summons "Fats" and explains his boredom. "Fats" makes a suggestion--perhaps he would be happier if he went back to his old ways. This gets Rocky excited, finally some action, some risk. But "Fats" would have it "exactly as he requested" and that's no good. There's no point. It's not the same, artificial risk. He'd "know" and it's eating him up. He goes into a frenzy, telling Pip, "I don't belong in Heaven, see? I want to go to [[{{Hell}} the other place]]." "Fats" then delivers the WhamLine [[https://youtu.be/Su1Rdw3SRHY?t=173 that this episode is famous for]]: "Heaven? Whatever gave you the idea you were in Heaven, Mr. Valentine? ''This '''is''' the other place''!!" As the realization dawns on Rocky's face he frantically tries to open the now locked door while "Fats" laughs at his desperation and the camera pans up.

* AndThenWhat: Rocky runs into this dilemma early on, not knowing what to do now that he has everything he ever wanted. It's the first sign that it's actually a punishment.
* BeardOfEvil: Pip's beard is initially meant to project an air of godliness, fitting in with the initial presentation of Rocky's fate as heavenly, only for it to get turned on its head when Pip reveals that Rocky's actually in Hell, turning his facial hair into a way of accentuating his status as a tormentor.
* BewilderingPunishment: Rocky doesn't know that it ''is'' a punishment... at first.
* BloodlessCarnage: No squibs or blood appear on Rocky anywhere when he's shot dead -- especially since Pip states that Rocky [[BoomHeadshot was shot in the head]]. The censors would never allow it on television at the time.
* BrooklynRage: Rocky is from Brooklyn and speaks in a very thick accent.

* CoolAndUnusualPunishment: It may be boring but it does beat a lake of fire.
* DeadToBeginWith: Rocky Valentine dies in the first minutes of the episode.
* DivinelyAppearingDemons: Though he looks nice, Pip is not really Valentine's guardian angel.
* DisproportionateRetribution: When he was six years old, Valentine slaughtered a small dog for biting him.
* EnfantTerrible: In addition to killing the dog, Rocky stole 14 toys from a store, organized a street gang, and broke into a bike shop all before he turned ten.
* EvenEvilHasLovedOnes: Rocky thinks back on his childhood gang fondly, calling them a good group. He also asks Pip about the whereabouts of some fallen friends, wanting to see them again. These are about the only times he's thinking of someone other than himself.
* EvilLaugh: The episode ends with Mr. Pip doing one after saying the WhamLine.

*** Could also be interpreted as Rocky being right by calling Pip an angel, [[FallenAngel just not the kind he thought]].
** Rocky mentions the place must be Main/{{Heaven}}. Pip says, "Something like that." Only one major difference.
* FatalFlaw: Rocky Valentine's {{Pride}} and {{Greed}}. He wanted everything in life and did nothing but take, now he is stuck in a paradise where he gets everything he ever wants. He always wins. He has women for miles around. He has money lining his pockets, but he becomes bored. Even when Pip offers to arrange for him to lose and have some hardships, Valentine's pride stands in the way and he still isn't satisfied. Because of Valentine's self-absorbed ambition and greed, he will suffer of boredom in his IronicHell for eternity.
* FatBastard: Pip, who Valentine even nicknames "Fats", is actually a demon who is amused by Valentine going mad with boredom.
* FauxAffablyEvil: Pip turns out to be a demon who is only being courteous and obedient to screw with Valentine by making him live with boredom for all eternity. He drops the affable facade at the very end when he breaks out laughing after delivering the WhamLine.
* FreudianExcuse: Possibly. As the opening narration states, Rocky calls himself as much because he's lived an exceptionally difficult life, filled with crime and poverty, and is bitter about never having the chance for anything else and he seems unable to grasp the idea of getting whatever he wants for free, saying "anything I got in this lousy world, I had to drag out of it". It's not a stretch to see his selfish behavior as a reaction to his tough upbringing.

* GangOfBullies: When he was eight years old, Valentine started a street gang called the Angels.

* HellOfAHeaven: {{Subverted|Trope}}; Rocky ''thinks'' this is where he ended up, and that's why he wants to go to [[AHellOfATime the other place]]. But, of course, [[ThisIsntHeaven this is the other place]].
* ImmuneToBullets: Pip to Rocky's absolute bewilderment.
* IronicHell: Rocky is a sociopathic hedonist who treats other people as mindless automatons to be used up for his own, shallow pleasures. As a result he winds up in an afterlife where everyone is a mindless automaton who only exists for his immediate pleasure.
* ItsAllAboutMe: Valentine is clearly very self-absorbed.
* KarmicTwistEnding: Turns out Valentine was in Hell all along.
* KickTheDog: Valentine killed a dog who bit him while he was only six years old and expresses no remorse for the act when recalling it as an adult.
* LonelyAtTheTop: Rocky Valentine is at the top of the world. He is the boss. He gets everything he ever wanted and more, but quickly grows bored, and ultimately miserable.
* TheMagicPokerEquation: Rocky is playing poker with his women. One of them draws a straight flush only for Rocky to win with the rarest and best hand in poker, a royal flush. Justified in this instance as part of Rocky's IronicHell is that he can never, ever lose at games of chance unless he specifically asks to. Which, in of itself, take away from the risk of the situation because the outcome of losing would have been ''pre-planned''.

* MundaneAfterlife: The afterlife appears to be just like the living world except that everything always goes right for Rocky. He enjoys it at first, but eventually grows disillusioned with the endless pleasure.
* NoChallengeEqualsNoSatisfaction: Valentine's eternal punishment. He grows very frustrated and exasperated that every roulette round is a win, every card hand is a win, even the first shot on a billiards table results in all balls sinking with one strike. Every woman is a hot babe who's perfectly willing to have sex with him. Even when he wants to rob a bank, he knows he will get away and hates the idea Pip has to plan in a chance he would get caught because it will still feel fake to him. Turns out it wasn't the material and money that Rocky was seeking, it was the sheer pleasure and thrill of taking that gave him satisfaction.
* NotUsingTheZWord: The afterlife Rocky ends up in is never explicitly referred to as "Hell" although he does believe it to be Heaven at first and says as much. It's only referred to in the finale as "the other place".
* PersonalizedAfterlife: Rocky asks Pip if he could meet up with some of his old outlaw friends who had died before him, but he is told his afterlife is his own "personal domain" separate from theirs. Not only does this fit with the idea of each person's hell being tailormade to make them as miserable as possible, but if he were to be able to spend time with "real" people other than Pip, he likely wouldn't grow bored with it as quickly.
* TheSociopath: In life, Rocky cared for nothing and [[ItsAllAboutMe no one but himself]], and was a thrill seeker who enjoyed the pleasure of taking from others, which makes his IronicHell so strong. What's the most effective punishment for someone who has done nothing but take? Put him in a paradise that gives him anything and everything he wants.

* TailorMadePrison: This is the KarmicTwistEnding. Rocky considers getting everything he wants as someone in [[CelestialBureaucracy the afterlife making a mistake]], considering he was a crook all his life, but he decides he doesn't care "if the '[[{{God}} guy upstairs]]' doesn't mind'." When Rocky asks if he can get together with his old gang, Pip tells him that the place was made specifically with him in mind, [[PersonalizedAfterlife meaning he gets to enjoy everything he wants by himself]]. However, [[VictoryIsBoring he starts getting bored]] when [[NoChallengeEqualsNoSatisfaction he finds no challenge in getting anything he wants when he wants]], and when Pip suggests setting up a heist where he may get caught, Rocky shoots down the idea because knows he'll get away. Rocky tells Pip he doesn't deserve to be in {{Heaven}} and asks him to take him to "[[{{Hell}} the other place]]," and [[WhamLine Pip responds that he is in]] ''"[[ThisIsntHeaven the other place]]."'' Rod Sterling end the episode by telling the audience that Rocky spent his whole life getting a thrill from taking anything he wanted by force, [[IronicHell and now he gets to simply receive anything and everything he wants when he wants, for eternity]].
* ThisIsntHeaven: The famous twist ending: the place Rocky rocky was sent to after dying where he has his every desire granted is actually Hell, not Heaven as previously assumed.

* TroublingUnchildlikeBehavior: Rocky was a thief and gang leader as a child. He even slit a dog's throat when he was six.
* VictoryIsBoring: Why it's an IronicHell. Rocky initially finds joy in his inability to lose after a lifetime of high risk, only to slowly grow disenchanted with the fact that everything he does always goes exactly as he intends it.
* VillainProtagonist: Valentine is a self-absorbed, violent, and quick-to-anger thief who shows little remorse for harming other people. He does become slightly nicer after thinking he's in heaven, though.
* WantingIsBetterThanHaving: Valentine doesn't want money or luxury or women just handed to him. What he wants is the thrill of 'taking' those things. Too bad his new accommodation doesn't allow that.

* TailorMadePrison: This is the KarmicTwistEnding. Rocky considers getting everything he wants as someone making a mistake considering he was a crook all his life, he decides he doesn't care "if the '[[{{God}} guy upstairs]]' doesn't mind'." When Rocky asks if he can get toghther with his old gang, Pip tells him that place was made specifically with him in mind, [[PersonalizedAfterlife meaning he gets to enjoy everything he wants by himself]]. However, [[VictoryIsBoring he starts getting bored]] when [[NoChallengeEqualsNoSatisfaction he finds no challenge in getting anything he wants when he wants]], and when Pip suggests setting up a heist where he may get caught, Rocky shoots down the idea because knows he'll get away. Hetells Pip he doesn't deserve to be in {{Heaven}} and asks him to take him to "[[{{Hell}} the other place]]," and Pip responds that he is in "[[ThisIsntHeaven the other place]]." Rod Sterling end the episode by telling the audience that Rocky spent his whole life getting a thrill from taking anything he wanted by force, [[IronicHell and now he has to spend an eternity receving anything he ever wanted]].

* ThisIsntHeaven: The famous twist ending provides the page quote for that trope.

* WantingIsBetterThanHaving: Valentine doesn't want money or luxury or women just handed to him. What he wants is the thrill of 'taking' those things.

* BeardOfEvil: Pip has one.

* VictoryIsBoring: Why it's an IronicHell.