What Are Friends For?
"Old friends have a way of being there when you need them, and sometimes when you don't, as Alex Mattingly and his son Jeff are about to learn, courtesy of a very special friend — from the Twilight Zone."
Freshly-divorced Alex Mattingly (Tom Skerritt) and his young son Jeff (Fred Savage) move to a cabin in the woods for a fresh start. After expressing how unhappy he is that he no longer has any friends to play with over the summer, Jeff meets a boy named "Mike" (Lukas Haas) who offers to play with him, namely by producing anything they need for a game out of thin air. When Alex tries to introduce Jeff to some of the children already in the area, Jeff becomes angered, only wanting to spend his playtime with Mike, who Alex seems to recall a certain history with.
Tropes
- But Now I Must Go: Alex and Jeff become happier with their new lives with Mike's guidance. His job done, Mike disappears, likely to seek out another lonely child.
- Cruel to Be Kind: Jeff's new "imaginary friend" Mike tells him that he was only pretending to be his friend and that he hates him. He did this after realizing that his presence is preventing Jeff from becoming friends with real children, and thus knew that it was the only way to convince Jeff to stop playing with him.
- Earn Your Happy Ending: Jeff slowly learns to accept that Mike was right about needing real friends, and he ends the episode playing with the children in his new neighborhood, which pleases Alex to no end.
- Energy Beings: Mike is revealed to be a being of pure light who has lived on Earth since it was created. He appeared to Alex as a young boy and invited him to play together so he wouldn't be lonely, and then does the same to Alex's son Jeff when he grows up and moves into the cabin. Before he leaves, Mike reminds Alex that he has "always existed in this place", and will always do so.
- Friend to All Children: Mike appears to friendless kids and plays all sorts of fantastic games with them, then pretends to be mean in order for them to seek out friendships with actual kids.
- History Repeats: It turns out that Mike was Alex's imaginary friend when he was Jeff's age, and just like he does to Jeff, he made Alex turn away from him so he could be friends with real children.
- I Just Want to Have Friends: Alex has these hopes for his son Jeff, wanting him to live a little with other kids his age after the divorce. Fortunately, this is what Mike has in mind for the kid, as he and Jeff play all sorts of fantastic games together, but Mike then pretends to say he hates them so Jeff will forget about him and make friends with real kids.
- Lie to the Beholder: A being of pure light appears to Alex and his son Jeff, thirty years apart, in the form of a young boy named Mike. Alex always thought that Mike was simply his imaginary friend, but learns that wasn't necessarily the case when he sees him again as an adult. Mike tells Alex that he got the form he takes from Alex's mind when he was a child.
- Master of Illusion: Mike is able to conjure all sorts of things for him and Jeff to play with, such as horses and race cars. Jeff asks Mike how he does this, but Mike warns him that he can't tell anyone, or they won't be able to play together anymore.
- Not-So-Imaginary Friend: Jeff's imaginary friend Mike, who can conjure all sorts of illusions for the pair's playtime, was also the imaginary friend of Jeff's father Alex when he was a kid. Alex later learns that Mike is actually an immortal being of light who's as old as the planet itself, if not older.
- Papa Wolf: Alex is strongly protective of Jeff, who is all he has left after his divorce. He becomes wracked with fear when Mike crushes him under an abandoned fort and leaves him there.
- Really 700 Years Old: Mike is revealed to be a being of light that has resided on Earth ever since it was created.
- Title Drop: Mike rhetorically asks Alex the titular question just before he disappears.
- Voice of the Legion: Mike's voice overlaps with a deep baritone when he reveals his true form to Alex.
- Would Harm a Child: As part of his plan for Jeff to break off his friendship with him, Mike brings him to an abandoned fort in the middle of the woods, then causes it to collapse before he disappears, leaving Mike buried under the rubble.
- Would Hit a Girl: While playing Tag with Cindy Conrad and her older brothers Tim and Larry, Jeff pushes Cindy to the ground when he thinks she's ruining the game. After Alex and Mike set him straight, he returns to Cindy's house and apologizes for his behavior, becoming true friends with all three Conrad children.
"For Alex and Jeff Mattingly, there will always be one special friend, one who loved them both enough to vanish when the time was right. But after all, that's what friends are for. Especially a friend from — the Twilight Zone."
Aqua Vita
Christine Copperfield (Mimi Kennedy) is a news anchor who has recently turned 40, and her newfound age leaves her fearing that her younger boyfriend Marc (Christopher McDonald) may leave her for a younger woman. Her colleague Shauna Allen (Barbara Horan) tells Christine of a type of bottled water called "Aqua Vita", which can rejuvenate someone's appearance to make them as young as they need to be. Christine purchases a supply of the water and is told that the youthful effects need to be activated with one glass per day. When she misses her daily glass, Christine discovers that she has begun rapidly aging. She orders another batch of Aqua Vita, but learns that the second batch costs several thousand dollars while the first one was free, forcing her to choose between her youth and her finances.
Tropes
- 555: The titular bottled water company's number is 555-AQUA.
- Act of True Love: Christie begins to rapidly age in appearance after she runs out of Aqua Vita, to the point where she appears in her 70s even though she's only 40. To make matters worse, she can no longer afford to buy any Aqua Vita due to the exorbitant price of $5,000 per bottle. Marc assures her that he loves her no matter what, but Christie is concerned that this may change when the age gap between them causes people to start giving them strange looks. In order to set Christie's mind at rest, Marc drinks some Aqua Vita himself and soon appears to be the same age as her.
- Age-Gap Romance: Discussed by Christine, who shoots down Marc's insistence that he loves her no matter what by saying everyone around them will look at them with suspicion, thinking that Marc would be a gigolo or Christine to be his mother.
- Alliterative Name: Christine Copperfield.
- Always Someone Better: Once she turns 40, Christine is certain that she'll be replaced by a younger woman, both at work and in her love life.
- Birthday Hater: Christine is depressed at the thought of turning 40 because she believes that she'll be replaced as a television anchor by a younger woman. She laments to Marc that birthdays are fun when you're 10 and aching for a new bicycle, but not when you're 40, constantly worrying about crow's feet and keeping your ratings high. Despite this, Christine isn't angry at him for throwing her a surprise party, genuinely appreciating the sentiment.
- Bittersweet Ending: The Aqua Vita company is free to keep screwing people over, and Christine is stuck looking old and presumably still unemployed. But Marc drinks some of the water as well, so at least she'll still have the love of her life by her side.
- Corrupt Corporate Executive: The unseen president of the Aqua Vita company, who sells people magic water that makes them look young. The first shipment is free, but for those who miss a daily glass, they sell each extra bottle at $5,000, forcing their customers to choose between saving their money or their youth.
- Fountain of Youth: Aqua Vita, which may even be bottled from the actual fountain itself. By drinking the water on a daily basis, a person can look years younger than their actual age. When Christine takes it, she at first feels wonderful, as she has gotten her confidence back and the ratings for her news show are up. She soon discovers, however, that missing even one daily glass causes a person to age rapidly, and the only way to reverse it is to drink some more. This becomes increasingly difficult as time goes on, because each bottle after the first shipment costs $5,000. After the Aqua Vita runs out, Christine looks to be in her 70s. Shauna, who is seven years older and has been taking Aqua Vita longer, appears over 80 when her own supply runs out.
- Greater-Scope Villain: The head of the Aqua Vita company is hinted to be one, as they have their devious and menacing employees ship out magical rejuvenating water that dramatically ages anyone if they miss a daily glass, and they sell each extra bottle for those desperate to regain their youth at a hefty $5,000.
- Karma Houdini: Whoever's in charge of Aqua Vita, they get away with screwing Christine, Shauna, and likely hundreds more out of their cash and youthful appearances, and are free to keep doing so by the end.
- Lampshade Hanging: Upon hearing that missing a daily glass of Aqua Vita causes rapid aging, and that each extra bottle after the initial shipment costs 5 grand, Christine tears into the sinister man who delivers the water, claiming that she can legally have them investigated for their dubious business practices. She doesn't follow through with this since she doesn't want the water to stop coming.
- Ms. Fanservice: The young, attractive, sweaty, spandex-clad fashion models Marc is eagerly seen shooting at one point, working out on or around various pieces of exercise equipment. Christine and Shauna visit the scene while Marc is preoccupied, the latter stating that the evidence Marc isn't going to leave her doesn't look good.
- Nice Guy: Christine's boyfriend Marc, who cares above all else for his lover's well-being. Once he learns the truth about Aqua Vita and Christine's elderly appearance, he reassures her that she only looks old and would never leave her for anyone else, assuring her that there are other jobs for her and that she's more than just a pretty face. When she doesn't get his message at first, he drinks some Aqua Vita himself, as a means of assuring Christine that she won't have to face her fate alone.
- Obviously Evil: The Aqua Vita deliveryman certainly has the part down, with his gradually-menacing tone of voice and highly vague remarks to Christine, especially as he tells her not to ask how old he really is.
- Older Than They Look: Christine's friend and co-worker Shauna appears to be in her mid to late 20s, but is actually 46. She tells Christine that she drinks Aqua Vita, a brand of bottled water which makes anyone who drinks it look much younger than their actual age. When Christine orders some for herself, she is surprised when the 30-ish deliveryman calls her "missy", and quickly realizes that he is much older than he looks. However, when she asks him for his true age, he advises her not to ask. After Christine has been using Aqua Vita for several days, she discovers that it has a side effect that Shauna didn't mention: you must keep drinking it day after day, or you age rapidly in appearance.
- Properly Paranoid: Christine notes with worry that she'll most likely be replaced after turning 40. Sure enough, the next day, Marc is approached by her boss, who tells him that her ratings are plummeting and she's being replaced soon.
- Rapid Aging: After she neglects drinking her daily glasses of Aqua Vita, the 40-year-old Christine appears as a woman in her 70s. Shauna, who has been using the water longer, looks older than her, and Marc similarly becomes old by the end, as a means of staying with Christine.
- Sadistic Choice: Christine comes faced with one as soon as she starts aging: spend $5,000 for every next bottle of Aqua Vita, or spend the rest of her life as an old woman.
- Slasher Smile: The Aqua Vita deliveryman flashes them every so often to highlight how evil he and the company actually are.
- You Wouldn't Believe Me If I Told You: Christine neglects to tell Marc about her constant need for Aqua Vita because she feels that he would never believe her.
"There is indeed a fountain of youth, but not the one Ponce de Leon dreamed of. The true fountain of youth lies in the human heart, and its healing properties are without price. An oasis flowing everfresh from the headwaters — of the Twilight Zone."
