Air date: December 29, 1961
August 6, 1945: In the final days of World War II, a group of American Marines stationed on Corregidor are monitoring a cave where sick and injured Japanese soldiers are taking refuge. While spotting for a mortar company, their new commanding officer, Lieutenant Katell (Dean Stockwell), joins them. Almost immediately, the lieutenant wants to assault the cave and flush the soldiers out, even though they could easily be contained and bypassed. A conversation with his sergeant, Causarano (Albert Salmi), leads Katell to reach a compromise: bombardment will continue until dusk, then the assault will begin. That evening, tensions flare as the reluctant veterans point out that Katell doesn't care about anything other than indiscriminately killing the Japanese in that cave solely as an effort to validate himself as a true warrior. After an argument with Causarano, during which Katell states that all Japanese soldiers are to be killed, end of the war or not, he accidentally knocks over the binoculars he had been using to monitor the cave.
The scene changes to earlier in the day as a Japanese soldier picks up the binoculars, handing them to his commander, who dropped them. We then see the commander, who is revealed to be Katell. Not realizing the changes, he runs for shelter in the cave. However, upon nearing the cave, he is shot at by an American soldier in an outdated uniform. He retreats to his squad, and upon questioning, learns he is on Corregidor on May 4, 1942. His squad, who believe him to be Lieutenant Yamuri, is unnerved by his confused ramblings, which brings him under suspicion from a captain (J.H. Fujikawa). Katell wises up and plays along, and he learns that the Japanese are planning to attack the cave in a frontal assault, even though most of the Americans inside are not fit for combat. Upon stating that they should bypass the cave or simply take the Americans prisoner, he is slapped by the captain for his apparent cowardice. When he continues to ask why they must attack the cave, the captain states that the enemy must be killed, giving a speech similar to Katell's earlier rant. The squad moves out, leaving Katell behind.
The scene shifts back to the Marines in 1945, with Katell back to normal. Causarano picks up the broken binoculars, and orders his men over the radio to fall back, as the atomic bomb has just been dropped on Hiroshima and they assume this will end the war. The Marines celebrate, with Causarano telling Katell that there will be other wars for him to fight. The humbled Katell silently replies that he hopes there aren't.
A Quality of Tropes:
- An Aesop: War may change people for the worse, but human compassion should never be forgone. The measure of a real soldier is one who shows mercy where it's needed, not by killing for the sake of killing.
- Blood Knight: Katell is insistent on attacking and killing the weakened Japanese soldiers for his own bloodlust. Causarano is convinced that this is only because he's desperate to prove himself a real man for self-centered reasons. After his vision of serving on the opposing army, Katell gets over his tendencies.
- The Cameo: A young Leonard Nimoy plays Hansen, the radio operator.
- Chromosome Casting: Given its military theme, the episode has an all-male cast.
- Ensign Newbie: As a second lieutenant who's only recently received his commission, Katell is eager to order an attack on the Japanese in the cave so that he can prove himself as a true warrior. The men under his command, more experienced and more haggard, have seen enough of war to know when a risk isn't worth taking. Katell disregards them, until he gets a firsthand look at what it's like to be on the other side.
- Heel–Face Door-Slam: A less cruel example. After his experience, Katell originally was more than willing to call off the attack and opt for a bypass instead, only for the war to end a minute later. Regardless, he soberly appreciates that circumstances have kept him from making a difficult decision.
- Heel Realization: During his experience as a Japanese commander, Katell is not only astounded to hear his earlier words being thrown right back at him by the Japanese Captain, but also how cold-blooded and ruthless they sound coming from someone else.
- Heroic BSoD: As he returns to 1945 after having his own words thrown back into his face by a Japanese commander, Katell is understandably shell-shocked and is unable to properly respond to the announcment that the atomic bomb has been dropped on Japan and the Marines are to fall back.
- Ironic Echo: The same dialogue occurs happens between two sets of characters at different points in the story to show how Katell changes his attitude once he becomes Yamuri.Causarano/Yamuri: How many must die until [you're] satisfied?
Katell/Japanese Captain: Off-hand, I'd say all of them. No matter who they are or where they are, if they are the enemy, we destroy them. First day of the war, last day of the war, we destroy them! - The Neidermeyer: Katell, who is completely willing to sacrifice his own troops so he can have even a fleeting moment of glory, at least until his experience on the other side.
- Original Position Fallacy: It's easy for Katell to say that it's mandatory for a soldier to kill the enemy. But under the guise of Yamuri, he finds this philosophy much harder to swallow when the "enemy" in question happens to be wounded Americans. Even more so when his previous words about killing the enemy are thrown right back at him.
- A Real Man Is a Killer: Deconstructed. Causarano calls out Katell on his thirst for blood, telling him that he's afraid of being seen as a coward rather than a true soldier, and points out that he only wants to kill the weakened Japanese in order to prove how much of a man he is, warning Katell that war isn't all it's cracked up to be.
- "The Reason You Suck" Speech: Causarano exchanges this with Katell. On one hand, Katell thinks his men only want to bypass the cave because they're tired. On the other hand, Causarano sees Katell as a green horn trying to prove himself as a man, and has no idea how hellish war truly is because he hasn't even tasted it yet.
- Thousand-Yard Stare: Katell has one after seeing the war from the other side's perspective, having come to realize that killing a weakened enemy is not as black and white as he initially believed.
- Took a Level in Kindness: After having the tables turned on him, Katell realizes that the Japanese are men, just as he is, and that his blood-thirsty attitude is in no one's interest.
- War Is Hell: The battle-hardened Marines on Corregidor have been fighting the Japanese for two years, which has made them rather war-weary. One soldier, Andrew J. Watkins, tells Katell that they have seen enough dead men to last the rest of their lives, and they aren't going to stand up and cheer at the opportunity to kill more. Causarano later says that his platoon consists of "dirty, tired men who have their craw full of this war."
