Meekly submissive Stepp (Qualen) is fired by overbearing boss Baldwin (Cabot) after 20 years of loyal service. In an uncharacteristic rage, he shoots Baldwin, only to discover the next day that Baldwin is back at his desk as if nothing happened. So what's going on— was it all a dream.
What's interesting in this entry is a strategic decision the screen writers (the Cockrells) choose to make as to the story's direction. On one hand, they can play up the suspense by withholding the mystery's solution until the end; on the other, they can play up the irony of that solution by tipping us off early so that we watch the irony unfold.
Whichever option, it's a clever premise that rivets audience interest from the get-go. Qualen is so good at playing these long-suffering little-guy characters-- no wonder, he was an early series favorite. Nothing special here, just a good solid reputation-building entry.
(In passing—come to think of it, you can figure out which direction the screenplay takes if you reflect on Hitchcock's direction in his classic Vertigo {1958}.)
What's interesting in this entry is a strategic decision the screen writers (the Cockrells) choose to make as to the story's direction. On one hand, they can play up the suspense by withholding the mystery's solution until the end; on the other, they can play up the irony of that solution by tipping us off early so that we watch the irony unfold.
Whichever option, it's a clever premise that rivets audience interest from the get-go. Qualen is so good at playing these long-suffering little-guy characters-- no wonder, he was an early series favorite. Nothing special here, just a good solid reputation-building entry.
(In passing—come to think of it, you can figure out which direction the screenplay takes if you reflect on Hitchcock's direction in his classic Vertigo {1958}.)