A writer, Adam Wegman, sits in his apartment, contemplates his computer screen, and says that it sucks. He wonders how he could turn the facts into a story, and figures that he's a fraud. Adam figures that the writer left the definitive part out of the story: the mushroom cloud. He stares at his note and realizes that he should have started the story with it, and starts writing it.
Betty comes in and Seth tells her that he figured out the story. He says that they have to celebrate and yanks open the curtains... revealing a blasted nuclear landscape. Betty tells him that they have to get to the shelter because the Reapers will be out soon, and Adam insists that it was just a story.
Jordan Peele begins narrating, and then breaks character and says that they can beat it and calls for the writer, Sophie Gelson. The actor portraying Adam, Seth, says that it's cool and it's Jordan's show, but Betty is getting pissed. Betty denies it, and tells Jordan that he's changed.
Sophie arrives and Jordan tells her that they're not there with the narration yet. They agree that it's too much on the nose, and Jordan suggests that they're saying something with the episode that they don't want to say. He suggests that they don’t make it an either/or, and points out that their show is sci-fi. Sophie notes that The Twilight Zone has to be about important stuff. She points out that Rod Serling elevated the genre and made the silly kid stuff important, and she remembers watching the show as a child and wondering when they'd get to the Twilight Zone. The writer talks about how Serling had to appear in every episode to remind them that the Twilight Zone isn't an alternate dimension. Jordan figures that she should make the narration simpler and he'll make it sound cool.
Sophie works on the rewrite but can't get it to come out. Anna calls via Skype and accuses Sophie of being too busy saving the world to respond to her texts. A PA, Amy, comes over and says that Jordan wants the new narration, and Sophie asks for two minutes.
Once Sophie finishes the narration, Seth and Betty do their scene and Jordan delivers the new story. He says that Sophie is about to learn that there's no escape for her from the Twilight Zone. Everyone chuckles and Jordan wonders what's going on, and Sophie has no idea.
After the scene, Sophie looks around nervously. Jordan asks if she's okay, and Sophie insists that she didn't write the narration and someone switched the cue cards. He figures that it was a prank , and Sophie promises to find out what happened. Jordan tells her to worry about how she's apparently in an episode of The Twilight Zone, and is a writer who can't face her fears.
Sophie goes to the crafts table, and Amy asks her what the stunt was with the cue cards. The writer insists that it wasn't her, and Amy says that the director wants an explanation because they don't have time for a break. Sophie offers to talk to the director, and Amy tells him not to do it. She mentions a blurry figure mentioned in the narration, and Sophie insists that she didn't write it. Amy talks about the "Blurryman" who ended in the background of every scene in the library, and Sophie checks the cue cards.
Later, Sophie meets with a PA, Julie, who brings up the footage to look for the Blurryman. She finds him and points out the Blurryman in the background. Julie tells Sophie that nobody remembers seeing the Blurryman, and figures that Sophie set it up since she was on set during the first episode's filming. The Blurryman appears in the background of that episode as well, and Sophie insists that she has no idea what's going on.
The crew takes a lunch break, and Sophie looks for Jordan. One hand, Charlie, says that no one can find him but he must be on set. Sophie dismisses it as nothing and then looks for Jordan. As she goes onto the library set and finds a book, she hears someone moving in the shadows. There's a cue card laying near the window that says, "Sophie is about to learn." Static sounds in the background, and Sophie figures that someone is pranking her. She finds no one there, and the lights go out. Sophie puts the book back on the counter and leaves, calling Anna to tell her that something is going on.
Sophie goes to the sound stage and tells Anna that she's at work and nothing is wrong. Anna doesn't believe it, and Sophie admits that she's freaked out. She says that she needed a friendly voice, and Anna tells her that she needs to get sleep and figures the show is more important than it really is. The signal cuts out and the lights across the sound stage come on briefly, revealing Blurryman. Sophie ducks behind a shelf and when she looks back, Blurryman is closer. The writer asks if the crew got their footage terrorizing her on set, and then steps out to confront Blurryman.
The shelves fall over behind Sophie and she runs away. She hears music coming from a jukebox and finds it on a lit diner set. The book is on the counter, and Sophie picks it up. A picture of Blurryman is drawn on the upper corner of each page, and when Sophie flips the pages the picture twists and distorts, getting large. Bottles shoot off the wall, shattering, and Sophie ducks and runs out.
Continuing on, Sophie catches glimpses of Blurryman. She runs onto a street set and twists her ankle, and yells for help. TVs in a storefront show static, and Sophie goes over. The screen shows images of Twilight Zone episodes with Blurryman in the background of each shot. A shot of Sophie in the library appears, and Blurryman approaching her. The screens go dead, and Sophie sees Blurryman standing down the street. She walks toward him, saying that Jordan is putting him up to scaring her and showing that it's real. Sophie yells that it's no sketch, and Blurryman starts walking toward her. She backs away, saying that she takes it back, and falls down. Blurryman keeps coming and then disappears.
Sophie is alone on the street set, gets to her feet, and argues with herself about whether what's happening is real or not. She wonders what's happening, and tells herself to face Blurryman rather than run. Sophie figures that she's had a psychotic break and that's why she's talking to herself, and her inner voice goes silent.
The writer goes to the library set and discovers that someone has torn it up. She finds Blurryman by the window and insists that he's not real, and Blurryman gestures to a shelf. Books shoot out into the air, and Blurryman walks toward Sophie. She limps away and comes to the crew talking, but they can't see or hear Sophie. Sophie limps through other shows filming, but no one there can see her, either.
Blurryman continues following Sophie, who tells him that she doesn't know what he wants. He knocks a crafts table away, and Sophie's voice sounds in her head, telling her that she can't run or hide but see what's really there in the shadows. Sophie turns to face Blurryman and says that she's ready to see.
Black mist spreads out from Blurryman, enveloping Sophie. She sees herself as a child, watching the original Twilight Zone and refusing to go outside to play with the other kids. Young Sophie watches "Time Enough at Last", while her father tells her mother that Young Sophie needs to get out in the real world rather than watch imaginary stories. Her mother says that Young Sophie could do both.
Sophie finds herself on the set in the present. Jordan is there and everyone can see her. Sophie gives him the new narration and he figures that it's good. It talks about people opening their eyes instead of closing them, and congratulates Sophie for nailing it. The voice tells Sophie that there's more to see, and everyone disappears as the apartment set turns black and white.
Going outside onto the street set and discovers that it's real. She goes into a library past a pair of shattered glasses on the steps, and wonders what she did wrong. Sophie wonders what she was supposed to do, and sees Blurryman by the window. She figures that it's the end of the episode and there's a cruel twist. Sophie tells Blurryman that it doesn't matter what she does because none of it is enough. Blurryman walks toward her and Sophie realizes that it's Rod Serling. Serling tells her that there's a lot to explain, and she knows that she's ready now and it's where she belongs, and they have a lot of work to do. He leads her through a door into a hallway with a multitude of doors, and the Twilight Zone that lies beyond.
Written by Gadfly on May 31, 2019