Everybody Needs a Little Love
In the 1940s, Roberts and Curtis (Jerry Orbach and Richard Portnow) are a pair of divorced and down-on-their-luck men who spend all their time at their favorite watering hole, Benny's Lounge, bemoaning their poor lots in life and their bad luck in romance. Deciding to do something about his predicament, Curtis ends up purchasing a mannequin he names "Estelle" (Teresa L. Jones) from the department store he works in. Roberts notices that Curtis' behavior has taken a strange and unsettling turn, as he's begun talking to the mannequin, treating it not only like a real woman, but as the love of his life. As Roberts begins to grow concerned about Curtis' lack of sanity, it's hinted that Curtis' love may have sinister intentions, prompting Roberts to get to the bottom of the mystery... if he can.
Tropes:
- Amateur Sleuth: Roberts usually sells insurance for a meager pay, but he spends the second act of the episode trying (half-heartedly) to find out what happened to Curtis.
- The Bad Guy Wins: Estelle becomes human permanently and kills Curtis, leaving Roberts to take the blame.
- Call-Back: The Darkside's favorite game show, "Wheel of Fate", makes another appearance here, after appearing in All a Clone by the Telephone, It All Comes Out in the Wash, and Black Widows. Specifically, it's being "watched" by Estelle in the second act, and it's hinted to be an In-Universe Long Runner, given how the episode is set during the era when television was just beginning.
- Cargo Ship: In-Universe, it's lampshaded by Roberts how Curtis got unusually devoted to Estelle, even feeling jealous over what he knew was a piece of wood in the shape of a woman. Halfway through the episode, Roberts even fondles her wooden breasts and sensually rubs her inner thigh to get a rise out of Curtis, getting sick and tired of his delusions about the mannequin.
- Cassandra Truth: Roberts tells the cops that Estelle killed Curtis. Naturally, no one believes him. To rub salt in the wound, the mannequin is there watching him in the end of the episode.
- Chiaroscuro: Estelle's testimony is spoken while she's hidden in the shadows of the interrogation room.
- Chair Reveal: After regaining consciousness from being clubbed with the bottle, Roberts notices that Curtis is sitting in a chair with his back to him. Upon reaching him, he spins the chair around, revealing that Curtis was stabbed to death.
- Companion Cube: Curtis treats Estelle as his lover, much to Roberts' growing concern.
- Creepy Changing Statue: Roberts notices Estelle subtly changing her positions when Curtis invites him for dinner, doing so whenever he looks away.
- Darker and Edgier: The homages to classic film noir and grimy atmosphere make this episode tragic and mysterious.
- Deadpan Snarker: Roberts, both in narration and interaction with Curtis.
- Deliberately Monochrome: Roberts' nightmare where Estelle and Curtis swap roles.
- Diabolus ex Nihilo: There’s no explanation as to how Estelle suddenly switches between human and mannequin. It just happens because it happens.
- Downer Ending: Roberts is prosecuted for Estelle's murder of his best friend, while she escapes scot-free.
- Dreaming of Things to Come: Roberts' nightmare of Curtis being a mannequin while Estelle is human more-or-less comes true by the end of the episode, as she comes to life and stabs Curtis to death, turning him as lifeless as she once was.
- Early-Bird Cameo: A woman who may or may not be Estelle is seen hanging around near Roberts and Curtis as they get drunk at the start of the episode.
- Evil Wears Black: Estelle is dolled up in a black dress, indicating that she’s going to kill Curtis by the end of the episode.
- Femme Fatale: Estelle, who kills Curtis for her own sadism, after turning him into her indentured servant to get more jewelry, fancy clothes, and a TV set.
- Fourth Wall Psych: For most of the episode, it appears that Roberts is narrating the story directly to us, until he gets to the part where he's knocked out while struggling with Curtis, where it's revealed that he's telling this story to the cops who think he killed Curtis.
- Grievous Bottley Harm: Estelle comes to life and smashes a booze bottle over Roberts' head when he and Curtis are distracted, after which she stabs the latter to death.
- He-Man Woman Hater: After his marriage failed, Roberts tells Curtis that men like them are better off without dames in their lives.
- How We Got Here: Roberts narrates the episode as he tries telling the cops how Estelle killed Curtis and pinned him for it.
- I Need a Freaking Drink: Roberts and Curtis go heavy on the sauce to combat their loneliness, to the point where the former calls Thursday (or every day) "Thirst-day".
- Kick the Dog: Estelle manages to pin Roberts for the death of Curtis, and posthumously pinned Curtis for the death of his wife, Estelle.
- Kubrick Stare: Estelle gives Roberts one as he leaves Curtis' apartment, greatly unnerving him even though he assumed it was the booze playing tricks on him.
- Murderous Mannequin: Estelle, who can randomly come to life and murders Curtis for no reason.
- Nightmare Sequence: At one point, after having passed out at Benny's Lounge, Roberts has a nightmare where Curtis is the mannequin while his "wife" Estelle is the real person.
- No Celebrities Were Harmed: Roberts draws heavy inspiration from Humphrey Bogart, given the episode's noir themes.
- Noir Episode: The low lighting, 1940s setting, smoky atmosphere, sleazy saxophone score, and growing presence of a murder mystery gives the episode a heavy noir motif.
- Significant Name Overlap: As Lieutenant Mann reveals to Roberts, Curtis named Estelle after his beloved ex-wife, who the mannequin pins Curtis for murdering before she kills him.
- Stealing from the Till: Curtis is hinted to have stolen some jewelry, women's clothing, and a television set from the department store he works at, as Lt. Mann tells Roberts that he hasn't been to work in weeks and the profits in his specific department have been coming up short.
- That Came Out Wrong: Roberts' memories about what's been happening between him and Curtis over the last couple of weeks don't make him seem very innocent when Lt. Mann and his detective acquaintance interrogate him after Curtis goes missing, or when they assume he killed him over his dame.
- Those Two Guys: Roberts and Curtis start out as this, but their friendship starts going south as the former tries to talk some sense into the latter when his obsession with Estelle gets stronger.
- Title Drop: Curtis exclaims the title while talking to Estelle for the first time, noting how a mannequin like her must be just as lonely as him and Roberts.
- Wham Shot: The ending features a woman shrouded in shadow entering the interrogation room, watching as Roberts fruitlessly explains his story to the cops. She asks the officer next to her for a light for her cigarette, whereupon we discover the woman is actually Estelle, who's now a human.
- Whole Episode Flashback: Once it's shown that Curtis was stabbed to death, the episode is revealed to have been a recollection of the series of events Roberts has been telling the police, trying to prove his innocence of the act.
