Air date: May 29, 1964
Highway Patrol trooper Robert Franklin (Peter Mark Richman) and brooding New York socialite Charlotte Scott (Hazel Court) find themselves trapped in Scott's remote cabin as unexplained occurrences indicate the presence of a mysterious force. Bright flashes of light are seen, strange craters appear, and the trooper's car moves – on its own.
Back inside, Charlotte hears strange noises on the roof; when Robert goes outside to investigate, he finds nothing, but notices that his car is back in place, covered in gigantic fingerprints.
The two sleep nervously and go out into the woods the next morning, seeking the giant monster. They find an enormous footprint, leading the socialite to run away. She soon stumbles and falls directly into the path of a 500-foot-tall "Martian" with one eye. Realizing that no one will believe their story, the pair is left to stand against the beast. Robert shoots it...and it deflates, revealing itself to be an enormous balloon. The true source of the problem is a small alien spacecraft, containing two aliens no bigger than a man's thumb. They reveal that all of their trickery has been foiled by "man's inability to be afraid", beg their superiors to allow them to depart (or, in their eyes, face being crushed) and finally flee. Robert grins and wishes them luck- "maybe the next place they land, they can be the giants." Charlotte asks what will happen if future invaders are giants; Robert informs her that "I think you'd spit in their eye." She smiles and the camera tilts to the skyline as Serling's voiceover begins.
Don't fear these tropes:
- An Aesop: We have nothing to fear more than fear itself.
- Cut Phone Lines: Charlotte and Robert attempt to phone for help after discovering evidence that Earth is seemingly being invaded by giant aliens but they are unable to do so as the phone lines have been cut.
- Gaslighting: The tiny aliens did this to make the humans think that a giant was invading the planet, as a way of scaring them into surrendering. It fails when Robert decides to face the fear.
- Humans Are Cthulhu: Played With. The tiny aliens are terrified of the "giant" humans but they still seek to conquer Earth.
- Lilliputians: Charlotte Scott and a highway patrolman named Robert Franklin are harassed by a 500 foot tall alien monster. It turns out that the monster is in fact a giant balloon being controlled by two very small aliens. They soon leave Earth to avoid being crushed by the "giant" humans. As they leave, Robert tells Charlotte that he wishes them luck and expresses the hope that they will be the giants on the next planet that they land on.
- Minimalist Cast: Peter Mark Richman and Hazel Court are the only credited actors to appear in this episode.
- The Radio Dies First: The radio of Robert's police car is rendered inoperable after the aliens turn the car over.
- Scarecrow Solution: The aliens use a balloon to make themselves seem bigger and more intimidating than they are.
- "Scooby-Doo" Hoax: Sort of. The giant alien is a fake... set up by tiny aliens.
