Our Selena is Dying
"Your attention is drawn to the residence of the Brockman clan. An ancient mansion, its paneled walls polished by darkness. A lifeless, soundless place, upon which a greater darkness has fallen. The object of the deathwatch, Selena Brockman, grand dame of the menagerie, who lies in her bed in an inch-by-inch battle with death, trying somehow to reach a compromise — instead of a capitulation."
Selena Brockman (Charmion King) of the wealthy Brockman family lays in bed, slowly-but-surely dying. She has an invitation sent for Debra (Terri Garber), a niece who has never met the extended family, to visit the mansion. During her visit, Selena grabs Debra's arm despite being-near catatonic. The next day, Selena has made a miraculous recovery while Debra discovers that she's grown a liver spot where her great-aunt grabbed her. Doing some investigation, the Brockmans' family physician Dr. Burrell (R. H. Thomson) discovers that the Brockmans are a family of witches who drain the life force from younger women to regain their youth, and races to stop Debra's malicious family members from doing the same to her.
Tropes
- Abusive Parents: Martha drains her daughter's life force to restore her own youth. As a result, Diane ages rapidly and Martha assumes her identity.
- Big, Screwed-Up Family: The Brockmans are a coven of witches who drain each others' life force to become young and live forever. Selena even tells Dr. Burrell that they've been doing this since the olden days.
- Bullying the Disabled: Martha (as Diane) describes the family's deaf handyman Orville as their "combination handyman and village idiot." She does so in his presence, but with her face turned away so he can't read her lips. To establish how different she is from her clan, Debra is shocked and disgusted at Orville's treatment.
- Chekhov's Gunman: Orville, the deaf handyman of the Brockmans who they constantly rebuke, shows up for one scene near the beginning. Near the end, he shows Dr. Burrell Selena's diary to reveal the truth about the aging situation.
- Darker and Edgier: The episode's setting plays with the trope, featuring a witch coven family who treat each other atrociously, a gothic horror harpsichord soundtrack, and the opening narration even sounding more somber than usual.
- Empty Shell: After her mother stole her youth and identity, Diane was traumatized by the experience and now spends all her time staring out the window. Dr. Burrell is able to bring her out of it when he tells her that he knows what happened to her.
- The End... Or Is It?: Martha, the only evil Brockman to survive the fire, is taken to the hospital and registered as a Jane Doe. She promptly begins draining a nurse to heal her arm while the nurse is given a burn on her own arm, hinting that she'll be coming back for Debra and Burrell quite shortly.
- Here We Go Again!: Martha is taken to a hospital after being severely burned in the fire that killed Selena and Diane. The nurses tending to her note how her left arm seems to be healing at an accelerated rate. One nurse then tells another that she has a burn on her left arm and doesn't know how it got there, indicating that Martha has already begun to drain her life force and will soon be restored to full health.
- Immortality Immorality: The dying Selena drains her niece's life force in order to become young again. Her sister Martha previously did the same thing to her daughter Diane.
- Life Drinker: The elderly Selena grabs Debra's hand when she comes to visit her on what is ostensibly her deathbed. The next morning, a liver spot appears on Debra's hand. Dr. Burrell tells her that a liver spot at her age is highly unusual, and shortly afterwards, he's shocked to discover that Selena has gained a new lease on life. Burrell then receives a call from Debra, who has rapidly aged in the hours since he last saw her and now appears to be in her 70s. From an old diary supplied by Orville, Burrell learns that Martha burned her arm in 1940 in the same place as Diane, who has a prominent burn scar. He determines that Selena drained Debra's life force and Martha did the same thing to Diane, assuming her identity afterwards. Selena tells him that the Brockman clan has always done this when they've grown old, draining the force of the young ones to gain immortality. After Selena is killed in the fire accidentally started by Diane, Debra's youth is restored.
- Older Than They Look: Martha is in her 70s, but appears 40 years younger after stealing Diane's life force.
- The Quiet One: Orville, the Brockman family's handyman, has very little dialogue, considering that he's deaf.
- Rapid Aging: Debra, in her late 20s, has her life force drained by her great-aunt Selena. Afterwards, she appears to be in her 70s. The same is true of her cousin Diane, whose youth was drained by her own mother.
- Small Role, Big Impact: Orville is mainly a plot device used to showcase how despicable the Brockmans are, but he provides Burrell with a vital clue that helps him find out what's going on.
- White Sheep: Debra is far nicer than the rest of her extended family, not even knowing that she was descended from witches until Selena sent her invitation.
- Younger Than They Look: Debra and her cousin Diane are both in their late 20s or early 30s, but have the appearance of women in their 70s after having their life forces drained.
"Jane Doe. Age: unknown. Sole survivor of a terrible fire, soon to undergo a miraculous recovery. A living warning to those who fail to perceive the distinction that there is a difference between the fear of death and the love of life, especially — in the Twilight Zone."
