Episode no. Season 1
Episode 22 Written by Brad Wright Original air date 20 August 1995 | Directed by Neil Fearnley Production code 22 | |
"The Voice of Reason" is an episode of The Outer Limits television show. It first aired on 20 August 1995 and was the final episode of the first season.
Contents
Introduction
A civilian, Randall Strong, uses his contacts in the military to arrange an appearance before a high-level government committee at the Pentagon.
Plot
Strong, a former member of Army intelligence, tries to convince the members of the committee that a number of different alien invasions of Earth are occurring, and he demands an official investigation and response to the threats. His evidence comes from incidents in previous episodes of the first season:
Strong also believes that the committee itself has been infiltrated by one or more aliens posing as humans (see "Birthright"). The episode "The New Breed" is also referenced, though as counter-evidence that bizarre occurrences from this episode were a result of an uncontrolled experiment and not a result of alien interference.
During the long and stressful meeting, it appears that the committee chairman, Thornwell, is an infiltrator because of his opposition to Strong's evidence and claims.
The committee adjourns for a private conference to discuss their decision. Upon returning, they announce that Strong's evidence and claims of multiple alien invasions have been rejected. In response, Strong grabs a gun from a guard and kills Chairmen Thornwell, believing him to be the one blocking further investigation and hoping to expose his alien nature by injuring him.
However, Thornwell was privately arguing in support of Strong and was outvoted. Almost all other committee members were the infiltrators, and the death of Thornwell has opened the way for them for a complete takeover of the committee's activities.
The episode ends with the infiltrators wondering if any of the other alien species will pose a threat to their plans, musing that "anything is possible".