CBSRMT Episode Information Next Episode

Title

Napoleon and the Queen of Sheba

Plot

In order to turn him from a life of crime, two good witches provide their services to a small-time scam artist.

Episode

1126

Air Dates

  • First Run - October 13, 1980
  • Repeat - December 30, 1980

Actors

Writer

Listen

Rating

61
53     8


6 Responses to Episode 1126

Very clever. RMT always seems to have stories with a twist ending.

Hayley

There is a bit of a twist ending but not enough to make me like this tale. No suspense in this story. I like CBS Mystery Theater best when the suspense builds throughout. This was not that type of story. I will say that it was interesting enough and relatable. A lot of people are down on their luck, feel trapped, and can't see a way out. Not my favorite.

Vinny Viola

I thought this was one of the best episodes ever! The dialogue was so witty and funny. Even though there were sad elements of the show, the humor was hilarious, so it was a laugh a minute. Evie Juster was excellent as the old witch. She is often good at playing interesting old ladies, but gave the witch such a cute, adorable personality, so she was especially good. Anyway, as for the people being trapped, the young man was happy in the end and got out of his situation, so it was a happy ending. The crooked, nasty guys didn't get off so good, but it was funny how she got rid of them. A lot of CBSRMT episodes don't have a happy ending at all and people often get murdered, or they end up in hell by the end of the episode, lol! I just couldn't stop laughing at this episode. The dialogue was extremely well written. I love the suspenseful CBSRMT dramas too, but their comedy episodes are some of the best sometimes. I think if you listen to this episode with the idea that it has to be really serious, it might be disappointing, but as a comedy it is absolutely brilliant! I think their particular show was meant to be comical. If one is familiar with CBSRMT, one begins to notice that they do have a funny episode every once in a while. I enjoy that and I find it refreshing once in a while.

Amy

I rate this episode ★★★☆☆ for AVERAGE. Sam Dann’s mystery story wasn’t half bad. And it wasn’t half good either. Sam Dann is one of the most important writers of CBSRMT, but there are a lot of questions I have on this particular episode. For starters, was the female character Alla Via more of a wish-master and less of a witch? If the Queen of Sheba was in the title, how come no actress did the voice of her? Josephine was introduced, but no actress to voice her either? If Tom Garcia is the brother of the witch Inez Garcia, how come he never used his powers to help the main character Eddie? And was Sam Dann trying very hard to write a comical Witch story? The title of this story should be changed to “A Punk’s Fear” because that’s what the main character was dealing with. Anyway, moving on to what was good: the variety of music tunes that brought the themes of anxiety and insecurity, but not enough whimsical tunes to feel like it’s a witch story. The sound effects of doors, howling wind, cash register, coins dropping, bus station, radio music at the Saloon, clock chiming, piano music, bus engine, the Otter, magic spell explosions, and the newspaper were beneficial though. In our Host’s Prologue, E.G. Marshall starts the show off with disappearance of witches. In ACT-1, the story opens up in the dark city streets during winter. In ACT-2, learning to cope with fear, followed by the belief in witches. In ACT-3, the confrontation of witches meanwhile there was a news interruption during his narration. In the end, our main character marries the Witch’s daughter. In his Epilogue, E.G. Marshall explains the difference between the techniques of Martial Arts & Mental Arts. His narrations in the 3 acts were very informative, but his Prologue & Epilogue didn’t match up. But the best part in this episode, was the cast: Kristoffer Tabori (as Eddie), Evie Juster (as Inez Garcia and Alla Via), Ian Martin (as Tom Garcia, Eddie’s Father, and Joseph Sheba), and Court Benson (as Little Napoleon and voice on the P.A. System). All 4 of them did splendidly, especially Kristoffer Tabori who played a character that was living in constant fear. But also, Evie Juster who played both witches. As I said before, this mystery tale is 50/50. You can tune in to this Witch story if you wish. But also check out the other Witch stories that CBSRMT has done: #0228-HELL HATH NO FURY (a modern day witch), #0265-BLACK WIDOW (a woman turning into a spider), #0280-THE WITCHES’ ALMANAC (young woman who deals with a witch and a warlock), #0371-TRIPTYCH FOR A WITCH (a Sea-Witch), #0396-BURN, WITCH, BURN (historical fiction on witchcraft & exorcism), #0405-SAGAMORE COTTAGE (a witch’s collection of humans that are the size of dolls), #0544-WITCHES’ SABBATH (a coven of witches), #0545-THE QUEEN OF CATS (a witch who owns 63 cats), #0596-I PRONOUNCE YOU DEAD (teenage witchcraft), #0622-THE GIFT OF DOOM (based off of the Greek Tragedy of Medea), #0676-BOOMERANG (a witch’s plan backfires), and of course #0736-THE THERAPEUTIC CAT (a man’s pet cat is a witch in disguise). Until next time…pleasant dreams. =0)

Russell

@Russell, You're really overthinking this episode, lol! :D It's just meant to be kind of amusing entertainment, with a slightly sad flavor once in a while. There are themes about being trapped, and feeling hopeless, but I would say it ends up pretty happy for everyone in the end, and it's mostly lighthearted. To answer some of your questions: Yes, Sam Dann was writing a comedy about witches. It was not supposed to be a "scary witch" tale, but more of a humorous "good witch" tale. Think of the "Bewitched" TV show instead of "Halloween" or "scary witch" stories. The character was a witch and she made that quite clear in the dialogue. She wasn't a genie, she was a witch, lol! Also, the Queen of Sheba and Josephine appeared to those men as enticing visions, but they didn't say anything because I don't think they were actually there in the room. The guys were seeing them in another dimension, and they found the visions so enticing that they were willing to leave this world to go be with the women. These guys were really very unhappy guys and the witch knew this, so she knew how to make them happy and get rid of them at the same time, lol. That's why she was a good witch, and not evil. She didn't hurt anybody, not even the bad guys. She just knew how to deal with people in a clever way. Maybe Tom Garcia didn't have any magic powers of his own. Just because there are witches in the family, that doesn't mean that they are ALL witches. He just didn't happen to inherit any magical talent. I hope this answers some of your questions. it seemed all quite clear to me. I LOVED this episode. I think it was one of the best. I don't know why others don't seem to be raving about it. Maybe it's because they are looking for mystery and suspense in the comedy episodes. mystery theater did have some funny episodes and you have to take them in the spirit in which they were written. That's one thing I like about CBSRMT. it wasn't just mystery and horror. They did drama, history, comedy, adaptations of classics, etc. it had a lot of variety, and that's not thing that made the series great as a whole.

Amy

I love cats.

Scooter D and the end of the Greens


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