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At times silly, illogical, and over-the-top, none-the-less, this is a memorable episode for "Outer Limits" and Sci-Fi aficionados. The plot centers around the contents of the "Don't open till Doomsday" package that arrives as a wedding gift. The diabolical alien within resembles a chunk of misshapen, raw liver with a single eye who observes the "world" through a small porthole in its box (akin to a camera obscura device) through which it beckons humans. All of the actors give credible performances, but the "star" is obviously a spirited Mariam Hopkins who plays to the hilt the crazed Mary Kry in a performance that is often reminiscent of Bette Davis's turn as Baby Jane Hudson in "Whatever Happened to Baby Jane". Running the emotional gamut of a character who is angry, desperate, cunning, pathetic, and downright evil, Hopkin's plight is accentuated by effective, mood-appropriate studio lighting that takes full advantage of the black and white film stock.

Beautifully scripted, directed, and acted...... Great deep-South characters flesh-out this episode. The mood is set at Fred's Hideout Cafe in Scene One. As the teleplay progresses, a young, lanky Peter Fonda plots to avenge the untimely death of his father, a poor peach farmer. Fonda's portrayal of Verge Likens is both brooding and stoic. Actor Robert Emhardt plays the consummate villain-- a cold-hearted murderer with a hint of a conscience (the latter trait is revealed later in the episode); you can tell he relishes his role, but never once does he go overboard. The story slowly builds to a very satisfying climax.

OK, I'm a Jane Withers fan, so I had high hopes for this episode co-starring the 1930's child star. I have to admit that she mugged her way through the whole hour-- with the director's approval, no doubt. Very tiresome. Bob Newhart was deadpan throughout the proceedings. The theme for this Hitchcock teleplay-- like so, so many before and after its airing-- was Husband vs Wife or Man vs Woman. A few clever plot turns here and there (even though "holes" in the script were abundant), but otherwise, I was grateful when the show finally came to an end. I did enjoy the "dumb blonde" performance of the stripper character, Rosie Feather. And I truly enjoyed the all-too-brief bit by Ann Morgan Guilbert who (in the 1960's) was well-known for her brilliant portrayal of Millie Helper on "The Dick Van Dyke Show." Final note: The loud, cheesy soundtrack added nothing to this disappointing episode.

Driving down a lonely stretch of highway......checking into an isolated motel......a mentally unbalanced proprietor......an unexpected murder......an innocent victim......"Final Performance" may be Psycho's distant cousin, but the connecting elements are there.

Franchot Tone, an actor from Hollywood's Golden Years, has an apparent field day portraying the crazed proprietor of a rustic motel (the cabin variety) located somewhere in rural California. Actress Sharon Farrell is perfectly cast as an emotionally distressed young soul who is Tone's "white slave." She gains the audience's empathy within the first seconds of her screen time, and (we) hope that she attains her freedom by episode's end. If you haven't already read the other comment writer's "spoiler" summary or this web site's synopsis, you'll be surprised at what is disclosed in the final scene of "Final Performance"-- macabre, to say the least. Norman Bates, your Mother's calling......

A real treat for series' fans! The keeper of the graveyard is actor Frank Silvera who convincingly plays his part to the hilt. His domain is both atmospheric and eerie. His friends are the mummified bodies of dead "tenants" whose rented burial plots are in arrears, so he unearths them and lines their corpses along the walls of his catacomb, deep below the graveyard. He brags that it takes only "one year in the dry earth" to produce his companions.

A scene to keep you on the edge of your seat is when Juan Diaz's son and wife venture into the depths of darkness to put into action their scheme of revenge. Photographed in shadows and back-lit silhouettes, this scene exemplifies the beauty of black and white photography, and it's perfectly edited to create intense, cinematic suspense.

Even though this episode is filmed on a Universal sound stage with a few back lot locales thrown in for good measure, the art department did a convincing job in its depiction of a poor, Mexican village.

Definitely one of the TEN BEST episodes in the series.

Not the best entry in the hour Hitchcock series. Tony Randall was fine, but this "play" progressed quite slowly; would've been better- suited for one of Hitch's 30 minute episodes a la "Alfred Hitchcock Presents." The single-most redeeming aspect of "The Hangover" was the sight of voluptuous Jayne Mansfield. Shedding her usual gargantuan, stiff hairdo, she sported a short,Italian cut popular at the time. I don't think she ever looked more attractive. Her acting was very decent; actually, I'd say it was quite good.

The show ended with Hitchcock preaching against the evils of alcoholism.This message was quite ironic,I thought, because in the majority of his two series-- hundreds of episodes, I would venture to speculate, one or more characters eventually grabbed a bottle of booze and mixed a drink in their home in suburbia or sat at a public bar and tossed back a few. In its own way, the show PROMOTED drinking/alcoholism-- just as it did smoking (as did many movies and TV shows of that era).