The Ray Bradbury Theater (TV Series) The Toynbee Convector (1990) User Reviews

Sometimes It's What You Think; Not What You Do

[Hitchcoc · 8/10 · 31 March 2015]

This is a story of hope and commitment. This is the story of a man who traveled in time and brought about a rebirth on earth. James Whitmore plays the time traveler who stands in front of his facility and waits (with the rest of the world) for his own return. The earth was in a horrible place, polluting and disrespecting nature. What they needed was a hero to turn to, to give them the information they needed to correct their ills (would we could do that now). A young reporter is brought in by the scientist and shown the time machine. What happens then is both hopeful and startling. One can only weigh the implications of what is heard inside the fortress and ask if mankind has the ability to save itself.

"We had dug our own graves and prepared to lie down in them."

[classicsoncall · 7/10 · 24 February 2022]

There's a bit of a plot hole in this story that shouldn't detract from its eventual message, but it does bear mentioning. If Craig Bennett Stiles (James Whitmore) ventured a hundred years into the future in a time machine, but returned to report on his trip, then why was Earth desperately waiting to watch for the time machine cross the sky in the year 2100? It wouldn't be there, because it was in Stiles' workshop. That's one of the anomalies of time travel stories, they sometimes pose a conundrum you can't wrap your head around.

In any event, Stiles' gesture in this somewhat futuristic story was one that held out hope for the destiny of mankind. All that was needed was a little push to demonstrate that Earth could solve its problems with overpopulation and pollution with a concerted effort. Of course, when this story was first published in 1984 in Playboy Magazine, you didn't have today's modern technological advances to serve as a distraction. Contrast the hope and optimism of this story with the recently released film "Don't Look Up", where you'll recognize a culture that's too wrapped up in its cell phones and social media to care much whether the world comes to an end or not. You think Bradbury is turning in his grave right about now?

Rare optimistic sci-fi

[gridoon2024 · 6/10 · 1 August 2015]

The enigmatic title of this episode refers to the time machine that enables one man to travel 100 years into the future; upon his return, he brings with him images of a world that has successfully dealt with all the ecological problems of our time. This has a profound and inspiring effect on the human race. In the year 2100, the man - a worldwide hero - will see his younger self making the trip on the sky, and the entire world will be watching. But is that what's really going on? There is a clever deceit at the center of this story, but what's most notable about it is its optimism. In most sci-fi yarns, including those of this particular series, the futuristic worlds are bleak and dystopian. "The Toynbee Convector" is hopeful for the future of mankind, of the world, of the universe. **1/2 out of 4.

When I first saw this episode, I wept.

[kssmichael · 10/10 · 26 November 2019]

This very timely story tells of a world, such as ours, in great despair, and one man's noble duty to change things. Watch this episode, noble Bradbury fan, and weep for our future.

What does a man profit?

[jeffstonewords · 10/10 · 22 August 2021]

What does a man profit if he sacrifices his integrity for the sake of humanity's future? Perhaps he gains nothing personally and loses everything he could have been. But perhaps there is no greater love.

This is possibly Bradbury at his most poignant, which suggests the episode deserves even more than a ten.