Nightmares & Dreamscapes: From the Stories of Stephen King/The Fifth Quarter

The Fifth Quarter
Episode 6
Airdate	July 26, 2006
Written by	Alan Sharp
Directed by	Rob Bowman
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Nightmares & Dreamscapes: From the Stories of Stephen King

The Fifth Quarter is the sixth episode of Nightmares & Dreamscapes: From the Stories of Stephen King. Willie was just released from prison. His dying friend gives him one part of a map which leads to $3.5 million from a robbery. He risks everything to seek the other parts of the map.

Starring: Jeremy Sisto (Willy Evans), Samantha Mathis (Karen Evans)

Co-Stars: Peter O'Brien (Keenan), Christine Moffat (Mrs. Claussen), Robert Mammone (Jagger), Christopher Morris IV (Barney), Chris Kirby (Sarge), Sara Gleeson (Thelma), Kodi Smit-McPhee (Jackson Evans), Dino Marnika (Detective #1), Antony Neate (Prison Guard #1)

Plot Overview

Willy receives news from his wife that his old gang might be getting into another scheme. After being released from prison, Willy is visited by his friend Barney who has been shot. He got mixed up in a scheme with guys named Keenan, Sarge, and Jagger. They buried the money they stole, 3.5 millions, and broke the map up into four pieces. Keenan offered to buy Barney's corner for 100k, but shot him instead. Dying, Barney gave Willy his corner and told him to go get the rest. Despite Karen's insistence that he not go after the people who killed Barney, Willy decides to try and retrieve the remaining corners of the map.

Willy first goes to Keenan's house, where he overhears him talking on the phone about the incident with Barney. Keenan tells him that it was self defense and that Barney had tried to force him to buy Barney's portion of the map. Keenan asks what wil happen if he refuses to hand over his quarter and Willy shoots him in the arm. Keenan gets someone at the door; it's Sarge. Willy takes both men hostage and demands Sarge hand over his quarter of the map. Meanwhile Keenan is bleeding to death. Sarge doesn't have his quarter on him so they have to leave and get it. Meanwhile Karen is visited by Jagger at their trailer asking questions about Barney. Jagger then stops by Keenan's and finds out where the other two have gone before killing him.

Sarge takes Willy to a house in the middle of nowhere and wants a bargain in exchange for his quarter, but Willy shoots out his kneecap as promised. While Willy is grabbing the quarter Sarge shoots him in the chest. Jagger arrives and shoots Sarge with a shotgun. Jagger corners Willy behind a coach and tells him how he found him. Jagger then rushes towards Willy but Sarge is still alive and manages to trip him; allowing Willy to get a shot off. Being the only man standing, Willy grabs all four corners and heads home. Karens hides the completed map when the cops arrive at their trailer.

Afterwards Karen attempts to find which island the map connects to, because this is where they should find the money. She sees a map just like the one from the four quarters on the back of a cereal box. The map is of a theme park ride. She goes there and finds the money buried underneath a chest of drawers. Meanwhile Willy has been connected to the death of Barney; he told them that they had an argument about Barney sleeping with his wife, Barney shot him, and then Willy killed him.

Notes

• In the story written by Steven King the name of the main character is actually Jerry Tarkanian, and he doesn't have a family. Instead of the amusement park, there is an actual island where the money is buried.

Quotes

• Willy: Where’s the gun you shot him with?
  Keenan: It was self-defense.
  Willy: Okay. Where’s the self-defense weapon you shot him with?

Reviews

• Overall Grade: C-, with 1 review
• Review Breakdown: A+: 0 A: 0 A-: 0 B+: 0 B: 0 B-: 0 C+: 0 C: 0 C-: 1 D: 0 F: 0
• C-: I thought this was a pretty poor episode, only bested by the extremely bad episode 1x04 "The End of it All". I don't like "horror" stories that have such a clear happy ending to begin with, and this didn't make it any easier with how poorly set up the entire thing was. Karen, supposing to be the stable legit force in Willy's life, took very little convincing to forget about her morals or even her desire to see her husband out of jail, and accepted the plan. On the other hand, it was difficult to understand why it was that Willy bothered to go through this plan of his in the first place; seeing as how his dead friend had betrayed him in the worst possible way. --MateoP 00:39, 29 July 2006 (EDT)