Retro Recap - Tales From the Crypt: "The Switch"

Written by Scotty

There are times you want to keep your past hidden away when trying to get involved in a new relationship.  But on the problems that this can lead to is that you will never know what the person you are trying to get involved with thinks about it.  It may be something that will destroy any chances of moving forward, or it could make the relationship stronger.  But you will never know until the cat is let out of the bag, as telling the truth is always the best thing to do to keep a relationship strong.

Carlton Webster is looking to start his life over again.  Since he has been locked away in his home for many years without the touch of a woman, he has found one that will turn his life around.  But Carlton wants true love, and not to have it confused with his fortune.  Wanting to make sure that Linda loves him for who his is and not what he has, he puts it all on the table for the young vixen, but although she loves the mind of the old man, she could not be with someone so old.  Carlton is bent but not broken over this and finds a doctor that will help him on is conquest to become a young man once again.

Finding a doctor that can change body parts to make him younger, Carlton happily turns over a million dollars to get his face replaced.  Thinking this is all that Linda would want, he comes calling once again, but she is not impressed with his change, since his body is still old.  Going back to the doctor again, he pays two million more to get the abdomen of the young man replaced with his.  Now knowing that he is a new man, Linda would not turn him down and even with the beefcake top half of his body stunning her, she still has a problem with his old legs.  Investing his fortune to try and impress the young Linda is killing Carlton, but he will do anything in the name of love to make her happy.

Selling his home and laying off his best friend and man servant, Carlton goes to the doctor for the final transplant.  For the lower body of the young Hans that has been benefiting from this venture, three million dollars, or a million a limb.  With this being all of the money Carlton has left, he has to decide how important love really is to him.  Knowing that if he completes the transformation, Linda will love him, he gives the rest of his fortune to the doctor and donor and runs to Linda to show her how much he really loves her.  Finding that she has moved to an uptown apartment, Carlton is shocked to see his old life being flaunted in front of him as Linda wanted a man with money to take care of her and not the poor young man he has become in trying to impress her.

What I gathered from this tale is that it is more important to be forthcoming about one’s self.  Not trying to hide who or what you are could make your life much more fulfilling and watching as Carlton has giving up everything that he was accustomed to, to find love with a woman ended up the way it should have started if he just told the truth.  With William Hickey playing Carlton, Kelly Preston as Linda and Rick Rossovich as the striking donor Hans, they all play their parts extremely well and bring the story to life.  As always, Stay Scared. 

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