Nick of Time - Recap

Don Carter and his wife Pat have car trouble on their way to New York and get towed into the small town of Ridgeview, Ohio. The mechanic says it'll take him four hours to make the repairs. Don is nervous about his promotion despite his wife's reassurance, and as they walk down the street it becomes clear Don is superstitious, saying "Bread and Butter" to prevent bad luck when they have to stop holding hands. They go into a diner for lunch and sit down at a table with a "mystic seer" napkin-holding gadget. They put in a coin and Don asks if anything exciting happens around here. It produces a card that says "It is quite possible."



As they wait for their meal, Don asks the mystic seer if he'll get the job and the machine gives out a card that says it's assured. Don decides to call, while Pat contemplates Don's good luck bracelet. He gets through and finds out that he got the promotion to office manager. They go back to their table and get their food, and Don decides to ask the mystic seer another question about whether they'll leave in four hours but the seer says they may never know. When Don asks if something happens, it says if they will move soon. Don continues to ask it yes-or-no questions and the seer provides increasingly accurate answers. An increasingly nervous Pat suggests they take a walk around town but Don delays until 3 o'clock, the time the seer "suggested" they leave. Finally he agrees to go but as they walk, Don is amazed that the seer is seemingly so accurate but finally admits he's being stupid. However, he still can't shake off his astonishment. As they cross the street, they're almost run over by a truck... just at three o'clock. Don insists on going back to the diner and even Pat admits it's an odd coincidence.



They come back only to find two women at their table. Pat is relieved and suggests a pensive Don try one of the other mystic seer napkin holders. He refuses, and Pat notes that the whole thing is coincidence and generalities. The women leave the table and Don sits down and starts asking more questions. The seer responds with more seemingly accurate answers and Don insists the machine must be special. The machine informs them that the car is ready earlier and the mechanic comes in and tells them he's done sooner than he thought. Pat still insists it's a coincidence and Don suggests she asks the seer some questions. Despite the fact she tries several trick questions, the machine responds accurately to her as well. When Don wonders if she's afraid, she says that she's afraid for him as he asks ever more questions to try to get the answers for everything in his future. A frightened Pat appeals to him, wondering if he's going to let it run his life. She notes that it's now controlling him and asks him if he believes more in luck or in himself. Don comes to his senses and apologizes, and as they leave he tells the machine that they'll do what they want.



As Don and Pat leave, another couple come in and sit down at the same table. They start feeding pennies to the machine and desperately asking it if they'll ever be permitted to leave...



Share this article with your friends