Editing The Parallel (section)

==Reception==
[[Cult television]] website ''anorakzone.com'' ranked the episode the fourth-worst of season 4, calling it "dull". The site added that the script "makes no real effort to test the new format to its limits" and the story feels purposely [[Filler (media)|padded]] to satisfy the longer runtime. It also stated that Forrest "fails to rise {{sic}} his performance above a straight recital of exposition".<ref>{{Cite web |url = https://www.anorakzone.com/twilightzone1963rank1.html |title = Worst to Best: ''The Twilight Zone'' Season Four |date = August 2017 |access-date = 28 May 2025 |website = anorakzone.com }}</ref>

In a mixed review, Zack Handlen of ''[[The A.V. Club]]'' gave "The Parallel" a rating of C+. He commented that while the episode "makes a reasonable case for itself in its first half" with some "credible [[worldbuilding]]", it suffers from a lack of suspense and any obvious danger to the protagonist. He also described the premise as "too expected" and "too mundane", adding that the story "completely falls apart" in a "lazily" written second half which fails to exploit the implications of the ending.<ref>{{Cite web |title = The Twilight Zone: 'The Parallel'/'I Dream Of Genie' |first = Zack |last = Handlen |date = August 17, 2013 |access-date = May 28, 2025 |website = [[avclub.com]] |url = https://www.avclub.com/the-twilight-zone-the-parallel-i-dream-of-genie-1798177705 }}</ref>

According to Jacob Trussell, the episode "spins its wheels for 20 minutes, dragging out a second-act reveal that the audience has already guessed". He commented that this represents "a great example of why [[The Twilight Zone (1959 TV series) season 4|Season Four]]'s experiment in hour-long stories didn't always work in the series' favor."<ref>{{Cite book |title = The Binge Watcher's Guide to ''The Twilight Zone'': An Unofficial Journey |first = Jacob |last = Trussell |year = 2021 |publisher = [[Riverdale Avenue Books]] |isbn = 9781626015838 |page = 143 }}</ref>

[[Paste (magazine)|''Paste'']] magazine commented that the performances "[lack] energy, and the ending is more of a self-fulfilling prophecy than a genuinely surprising twist."<ref>{{Cite website |title = Every Episode of ''The Twilight Zone'', Ranked from Worst to Best |first = Oktay |last = Ege Kozak |date = September 29, 2023 |publisher = [[pastemagazine.com]] |access-date = May 28, 2025 |url = https://www.pastemagazine.com/tv/the-twilight-zone/the-best-twilight-zone-episodes-rod-serling-sci-fi }}</ref> [[DVD Talk]] called the acting "poor" and argued that the resolution "completely cheats the audience out of the time spent watching the episode".<ref>{{Cite web |url = https://www.dvdtalk.com/reviews/review/18986 |title = Twilight Zone – Season 4 (The Definitive Edition), The |date = October 18, 2005 |access-date = May 28, 2025 |website = [[dvdtalk.com]] }}</ref>