WARNING: The following contains spoilers for Season 2, Episode 6 of The Twilight Zone, "8."
Season 2 of The Twilight Zone doesn't just offer cerebral and psychological stories on humans alone; fans get their fill of aliens and kaiju, proving the franchise still believes in horror, not just sci-fi and suspense. As usual, the franchise dives deep into a bigger hook and something much more unconventional as it focuses on a research team out in Antarctica for secret reasons. As a result, the series gives fans the smartest and deadliest kaiju that pop culture has ever seen, and in the process, humanity's never-ending curiosity has finally doomed life on land.
In "8," Orson (Joel McHale) is leading a team to recover and study lifeforms from the frigid waters, while they also analyze the ice caps. It seems like a legit operation, until something attacks a couple divers. At this point, Orson and his second-in-command Channing (Nadia Hilker) hint they're here for something much more nefarious, but they've clearly met their match when that being sneaks into a cooler, suggesting it's been captured.
At this point, it becomes clear the humans aren't the predators; they're the prey, and fans discover this being, while it looks like an octopus, is actually a new breed of cephalopod. A Chinese colleague, Ling (Michelle Ang), has been working as part of a joint venture, but while everyone's surprised, she seems as if she knew they'd strike gold. However, the being, clearly working a trap, starts reading their minds, understanding English and uses telekinesis to escape. It then kills a couple workers on board, and as the survivors discover, it can turn invisible while using its arms like a true assassin.
They all hide and try to assess what's going on because they've never met a hunter like this. However, the big twist comes when Channing's phone goes missing. It was stolen by Ling, but the creature tracked it down through the ventilation system and stole it via the ducts. It's a bit silly, but it's so intense, and fans need to find out if this is an alien or something else.
It turns out that Ling was there all along for this creature because the Chinese government had earlier researched into what it could do. Their plan was to splice its DNA into human DNA to create new super-soldiers, as well as a species in general that could live undersea. In other words, they were making Aquamen.
The DNA of the being was compatible, so Ling was there to steal the specimen, as opposed to Orson's team, who wanted to use the being for pharmaceuticals. Neither party is trustworthy, but the icing on the cake comes when the creature takes the phone, upgrades its mind and hacks the genetic modification software.
To the shock of the humans, they watch the screens as the being programs and discovers how to do the opposite of China's plan by reconfiguring the sea-dweller's genetics with mankind's, so it can survive on land. It unlocks the secret and heads back to the depths of the ocean, and there viewers see it literally altering its genetics.
The being starts getting bigger, and as other creatures come to it, it's clear the being is sending out signals, and these transmissions will see the others receiving the information about how to adapt and evolve. In short, they've used mankind's tech and are now levelling up to invade land, where they can live and complete the steps evolution missed centuries ago.
As viewers see the creature manipulating its physical form, it's clear, while it's not as large as its cinematic counterparts, it is a kaiju nonetheless, and smarter than Godzilla, Ghidorah or any of the ones in Pacific Rim. In this case, this intelligent and ruthless leader has the entire ocean as its soldiers, and they end the episode changing into attack-mode.
Hosted and produced by Jordan Peele, The Twilight Zone Season 2 is available on CBS All Access.