The Ray Bradbury Theater (1985–1992): Season 6, Episode 3 - Tomorrow's Child - full transcript

[music playing]

[eerie music]

RAY BRADBURY: People ask,
where do you get your ideas?

Well, right here.

All this is mine,
magician's toyshop.

I'm Ray Bradbury.

And this is--

[theme music]

[peaceful music]

How are you feeling?

I'm fine, but he's
telling me he's ready.



Don't worry.

I'll have you home in six hours.

These new birthing machines
do everything but father

the child.

Mm, smart machine that
knows where to draw the line.

[laughter]

[peaceful music]

Good morning, Mr. Horn.

Good morning, doctor.

Polly?

Now, this may seem strange
coming at this late hour.

It as OB3 is a
relatively new procedure,

we always give parents
the opportunity

to change their minds and
opt for a standard birth.



Oh no, we want
to do what's right.

And we read the data.

OB has the life
experience of the world's

finest obstetricians.

It's good for the baby, right?

It certainly is.

Then it's good enough for us.

NURSE: She's ready, doctor.

See you soon, Pete.

Both of us.

OK, bye bye.

Let's go.

[peaceful music]

ROBOT: Would you like a drink
while you're waiting, sir?

Coffee, black
with sugar, please.

ROBOT: Coming right up.

Condition go?

You could say that.

So let's go.

Nurse?

NURSE: Yes, doctor?

[lullaby music]

[buzzing]

Ugh.

I said black with sugar.

ROBOT: Sorry, sir.

My mistake.

Yeah, yeah, yeah, yeah.

DOCTOR: Patient's
stabilized in deep sleep.

Molecules stable.

Count, 104 over 5.

[beeping]

[zapping]

DOCTOR: Um, Mr. Horn?

Polly?

Now, Polly is fine.

What's wrong?

Please, follow me, Mr. Horn.

What's happened?

We're almost there.

WOMAN: This is impossible.

MAN: Glad it's not mine.

Mr. Horn?

WOMAN: And to think he's alive.

MAN: You call that alive?
It's breathing.

Where's Polly?

She's in the recovery room.

PETER: And the baby?

How could we have done this?

There.

[eerie lullaby music]

No, no, get me away from here.

Now, please.

Please.

You must understand,
this is your child.

No.

Gentlemen, ladies, could you
give us a few moments, please?

- Sure.
- Yes, doctor.

Of course.

No problem.

At your acceptance
interview, we explained how

the birthing machine worked.

You did not explain that.

It draws the molecules of the
child out of the mother's body.

And it reassembles
them on the outside.

But your dang
machine has screwed up.

On this occasion, there was
a dimensional dis-structure,

a malfunction.

Fine, fine, doctor.

But what are you telling me?

Here's your child?

Here's your child?

What am I supposed
to do with it?

Sell it to a side show?

What on earth have you done?

Please, Mr. Horn,
you must understand.

This is your child,
alive and well.

POLLY: What is this talk?

What's wrong with
my baby that you

should all be talking so long?
- No, please, darling, don't.

- Is he there?
- Don't.

Don't.

Don't.
- I want to see him.

Stop.

No, no, no, it's not well.

It's not well.

I'm sorry.

POLLY: Oh my god.

[sighs]

PETER: I'm sorry.

POLLY: Oh my god.

I'm sorry.

Just tell me this.

Did I do this?

Did I make the child this way?

No, Polly.

Never.

It was the OB3.

He isn't a
monster genetically.

No.

No, no.

Your child has been born
in another dimension.

His shape is alien to us.

I-- I want to see him.

I want to hold him.

How can I?

You could only see him if
you were in his dimension,

or he in yours.

[pyramid breathing]

Good.

Good.

Then I'll wait.

Wait for what?

For our child to be truly
born inside that shape.

beyond that color,
a real baby lives.

Yes.

Then you and your machine,
you'll bring him back.

You'll pull him back, like
a rabbit out of a hat.

Yes?

We will try.

Yes.

[baby cries]

We're lucky that
we live on an island

so that no one can see him.

[baby laughing]

I didn't say that.

I said it.

You haven't cried.

I'm not going to cry.

He's my baby.

Or he will be.

Dr. Wilcott says he needs
everything a normal baby needs.

He needs sleep.

He needs attention.

I'm his mother.

I have a name for him.

Really, Polly, I
think we should--

Py.

Py?

Py, short for pyramid.

Baby Py.

You know Something
You're a real peach.

[laughs]

Look, Dr. Wilcott
can get him back.

It's just going
to take some time.

I can hold on, Pete.

As long as I know that
something good will happen.

I'm not going to
be hurt or shocked.

I'll give it six months.

Then maybe I'll kill myself.

[eerie lullaby music]

[machines beeping]

MAN (ON SPEAKERPHONE):
Spencer has agreed,

in principle, to the deal.

So the only outstanding
question is the delivery date.

If you let me know
Friday how quickly you

can move on the
order, we can mail

this thing before the weekend.

Hey, by the way,
how'd things go?

Everyone well?

Ciao, buddy.

[beeps]

[py coos, babbling]

Boop, boop, boop, boop.

[py laughing]

I wonder what we
look like to him.

Wilcott said like shapes,
like geometric shapes.

That sounds weird.

He can say daddy, can't you?

Say daddy.

[py babbling]

Polly?

Isn't he terrific?

Even his voice is in
the fourth dimension.

When he learns to talk we'll
give him Hamlet's Soliloquy.

He'll come out sounding like
something from James Joyce.

For God's sakes, Polly.

[zapping]

[machines beeping]

[crickets chirping]

[py crying]

Polly?

[glass clinks]

(SLURRED) You ever have a
nightmare when you were awake?

So you have to do this?

Well, I don't have
much to go on, do I?

Weeks, months.

Tests.

Zilch.

We'll get him back.

[py coos]

Listen.

He's happy.
He loves you.

[py coos]

You don't understand.

I want to see him.

I have to see him.

Yeah.

[pyramid breathing]

Yes sirree, this is the best.

Once this is up, baby
won't hear anything.

Right.

[py cooing, babbling]

Hey, you get an aviary?

An aviary?

Pink canaries, birds,
that kind of stuff.

Oh, yes.

Yes, we do.

That's nice.

A baby'll like that.

Yes, baby will.

[py cooing, babbles]

For God's sake, stop it.

[py cooing, babbles]

Come on.

Come on.

We'll go outside.

Well, that should
do the trick, sir.

Hey, that's cute.

Some kind of toy for the baby.

A nightlight?

Is he finished?

Yeah, sure ma'am.

Yes.

(FLATLY) Fine.

Gosh, what'd I say?

Look, it's nothing.

Thanks very much.

[py babbling]

[typing]

[clicks tongue]

[py babbling]

Polly!

[py babbling]

[cooing]

Shh.

[cooing]

POLLY: Hmm.

[laughs]

He's asleep.

Mhm, he's fine.

Did you see his color,
robin's egg blue.

That means he's healthy.

Look, Polly, they will
come up with something soon.

They'll tell us we
have a real baby.

(SLURRED) Look, Peter, we
just have to learn to handle

this the best way we can.

That guy that did the nursery,
he-- he had a great idea.

He said, Py is like
a pet, or a toy.

Like having a dog,
a cat in the house.

Yes, Helen, he is--

he's beautiful.

his father brought him back from
a business trip in Afghanistan.

[laughs]
- Look, I--

I have to go into town tomorrow
to sign the Spencer deal.

I'll only be away
a couple of hours.

I wondered when you would get
bored sitting in your study,

talking to your computers.

That's not fair.

No, I think that
we should not live

like this, like we're in jail.

I think that we should
try and lead normal lives,

and-- and we should
have our friends

over, like we used to do.

I don't think there
would be a very good idea.

Peter, really,
people are really

much better about these
things than you think.

You just don't mention the baby.

And then they think he's dead.

[laughs]

But he's not dead.

I know he's not dead.

I'm just disappointed.

[engine starts]

[py crying]

Well, your daddy couldn't
get away fast enough, Py.

[dialing phone]

[loud music playing]

[loud cheerful banter]

POLLY: You're
right, I love them.

[py babbling]

Hi, Pete!

(SLURRED) Hey!

Pete!

Look it, look!

Did you see that Mary,
Bill and Sheila came over.

I thought it'd be
fun to show them Py.

He's really clever.

Where'd you find him?

Oh Pete, you and
your executive toys.

It's great.

Those sounds.

What'll they think of next?

He's friendly too, like
a dog, or a cat, or a baby.

Look, I'm-- I'm--

I'm very sorry, folks.

I'm going to have to ask
you to leave, please.

[py babbling]

Sure, Pete.
Some other time.

PETER: Yes, exactly.
Some other time.

BILL: Come on honey.
- No, no, no.

PETER: Mary, thanks.

Sit down.

No, no.

Stay.

Come on!

No, this-- it isn't--
- Thanks very much.

I'll explain later.
Bill?

Thanks.
POLLY: What are you doing?

They want to see the baby--
- Polly, please.

POLLY: They came
to see the big--

Pete, come on.

I'm having a good time.

They came to see the baby.

Goodnight.
Thank you very much.

Come on!
POLLY: Come back!

No!
No!

Let them look at the--

[thud]

[slams door]

[py coos]

That feel good,
doing that, Pete?

Huh?

You want to do that one
more time for the baby, huh?

Well, now, this has
worked so well, hasn't it?

Having the baby's really
brought us together.

I really mean this.

One big happy family, right?

[py crying]

Can you hear me in there?

Oh, my baby.

[py breathing]

DR. WILCOTT: Sorry I'm late.

It was a little choppy
crossing over today.

You look as though you've
been up all night for years.

POLLY: Centuries.

Well, doctor, how long
do you think before you'll

have a breakthrough?

Well--

I mean, you are
sure that at some time

you will be able to
bring our baby back?

I think so.

I don't think we've
got much more time.

We do have another solution
available to us right now.

You do?

It has nothing to do
with bringing Py back

from this state in
which he now exists.

For the moment, I
can't bring Py out.

But I can put you in.

[py babbling]

I can repeat the
malfunction that forced

Py into its present state.

I can put you into
the fourth dimension.

[lullaby music]

What would that be like?

Well, you'd notice no change
in your size or body state.

But the pyramid
would become a baby.

How would the world see us?

As the pyramid two
obelisks, perhaps.

You mean freaks.

Not freaks, a family.

Would I see and hold my
baby as he really is?

Absolutely.

I want to go.

Polly, you're throwing
your whole life away.

I'll be with my real baby.

I won't care.

I'm asking you, please stay.

Look, we can still love Py.

We could try for another child.

Py is my baby.

I love him.

What about me?

Do you love me?

Yes I do.

Then I'm asking you to stay.

Please.

I have to go be
with my baby, Pete.

I'm sorry.

[peaceful music]

[py laughing]

[babbling, cooing]

[birds chirping]

[peaceful music]

In sickness and in health?

Till death us do part.

[peaceful music]

[machines beeping]

Are you ready?

Yes.

You understand
it may be some time

before I can bring you back?

- We understand.
- Godspeed.

[machines beeping]

[beeps]

[peaceful music]

[zapping]

[peaceful music]

[distant laughter]

[garbled conversation]

Doctor?

Yes?

What are they saying

Something-- yes,
something about love.

[laughter]

Love.

[peaceful music]