Paladin of the Lost Hour story
Mr. Gaspar is the protector of a magical timepiece, a pocket watch that holds The Last Hour. Directed by: Gilbert Cates (credited as Alan Smithee). Story by: Harlan Ellison, Harlan Ellison.
19 total · 8 major · 11 minor
| Theme | Level | Motivation |
|---|---|---|
| coming to terms with one's own death | major | We learned that Gaspar anticipated his own imminent demise. |
| coping with the death of a spouse | major | Gaspar was grieving over the loss of his wife who had died some 20 years prior. |
| friendship | major | Gaspar and Billy formed a close bond after Billy rescued Gaspar from muggers in a cemetery. |
| magic object | major | Gaspar was in possession of a magical pocket watch that apparently held back the world from ending. In essence, the pocket watch was stopped at 11 o'clock, and the world would end if it ever ticked up to midnight. |
| remembrance | major | Gaspar was reminiscing over his departed wife. Billy was racked with guilt over the death of a fellow soldier who had saved his life in the war. |
| social responsibility | major | After Gaspar threw a cigar butt back in a car, responsibility became a major topic as this was the quality Gaspar looked for in Billy too. |
| the religious end of the world | major | A weird religious discontinuation of everything was apparently imminent but held at bay by a magic pocket watch. |
| what if the fate of the world was in my hands | major | It turned out that Gaspar was the protector of a magic pocket watch that prevented the world from ending so long as it didn't tick up to midnight. He passed this responsibility on to Billy upon his death. |
| communicating with the dead | minor | Billy got to speak to the dead soldier he felt remorse over from Vietnam. |
| coping with post-traumatic stress | minor | While not said explicitly, it seemed that Billy had problems relating to his war experience. |