Highway To Heaven

## Synopsis

Marie has been accepted at St. Bartholomew's Convent for a two-week trial period to become a nun. Elizabeth drives her the hours-long journey, while Graham stays home with the rest of the family. Marie seems very excited to begin a new phase in her life, but her mother is not so sure. While driving on the highway, the car breaks down, forcing the ladies to walk several miles for a tow truck to transport them and the stalled car to a nearby gas station that is adjacent to a roadside diner.

At the gas station, the masculine mechanic strikes up a conversation with Marie, but she is not feeling very flirtatious. Marie is also on edge because she has misplaced her crucifix that she always wears around her neck. The mechanic apologizes for coming onto her, and agrees to fix the car while the ladies have lunch inside.

Just as Elizabeth and Marie head inside the diner for lunch, a pair of bikers pulls up. The ladies think that the men are there to cause trouble, but they merely want to eloquently recommend what the ladies should eat for lunch.

While dining, another mother at the next table is trying to calm her hyperactive son about eating healthy foods, which the boy refuses to do. This reminds Elizabeth that she has been doing the same to Marie for many years, so that Marie can "please her mother", including a flashback to when Marie was a child.

Then, the cook in the kitchen argues with a waitress, and ends up angrily walking out on everyone in the diner. Feeling bad for the other patrons, Elizabeth wants to help out, practically forcing Marie to join her in the kitchen, even though Marie wants to get back on the road. Reluctantly, Marie agrees to help her mother for the time being. Not only that, but immediately after a perfectly-timed remark about *The Twilight Zone*, a Rod Serling doppelganger enters the room, and speaks exactly as expected. The ladies begin to feel like something is not quite right, but they can't figure it exactly what it is.

Now back on the road, the events and recollections from their time at the diner make Elizabeth strongly suspect that Marie is only joining the convent to please her. Marie confidently counters that God has actually called her, and that she must join the convent. Elizabeth wants Marie to follow her own heart and make her own decisions. This leads a tearful Marie to confess - while they are both standing in a heavy rainstorm right outside of the convent - that her mother's prediction was correct all along. Marie also realizes that the convent may actually not be her true calling, and that God really didn't call her at all. It seems like Marie has temporarily been blinded by her faith.

Elizabeth assures her daughter that there are countless other ways to serve God admirably. After agreeing to return home, the ladies happen to drive by the same diner, only to notice that it's now closed and abandoned. In addition, Marie finds her lost crucifix on the ground nearby, and neither of them has any idea what to believe. At that exact moment, a shooting star flies by, which makes it seem very likely that the whole episode was really just an exaggerated supernatural experience that could actually be an omen. It seems as though Marie has - finally - re-gained her faith.

## Guest Appearances

*Nancy Lane* as Waitress

*Angelo Tiffe* as Cook

*Taylor Fry* as Young Marie

*Neal Eastman* as Mechanic

*Jan Eddy* as Spider

*Jan Rabson* as Rod Serling lookalike

*Mark Carlton* as Truck Driver

*Robyn Fay Bookland* as Young Wendy

*Hartley Haverty* as Young Cindy

*Elizabeth Reilly* as Woman in Flowered Dress

*Mark Jordan* as Little Boy

*Jeff Triandos* as Dennis

## Memorable Quotes

**Sherry**: "*Show a little respect for a future nun, even if she is our wacko sister.*"

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**Sherry**: "*Let's face it. Soon, it will be 'Just The Nine Of Us'.*"

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**Elizabeth**: "*This place is like 'The Twilight Zone'. You'd almost expect Rod Serling to walk in.*" *(then a Rod Serling lookalike enters, and states a line similar to what he would really say)*

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**Marie**: *(after returning to the diner, where she unexpectedly retrieves her lost jewelry, and then finds the diner to be a ghost town)* "*Look, my crucifix!*"

**Elizabeth**: "*No one's EVER gonna believe this!*" *(followed by a shooting star overhead)*

## Trivia

* While Elizabeth & Marie are eating lunch in the diner, one of the other men present says, "Hit me with another cup of joe, Mabel. I'm heading all the way to Nickel Mountain tonight." *Nickel Mountain* was the name of Heather Langenkamp's first movie.
* This episode earned the late George "Spiro" Dibie an Emmy for "best lighting".

### Breaking The Fourth Wall

* One particular scene in the unsyndicated airing of this episode shows a unique bumper prior to a commercial break, stating 'Just the Nine of Us', which Sherry also - interestingly - mentions earlier in the episode.

## Mistakes

### Continuity Errors

* In Elizabeth's flashback, the scene appears to be set in their kitchen in Eureka (to some degree), but that scene actually would've taken place in New York.
* Nobody ever actually pays for their meals or services.

### Plot Holes

* It seems somewhat odd that Elizabeth would just stop the car near the convent, and simply drop Marie off. There should be more space on the convent's property - such as a parking lot - as well as better security. Plus, Marie really didn't have much in the way of luggage or belongings with her, and Elizabeth might help her carry her bags inside. It's doubtful that Elizabeth would just drop Marie off, and leave, but that's how the scene is set-up.
* It's mentioned to be Saturday in this episode, but it seems like an unusual time for a two-week trial to begin. It would also seem like Marie wouldn't just casually walk in the front door, let alone at night on a weekend.
* The rainstorm seems to have come out of nowhere, considering the conditions earlier that day.

### Revealing Errors

* It's not clear exactly when/how Marie actually drops her crucifix; it seems as if it just magically re-appears at that particular spot & time.
* It's unknown whether the diner being closed at the end of the episode is a result of the debacle that leads to the cook quitting, or something else occurring off-camera after the ladies leave. It seems quite possible that the diner is never really open in the first place, and the Lubbock women just dream about it from past experiences.
* It's not very likely that Elizabeth & Marie would just be allowed to start working in the kitchen out of the blue, and when they leave, it's not clear who takes over.
* There's no way that the ladies could've summoned a tow truck when they're clearly stuck in the middle of a barren highway. It's doubtful that they would be walking any great distances, and the tow truck driver did transport Elizabeth & Marie, while towing their car.
* Marie did go to the front door of the convent - and attempt to knock - so it's not clear why nobody ever answers the door to let her inside.
* St. Bartholomew's Convent bears a striking resemblance to St. Augie's from the first time it was seen.