A boy who lives in a heavily rural area with his mother likes to go exploring in the woods. One day he encounters a weird stranger who goes by the name of Scout. He is odd in that he seems out of place. He appears to be collections specimens. He also has some strange power to make things disappear. When the boy brings the guy home, his widowed mother is attracted to the guy. His responses are simple but he seems to be kind and the boy has no father. There is a odd dinner scene. While the boy is forbidden to be distracted coming home from school, he goes to Scout and something very strange transpires. It's a decent story.

"Stranger in Possum Meadows" feels like it was made by a bunch of people phoning it in on their last day before retirement. The main character is a 10ish-year-old boy named Danny, who can't seem to decide if his accent is American or Canadian. He lives with his mom/mum in what is supposed to be a remote rural area, despite the nearby high-rise building clearly seen in the establishing shot of their home. While wandering alone through the woods one day, Danny meets an unusual middle-aged man, and does pretty much the opposite of what his mother taught him. To Danny's credit, the man is not offering candy or a ride in a windowless van.

The rest of the story falls somewhere between a soap opera and an after-school special, with some perfunctory sci-fi thrown in. Steve Kanaly's performance as the mystery man makes this episode just barely watchable.

***SPOILERS*** Very strange "New Twilight Zone" episode involving this weirdo who calls himself Scout wondering around in the woods of Possum Meadows looking as if he were the man who fell to earth and landed squarely on his head causing him sever brain damage.

It's little Danny Wilkins, Benji Barrett, who runs into this guy and in having a brief conversation with him about the difference between a tadpole and frog invites him over for dinner at his place a trailer home that he lives with his single parent and hard working mom, Laura Press. Showing up at the Watkins's house Scout after pacifying the family dog, who smelled something very fishy about the guy, with some kind of paralyzing ray that he emitted from his stretch out,like a fascist salute, arm Scout then goes on to stuff himself with a couple portions of roast chicken that Danny's Mom cooked up for him. Winning mom over like he did her son Danny and the family dog we soon get to see what this Scout is really up to and it ain't at all kosher! In fact it's as un-kosher as a plate of pork-chops and buttered whipped potato's!

As it soon turned out Scout is really an alien from outer space who landed with his spaceship at Possum Meadows in an effort to trap and send back live specimens,animal plants & humans, to his home planet to be examined and studied! This should have been obvious to Danny and his mom in that the guy himself didn't seem to be human at all but some kind of smiling android who's robotic like movements and facial expressions, he never could keep that silly looking smile off his face throughout the entire episode, should have risen red flags as soon as both Danny & his mom laid eyes on him.

***SPOILERS*** With little Danny as one of his kidnap victims to be sent home, to Scout's home planet, to be studied examined and possibly dissected by his fellow aliens or robots Scout gets a change of heart and allows Danny to go back home to his mom, Danny's dog also kidnapped by Scout wasn't so lucky, and forget about this whole strange incident. You see Scout who didn't know it at the time did have a heart and when he asked Danny what he wanted most in life and was told telepathically he wanted to go home Scout complied with his wish!