<P> Another resident, Les Goodman, tries unsuccessfully to start his car . He gets out and begins to walk back to the other residents when the car starts on its own . The bizarre behavior of his car makes the neighbors suspect that Les may be an alien, as suggested by Tommy's story . One woman brings up his late nights spent standing in the garden looking up at the sky . Les, defending himself, claims to be an insomniac . Steve tries to defuse the situation and prevent it from becoming a witch - hunt . Charlie Farnsworth pressures Steve about his building a ham radio . Steve and the other neighbors continue to argue . </P> <P> Darkness descends and a shadowy figure is seen walking toward them . Charlie panics, grabs a shotgun, and shoots the figure, thinking it to be an alien . When the crowd reaches the fallen figure, they realize it is Pete van Horn, returning from his scouting mission on Floral Street . He is dead . As Charlie struggles to defend his hasty action, the neighbors voice suspicions that Pete had discovered evidence that Charlie is an alien, and Charlie shot Pete to prevent him from exposing him . The lights in Charlie's house come on, further fueling their suspicion, and even Steve is too angered by Pete's death to defend Charlie . Charlie makes a run for his house while the other residents chase him . A hurled stone hits Charlie in the head, creating a bleeding gash . Terrified, Charlie attempts to deflect suspicion onto Tommy . Several neighbors agree, as Tommy was the only one who knew about the aliens' plans . </P> <P> Lights begin flashing on and off in houses throughout the neighborhood; lawn mower and car engines start and stop for no apparent reason . The mob becomes hysterical, hurling accusations, smashing windows and taking up weapons as the situation devolves into an all - out riot . </P> <P> The scene cuts to a nearby hilltop, where it is revealed the shadow that flew overhead is, indeed, an alien spaceship . Its crew are watching the riot on Maple Street while using a device to manipulate the neighborhood's power . They comment on how simply fiddling with consistency leads them to descend into paranoia and panic . They also discuss their intention to use this strategy to conquer Earth, one neighborhood at a time . </P>

Who are the monsters in the monsters are due on maple street