Top 50 Science Fiction TV Shows 684
pbaumgar writes "Boston.com is running an article discussing their top 50 Sci-Fi TV shows of all-time. What are some of your favorites?" From the article: "Number 10 -'Sliders. 'Sliders' should have been a widespread hit, but it was ahead of its time. The show was about a wiz-kid genius Quinn Mallory, played by Jerry O'Connell, and his band of three companions who slide among Earth's alternate realities. Toward the end of the series, the show quickly slid in quality as three of its stars - O'Connell, Sabrina Lloyd and John Rhys-Davies - departed and were replaced by others. A tragic demise to a fine show." They don't even give a nod to greatest-trek-of-all-time DS9, so I don't know about this list.
Sliders (Score:2)
Re:Sliders (Score:2)
Re:Sliders (Score:5, Informative)
"I like SF. I love intelligent SF," Rhys-Davies says in his deep basso voice. "When you come across good writing, and I think 'Scorpion' was finely written, it's a wonderful thing. I had just come through a period where the contractual nature of my job obliged me to take scripts that frankly wouldn't get past Writing 101. We had the most wonderful series concept with Sliders, but we did everything that had been done before and we did it every damned episode. We did Species. We did Tremors. We did Twister. We did War of the Worlds. We did The Island of Dr. Moreau. It was out of control, just out of control.
"I think Tracy did a nice job early on. We had our differences and we fought occasionally. In the end, Sliders wasn't the worst experience I ever had. I was just disappointed. Again, I love SF. I'm a passionate believer in Sliders. The series could have been great. The public always understood the of Sliders. The public understood that you could go anywhere in the galaxy. The writers, though, would try to graft a Law and Order story, or something they had done or seen before, onto Sliders and just make the characters work around it."
Re:Sliders (Score:2, Informative)
I've always liked him, but after that decision, I gained a lot of respect for him as a professional. And the fact that they couldn't keep a solid cast stringed together afterward just shows h
Flamebait Squared (Score:5, Funny)
Re:Flamebait Squared (Score:3, Insightful)
3. Get 50 ad-ridden pages semi-related to scifi posted to a tech site with almost a million readers.
2. ???
1. Profit!
ranking (Score:4, Insightful)
Re:ranking (Score:2)
Re:ranking (Score:3, Informative)
Hmmm, you know... I could swear I saw something on BBC 1 called Dr. something a short while back.. I wonder what it could be.
Also, as a strange side note.. some of the shows they listed can hardly be described as "Sci-Fi", I'd say they thought: "Let's make a top 50 list of the greatest sci-fi shows ever!" and then kinda got bored half-way through and just started adding shows they liked as kids regardless whether they be sci-fi or not.
Doctor Who: 1963-2007 (at least) (Score:5, Informative)
Re:Doctor Who: 1963-2007 (at least) (Score:3, Insightful)
Not only that, but the resurrection also brought in a munch needed jump in the quality of the show. The filming is better, the writing is better, and the effects don't look like MST3K anymore. Hehe.
I'm starting to realize that a lot of complaints about these shows are by people who haven't invested in them. I didn't like Farscape or B5, but man, I honestly can't say I've seen more than 5 eps of either. S
Re:Doctor Who: 1963-2007 (at least) (Score:3, Insightful)
Oh brother. First, Farscape died because it was too dependent on cathing every single episode. Second, enough of the elitist bullshit. I can't believe how obnoxious the Farscape fans I've
Re:ranking - I agree (Score:2)
I agree, Stargate is much better than that.
Re:ranking (Score:2)
The list should be called "Our favorite X that we can remember seeing clearly", but that is just too long.
Re:ranking (Score:5, Insightful)
The Twilight Zone will stand the test of time. It already has since it's a creature of the late 1950s to early 1960s. While so much of what is on the list will be forgotten, it will remain a classic.
Re:ranking (Score:3, Insightful)
I loved the old Dr Who, but I can see reasons why you'd give Star Trek or Twilight Zone a leg up. Unfortunately most of what passes for "Sci Fi" nowadays is Space Opera w/ Wild On chicks given scientist roles. IMHO the last decent sci-fi series was the first half of the X-Files... nothing in the past 5+ years has much to do with science at all... is space-fantasy at best.
K
Re:ranking (Score:5, Insightful)
There is also the possibility that the series is highly rated because it's simply a good show and not because it is completely "unique" from the original.
The fact that Starbuck used to be a guy doesn't have any impact on that unless you're stuck on the original series. Starbuck being a woman has created some interesting plot points, and the "stunt" you were referring to has only been made a big deal by detractors, not the producers. It has never been a major selling point to watch the show.
BSG is doing well because it's simply a good, entertaining, and thoughtful show. The end.
Re:ranking (Score:3, Interesting)
When Starbuck was presented as a woman that indeed was unique and a good change to make. After listening to the podcast for Pegasus the writers seem to think that it still is original to recast male characters are female characters. The whole story of multiple Boomers, who used to be a male character, also is a great touch because they did something with the character other than changing the sex. The problem that currently exist with the Starbuck character is that it is very littl
Re:Outrageous (Score:3, Interesting)
No Max Headroom? (Score:5, Insightful)
Re:No Max Headroom? (Score:5, Interesting)
Re:No Max Headroom? (Score:5, Interesting)
Red Dwarf.
Blake's Seven.
Star Cops. I really liked that one from the BBC.
Both series called Probe. Probe from the 80s was written by Asimov no less. I didn't remember Probe from the 70s until I looked up the one from the 80s. It could be redone today.
You also had Time Tunnel from the 60s
I dream of Jeanne! Think about it. It had fantasy, the guy was an Astronaut. It was as much science fiction as say Buffy, or Third Rock. It was also very popular.
And the almost forgotten Planet of the Apes TV series.
And of course a HUGE Hit show that seems to be totaly forgotten from the list... Mork and Mindy!
Moore's still up there. (Score:2, Insightful)
Moore's better baby did pretty damn well.
Um, hello (Score:5, Insightful)
Re:Um, hello (Score:5, Insightful)
I'm not sure of the list either. (Score:4, Insightful)
Space Above and Beyond (Score:5, Interesting)
Re:Space Above and Beyond (Score:2)
Re:Space Above and Beyond (Score:2)
Re:Space Above and Beyond (Score:4, Interesting)
Also a little cnfusing is that while they managed to pick up Nowhere Man (which was a surprisingly good show all things considered) they somehow neglected The Prisoner (to which Nowhere Man owes a great deal).
And how exactly does Firefly finish behind Voyager and Xena?
Seems like a real slap dash hodge podge to me.
Jedidiah.
Re:Space Above and Beyond (Score:3, Interesting)
It was mature in that there were no ridiculous alien species and warfare was very much a serious business - there was less reliance on rely on flashy special effects and cool guns or technobabble and more focus on conflict and tragic destruction. I remember vaguely the episode "Abandon All Hope" where
It was human in that the main characters were flawed in ways that were fundamental and related to their scarred past. It wasn't the sort of chea
Re:Space Above and Beyond (Score:3, Interesting)
I see that resemblence, but in a way BSG has more hope, there is more room for "gee what if". SAAB had a relatively confined, military story, just soldiers trying to get through the war. BSG (not counting pegasus) was dark, but every episode tried to give you hope that, even though your race was killed in a horrific nuclear holocaust, and you were running from an inplacable foe with little or no resources, things were kinda looking up.
That said I still love SAAB more than any se
Re:Space Above and Beyond (Score:3, Informative)
Re:Space Above and Beyond (Score:3, Insightful)
Well you had space ships with wings that banked like airplanes, I do not remember how they solved that whole FTL thing. And if I remember right they often had the fighter jocks land there space planes and become ground pounders.
It may have been enjoyable but no cheap and lazy contrivances?
Less than a lot of shows. It compares pretty well to the new BSG actually. The ships actually had control jets front and back (similar to BSG) and while they did have a tend
MST 3K! (Score:2)
Exactly what we all do in life
Hell, now I have to log onto
Science Fiction? (Score:5, Insightful)
Batman was WAY SCI FI (Score:2)
If 20,000 decibels doesnt sound like much, you havent heard it :)
Storm
Re:Science Fiction? (Score:3, Informative)
Re:Science Fiction? (Score:5, Informative)
The media industry, in deciding what genre a show is, can't slice the pie too fine, or the definitions become useless. They are more likely to define the genres according to audience, since that's what advertisers want to see. So, no Horror-fantasy, Horror, High Fantasy, or Historical Fantasy genre labels for us.
Given that the media industry has so much influence on public perception of things, is it surprising that people slowly change how they label things to fit the media labels?
From http://encyclopedia.laborlawtalk.com/Science_fict
"There is some ambiguity as to what exactly "science fiction" covers in terms of television. In recent years, the term has come to cover any programme that deals in the fantastical or even merely the horrific, such as Buffy the Vampire Slayer, Charmed or Angel. More accurately these programmes are not science fiction as they don't involve any real scientific element, and are perhaps more comfortably covered under the generic term "telefantasy"."
Buffy? (Score:2, Insightful)
Science Fiction?!! (Score:5, Insightful)
Re:Science Fiction?!! (Score:2)
Let's see: Superman has aliens; Batman relies on high tech gadgets; Buffy is edging out to using magic, but then "any significantly advanced technology is indistinguishable from magic".
There's more to science fiction than just space opera.
Re:Science Fiction?!! (Score:3, Insightful)
Re:Science Fiction?!! (Score:5, Insightful)
Science fiction needs two elements - *science* and *fiction*. Everything else is just fluff.
Superman and Buffy have no science elements. They are merely fiction.
No Lexx? (Score:3, Insightful)
Re:No Lexx? (Score:2)
Er... which part of yourself — no, never mind.
Re:No Lexx? (Score:2)
And just what were you trying to hide?
Re:No Lexx? (Score:3, Informative)
To get the series funded
They forgot the #1 Sci-Fi show! (Score:5, Funny)
Synapsis: This head alien interrogates others [wikipedia.org] like it regarding its numerous abuses by Man. Freaky episodes about the aliens' fashion, body morphing in their latter life stage, even discussions about how they can get their alien race to win the Presidency [wikipedia.org].
Eerie.
The Prisoner (Score:5, Insightful)
Re:The Prisoner (Score:2, Funny)
Re:The Prisoner (Score:3, Insightful)
Prisoner Not Sci-Fi? (Score:5, Interesting)
Episode 3 (A B & C) features "dream viewing" technology, something far beyond the grasp of even current technology.
Episode 5 (The Schizoid Man) mentions and Episode 6 (The General) features an advanced AI in charge of predicting complex social patterns and forming brainwashing strategies. It is presented as being capable of answering any question, with the exception of one, insoluble by man nor machine.
Episode 6 also features a concept called "speed-learn," a process by which a person can quickly absorb large amounts of information via a television broadcast. It is presented as giving a full 9-week class in the space of 30 seconds.
Episode 12 (A Change of Mind) fatures a non-invasive form of neurosurgery, using highly focused soundwaves. Although the device is not used on #6, its functionality is demonstrated. Technology such as this did not exist in 1967, and likely does not exist now.
Episode 14 (Living in Harmony) features a combination of hallucinogenic drugs and audio stimuli which produces an impossible effect with any known drugs.
Many elements within the series are used frequently, including implied mind-control rays/beams/lights/sounds which induce instant paralysis, the precise location of The Village, and the unknown function of the teeter-totter device.
And if the final episode (Fall Out) takes place in this universe, I want to know how.
List is utter rubbish (Score:2)
Best sf show (Score:5, Insightful)
Next best is an oldie: The Prisoner. If you're under 40, you likely missed it.
Remove Brain and Make Top 50 List (Score:2)
Oh, and "'Star Trek Voyager' started off slow but ended as one of the better 'Star Trek' spinoffs" is not necessarily a compliment.
firefly? (Score:5, Insightful)
list as high quality as navigation (Score:5, Insightful)
Xena, though a fine show, is hardly a science fiction. It has none of the technology, exploration of current social problems, or even exploration of various cultures. Pretty much it just a medeival cop show.
Sliders was not ahead of it's time. It was just another huckleberry finn, star trek, docotor who knockoff with none of the redeeming factors. It is quite suitable for the adolecent maile, with a good role model, a pretty girl into geeks, and trivial story line. However, there are no layers that might make it interesting to an adult. The writing was woodden, even by scifi standards.
One contemporary scifi show that is seldom mentioned is 'The Cape'. Based on reality, good exploration life, and how we might move forward. Much more interesting than anything I saw on that list, though the show only works if you ignore current reality, as is true for most scifi.
"The Invaders" is not on it? (Score:2)
Re:"The Invaders" is not on it? (Score:3, Interesting)
I agree with someone above who said that this article was for the purpose of generating traffic, and the list was pretty much pulled out of their ass. That is, it's whatever shows they could remember offhand, with no research whatsoever, and probably by a m
Full Listing (Score:5, Informative)
50. 'Earth - Final Conflict'
49. 'The Wild Wild West'
48. '3rd Rock From The Sun'
47. 'Buck Rogers in the 25th Century'
46. 'That Was Then'
45. 'The Greatest American Hero'
44. 'Lois & Clark: The New Adventures of Superman'
43. 'Nowhere Man'
42. 'Science Fiction Theatre'
41. 'Futurama'
40. 'The Thunderbirds'
39. 'The Man from U.N.C.L.E.'
38. 'Batman'
37. 'Space 1999'
36. 'The Bionic Woman'
35. 'Battlestar Galactica' (Original)
34. 'The Avengers'
33. 'Lost In Space'
32. 'My Favorite Martian'
31. 'Alien Nation'
30. 'Voyage to the Bottom of the Sea'
29. 'The Six Million Dollar Man'
28. 'Adventures of Superman'
27. 'Buffy the Vampire Slayer'
26. 'Stargate Atlantis'
25. 'The Jetsons'
24. 'Wonder Woman'
23. 'Tales from the Crypt'
22. 'Andromeda'
21. 'Quantum Leap'
20. 'The Hitchhiker'
19. 'Dark Angel'
18. 'V'
17. 'Firefly'
16. 'Flash Gordon'
15. 'Logan's Run'
14. 'Star Trek Voyager'
13. 'The Outer Limits'
12. 'Xena: Warrior Princess'
11. 'Lost'
10. 'Sliders'
9. 'Mystery Science Theater 3000'
8. 'Dr. Who'
7. 'The Twilight Zone'
6. 'Stargate SG-1'
5. 'Babylon 5'
4. 'The X-Files'
3. 'Star Trek: The Next Generation'
2. 'Battlestar Galactica' (New)
1. 'Star Trek' (Original)
Re:Full Listing (Score:5, Interesting)
Red Dwarf
Blake's 7
Battle of the Planets (C'mon, Futurama's in there!)
Hitchhikers Guide to the Galaxy
DS9
Lexx
The Prisoner
Seaquest DSV
Stingray
Captain Scarlett
Seems someone's got selective-memoryitis...
Blake's 7 4TW! (Score:3, Informative)
In the first episode our hero is set up as a post mind-wipe former rabble rouser that witnesses the mass murder of a secret meeting of dissidents. The authorities have him set up as a child molester, destroy him and his reputation and then ship him off to a penal colony (after having his lawyer an
"The Time Tunnel" (Score:5, Insightful)
Ahead of their time (Score:2)
ST:TOS deserves to be #1, because that's what has brought more people into SciFi than anything else.
And while I liked the Man from U.N.C.L.E., I hardly consider it SciFi, even if he did have a communicator the size of a pack of cigarettes (later built into a pen).
Re:Ahead of their time (Score:3, Insightful)
So yeah, these shows are borderline by any standard, and don't fit the purist definition of SF. But under the broad definition of SF as any sort of non-mundane fiction ("we know it when we see it"), they both fit.
At the time I d
huh? (Score:2)
serious problems (Score:2)
Hey, Boston.com, there's more to good SciFi than Jeri Ryan's boobs. (Like Kaylee....:-D)
ad revenue (Score:5, Funny)
1a. doesn't matter how accurate or well researched the list is
2. Make list available one item per time on a page heavy with ads
3. Post link to
4. There is no
There's Something Really Scary About This ... (Score:2, Insightful)
Saturday Afternoon (Score:3, Insightful)
Sci-Fi? Nah, Fantasy.. (Score:4, Funny)
Who is number one? (Score:3, Interesting)
Any list that doesn't have 1-5 in this order... (Score:2)
#4 The Outer Limits (original)
#3 Star Trek TOS
#2 Stargate SG-1
#1 Babylon 5
And don't bother disagreeing, you are wrong
Bite my shiny metal ass! (Score:2)
Futurama 41st greatest of all time?!?!?!
When the Humanoid-Carrot revolution of 2120 comes, you'll understand how far ahead of its time this fantastic show really was.Can we mod an entire *News Article* as Flamebait? (Score:5, Funny)
Flamebait (-1)
Jilted Again (Score:3, Insightful)
Someday, Ruth Buzzy and Jim Neighbors will get their due.
You suck, Boston.com (Score:3, Insightful)
On a slightly more relevent note, I just marathoned like seven episodes of the new Battlestar Galactica on my DVR, and I think it might actually be the best show on TV, including those edgy shows on cable where they show boobies. Its that good.
WTF? (Score:3, Insightful)
Number 12: 'Xena: Warrior Princess'
Xena better than Buffy? Both sci-fi?
Crap list... (Score:5, Informative)
no Salvage, Blue Thunder, Airwolf, Knight Rider, Automan, Max Headroom or The Prisoner????
Lexx, Lexx, Lexx, Lexx (Score:4, Interesting)
Time Tunnel, Land of The Giants and The Invaders
There are a bunch of good SciFi series out there that far outranks some of the ones that made the top 50 -
I love Linda Carter as Wonder Woman, but give me a break as SciFi it does not even rate a number IMHO !
RED DWARF!!! (Score:3, Insightful)
Re:DS9??? (Score:5, Insightful)
A lot of those shows aren't Science Fiction.
Re:DS9??? (Score:3, Insightful)
A lot of those shows aren't Science Fiction.
Agreed. I can't believe Farscape didn't make the list while shows like Wild Wild West, the Man from UNCLE, and the Avengers did. The Prisoner was far more SciFi than the Avengers, and that didn't make the list either. While I liked the other shows, they were not science fiction. While the original Star Trek probably deserves the top spot, the only other show that had fans actively protesting and trying to reverse its cancellation was Farscape.
The Complete List (Score:3, Informative)
1) Star Trek (TOS)
2) Battlestar Galactica (new)
3) Star Trek (TNG)
4) X-Files
5) Babylon 5
6) Stargate SG-1
7) The Twilight Zone
8) Dr. Who
9) Mystery Science Theater 3000
10) Sliders
11) Lost
12) Xena: Warrior Pincess
13) The Outer Limits
14) Star Trek (VOY)
15) Logan's Run
16) Flash Gordon
17) Firefly
18) V
19) Dark Angel
20) The Hitchhiker
21) Quantum Leap
22) Andromeda
23) Tales from the Crypt
24) Wonder Woman
25) The Jetsons
26) Stargate Atlantis
27) Buffy the Vampi
Re:DS9??? (Score:2)
Re:DS9??? (Score:5, Interesting)
These days, every episode of Stargate SG-1/Atlantis and Battlestar Galactica (some of the most popular current sci-fi) is based on the entire series up until that point (in fact, the first line in most episodes of SG-1 these days is Chris Judge saying, "Previously, on Stargate SG-1...").
Besides, the soap operatic plot of most sci-fi shows holds up to scrutiny a lot better than most actual soap operas: "I love you, but.... I have amnesia!"
Re:Soap Opera, DS9, B5, BSG (Score:5, Insightful)
Babylon 5 was not a soap opera. Babylon 5 was a story. It has a beginning, a middle and an end. Towards the end of B5 you can definitely see all of the pieces being moved off of the board one by one.
A soap opera is not going anywhere. Things just keep happening. You can keep it up for as long as you want. Characters can come and go. The basic direction can change. This is very different than a novel, or Babylon 5.
DS 9 might be a soap opera. (I quit watching after 2nd season due to liking B5 better and had insufficient time for both DS9 and B5.) I don't know if DS9 was a soap opera. Was the story working its way towards any overall conclusion?
This brings me to the new Battlestar Galactica. I wonder if it is like B5 in that there is a distinct conclusion that they are heading towards? Maybe so, but maybe they don't have a plan for getting there? Will they drive off into the ditch along the way and never get to the conclusion. I sure hope not. I would be very disappointed in investing time to watch it.
Re:DS9??? (Score:3, Insightful)
Absoultely. DS-9 started off weak, but once the long plot lines were developed (more than one) the show became a great ones. Not only that, the magic reset button can totally ruin a show (mucking about with time for example to reset for example. SG-1, for example, has done this at least twice, and both times they did not fit well with the rest of the plot.
In a book, that's what can make a great book, is a well-defined plot line that goes from start to end. We should expect that of a series (any, not j
Re:DS9??? (Score:3, Interesting)
Don't get me wrong, Enterprise jumped the shark on occasion (alien Nazis), but at least Enterprise had a little humor, characters with personality, and story arcs about characters you actually cared about. They were just occasionally a little too far-fetched.
DS9, by contrast, wh
Re:DS9??? (Score:3, Informative)
Re:I call shenanigans... (Score:5, Informative)
Re:Star Trek DS9 Was truly superior (Score:2)
ST:E wasn't bad, though it took me a few attempts to get into it because the characters/actors were so sterile the first season.
Re:Star Trek DS9 Was truly superior (Score:2, Funny)
Re:Too bad... (Score:5, Funny)
That's why I only watch PBS and listen to NPR -- so I can be safe from entertainment and news about regular people.
Re:Idiotic List (Score:5, Insightful)
I have never understood why so many people seem to believe that "sci-fi" must include aliens or space ships to be sci-fi. Sci-fi often becomes confused with fantasy.
If we were to make a list of "best" sci-fi, and strictly adhered to them being actual sci-fi, I do not believe you could get a list of 50 if you limited yourself to television. In order to have a list with any meaning, you would have to seperate the truly great from shows that either failed entirely, or were never able to garner more than a niche audience. And because of the non-linear nature of the best specimens of sci-fi (Twilight Zone, Outer Limits, etc - shows that were not dedicated to sci-fi-only), you would be forced to either include these sometimes-sci-fi shows, or admit that your list just lost it's heaviest hitters.
In such a list, I get the feeling that Farscape MIGHT only stand a chance of getting in. As for Lexx, First Wave, this new BSG, and many of the other shows experiencing a brief period of popularity or who have a dedicated and vocal but small audience... they wouldn't stand a chance.
As for Stargate, I never personally got into the show, but it would most likely make it into such a list intact. It's probably the only currently running show that would.
And dammit Star Trek SHOULD be at the top of the list. No one can say another sci-fi show has had a greater impact. Twilight Zone would be next in line, then probably Lost In Space (another show I never loved, but has stood the test of time).
Re:Idiotic List (Score:3, Insightful)
I'll agree that Star Trek had a big impact but that doesn't make it any good. I saw an article or essay once that suggested that the only reason Star Trek was so popular was because it was the first time that the general populace had been exposed to sci-fi. Sci-fi writing had moved on from the "go places and do stuff" type of stories thirty years before Star Trek came out.
The acting is o
Re:Idiotic List (Score:3, Insightful)
That's a good indicator of what sci-fi is when at it's best... not stories about cool futuristic technologies, but stories about how technology affects the way we think and interact with eachother.
Re:New BSG is #2? WTF? (Score:4, Insightful)
(edit mine)
In contrast to the origional series aka Wagon Train in Space staring Lorne Greene? A boy and his mechanical dog? And evil inverse video goat man? Making it a point to create perfectly reflective robots without regard to lighting resulting in having to use colored filters so you couldn't see the crew? Recycled special effects from the movie which employed recycled special effects. Not to speak of Galactica 1980 who had a group of kids farm with their super strength or play baseball and win to avoid detection from the goverment. Or worse yet "You're pregnant? How is this possible? Must have been devine intervention!" Can you say a transparent attempt to prevent kids from finding out where babies come from?
I know there are fans of the old series who might be offended, but let's face it BSG 1979 had some awful moments and the new series in many regards is an improvement. I agree it shouldn't get a #2 spot. It's too new and hasn't had long enough to prove itself.
Re:Not only is DS9 not on the list... (Score:3, Insightful)
And some pretty hot babes, too! Sorry, couldn't resist.