The Top 10 Science Fiction TV Series of All Time
Without further ado, let me provide a list of what I believe are the top 10 science-fiction series of all time, in order from the most important and relevant to the least:
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Star Trek: The Original Series If this series hadn’t gone into syndication and gained such a large following, I think it’s very unlikely that many of the other shows on this list would have ever made it to television. For its time, its effects were excellent. Its stories were penned by some of the biggest names in science fiction, like Harlan Ellison. Compared to other sci-fi series of its day, it was unique and original. Its musical score is easily recognized by many people who aren’t sci-fi fans, and is the source of a great deal of parody and humor today. The performances by the main cast members (William Shatner, Leonard Nimoy, DeForrest Kelly, Walter Koenig, George Takei, and James Doohan) were so powerful and recognizable that these actors had a difficult time getting work for years after the series aired, being ?typecast? by their Star Trek Roles.
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Babylon 5 What can I say about this series? It was extremely well-written by series creator J. Michael Straczynski. It had thought-provoking, intelligent story arcs that began in the first episode and continued on for some time. We saw characters rise, fall, and learn from their mistakes. Things weren’t always neatly wrapped up at the end of the episode. The pioneering special effects were always in service of the story. The acting performances were, at their worst ?decent? and at their best ?incredible?. I’ve seen fellow fans of B5 crying, laughing, and sitting on the edge of their seat during certain episodes. This series showed the television world that audiences would come back to a show each week even if it didn’t return to the familiar starting situation at the end of the story. I believe Babylon 5 helped make it possible for other ?ongoing arc? shows like Battlestar Galactica get off the ground.
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Red Dwarf This one is probably a very controversial choice, so I’ll explain why it belongs on this list. Yes, it’s more comedy than sci-fi. Yes, the effects are at times very cheesy. The acting, especially that of the minor characters, sometimes sucks. But this series and its 8 seasons on the air proved something to television networks, sci-fi fans, and the world. It proved that you could have a science-fiction comedy that worked. Amazingly, too, Red Dwarf managed to successfully ?reinvent? itself when it started to get stale. The first season is more of a sitcom than anything else. Later seasons were more like relationship comedies, action comedies, etc. It even got a bit more ’sci-fi? than comedy at times. But the bottom line is that the show is just plain hysterical, especially in that final season.
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20 Minutes Into The Future: The Max Headroom Show This series aired during the height of America’s love affair with Matt Frewer’s ?Max Headroom? character. ABC aired it on Wednesday nights at 8pm initially, and it got some pretty amazing ratings for a sci-fi show at the time. Unfortunately, the network executives moved its schedule to Fridays at 8pm, which is usually the death of a sci-fi series (since, contrary to what most of society thinks, sci-fi fans have lives ? and those lives tend to include social activities on Friday and Saturday nights). The show made it through about a dozen episodes before it was killed. It was a very original series in that it looked at the role of television in our society. It talked about televangelist cults, media coverage of war and terrorism, software monopolies (before anyone was uttering ?Microsoft? in the same sentence with that word), and violence in entertainment. Its effects and sets were also very unique and original, having a ?retro-tech? feel to them like Terry Gilliam’s ?Brazil?. The acting performances by Matt Frewer, Amanda Pays, Jeffrey Tambor, and others were believable and there was a certain chemistry between the cast that helped make the whole ?world? of the series come to life. Why this hasn’t arrived on DVD yet, I’ll never understand. You can buy the ?Jackass? series and even ’sanford and Son? but you can’t get Max Headroom yet.
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Doctor Who Personally, I don’t enjoy Doctor Who that much. When Tom Baker was The Doctor, I enjoyed it, mostly because of her performance. Some of the others I ?liked? but didn’t especially ?enjoy? watching. The story lines are sometimes interesting and thought-provoking, but mostly seem to be action-oriented without much social commentary in my limited exposure. Still, I recognize its place in the Top 10 because it has endured since the early days of television and still draws in legions of fans. It has to be doing a lot of things right to have managed to stay on television as long as it has.
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The Twilight Zone While less science-fiction than drama, The Twilight Zone is on this list because it has become a cultural icon in its own right. People mimic its theme music to imply that something doesn’t seem quite right in a situation. It’s been parodied all over the place, and its actors include some of the biggest stars in Hollywood. The stories were often excellent, the actors’ performances dead-on, and the writing among the best in televised science fiction.
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Stargate SG:1 I saw the movie starring Kurt Russell and wondered how you could make much of a series out of it. In fact, I didn’t start watching it until it had been on for 7 years on the Sci-Fi Channel. One of my best friends recommended I check it out, and I finally gave in. The actors put in some great performances. The writers managed to come up with some good story arcs and follow them through to completion. At times when an episode’s plot wasn’t perhaps as original as the writers would have liked, they made it work by treating the situation as a parody and let the characters actually recognize that fact (e.g., in the episode ?Window of Opportunity? Teal’c and O’Neill find themselves the only ones aware that the same day is repeating over and over. At one point, O’Neill confronts the ?villain? of the episode and asks him if he wanted to be ?king of Groundhog Day?, a nod to the movie starring Bill Murray and Andie McDowell in which Bill Murray’s character re-lives Groundhog Day over and over).
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Blake’s 7 Before Babylon 5 came on the scene, telling a story that covered an entire galaxy over a series of many turbulent years, there was Blake’s 7. This series told an ongoing story of the struggle of a group of convicted criminals, led by a political activist, who toppled a corrupt and evil galactic government. The core characters were played by actors who were generally able to play their parts extremely convincingly. Paul Darrow did an excellent job as Kerr Avon, a ruthless mastermind who always took care of number one, even if it meant killing a crewmate.
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Battlestar Galactica (the current series) While I enjoyed the original Battlestar Galactica when it aired, I was also only about 11-12 years old and was just happy to see anything sci-fi on television since I’d memorized pretty much all of the dialogue in Star Trek (the Original Series) by then. In retrospect, the series has some redeeming qualities, but it’s just not that great when you watch it with a set of adult eyes. The new Galactica, however, is a different ballgame. It got off to a slow start, but has been picking up steam (and viewership) ever since. The effects are well-done and serve the story lines. The writing seems to be getting increasingly better. The acting is also improving at a good pace (though it was quite good from the start). I have to say that I personally prefer Dirk Benedict’s “Starbuck” to Katee Sackhoff’s, but I think Ms. Sackhoff is a fine actress and plays the part well.
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Firefly This is another one on the list that I can’t say impresses me as much as it does its legions of fans. Don’t get me wrong. I “like” Firefly. I just don’t “love” it. It deserves a spot here for several reasons. One is the writing, which is consistently good and results in a series that doesn’t take itself too seriously. Another is the acting, which brings the “written” characters to life in a convincing way. The special effects, where they are used, serve the story line rather than “become” it. Its plot isn’t the most original, mirroring Blake’s 7 in that the main cast consists of people who are essentially criminals who pit themselves against a corrupt and evil government, but it manages to do so in a way that is interesting. By combining elements of a classic western with sci-fi style twists, Firefly becomes something unique in its own right.
There’s my list. Now, discuss amongst yourselves…
