Favorite Sci-Fi Series (TV) by millernate

OTHER SCIENCE FICTION SERIES

Favorite Sci-Fi Series (TV)

POSTED BY: MILLERNATE
UPDATED: Friday, July 4, 2008 04:56
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Thursday, August 1, 2002 7:56 PM

Now I'm not sure how many people here are big Sci-Fi fans (I'd guess a lot but one never knows...) but I think it would be interesting to list some of our favorite Sci-Fi television series (and, if you'd like, a reason *why* you liked them).

Mine are (in no particular order):

Quantum Leap - The only thing that really hurt this series was that it relied overly much on its core formula. That having been said the core formula (Sam leaps into someone, adjusts, and rights the wrongs) was incredibly strong, as an added bonus this series had one of the best track records in regards to production quality (I for one can't think of an error on it) among shows. Sci-Fi is apparently planning a remake, which does not bode well...

Star Trek: The Next Generation - I never liked the original series (my massive dislike for William Shatner may have something to do with it) which might explain my feeling for this show. Because, in my mind anyway, this show did what the original did but without the cheesiness and bad acting that hamstrung the original. Granted, the first season was pretty bad and parts of the last season as well but inbetween it was pretty darn great.

Twilight Zone (Original) - I've recently gotten into this in cable and I must say that, from what I've seen, this is one of (and possibly *the*) the best written series. Social commentary, intelligent scripts, good acting for the time, etc. It was so good that when they tried a revival with the help Harlan Ellison and J. Michael Straczynski (certainly men who understood sci-fi) it is considered poorly compared to the original.

Its pretty late where I am so I'll be far briefer in listing my other favorites: Nowhere Man, The Prisoner (I really need to rewatch this to consider it more fairly), X-Files (its first three seasons or so had the best use of atmosphere on TV, plus this was before the series devolved in front of everyone), Babylon 5 (I haven't seen alot but I've loved what I've seen and what I've heard intrquises me more), The Chronicle (a *mostly* successfull attempt to do to Sci-Fi what Buffy did to Horror/Fantasy, it doesn't quite compare to the heavy hitters here but it was never less than enjoyable and was occasionally somewhat deep),I'd also list Dark Skies if I remembered it at all but all I remember was liking it...

Anyone can feel free to list their own or mock mine

, which ever is easier for you.

Nathan
"Being popular and well liked is not in your best interest. Let me be more clear; if you behave in a manner pleasing to most, then you are probably doing something wrong." - Janeane Garofalo, from "Feel this Book"

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Thursday, September 26, 2002 1:14 AM

SADGEEZER

Mine are, LEXX, Red Dwarf, Aeon Flux and Babylon 5

Each in their own right are classics I think.

LEXX is scaryly weird. Sometimes I just think the writers were doing it for a bet. But in the end they were totally inovative in their approach to telling a story.

Red Dwarf makes me laugh when I'm down and no other show can do that for me. The science was complete bollocks, but strangely believable. I wander if it was just that we were prepared to overlook it because of the humour

Aeon Flux was also scary coool. The whole concept of Bregna and Monica was facinating and the two main protagonists Trevor and Aeon were thrilling to watch. It had lots and lots of gratuitous in it too. Which is always good I think.

And the classic show, Babylon 5. The only true sci fi show which had a decent story arc. I remember the chills going down my spine when I saw Shadow battleships flying over Centauri Prime - this was a dream that Londo had two seasons earlier. It wasn't just a throwaway scene either, it was integral to the first three seasons. It was a sci fi drama of epic scope. We don't get many of those anymore. (only bad thing was the crappy Lyta and Byron thing).

SadGeezers Guide to Firefly
http://www.sadgeezer.com/firefly

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Thursday, September 26, 2002 3:26 AM

DAKOTASMITH

I used to like a lot of the usual SF -- Star Trek in particular.

Then I became a Non-Aggression Principle philosopher, and it became impossible to watch most media SF. They uniformly portray nothing but bleak, oppressive, fascist, communist, socialist, or totalitarian future.

Even Star Trek, which was the most hopeful SF on TV of its time, is ultimately the SF poster boy for communism.

I couldn't watch it any more.

Literary SF, similarly, disgusts me. The first book I ever read was Foundation by Isaac Asimov -- and I quickly gobbled up every other SF book in the library. I then spent the next nearly thirty years accumulating a library that now takes up all four walls of our guest bedroom.

Then I became a Non-Aggression Principle philosopher, and realized that damned near everything in the library was fascist, communist, socialist, or totalitarian.

The only literary SF I could stand to read was Heinlein. The only literary SF about which I'm actively enthusiastic is that of L. Neil Smith, particularly his "Galactic Confederacy" series. I also enjoy Niven's "Known Space" series, though I wish his later works had a bit more of the capitalist bent that the earlier ones did.

On TV ... well, there's not a damned thing I can stand to watch. I'm told Farscape might appeal to me, but having not followed it, it's hard to step into the middle of a story arc. Now that it's been cancelled, I may rent the DVDs from the start and see if it appeals to me.

I'm cautiously optimistic about Firefly. We'll see. Whedon's notions that big government can sometimes help people is obviously ludicrous, but he's clearly offsetting it by making them largely the jack-booted, power-mad thugs they are in real life.

So we'll see. It couldn't be any worse than, say, Andromeda, which seeks to bring government to the unenlightened masses. Or B5, which sought to replace one set of power-mad pig-rapers with another.

I'm hopeful. We'll see. I would like there to be a future on TV that I can actually look forward to.

Dakota Smith

No human being has the right -- under any circumstances -- to initiate force against another human being, nor to advocate or delegate its initiation.

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Sunday, October 6, 2002 9:15 AM

POSSESSION

So, it only lasted two seasons, despite the huge fan support and being one of the top shows on the station. My favorite was "The Invisible Man." No, no, not the movie, the series on the Sci-Fi Channel. It was smart, it was funny, and most of all... it kicked ass.

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Sunday, October 6, 2002 9:46 AM

LIVINGIMPAIRED

Quote:
Originally posted by Possession:
So, it only lasted two seasons, despite the huge fan support and being one of the top shows on the station. My favorite was "The Invisible Man." No, no, not the movie, the series on the Sci-Fi Channel. It was smart, it was funny, and most of all... it kicked ass.

I second that. The chemistry between Fawkes and Hobbes was amazing. It was like a scifi buddy film. And witty...

I'd also like to add the first season of Roswell for consideration. The last two seasons were lame-o, but the first season was very well done. I think that the problem with this show was that it was not as well thought out as the Whedonverse shows... Joss has ruined me for other tv.

I'd also like to add The Predender. This show was a perfect hybrid of the formulaic episode format and the serialized episode format. That may seem a contradiction, but once you've seen the show, you get it. Fabulous acting. Intriguing characters. I miss it terribly.

Yeah. I also liked B-5, Quantum Leap, and TNG. Crusade could have been great if it'd been given a chance.

________________

"You still don't get it. It's not about right. It's not about wrong... It's about Power." —Morph-O-Monster, "Lessons"

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Monday, October 7, 2002 7:51 PM

ASTRO599

I like Farscape, but my all-time favorite is Dark Angel. I know it was cancelled, but there are still campaigns running to bring it back. If you wanna check it out, type "save dark angel" into your search engine, and you should get about 72,000 matches.

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Wednesday, October 9, 2002 4:52 AM

KALIMAC

It looks like I'm alone here, but far and away my favorite SF show was Deep Space Nine.

It still shared Roddenberry's optimistic vision of humanity, but instead of showing us that somehow everything worked out all right, it showed us how we still have to struggle to make everything work out all right. Plus it was rough and often morally ambiguous. Easily the best Trek in my book.

I very much enjoyed shows like Quantum Leap and Dark Skies. My favorites, though, tend to be more fantasy than SF. Vampire shows, quirky supernatural shows, etc. I think The Pretender counts more as fantasy than SF, surely?

Keep Flying

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Wednesday, October 9, 2002 5:54 AM

QUILL

Dakota: you might try Lois McMaster Bujold's sci-fi, except perhaps for Falling Free and Ethan of Athos.

My favorite series...

Space: Above and Beyond still takes the cake for me. Incredible characterizations, terrific plots for the most part, and a really intriguing, complicated, different story. Of course it was cancelled.

The Wizard--anybody remember this one? I guess it was more fantasy than SF, but it was very well done, and funny, and something I would be comfortable letting kids watch. David Rappaport was amazing; such a loss.

Prey--okay, some rubber-ball biology, but on the whole a refreshing take on the possibilities of the near future, and again some really good characterizations. Again, cancelled.

I thought Farscape had a lot of possibility but never watched enough of it to say much about it, except that it didn't deserve to be preempted by Stargate SG-1, which has a much more limited scope.

Blake's 7--and I've said enough about it elsewhere on these boards!

Doctor Who--the special effects were laughable until late, the plots were often absurd, but the Doctor possessed an unmatched dignity and whimsey, and the Daleks broke ground in visual SF. Taken as a whole the series was very special, and if the fans have anything to say about it, it ain't dead yet.

Inside every cynic there's an idealist desperately yearning to be let out, and when they are let out they're usually a real pain and cause all sorts of trouble. --Chris Boucher

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Wednesday, October 9, 2002 10:05 AM

THENIGHTMAN

Here are some of my nominees for (I assume it's live action on US TV?) science fiction shows:

1). Star Trek DS9: I have to say I like this one better than TNG in that, once it got going, you had a plotline that was interesting and that kept the show's focus beyond the next episode. That, and I liked the cast they had for it.

2). Babylon 5: The epic science fiction show of all time, this one showed what one could do with a rack of computers and a clear story to tell.

3). Blake's 7: In many ways, this show was Firefly's predecessor. It was the first on TV to have the dystopic Federation type universe, and much of its spark came from the fascinating characters on both sides. What strikes me about this series as well is the daring of the writers in the way they sent Blake off on his journey, an example of life imitating art in the most disturbing way.

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Thursday, October 10, 2002 4:02 PM

GTHING

One of the best shows on television right now is the Showtime series Odyssey 5. It is about five astronauts who are humanity's only survivors after Earth implodes. They are rescued by an entity called the Seeker and he sends their consciouses into their bodies five years in the past. The series follows their struggle to find out what destroyed the Earth and how to stop it from happening again.

All five characters get a chance to live the last five years over again. Everything they do affects the time line some way. There are also these life forms of artificial intelligence called Sentients. They can mimic human form using some kind of bio-technology. Our protagonists believe they must be responsible for Earth's destruction.

It frequently seems like a huge unsolvable mystery. Individual plots are a lot like episodes of The X-Files. The characters have compelling story arcs. There is also a lot of action and clever plot twists. Though the show is not intended for pre-teens to watch, I think every sci-fi fan should watch it eventually.

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Thursday, October 10, 2002 5:42 PM

LOONYTOON

dakotasmith, I know what you mean about TNG being a bunch of little commies running around looking pretty.

So far,
1. Firefly. Hell, the theme song was enough for me, the excellent show is icing on the cake!

2. Stargate:SG1. Pretty funny, I like it alot more than some other network sci-fi(no cable

) plus they use real guns.

3. The outer limits. It is usully pretty damn depressing, but makes you think.

4. I remember flashes from space:above and beyond, and that I really loved it, but no more than that.

ones I hate: Andromeda, cheesiest damn show I ever seen! What I have seen of tracker. I can`t stand TNG, to much faith in the human race. Voyager was interesting, though mostly technobabble and sex appeal(give me a break on those catsuits!).

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Friday, October 25, 2002 12:08 PM

ROMMIE

Space: Above and Beyond: I wish the Sci Fi channel would put those reruns back on, or make DVD versions for the fans to buy.

Andromeda: The quality has gone down a bit, but it's still a great show.

Stargate Sg-1: The whole show is great!! The characters are good, the story lines are always neat, and the idea in general is interesting.

The X-Files: I pretty much stopped watching after Mulder left, but those first seven seasons kicked butt!! Scully and Mulder were great together and the episodes were really good.

Star Trek: I liked most of the series, all except for Voyager. Even it had some good episodes though. The Next Generation has to be my over all favorite.

First Wave: I always liked Eddie!

The Invisible Man: Fawkes and Hobbs were great together. The perfect partner team!

Jayne: Time for some thrilling heroics.

Wash: Every man there go back inside or we will blow a new crater in this little moon.

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Friday, October 25, 2002 4:33 PM

SAINTOFCHEESE

You're not alone, Kalimac! I love DS9. It was so well crafted... especially toward the end.. as in like the last 4 seasons

Great characters, great plot, humor, depth, politics, rootbeer... what more could you want? I was raised on Star Trek (hell, i used to play TNG at recess in elementary school. Wanted to grow up to be Troi.. not sure why anymore...) but DS9 has always been my favorite. I know a lot of people prefer the cheerfulness of TNG (i like it, but it's not the same. It's too perfect.) I cried when DS9 ended, and I still get the urge to pull out my old tapes and watch some of the great episodes.

I've had a few other obsessions in my day, though..

I went through an X-files phase. I didn't really like it toward the end, but back in the Mulder days, it was damn good.

I loved Andromeda. It was soo good in the first season. It's dead now, but it was amazing. I'm not gonna rant about it, because i've done it before. If you want to know what was so great about it, look up my post on it...

I got into Farscape about a year ago. Unfortunately, I don't get Sci-fi channel (agh!) so that's kind of difficult. But it's such a unique show.

And of course, firefly! It's my newest obsessions and one of the biggest obsessions I've ever had. I get all happy and hyper just thinking about it!

~*Saint of Cheese*~

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Friday, October 25, 2002 5:35 PM

TRICKSTER

Wow. Favorites?

V- First thing I ever got into, one of the first things I ever remember seeing. I was 3 years old when it came out, and I loved it and still remember watching at reenacting it with my Barbies the next day. Recently got it on DVD and was still all giddy about it.

Buffy- Huge fan since day one, now have entire episodes I have memorized (mostly because my brain is a sponge for pop culture and I couldn't get it out if I wanted to).

Space: Above and Beyond- Got into this when it started, but Fox's scheduling kept me from watching and I never even knew when it was canceled. A friend got me back into it a couple years ago, and I've been hooked ever since. God, that was a brilliant show.

Witchblade- It's unhappily canceled, but I was in love with the show. Not so much first season, but from the second season premiere I was totally into it. Have yet to pick up any of the comics, which I kind of don't wan to do so I don't compare.

seaQuest- I was a huge fan up until third season when it lost me. It couldn't seem to pick a real premise and stick with it, but I stayed with it loyally and followed the creator to...

Farscape- My #1 favorite show of all time. Great acting, great writing, plot twists people don't exactly expect... My perfect show. Yep. Canceled.

I've also recently managed to find and get into Babylon 5 and Stargate, but I'm still catching up on those.

Natalie

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Friday, October 25, 2002 8:33 PM

TRUK

Regarding "The Prisoner" from Millernate's orignal post in this thread - The Prisoner was one of the most captivating thrillers ever to be screened on televison. From talking to my parents, the serial was a phenomoneon that mesmerized both British & American audiences. And frankly, it pissed everyone off with it totally ambiguous finale.

However, I applaud a series that was planned for only a finite # of episodes (17 I believe). Patrick McGoohan had the clout to get it done...psych-fi TV wrapped with biting social commentary.

I was able to catch most of the series on PBS earlier this year...I highly recommend it.

To Millernate re: Nowhere Man - I caught part of the series back when UPN was still new but did they ever wrap it up in a satisfactory manner? That was pretty weighty stuff but the network seemed to have pulled the plug pre-maturely.

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Saturday, October 26, 2002 4:15 AM

WILLIAM

Sci-Fi Tv... Well lets see

1, Farscape - just so refreshing and creative, great characters, that are so fun to watch...

2, Stargate SG-1 - good, characters are fun.

3, FireFly - alot of potential

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Saturday, October 26, 2002 5:49 AM

DELVO

Quote:
Nowhere Man - I caught part of the series back when UPN was still new but did they ever wrap it up in a satisfactory manner? That was pretty weighty stuff but the network seemed to have pulled the plug pre-maturely.

As an avid viewer for the whole season that it lasted, who had to stay up a few hours past my usual bedtime just to get to the START of the episode, I called the station after it was gone. They said it was cancelled. The last episode, I think, is a cliffhanger when he discovered that he himself was Gemini, the operative who had been investigating the situation before...

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Wednesday, November 20, 2002 11:10 AM

GEEKGIRL

TNG hands down for me. I absolutally love this series and the characters and everything. I like most any other Trek to but TNG is my favorite.

Quantum Leap -- I loved this show. Even back in the day when I swore I hated sci-fi (Yeah I'm weird I know because I love it now LOL) I really liked this show.

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Thursday, November 21, 2002 8:23 AM

INVISIBLEGREEN

My favs:

5. "Reboot"
4. "Freakazoid"
3. "Dark Angel"
2. "Roswell"
1. "Prey" - this only lasted 13 eps, but it
was total quality. (ABC, 1997, I think
it was a midseason replacement. Anyways,
it starred Debra messing pre-"Will & Grace."

And of course Firefly is my new #1.

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Thursday, November 21, 2002 8:59 AM

KGREENE

I love first three Star Treks. Deep Space 9 from season three to season 6 are some of the best television around. I loved the X-files, wonder and dread all in the same episodes. The Twilight Zone always thrilled me as a kid. And I love Firefly...but the finest sci-fi to be found in the last 4 years is on the classic Farscape. I've NEVER seen a show that toyed with your conceptions and threw you curves like this show. And it has an episode that has the most heartbreaking death scene ( two episodes actually!) that I've ever seen in episodic television...when it comes back on in January for it's final run everyone please do yourselves a favor and tune in. It's one of the finest shows ever made...

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Thursday, November 21, 2002 9:02 AM

KGREENE

Forgot about Space: Above and Beyond. Still think about Wang and Damphousse and West.....I miss that show....and Babylon 5 is great stuff....
But NOTHING touches Farscape....

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Thursday, November 21, 2002 9:04 AM

MANDOLINMONSTER

i'm obsessed with smallville and alias (dunno if alias is considered scifi but close). i was also obsessed with roswell. i watch x-files, lexx, so weird, star trek, twilight zone, and outer limits when they're on but never really loved the shows, i just watched certain eps that looked good. and of course i'm obessive over firefly!

http://www.geocities.com/mandolinmonster/

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Thursday, November 21, 2002 9:10 AM

GOSSEYN2

And don't forget VR-5 and Max Headroom

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Thursday, November 21, 2002 9:11 AM

GOSSEYN2

And don't forget VR-5 and Max Headroom

gosseyn2

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Saturday, November 23, 2002 9:17 AM

TABITHA

I gotta agree with the Odyssey 5 suggestion. I have just gushed all over it in another thread, but it is the best thing on (UK) tv just now, and has a strong chance of becoming my favourite SF ever. Writing and acting is uniformly brilliant, watch it if you can.

And as for Prey - I had totally forgotten about that, Debra Messing (pre Will and Grace), and the fella that went on to be Darien in the Invisible Man (sorry forgot his name). It was on at like 1.30 am here in the UK, but I stayed up for it every week (hey, who needs a VCR anyway?)

Fave SF so far would be: Twilight Zone, X Files, B5 and I swing between Farscape and SG1 depending on my mood.

oh, and I have been watching reruns of Sliders on Scifi recently - it is much much better than I remember.

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Saturday, November 23, 2002 11:03 AM

MANDOLINMONSTER

yeah i watched sliders every once in a while and first wave and alien nation.

http://www.geocities.com/mandolinmonster/

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Saturday, November 23, 2002 5:44 PM

ZATHRAS10

1) Babylon 5. The high-water mark for TV sf. Top-notch story, challenging ideas, strong ensemble. Firefly posesses a similar mix of gravitas and whimsy.

2) The New Twilight Zone. 1980s incarnation helmed at first by Harlan Ellison (the best were under him) and later JMS. Stories of deep humanity, with a more complex and slightly less pessimistic vision than either the current TZ or, dare I say it, the original. For "Her Pilgrim Soul" alone, which among other things turned me on to the poetry of William Butler Yeats, it needs to be high on the list.

3) Max Headroom. Watching this in reruns on TechTV recently, I was disappointed in how poorly it had aged. It feels very stuck in the 80s. That's the danger of trying to go 20 minutes into the future. Its vision of a wired world is somehow less than what we've actually ended up with. But I still have to rate it this high because of how good, how new, how risky, and how compelling it was at the time. Broke the mold for TV sf, so of course it was too good to last.

4) DS9. Easily the best of the Treks for me--maybe because it's the only one that isn't so utopian. Some of its story arcs were B5-ish epic, but its true strength was in its characters. No other Trek dared to have characters as layered and morally ambiguous as Dukat, Kira, Garak, Kai Winn...the list goes on.

5) Firefly. The second-best new series of the year behind Boomtown, and gaining fast. Boomtown's character arcs are secondary to the weekly stories (which are brilliant), but Firefly's arc is really pulling me in. That and great characters coupled with an ensemble that may prove to surpass B5's. I'm certain that if it has the chance to continue, it will be building a story as compelling in its own way as B5's. And Firefly hasn't even had its "Signs and Portents" yet. When it does, I'm sure it'll blow the arc wide open, and it'll move up several notches on my list.

6) Highlander. A guilty pleasure next to the others, maybe, but the characters (especially guest characters like Fitz) were terrific, and I was just a sucker for the idea of the show even when the execution didn't live up to expectations.

7) Buffy. The best genre show on TV until Firefly started its run. I've only been a fan since the beginning of Season 6 (though I've caught up a bit on the mythology). As with Firefly, it's all about the characters, the wit, and the moral depth and complexity. It's a thing.

8) Doctor Who. I haven't watched it in over 10 years, but it's still a sentimental favorite from my dorm-tv-lounge days. Favorite Doctor: Baker or Davison, depending on mood. Favorite companion: Sarah Jane, by a mile.

I'm about talked out now, but to round out to a top 10 list:

9) Star Trek TNG.

10) Stargate: SG1.

10.5) The X-Files. Sometimes. Esp. "Jose Chung."

Chris

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Saturday, November 23, 2002 6:47 PM

SCORPY

Farscape
If your not watching it your missing out. The writing is truly amazing. Very innovative. If you do not have cable you can still catch up to the story on p2p. Has the best character development of any show I have ever seen.

Firefly
I am really starting to enjoy this series. I like how you see things you might not see in other more "scripted" series (i.e. star trek) My favorite was when Mal kicked Claw through the engine when he wouldn't take the money back. I really like the way the characters talk. Very different.

Stargate
Good, but slow. Writing is predictable. Its at its end.

Enterprise
This show blows. Its like watching paint dry.

Space Above and Beyond
I recently downloaded the first and only season. It wasn't as good as I remembered.

Andromeda
Hercules in space.

Babylon 5
Didn't see enough to really comment. I heard the story lines were excellent.

DS9
Watching grass grow

I yearn for the dumpster - Scorpy Clone

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Saturday, November 23, 2002 7:26 PM

JAYNESGIRLFRIEND

I knew I wouldn't be able to resist a thread that encouraged making lists. Love me some lists.

Favorite Sci-Fi(other than FF)Random order:
Farscape: I don't always love every episode, there are in fact a couple I downright loathe, but there isn't a single one that bored me. The constant inventiveness of the show and its ever-evolving characters are comparable only to Buffy in my mind.

Buffy: As much as I like Farscape I've never been nearly as invested in the characters and the world as I am with Buffy. Even when I hate what a character is doing I've never failed to find something in it that was utterly believable to the character. In the first two seasons especially the monster as metaphor method was strong and intriguing, if occasionally anvilly. And no other show has ever been able to make cry as hard as I did when Joyce died.

Eerie, Indiana - I don't know if anyone else remembers this, but this so called "kid's show" was smart and innovative and so, so funny. I have a few on DVD and they're still as fun as I remember them being when I was 12. It was also the first sci-fi series I was truly addicted to and layed the groundwork that made me that fanatic I am today.

The X-Files - I was a fan of the stand alone episodes mostly so I stopped watching regularly sometime around season 4 when I just couldn't stand the conspiracies any longer. But I've seen most of the stand alones from the rest of the seasons and I've enjoyed nearly all of them.

Honorable mentions:

Angel, second season: Gunn still had balls. Wesley was just the right mix of goofy incompetence and new found confidence. Cordelia was embracing her inner goody two shoes, but hadn't lost the snark. And Lindsey was lovely...okay, I'm a little shallow. All in all, the second season was pretty close to perfect.

Twin Peaks: The first season was amazing. Now if I could just take a pair of scissors to the second season and excise all that boring crap, like freakin' James Hurley and that damn Marsh woman. Argh!

Aww, I love lists, its like therapy, only free.

"I was gonna get me an ear, too." - Jayne

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Sunday, November 24, 2002 4:37 AM

TABITHA

Eerie Indiana was wonderful. I only dimly remember the actual storylines, but I can clearly remember how much I loved it. Great all round.

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Sunday, November 24, 2002 4:53 AM

OUTLANDER

My List.

1 Firefly (I love everything about this show)

2 Dark Angel - First Season (Always been a huge James Cammeron fan)

3 Babylon 5 (All Sci-Fi shows should be this well thought out)

4 Battlestar Galactica (The only reason I became a Star Trek Next Generation Fan is because Battlestar Galactica was to ambitious for it's time and was canceled premiturly, though it's time will come).

5 Star Trek The Next Generation (Patrick Stewart, need I say more)

I should also mention X-Files, Farscape, Space Above & Beyond, Harsh Realm, Roughnecks: Starship Trooper Chronicles, Space 1999, Blake 7, Red Dwarf, Doctor Who, Original Star Trek and Buffy (I know it's not Sci-Fi but if it was it would be in my to five) and I hate Stargate with a vengeance (bad acting - bad writing - directing) how could the Sci-Fi Channel cancel one of the best TV shows ever (Farscape) and keep one of the worst (I'm still bitter).

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Sunday, November 24, 2002 9:40 AM

REYVNDARKNIGHT

I enjoy the following shows:

Star Trek, both Classic and Contemporary, because that show demonstrates the potential that we have and the spirit of exploration that humans possess.

Lost In Space (Jayne ain't got nothing on Dr. Smith

when it comes to screwing over the cast) is a classic sci-fi show that had good scripts that not only had a tongue in cheek approach but explored several sci-fi issues.

Though Babylon 5 was a good show, I think it should be classified as a massive series rather than a mini-series and therefore doesn't count toward favorite TV series.

^5 to Quill and Trickster, Space Above and Beyond was definitely a good series and demonstrates why fans should circle the wagons. Had Space been given a longer run, we may have seen an exceptional series come into its on.

And the absolute best, at least in my humble opinion was Farscape. The show had strong scripts, exceptional f/x, chemistry among the cast which translated well onto the screen, and for the first time I actually identified with the lead character. What would it be like to be lost on the other side of the galaxy/universe from your homeworld, and how well could a person adapt?

And let's not forget about Firefly

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Sunday, November 24, 2002 9:40 AM

REYVNDARKNIGHT

DOH!!! Double post !!

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Sunday, November 24, 2002 5:40 PM

MILLERNATE

I had some interesting additions to your comments so here goes:

Quote:

2) The New Twilight Zone. 1980s incarnation helmed at first by Harlan Ellison (the best were under him) and later JMS. Stories of deep humanity, with a more complex and slightly less pessimistic vision than either the current TZ or, dare I say it, the original. For "Her Pilgrim Soul" alone, which among other things turned me on to the poetry of William Butler Yeats, it needs to be high on the list.

One minor nitpick: Harlan Ellison, while deeply involved with the production (his title was "creative consultant" and I believe he picked out the scripts that aired from the freelancers), was not the man in charge of NTZ. That individual was Philip DeGuere (more on him later). Incidently: I have a bunch of these episodes in their 1/2 hour syndicated form that I keep meaning to watch ("Dead Run", "A Small Talent for War", "Misfortune Cookie", "The Trance", etc.) but can't seem to find the time to watch the tapes.

Quote:

3) Max Headroom. Watching this in reruns on TechTV recently, I was disappointed in how poorly it had aged. It feels very stuck in the 80s. That's the danger of trying to go 20 minutes into the future. Its vision of a wired world is somehow less than what we've actually ended up with. But I still have to rate it this high because of how good, how new, how risky, and how compelling it was at the time. Broke the mold for TV sf, so of course it was too good to last.

remember how I mentioned that there would be more on Philip DeGuere? Well, if you are talking the 1987 version of this show (I believe there was another one), then I should mention that DeGuere (who incidently recently came out of a 15 year retirement to script an episode of USA's The Dead Zone this past season) was also in charge of this. Its interesting to note that many regular contributors to The New Twilight Zone (James Crocker, Rebecca Parr, Michael Cassutt) also wrote for Max Headroom.

Quote:

8) Doctor Who. I haven't watched it in over 10 years, but it's still a sentimental favorite from my dorm-tv-lounge days. Favorite Doctor: Baker or Davison, depending on mood. Favorite companion: Sarah Jane, by a mile.

Have you gotten a chance to check out the DVD(s) (I saw one collection, I'm not sure if there are others)? I do believe there is one from the Baker as Doc period.

As an aside to everyone else: I'd like to mention that I've recently got to watch the first three episodes of Red Dwarf and think very highly of them. A video store in my area has several VHS tapes of the show available for rent and I do believe I'm going to take a look.

I'm sure you're all tired of Nathan expounding on old Sci-Fi TV so I'll leave now

Nathan
"It looks like a great adventure...That's what it is; that's what it feels like. When I saw the pilot, it was really engaging. It was exciting. It was unusual. It threw me off every now and then. I think people will be grabbed by it." - Ron Glass, on the pilot, during an interview with the Indianapolis Star

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Sunday, November 24, 2002 7:33 PM

ALLRONIX

Co-founder of the Evil Writing Crew - causing hell, one hero at a time!

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Sunday, November 24, 2002 7:46 PM

ALLRONIX

Gee...tough call on favorites.

I'll likely get decked for it, but while B5 was good, daring, etc...it just didn't grab me as much as most.

Blake's 7...I found this in college after reading a couple books on the history of fanfic and concluding I had to see the stuff. Yes - Firefly seems a combination of Blake's 7 and Magnificent 7. ("Mal's 9?") Gotta love Servalan - an Evil Overlord that apparantly read the list.

X-Files - Could be funny, scary, tragis - usually was all three. The last season was awful. How could they have made "Jump the Shark?!"

Earth: Final Conflict - Guilty pleasure. Good premise, but screwed the pooch unerringly when executing those ideas. Liked the characters, though, especially Ron Sandoval (I always thought he and Scully would get along well), Liam Beckett ("Kincaid"), and Da'an.

Star Wars: Not so much the universe itself, as it is seeing my brother-in-law, his friends, and my sister's pals all turn 13 years old at the thought of more SW.

ST:TNG - good stuff overall. The first season was pretty bad, and the movies were nothing to write home about. Almost everything between them kicked ass!

ST:DS9 - loved it until they tried to be B5 with the "Big War" plot, and brought on Ron Moore's Mary Sue (thinly disguised as Worf). For the first three seasons, it was beautiful, sad, dystopian, mystical, and had a great cast.

Co-founder of the Evil Writing Crew - causing hell, one hero at a time!

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Wednesday, November 27, 2002 4:44 AM

IDEFIX

I don't know most of the series mentioned above but I do know some of them.
I've seen ST TOS (some of it), ST TNG, ST DS9 (not all), ST VOY, ST ENT, Andromeda, Babylon 5, Farscape, now Firefly.

I do love Farscape dearly. it's about people like you and me even if some of them are blue and other's look like big frogs. there's no military structure and they don't save the univers once per EP. they try to stay alive and sometimes have fun and other times are sad and so on. my all time favorites are "The Choice" the only real mourning EP I've ever seen on TV, it was too realistic to describe, always makes me sad, "Fractures" the half funny half devastating reunion EP. I love the scene, where MoyaJohn meets Aeryn in the hangar and she just walks past, Crais tells him that the other John died and then, when your heart is about to break, Rygel sniffs the air and smiles about a 'female' being on board and you have to smile too. and to make the circle round "Scratch 'n Sniff" the holiday EP with the weird strory told in an even weirder way (like a pop music video).

I liked Adromeda, when Tyr was a Nietzschean (a real one) and Beka was close to being a Flash addict and the commonwealth was nothing but a dream. now it seems to me like a computer action game on TV.

I like Enterprise. it's predictable and not too innovative but it shows some of the Star Trek universe in a bit of a different light. some of the characters are nice (Reed, Tucker and especially the Doc).

the original ST was never my kind of SF. I've seen some of it as a kid in the german version and that made me see it as a joke (that was intended by the translators, they made it into a funny kids series). and now it's a bit out of time, so I've only seen a few in english and didn't like them much.

TNG was my first SF series ever and that was about 3 years ago. up to then I didn't like SF and generally didn't watch TV at all. I love Data and some of the stories are really good. I bought all the DVDs this year. I hate the captain, as I almost always hate the Captain if there is one and a military structure to make him/her captain. I just hate the structure and the 'position' of captain, I think. or better what it makes out of a man. but I know what I'm talking about here, as with all the series above I've seen every EP up to date and in this case I've seen them at least 3 times each. there's only Farscape to compete with that. I have all those DVDs too, the UK ones up to the end of season 3.

DS9 is darker, there are interesting characters there and it has the great war arc. but I seem to be the only one not liking 'great' stories, say "Lord of The Rings" kinda stories. I still hate the captain. some of the not-war-arc-related stories are quite good. I haven't seen all of it yet.

Voyager is lighter, funnier and altogether un-arc-ish. I think I like it best of all the Treks. I do love Janeway (see I don't hate all the captains). she's erratic and not quite sane all the time but maybe that's what I like in her. I like her best when she carries her big gun around. I liked Chakotay too, in the beginning, when he had something meaningful to say some of the time. I even like Seven, if it weren't for the "romper suit" (looked it up in a dic) she wears. I'm a woman myself so maybe I don't know but I still don't think women in baby-wear are sexy. and most of all of them I love B'Elanna. the Doc was overused and underpunished in the end (should have been re-booted after all of his later 'adventures'). Tom had some good EPs ans was all around a nice guy. It doesn't have to be dark to be good.

last B5. I do like it but I don't see the big arc as it's best thing. I really enjoyed the 5th season that was out of the arc. I liked it because they seemd to have time to tell stories about the people then. I enjoyed Londo and G'Kar, I really really love Lennier, I do want a Lennier of my own! Delenn had her moments ("If you value your life, be someplace else."). and I always liked Garibaldi. I'd love to watch some Duffy Duck with him sometime.

so that's my take on SF TV. and I really saw all of them in the last 3 years. I seem to do nothing else lately.

Idefix

edited for un-understandable sentences and such.

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Thursday, June 26, 2008 4:18 AM

MEGARUIN

darkangel by far

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Thursday, June 26, 2008 7:13 PM

JEWELSTAITEFAN

The Six Million Dollar Man.

Firefly is in the running, tho.

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Thursday, June 26, 2008 8:16 PM

PSYCHOTIC

Spaced (UK) - The SciFi/Comedy where the Simon Pegg & Nick Frost started. Funnier than Buffy the Vampire Slayer at times. Best gunfight ever. There definitely should be an American version.

Battlestar Galactica (GINO) - Strong char dev, excellent CG, good shakey cam. "It sucks you in", as I've heard many times. One of Joss Whedon many current favorite TV shows. Ties with Firefly as my all-time favorite.

X-Files w/ Mulder (non-mythos) - Monster-of-the-weeks were always creepy and well-done.

Twilight Zone (Original Series & Movie) - Classic. Cheese.

Space: Above and Beyond - Loved the chars, good CG for its time. BSG does it better in all areas. 25% thru second watching.

Star Trek (TOS & TNG) - Classic. Very philosophical (which is boring for some people). SciFi may not exist if there were no ST:TOS, or at least be very different. Do people understand SciFi if they never watched ST:TOS?

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Thursday, June 26, 2008 9:19 PM

SHINYGOODGUY

OK, let's get it started:

X-Files: This show was just quirky enough for me to truly enjoy. It had sci-fi and mystery rolled into one package. Mulder and Scully - their chemistry also did it for me. The Lone gunmen - need I say more. Pretty much hated it when Mulder left.

Dark Angel - 2 words - Jessica Alba, reason enough to watch but I loved this show. I'm pretty much a sucker for any show that has a female lead that has some sort of powers, kicks butt (martial arts style) and has a secret identity. It was actually well written and acted.

ST:Voyager - I was not impressed by Kate Mulgrew as Capt. Janeway, but I did like the rest of the crew especially Tuvok, Harry Kim and Seven of Nine. But my fav was B'Elana Torres. This was my fav of the ST series (although I did get into DS9 for the first 4 seasons - then it got dopey). some of my fav eps were when they would travle through time and land on Earth in present time.

Space: Above and Beyond - Great show. It had good character development, story line, plot and special FX. I heard each show cost approx 2 million to make. Does anyone know if they have it on DVD?

Number #1 of course is Firefly - When I heard that JW was working on this show that mixed western themes with sci-fi I was hooked. Saw the promo with Serenity flying over the horses (Ooooo, chills). Was hooked from day one and did not miss an ep. Even though it was hard to follow at times because there were shown out of order, I hung in there. The ep that convinced me was Jaynestown. I could probably write a book about why I love this show, but its the characters. Also how the stories unfold, the dynamics of each character's reaction and actions. The way they speak. Its got horses and duels, and its got a girl with a secret that kicks butt. And don't forget Serenity.

"I'm a thinking, Ooo my head hurts"
Yosemite Sam

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Thursday, June 26, 2008 11:19 PM

JEWELSTAITEFAN

Didn't know this was a list thread.

The Six Million Dollar Man.
Firefly
Outer Limits (Showtime)
Dark Angel
ST: Voyager
Terminator: The Sarah Connor Chronicles
Haven't seen in a long time, but did like Time Tunnel as a kid.

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Friday, June 27, 2008 5:47 PM

TRAVELER

Twilightzone was ground breaking. More human drama than SciFi, but an excellent show. Even at a young age where much of the plots were over my head I watched it religiously.

The Prisoner is the same. More drama than SciFi, but I was older and really got into this show.

Doctor Who, especialy with Tom Baker, was fun to watch. The cheap special effects only added to the entertainment. When our local PBS station stopped broadcasting it I got

, but they could no longer afford it. I will live

The original Star Trek. I lived for this show.

Rocky Jones Space Ranger surprised me. I had only vague memories of this show, finally found a web site that had the complete series. It is meant for a young audience, but it has some good stories and for a show produced in the early 50's the effects are not to bad. The story "Crash of the Moons" is the best episode. They did a great job with that one.

Earth II was a program I enjoyed, but like Firefly had a short run.

Star Trek Next Generation was on and off with me. They would have an excellent story one week and the next they would get caught up in technobabble that would turn me off.

Enterprise brought me back to the original Star Trek. Less focus on technology and more on great plot lines. Wish it had a longer run.

Red Dwarf is just funny. I love a show that makes me laugh and this one did it a lot.

Lost in Space made me laugh too. Dr. Smith and the robot stole that show and made it great. The list of insults Dr. Smith threw at the robot is endless. They must of sat up nights thinking of insults for Smith to use. They were better than Abbot and Costello.

I am sure there are more, but this covers my very favorite shows.

Traveler

P.S.

I thought Terminator: Sarah Connor Chronicles was not going to return, but I saw an add for it. So I guess it will be back this fall. I guess they could not resist the cliff hanger ending.

http://www.imdb.com/mymovies/list?l=28764731
Traveler

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Saturday, June 28, 2008 5:39 AM

CHRISISALL

Quote:
Originally posted by Shinygoodguy:

Dark Angel - 2 words - Jessica Alba, reason enough to watch but I loved this show. I'm pretty much a sucker for any show that has a female lead that has some sort of powers, kicks butt (martial arts style) and has a secret identity. It was actually well written and acted.

Nice to see the Dark Angel love on this thread.

Alecisall

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Sunday, June 29, 2008 7:39 AM

MEGARUIN

darkangel even when it was cancelled for firefly i love them both

blah blah woof woof[ www.virtual dark_ angel]you can find series 3 fanfic

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Friday, July 4, 2008 4:56 AM

CLJOHNSTON108

I just finished watching all the episodes of Total Recall 2070 on Hulu...

...and, like Firefly, I feel a tremendous sense of loss that it was only given one season.

The writing, acting, cinematography, etc. are the best I've ever seen. (I hesitate to say, better than our beloved show, but I might!)
Even right down to the graphics on the computer screens, they put thought and care into the tiniest details that I've never seen anywhere else.

The performances were amazing because they actually did take it seriously!

I need to have this on DVD!

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