Best Space SF Series ever list by chrisisall

IM(totally humble)O, it goes like this, in order of greatness:

Star Trek TOS
Firefly
Battlestar Galactica TOS
Babylon 5

If you *must* go all Reaver on me here, please, kill me BEFORE you eat me.

The laughing Chrisisall

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Tuesday, September 27, 2011 5:10 PM

WISHIMAY

"Greatness" is relative.

What specific quality(s) are you hailing?

Memorable? Innovative? History making? Biggest lasting impression? Most fans? Best stories or characters? All of the above?

Hasn't Bytemite taught you to be more specific with your wording YET?

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Tuesday, September 27, 2011 5:39 PM

THESOMNAMBULIST

Firefly
Ulysees 31
Cowboy Bebop
Buck Rogers in the 25th Century
Battlestar Galactica (the Original)

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Wednesday, September 28, 2011 2:38 AM

ECGORDON

There's no place I can be since I found Serenity.

Firefly
Babylon 5
Battlestar Galactica (2003)
Star Trek
Star Trek: Deep Space Nine

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Wednesday, September 28, 2011 2:42 AM

From this 58 year-old's fading-by-the-day memory:

1.Firefly
2.Star Trek
3.Babylon 5
4.Outer Limits 60's
5.Outer Limits 90's
6.Twilight Zone 60's
7.Battlestar Galactica 1978
8.Dr. Who
9.Star Trek Next Generation
10.Lost In Space
11.Space 1999
12.Voyage To The Bottom Of The Sea
13.The Time Tunnel
14.Land Of The Giants
15.Buck Rogers
16.The Starlost
17.UFO
18.Project UFO
19.Logan's Run
20.Man From Atlantis
21.Quantum Leap
22.Galactica 1980
23.Cleopatra 2525
24.Sliders
25.Andromeda

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Wednesday, September 28, 2011 2:53 AM

Quote:
Originally posted by Wishimay:
"Greatness" is relative.

What specific quality(s) are you hailing?

"Greatness" as defined by me for the specific purposes of his thread:
A great SF space series must be innovative, telling stories or exploring characters in new ways not generally done before, it must have memorable and interesting characters that you come to truly care about, it must not exclude the use of humour despite being essentially dramatic in nature, it must be despised by the network (okay, that one's not actually a 'must'), it must make you LOL at times & cry at others, it must leave you wanting more.

The laughing Chrisisall

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Wednesday, September 28, 2011 3:41 AM

LWAVES

I would add that to achieve greatness you'd also need a show that can still on it's own two feet today without being too outdated and what made the show great still holds true today (assuming it's an older show).

My list is in the order that I think of them.
And only spacey SF shows as requested.

Fleefly...erm...Furflung...err...Fireflay...the one with Castle in it.

Doctor Who Classic and New. (If I had to pick a top one it may well be this)
Battlestar Galactica TOS
Battelstar Galactica New
Star Trek TOS
Babylon 5
Red Dwarf
Blake's 7

"The greatest invention ever is not the wheel. It's the second wheel." - Rich Hall

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Wednesday, September 28, 2011 5:32 AM

CYBERSNARK

Kinda stretching the definition of "Space" SF series, here (a few of my favourite "space-operas" end up largely planetbound):

Firefly: For reasons that should be obvious.
Farscape: For keeping the Creature Shop alive and daring to show us things other series would shy away from.
Stargate SG-1 / Atlantis / Universe: For remembering to be fun and adventurous without sacrificing drama and intelligence, and for being lucky enough to flesh out an ongoing, evolving universe for over 15 years (and still leaving us wanting more).
Star Trek DS9: I love all Trek, but DS9 has a special place in my heart. If I could, I'd live on that gloomy old station. . .
Andromeda: Whatever the series degenerated to, I maintain that the first season was some of the best SF I've seen on TV.
Robotech: Mainly for the novels, admittedly, which went further into space-opera than the TV show did --especially the prose-only SENTINELS sub-series (without the Sentinels, I probably wouldn't be a space-opera fan).
Oban Star Racers: For managing to pack more aliens per capita than any other series I've seen.
Macross Frontier: For letting me imagine what Robotech could look like if it was done today.
Heroic Age: For being easily the most EPIC-scale space-opera series ever. Other shows might have one God-race, this one has FOUR (with humanity well on its way to becoming either the Fifth, or extinct).
Gundam SEED / SEED Destiny / SEED Stargazer: There've been other Gundam series before and since, but the Cosmic Era remains my personal favourite just for the intricate worldbuilding, the internal politics, and my favourite starship captain:

(Honourable mention to Star Wars, though none of the TV series have really lived up to what it could be. I wanna see Rogue Squadron on TV, dammit.)

-----
We applied the cortical electrodes but were unable to get a neural reaction from either patient.

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Wednesday, September 28, 2011 5:57 AM

Quote:
Originally posted by Cybersnark:

Andromeda: Whatever the series degenerated to, I maintain that the first season was some of the best SF I've seen on TV.
ius.jpg

Y'know, I liked the first two seasons of that a lot...

The laughing Chrisisall

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Wednesday, September 28, 2011 6:03 AM

Quote:
Originally posted by Jongsstraw:

12.Voyage To The Bottom Of The Sea
13.The Time Tunnel
19.Logan's Run
20.Man From Atlantis
21.Quantum Leap
24.Sliders

You're supposed to stay in your seat until the starship reaches the terminal. No frequent flier mileage for you.

those ain't spacy shows...

The laughing Chrisisall

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Wednesday, September 28, 2011 8:05 AM

OPPYH

-Firefly

-Buck Rogers: hey, it's a fun show, and at $10 for 37 hour long episodes(complete series) how can anyone go wrong?

-Battlestar Galactica

-Space 1999:Dreamy, and cool

-Red Dwarf

-Star Trek TOS

-The Starlost:Canadian 1974 show that had an episode budget of about $1,200. I have grown to appreciate the cheapness, and bad acting. It is now a cherished "guilty pleasure".

Oh and Star Trek TNG
http://www.startrek.com/article/the-next-generation-blu-rays-launch-in
-2012

----------------------------------------------------------------

70's TV FOREVER

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Wednesday, September 28, 2011 8:33 AM

Quote:
Originally posted by OPPYH:
-Buck Rogers: hey, it's a fun show, and at $10 for 37 hour long episodes(complete series) how can anyone go wrong?

Ya can't!
BEEDEE BEEDEE BEEDEE

The laughing Chrisisall

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Wednesday, September 28, 2011 8:52 AM

Hmm, if we're just sticking to space-based shows:

1: Babylon 5
2: Farscape
3: Star Trek: DS9
4: Battlestar Galactica (new)
5: Star Trek: TNG

Very special honorable mention to FIREFLY - but it's so damned short, I can't rate it with the others.

"Goram it kid, let's frak this thing and go home! Engage!"

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Wednesday, September 28, 2011 8:57 AM

Quote:
Originally posted by Storymark:

2: Farscape

Quick sidebar- do you like the Farscape Peacekeeper Wars?

The laughing Chrisisall

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Wednesday, September 28, 2011 9:16 AM

Quote:
Originally posted by chrisisall:
Quote:
Originally posted by Storymark:

2: Farscape
Quick sidebar- do you like the Farscape Peacekeeper Wars?

The laughing Chrisisall

I liked it, yes. But not in a "Make-up-for-canceling-it" way. I appreciated getting closure, but it was so truncated, I wanted all those stories that were just hinted at.

"Goram it kid, let's frak this thing and go home! Engage!"

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Wednesday, September 28, 2011 9:23 AM

Quote:
Originally posted by Storymark:
I liked it, yes. But not in a "Make-up-for-canceling-it" way. I appreciated getting closure, but it was so truncated, I wanted all those stories that were just hinted at.

Kind of like...
Serenity....

The laughing Chrisisall

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Wednesday, September 28, 2011 9:30 AM

Indeed.

Though I admit, the parallel didn't even occur to you said it. On the bright side, at least Firefly didn't end with a gut-wrenching cliff-hanger.

"Goram it kid, let's frak this thing and go home! Engage!"

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Wednesday, September 28, 2011 1:02 PM

Quote:
Originally posted by chrisisall:

You're supposed to stay in your seat until the starship reaches the terminal. No frequent flier mileage for you.

those ain't spacy shows...

The laughing Chrisisall

Sorry, my bad! I had just come from a neural neutralizer session, and my brainpan musta gotten all scrambled for a spell.

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Wednesday, September 28, 2011 1:04 PM

MOOSE

Quote:
Originally posted by Jongsstraw:
From this 58 year-old's fading-by-the-day memory:

22.Galactica 1980

Err...you must of lost quite a bit of memory.

ETA:

Quote:
Originally posted by Jongsstraw:
Sorry, my bad! I had just come from a neural neutralizer session, and my brainpan musta gotten all scrambled for a spell.

Ah, that explains it.

Quote:
Originally posted by Cybersnark:
Robotech: Mainly for the novels, admittedly, which went further into space-opera than the TV show did --especially the prose-only SENTINELS sub-series (without the Sentinels, I probably wouldn't be a space-opera fan).

Nice to see another fan of the novels. All the other Robotech fans I know despise them.

Quote:
Originally posted by chrisisall:
Quick sidebar- do you like the Farscape Peacekeeper Wars?

I liked it also, but only because it gave us closure.

Here's my list in no particular order:
Firefly
Star Trek TOS
Star Trek DS9
BSG (reboot) up until New Caprica.
Farscape
Stargate SG1
BSG TOS
Space: Above and Beyond

I would put the first season of Andromeda, but the later seasons really really soured me on the show.

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Wednesday, September 28, 2011 1:22 PM

Quote:
Originally posted by Jongsstraw:
I had just come from a neural neutralizer session, and my brainpan musta gotten all scrambled for a spell.

For years I've loved you Jongsstraw, for years...

The laughing Chrisisall

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Wednesday, September 28, 2011 1:41 PM

Quote:
Originally posted by Moose:
Quote:
Originally posted by Jongsstraw:
22.Galactica 1980

Err...you must of lost quite a bit of memory.

When the show came back after cancellation in 1979, it was thrilling for all the fans. Just to see those ships and uniforms again was cause for big celebration and anticipation. Unfortunately it was not what anyone hoped for, but it did have some memorable moments:
a. Invisibility belts (w/ Richard Lynch)
b. Flying motorcycles (w/ Brion James and Mickey Jones)
c. Time Travel - we finally see the Viper pilots use the here-to-fore never-used mysterious IM button! Cool time travel warp lights, and those wonderful "white uniforms" they had leftover from War Of The Gods.
d. Wolfman Jack! - He did a pretty good job at being himself, providing comic relief in the FIRST episode featuring human-looking Cylons.
e. Ana Alicia! - She was the vivacious Aurora, Starbuck's lost love and mutineer in the original series. For 1980, she played a Mexican farmer's daughter in California. Steals your heart away again!
f. Final episode: Return Of Starbuck- easily worth the $10 for the entire dvd set. Great episode with Dirk and his friend Cy. Judith Chapman adds beauty and mystery to the sad ending.

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Wednesday, September 28, 2011 1:56 PM

Quote:
Originally posted by chrisisall:
Quote:
Originally posted by Jongsstraw:
I had just come from a neural neutralizer session, and my brainpan musta gotten all scrambled for a spell.
For years I've loved you Jongsstraw, for years...

The laughing Chrisisall

Is that you or just my fine rice Romulan ale talking?

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Wednesday, September 28, 2011 2:48 PM

Quote:
Originally posted by Jongsstraw:

Is that you or just my fine rice Romulan ale talking?

Huh? What?
MEGAVOLTAGE!
I must have touched a circuit!!!

The laughing Chrisisall

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Wednesday, September 28, 2011 3:35 PM

MOOSE

Quote:
Originally posted by Jongsstraw:
When the show came back after cancellation in 1979, it was thrilling for all the fans. Just to see those ships and uniforms again was cause for big celebration and anticipation. Unfortunately it was not what anyone hoped for, but it did have some memorable moments:...

Oh, I remember when it came out and how excited I was about it. I also remember how disappointed I was with it.

You are correct about the memorable moments , though. Especially the starbuck episode.

IIRC, they re-edited it into the original series for syndication.

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Thursday, September 29, 2011 3:05 AM

GWEK

Sticking just to stuff with spaceships:

1) Firefly
2) Babylon 5
3) Stargate
4) Star Trek: Deep Space 9

Nothing else I can think of comes close. I accept that some other shows were seminal in genre (eg, Star Trek, both the original series and Next Generation, the original BSG, possibly even Buck Rogers), but all of those shows are so dated that I can

www.stillflying.net: "Here's how it might have been..."

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Friday, September 30, 2011 11:29 AM

• Babylon 5
• Space: Above and Beyond
• Star Trek
• Farscape
• nuGalactica
• All Stargates
• Battlestar Galactica
• Earth: Final Conflict/Andromeda
• UFO
• Defying Gravity
• Cowboy Bebop
• Space: 1999

Hmmm, I'm forgettin' some'n, ain't I? Oh, yeah...
• Firefly

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Friday, September 30, 2011 12:09 PM

Quote:
Originally posted by cljohnston108:

• Space: Above and Beyond

Y'know, I've really resisted getting that due to the cliffhanger ending I've read about...
If I DO get it, will I hate you for it C?

The laughing Chrisisall

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Friday, September 30, 2011 12:20 PM

Quote:
Originally posted by chrisisall:
If I DO get it, will I hate you for it C?

What, like I'm the only one who's been touting this thing?

Anyway, if I can make it all the way through nuGalactica...

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Friday, September 30, 2011 12:24 PM

Quote:
Originally posted by cljohnston108:

What, like I'm the only one who's been touting this thing?

LOL, okay, I'll give it a shot, and IF I don't like it, it'll be YOU I come lookin' to kill!!!

Unless Sonisall likes it....

The laughing Chrisisall

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Friday, September 30, 2011 12:44 PM

Yeah, well I kinda hated that my two least favorite characters were the ones who survived.
But keep your eye on my favorite characters: Col. T.C. McQueen...

...and Lt. Paul Wang. Take note of how his "pathetic" battle cry improves quite a bit by the time he really needs it. Bookends the whole thing rather nicely.

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Friday, September 30, 2011 12:45 PM

It's definitely worth checking out.

"Goram it kid, let's frak this thing and go home! Engage!"

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Monday, January 16, 2012 11:47 PM

the movie is not the Series. Only the facts have been changed, to irritate the innocent; the names of the actors and characters remain the same

As for Space SF series, I can remember only one: Firefly

the 'Zone, & Outer Limits were anthologies, not series, not all SF, & not much Space. However, "On Thursday We Leave for Home" is about as good as it gets (DAMN good), & there were other eps of the 'Zone, plus a few of Outer Limits, that were great Space SF

I've seen most of the other series listed, & all are either just Space Opera (which I can't take seriously as SF), or not Space @all

I (mostly) don't watch Anime ('ceptin', o' course, Bebop), & have not seen Space: Above & Beyond

Keep the Shiny Side Up,

YT

YTonTw1tt3r

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Tuesday, January 17, 2012 12:18 AM

the movie is not the Series. Only the facts have been changed, to irritate the innocent; the names of the actors and characters remain the same

Quote:
Originally posted by OPPYH:
-The Starlost:Canadian 1974 show that had an episode budget of about $1,200. I have grown to appreciate the cheapness, and bad acting. It is now a cherished "guilty pleasure"

I think you may be unduly influenced by the bullshit in the Storyline section of the IMDb listing (but maybe not, since the series came out in 1973)

Correction to IMDb "the Starlost" Storyline: This show had a budget typical for an hour-long Canadian series (it was shot on video-tape, as all regular TV shows were at that time; use of film for TV shows did not become common 'til the '90s), but a lot of it went to Keir Dullea, & more was squandered by building a bridge set when the show bible didn't call for one (it wouldn't be needed 'til the end of the series)

As for "bad acting", no correction needed there

Keep the Shiny Side Up,

YT

YTonTw1tt3r

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Tuesday, January 17, 2012 3:35 AM

http://www.imdb.com/list/1pzry-tpdaI/

So, ChrisIsAll... How ya comin' with S:AAB?
Do I need to beef up my security?

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Tuesday, January 17, 2012 3:13 PM

RIONAEIRE

Beir bua agus beannacht

Firefly, Star Trek TNG, Star Trek DS9, Stargate Sg-1, Stargate Atlantis.

"A completely coherant River means writers don't deliver" KatTaya

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Wednesday, February 13, 2013 7:04 PM

MOOSE

Don't worry about reviving "old" threads.
Heck, there are times when a thread from 7 or 8 years ago will get bumped up.

Besides, Chrisisall never said how he liked Space: Above and Beyond.

And thanks for mentioning Men into Space.
I have never even heard of it and it sounds very interesting.
There are quite a few episodes on YouTube, so I know what I'll be doing this weekend.

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Thursday, February 14, 2013 12:11 AM

TRAVELER

I remember "Men into Space". If you google, you will find you can get it on DVD. Before the series ended they had traveled to Mars. A very serious TV show.

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Friday, February 15, 2013 2:51 PM

TRAVELER

Hello Manatee:

You might want to try Vintagetvandmore, they have a collection of old TV series for sale. I bought Rocky Jones from them. Not the best, but Rocky was syndicated and they only could use what local stations had stored away.

I found "Men in Space" on YouTube. Someone called Hionthemountain has the complete series. So you can watch it for free. Looks better then my Rocky DVD's.

http://www.imdb.com/list/1pzry-tpdaI/

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Monday, February 18, 2013 5:52 AM

AURAPTOR

America loves a winner!

Originally posted by Derreth:

My personal list, despite the fact that I have not actually seen all that many SF shows:

1: Firefly

Probably the only one on the list which fully qualifies as a SPACE SF series.

2: Doctor Who (new, I've never seen the originals)
3: Torchwood (i am aware that this is a spin-off of Doctor Who)

5: Being Human (unless it counts more as a fantasy show than a sci-fi show)

Dunno so much about the latter 2, but I'm definitely a Dr Who convert, as of late

And while I enjoy Being Human and Torchwood ( both BBC and US versions ), I'd personally not add them to MY list of BEST evers.

Space SF ? hmm...

There's Star Trek ( TOS ) of course.

The Clone Wars ( animated ) is actually pretty decent.

Farscape, with out a doubt.

Hmm..gonna have to think on this one a while.

Fathom the hypocrisy of a government that requires every citizen to prove they are insured... but not everyone must prove they are a citizen

Resident USA Freedom Fundie

" AU, that was great, LOL!! " - Chrisisall

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Monday, February 18, 2013 5:43 PM

TRAVELER

Does "Wonderfalls" count as science fiction?
I am watching it again. It keeps getting better.
Just finished watching "Pink Flamingos". Jaye's sister walking up the dark stairs with milk and cookies for their father is like something from a Hitchcock movie and it is all part of some cosmic plan.

http://www.imdb.com/list/1pzry-tpdaI/

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Tuesday, February 19, 2013 1:51 AM

ECGORDON

There's no place I can be since I found Serenity.

No, Wonderfalls is fantasy, not science fiction.

Besides, this thread is about space-based series, not just general SF.

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Saturday, February 23, 2013 4:13 PM

Chris, you mad genius you, thanks for the post.

No. 1, of course, Firefly.
2. Star Trek TOS
3. Battlestar Calactica TOS
4. Lost in Space
5. Buck Rogers............gotta say it, Erin Gray (be still my heart!)

6. Star Trek Voyager
7. Does V(TOS) count?

BTW, great line: go all Reaver on me here,
BWah Haha!

SGG

Quote:
Originally posted by chrisisall:
IM(totally humble)O, it goes like this, in order of greatness:

Star Trek TOS
Firefly
Battlestar Galactica TOS
Babylon 5

If you *must* go all Reaver on me here, please, kill me BEFORE you eat me.

The laughing Chrisisall

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Saturday, February 23, 2013 4:17 PM

Shit! Thanks Moose I totally forgot about Space: Above and Beyond, great show. Gotta list it No. 3 behind Star Trek TOS.

Thanks again there buddy.

SGG

Quote:
Originally posted by Moose:
Don't worry about reviving "old" threads.
Heck, there are times when a thread from 7 or 8 years ago will get bumped up.

Besides, Chrisisall never said how he liked Space: Above and Beyond.

And thanks for mentioning Men into Space.
I have never even heard of it and it sounds very interesting.
There are quite a few episodes on YouTube, so I know what I'll be doing this weekend.

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Saturday, February 23, 2013 4:18 PM

True that!

Quote:
Originally posted by ecgordon:
No, Wonderfalls is fantasy, not science fiction.

Besides, this thread is about space-based series, not just general SF.

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Saturday, February 23, 2013 4:27 PM