Great Sci Fi TV shows (except Star Trek)

[Trunkage]

I'm honestly surprised with so many B5 recommendations and hardly any BSG mentions. BSG is the vastly superior show, not that B5 isn't great.

iYeah it probably is but B5 was at a time when no one wanted to fund a TV project not related to Star Trek. (In fact, TNG was predicted to be a flop too. It had far more success than anyone predicted). What they did on such a tiny budget was astounding.
BSG best episode is also its first. It's still good but 33 minutes is my fav, out matching anything later. It would be like introducing someone to Doctor Who with 'Blink', or ''Pale Moonlight' in DS9. They'd always be disappointed from then on.

 

[pookie101]

I'm honestly surprised with so many B5 recommendations and hardly any BSG mentions. BSG is the vastly superior show, not that B5 isn't great.

while i enjoyed the show the religious angle wore really thin, really fast for me and started to grate on my nerves.. amazing battle scenes though and wonderful world building

 

[oRevanchisto]

I'm honestly surprised with so many B5 recommendations and hardly any BSG mentions. BSG is the vastly superior show, not that B5 isn't great.

iYeah it probably is but B5 was at a time when no one wanted to fund a TV project not related to Star Trek. (In fact, TNG was predicted to be a flop too. It had far more success than anyone predicted). What they did on such a tiny budget was astounding.
BSG best episode is also its first. It's still good but 33 minutes is my fav, out matching anything later. It would be like introducing someone to Doctor Who with 'Blink', or ''Pale Moonlight' in DS9. They'd always be disappointed from then on.

I actually disagree about "33," I think the boxing episode is the best one.

 

[Trunkage]

I'm honestly surprised with so many B5 recommendations and hardly any BSG mentions. BSG is the vastly superior show, not that B5 isn't great.

iYeah it probably is but B5 was at a time when no one wanted to fund a TV project not related to Star Trek. (In fact, TNG was predicted to be a flop too. It had far more success than anyone predicted). What they did on such a tiny budget was astounding.
BSG best episode is also its first. It's still good but 33 minutes is my fav, out matching anything later. It would be like introducing someone to Doctor Who with 'Blink', or ''Pale Moonlight' in DS9. They'd always be disappointed from then on.

I actually disagree about "33," I think the boxing episode is the best one.

Funny. That is my least favourite. By a large margin. You must have gotten something totally different out of BSG than me

 

[dscross]

The Outer Limits

B&W Classic sci-fi featuring rubber monster suits, fainting dames, and lots of themes reflecting on humanity

 

[Tanis]

I'm honestly surprised with so many B5 recommendations and hardly any BSG mentions. BSG is the vastly superior show, not that B5 isn't great.

The original or the remake?

The original was solid, it's got a quaint charm to it.
The remake was...iffy at best. The ending kind of ruined the series for me.

It's kind of like Dexter's ending makes any re-watch of it...tainted.

B5 had SO MANY great moments that just kind of...stick with you.
-G'Kar & Lando in the elevator.
-Delen telling off the humans.
-Sheridan telling off the Shadows.
-Vir's wave, which became an in-joke among many of my friends against folks we didn't like.

-Etc

Hell, the ENDING of the main series was kind of...wow.
Who knew the act of sitting on a bench while watching a sunrise could be so powerful an image.

 

[Wrex Brogan]

Stargate SG-1, Babylon 5, Farscape... all the ol' classics are good, though they all tend to have really rough first seasons (the less said about SG-1's first season, the better). Stargate Atlantis and Firefly are secondary recommendations, SG:A since, while good, it's much weaker than SG-1, and Firefly because there's all of 1 season of it (and frankly, only a couple of it's episodes were notably good, but let's pretend I didn't say that on the internet).

Some newer ones I've fallen in love with is Killjoys and The Expanse. Killjoys is a fun little sci-fi that has a Frontier-feel to it at the start before it grows larger in scale, and besides a few hiccups in the latest season it's all done very organically. Characters are great, fight scenes are solid and it's got some solid writing to it, though as said there are some hiccups with the latest season when things get a little.. cosmic.

The Expanse is only two seasons in right now (but the third has been confirmed! Fuck you, Sci-Fi curse!) and is based on the book series of the same name, and for a show on the Scyfy channel it's fucking amazing. Political intrigue, in-depth world building, multiple plot-lines that don't get tangled up, fantastic actors and scripting... it's a shame there's only two seasons of it. Word of warning though is that it is a very hard Sci-Fi, and while the space battles in it make my little science nerd heart fill with glee I know it's also not everyone's cup of tea. Definitely recommend it for any lover of Sci-Fi though, because fuck is it good.

 

[stroopwafel]

Without a doubt Legend of the Galactic Heroes. I would recommend this even if you don't like anime. The story takes it's time to develop but it's so intricate and meaningful that it really makes you, without exaggerating, ponder the nature of humanity and the gravity of choice. The show has large scale space battles but most interesting things happen behind the scenes with the political backstabbing between allies and adversaries, the hubris and subsequent downfall of the ruling elite, the inherent disadvantages of political systems and incompetent leaders, the importance of trade routes and pretty much any philosophical point Sun Tzu or Machiavelli tried to make. Many of these concepts feel a bit outdated now with the current amorphous threat of global terrorism and post-nation state conflicts but in the context of the show they are so thoroughly engaging. The characters, the story, the way it continues to up the stakes; it all works so perfectly in tandem that it's almost like watching an alternative society somewhere far in the future.

I also really like the theme song Skies of Love that's in the intro of season 1:

 

[CrazyGirl17]

My obvious recommendation would be Firefly for more it's fun characters in a fairly interesting setting and quotable lines. But be warned, this show was sadly cut short because the FOX network was (and still is) run by monkeys.

If you want to try sci-fi anime, you can't go wrong with Cowboy Bebop or Outlaw Star.

 

[09philj]

Cowboy Bebop has extremely immersive and interesting world design. You can almost smell the rust and decay.

Charlie Brooker's Black Mirror is the Twilight Zone for the modern era. Not all of it's sci-fi, but there is still plenty of it and it's deliciously fucked up.

As far as Doctor Who goes, there's a few good jumping in points:
- Obviously, there's the very beginning with the First Doctor. Expect plenty of Early Instalment Weirdness and dodgy production, but also a lot of charm and ambition.
- For a slightly less dated entry point, there's the start of the Third Doctor's adventures in Spearhead from Space. The series had found it's feet by that point, and it's the start of what's often considered the show's golden age.
- Finally, there's the start of the New Who era with the Ninth Doctor. This also marks the point where the format changed from 25 minute multi episode serials to 45 minute single episodes with some two parters thrown in.

 

[Rangaman]

I haven't really watched many TV shows (though seeing how the movie industry is going, TV is starting to sound much better), but I have a few recommendations:

Firefly: Literal Space Cowboys. Well, smugglers, but close enough. There's only one season (and a movie) but it's worthwhile.
Doctor Who: Not always great, Fear Her still gives me the uncontrollable urge to hit people, but the charm generally sees it through (even if some of the charm is the hilarious special effects).
Battlestar Galactica: Okay, I confess that didn't really like this show when I saw it. But I was pretty young at the time. I hear it's pretty great, and I'm inclined to believe it.

 

[Hollywood]

Rick and Morty. Seriously. It's animation, but it's sci-fi plots are some of the smartest I've ever seen. I'd love to see a live-action version of the show.

 

[Soviet Heavy]

Watch The Expanse, people.

 

[Scarim Coral]

Does Quantum Leap count as Sci-Fi?

Depending on your take on changing the past, I enjoyed the heck out of it as a kid!
The intro pretty much summed up the whole show and aswell its killer themetune!

You got to admit, at some point if you had acquire time travel and had unlimited uses, you would want to do something good about it right (unless you want to go with the total dick route)?

 

[Headdrivehardscrew]

Did you enjoy Red Dawrf? In the same, but more recent tradition I would have to recommend Hyperdrive.

As has already been repeatedly mentioned, Firefly, that cancelled TV show, is outstanding, with the standalone movie also being quite worthwhile. Both are infuriatingly better than a lot of the more recent productions and make it look like Joss Whedon launched into some form of early-onset dementia shortly after Firefly was killed off.

 

[TheVampwizimp_v1legacy]

I'm pretty certain that Babylon 5 is the best science fiction tv show of all time. The last season is disposable and need not be watched, but the first four form the greatest sci fi epic on tv.

BSG is pretty great, mostly. The ending is disappointing on multiple levels, and at times it gets kind of abusive with its relentless grimdark misery. But it is exceptionally well put together and explores a wide variety of issues, not just post-apocalyptic survival.

The third season of Dark Matter is premiering tomorrow on the SyFy channel. It's my favorite currently running sci fi show, so if you want to spend the next 24 hours Netflixing the first 2 seasons, well, you still won't make it by the time it's on tomorrow, but I still recommend it

 

[Hawki]

10) Star Trek: The Original Series
9) Red vs. Blue: The Blood Gulch Chronicles
8) Futurama
7) Stargate: SG-1
6) Star Trek: The Next Generation
5) Firefly
4) Battlestar Galactica (re-imagined series)
3) Blake?s 7
2) Farscape
1) Babylon 5

That's my top ten sci-fi shows, so you can turn that into a roadmap if you want. But getting more specific:

I've already watched.... Farscape (this one is my favourite so similar shows would be good)

Off the top of my head, I can reccomend:

-Blake's 7
-Firefly
-Killjoys (to an extent)
-Cowboy Bebop (sort of)

Blake's 7 and Firefly are similar in the sense that they focus on a small group of characters up against a much larger foe. Focussing more on the character interaction than any larger space opera. Killjoys has the outlaw theme, but the characters aren't on the run or anything, and similar with Cowboy Bebop.

I should note with Cowboy Bebop specifically that I could easily see someone not liking it, as it's very...surreal, I guess, at times? More based on mood and aesthetic rather than plot? I'd argue that the show has an overall theme of nihilism and I think it's pretty damn good, but just take care, as it may not be your cup of tea.

and all the Star Trek shows.

That's a bit broader, as it depends what you like about Star Trek, and which Star Trek shows you like more than others (compare something like Deep Space 9 to TOS for instance). That said, I guess I can nominate the following that would be similar to Star Trek:

-Battlestar Galactica (reboot): If you're into the space opera side of Star Trek, as otherwise, it's like night and day compared to Star Trek. I have high regard for this show, but if it's the optimism and self-contained nature of Star Trek that you like, BSG isn't the place to get it.

-Stargate: If you're into the tone of Star Trek (more light humour, sense of exploration). SG-1 and Atlantis are closest to Star Trek in tone, Universe is like a darker version of Voyager, and don't bother with Infinity. Anyway, for me, SG-1>Universe>Atlantis, but most seem to like SG-1 and Atlantis more than Universe. I'm not that enamored with the Stargate franchise, but it's pretty solid overall.

-Andromeda: Take this one with caution. Andromeda has a lot of Star Trek's DNA in it (cast of characters, tone, etc.), but it nosedives in quality from the second half of season 2, and its overall quality isn't that high to begin with. It recovers a bit in season 4, but this is a very flawed show. But, if you like Star Trek but like more action and titilation, you may get it here.

-Babylon 5: Watch this. It's kind of like a mid-point between Star Trek's optimism and Battlestar Galactica's nihilism. But, I wholeheartedly reccommend this show. Actually my personal favorite sci-fi show, even beating out Farscape (which is #2).

-Doctor Who: The reason this isn't on my list is that I group Doctor Who as science fantasy rather than science fiction, and even then, its quality has gone up and down over the years, and there's a divide between 'old Who' and 'new Who.' But, I like it. If you haven't watched it, start with the revived series, and after that, you can try watching the older episodes. Just be warned, a lot of them haven't aged well.

 

[oRevanchisto]

^BSG is not nihilistic.

 

[pookie101]

space above and beyond.. i religiously watched that.. great military sci-fi show