Top sci fi tv shows of all time: now discussing YOUR LIST

That's true Red, that was sort of rude of me a few pages ago. And for that, I apologize.

But in my defense, you were also, and continue to be, absolutely wrong.

 

I agree with this. Overall, I think Lost is better than all three. I would not say it's a better science fiction show though. There's a difference.

 

They all bend at the knee to The Wire, so why the fuss?

 

And Deadwood feeds The Wire to Wu's pigs.

 

Doubtful. Omar's too good for that.

 

IMO Star Trek: The Next Generation and Babylon 5 represent the pinacle of TV science fiction in the 1990s. I can't say I'm surprise to see them ranked as high as they are.

 

You mean Muglrew?

 

Mulgrew.

 

2. 'Star Trek' (Original)

Recently, the original "Star Trek," which aired just three seasons from 1966-69, fell from the number 1 spot on the list to number 2. Yes, perhaps it didn't feature the best acting, or most compelling story plots, but it was a show that set the standard for future space epics since. The show is also more popular today than it was when it first ran. The show went on to inspire several movies, several spinoffs, and hordes of fans.

When it was good it was very, very good, and when it was bad it was awful. If as Gonk suggests, a weakness of ST:TNG was the moral infallibility of Starfleet, a strength of the original series was the moral infallibility of captain James T. Kirk. The prime directive, the inviolable law and ultimate taboo of the Federation had an important exception: whenever Kirk wanted to break it. I loved the show's unapologetic sensibility.

 

Agreed. When TOS is good (City on the Edge of Forever), its brilliant. When its bad (Spock's Brain), its abysmal. In spite of its inconsistencies, however, Star Trek is up there with I Love Lucy and The Simpsons as one of the most influential television programs of the 20th Century.

 

Star Trek is up there with I Love Lucy and The Simpsons as one of the most influential television programs of the 20th Century.

Interesting you should mention I Love Lucy in the same breath with Star Trek. I've mentioned this on the boards before, but here goes.

We have comedienne-producer Lucille Ball to thank for Star Trek. Yeah, the zany redhead. She was president of her own TV production company, Desilu, co-owned with her husband.

Gene Roddenberry approached her with the series idea and she liked it and ordered it put into production, beginning with the pilot. You can see the Desilu credit/logo in the credits of the old series at the end. When Paramount bought out her production company, they acquired the Star Trek rights.

I've often wondered why in the world Lucy would greenlight Star Trek. The best thing I can figure out is that the U.S.-Soviet space race was going on in the mid-sixties and space was a constant topic of news and conversation. I guess she figured space was the future, why not have a series about it?

Lucy left behind not one, but two classic TV series as part of her legacy. I don't think she was very involved with the production of the series on a day to day basis, but without her executive decision, there might not be a Star Trek.

 

That's very interesting; Desilu also produced "The Untouchables" (the old TV series)

 

The Untouchables? Wow, once again, that doesn't seem very "Lucy like." I guess diversity paid off for her.

 

Yes, I am aware of the place that Lucille Ball holds in Star Trek's prehistory. My point was that just as I Love Lucy became the gold standard for sitcoms as well as the model that they followed, Star Trek became the gold standard for TV sci-fi.

 

1. 'Battlestar Galactica' (New)

The new "Battlestar Galactica" now tops the list after a recent revamp. BG has finished its last and final season after a few ups and downs. But its cutting edge style and its bad-ass characters easily allow it to surpass even the classic "Star Trek." The show is a modern-day remake of its 1970s predecessor, but it features more compelling story plots, a darker tone, and surprising twists and turns in almost every episode.

The story of science fiction on television is in part an epic tale of glorious failures. Many of the best shows never found a mass audience, were canceled after one or two seasons, did not fully attain their cult status until long after they were banished to syndication. BSG was one of those shows that danced precariously on the precipice of catastrophe and failure throughout its run. It never quite lived up to its promise of a consistent, elegant and expertly managed story arc, yet individual episodes and the greater part of several seasons were absolutely brilliant. The cast was mostly amazing. The pilot mini-series was phenomenal. The webisode tie-ins were often entertaining. The spin-off movies were interesting (Razor, Caprica). Most importantly, the show survived against the odds and brought itself to a respectable conclusion. Better than Babylon 5? Maybe, but certainly a worthy successor.

 

Having seen Razor, I have to agree that this show was among the very best. Yes, part of it is because it defied expectations but it would have been truly great even if it had been a new show with no connection to anything before it.

Even if you think another show of any kind is more deserving of the top position on a given top TV show list (be it The Sopranos, LOST, Babylon 5... yes, even The Wire), it's not like you can feel snubbed by losing out to BSG. It's earned the right to be where it is.

 

Well, The Wire was rightfully number 1 (to BSG's #2) on the London Times' list, so no complaints here. It's not a sci-fi show, and therefore doesn't belong on this particular list.

 

it didn't make the 100 Greatest Guitar Solos list either. I know technically it's not a guitar solo, but still

 

Yet "Xena" came in at number 12 on that list too

 

I think my point would be even as a general TV show, if you saw The Wire as #2 and BSG as #1, or any of the other shows I mentioned, or X-Files or many others, I don't think it would be anything to get worked up over.

I mean, there's losing to 'Full House', and then there's losing to BSG. Two totally different experiences.

 

Full House is ready to take on any and all challengers. But having BSG at number one, beating out all of Trek is deeply satisfying for me, not because it represents a paradigm shift away from the Trek model of sci fi television, but because it symbolizes the extent to which Trek remains embedded in sci fi television. The meme is simple:

Beleaguered spaceship crew bonds in the face of adversity.

This traces back beyond Trek to "Forbidden Planet" and Horatio Hornblower, etc. Imagine "Master and Commander: The Far Side of the World" as a Trek movie.

The real question is whether BSG has exhausted the beleaguered spaceship and crew subgenre, or whether we'll ever see another one of its quality. Firefly was the post-modern Trek. BSG was post post-modern. What next?

 

I'm still waiting for a series that does a full-on paradigm shift.

Like, starts out as a regular cop show in a cyberpunk futuristic society and in season 3 it gets blown to hell in a huge cataclysm and then next seasons become like a post-nuclear survival show. A TV series where something happens that sends it spinning out of one genre and into a totally different one.

I remember watching "Millenium" with my family back in the day and my stepdad thinking it would have been so much better if the world really HAD ended and Frank Black's life became totally different.