current childrens scifi TV shows and movies

[Christopher]

Also, there was a Spiderman series that took place in an alternate universe that certainly acted like science fiction.

That wasn't an alternate universe, it was a "Counter-Earth" on the opposite side of the Sun. And Spider-Man Unlimited was one of the weakest animated Spidey series of the past two decades; it's hard to choose between it and the MTV 3D-animated series that came out between the first two movies.

 

[Mysterion]

I'd like to see things along the lines of the great Filmation live-action sci-fi of the 70's: Ark II, Space Academy, and Jason of Star Command. (I've got ideas for reviving the latter two.)

So have I.

With Filmation long gone, I wonder who has the rights to those shows these days? I think even the company (Entertainment Rights) that put out the DVDs is now defunct as well.

Even though these shows were made on a reletively low budget, they looked pretty good for the time, and the stories weren't bad.

Space Academy benefitted from snapping up a number of FX artists and designers who'd just finished work on a little film called Star Wars. They really did terrific work with their micro-budget. In fact, I think SA's in-camera miniature shots tend to look better than Jason's more high-tech bluescreen work, because the bluescreen shots have pretty obvious matte lines.

Agreed. Space Academy looks better in almost every respect compared to Jason. I have always got the impression (correct or not) that Jason was a more hurried production that SA was. That difference in effects techique moght be why, I suppose.

 

[Christopher]

^Well, the space shots in SA were much better, but the stop-motion creature animation in Jason was immensely superior to the jerky stuff we got in one of the SA episodes.

 

[Mistral]

Also, there was a Spiderman series that took place in an alternate universe that certainly acted like science fiction.

That wasn't an alternate universe, it was a "Counter-Earth" on the opposite side of the Sun. And Spider-Man Unlimited was one of the weakest animated Spidey series of the past two decades; it's hard to choose between it and the MTV 3D-animated series that came out between the first two movies.

I enjoy it-sorry you don't. On the other hand, I look at such things through the innocent eyes of my little boy instead of the cynical, whiskey-sodden persona of a professional writer...

 

[Christopher]

^I'm a teetotaller, thank you very much. And at the time the series aired, I'd only sold one novelette, so I barely qualified as a professional writer.

I guess it wasn't too bad in concept, but it was a disappointment after the preceding animated series (particularly since it initially pretended to be a continuation despite ignoring or contradicting a number of things about it), and it was fairly ugly in its animation style and color palette. If it hadn't been preceded by a better-written, better-cast, and better-looking Spidey series, it might've been more appealing.

 

[Kelthaz]

I'm surprised Power Rangers hasn't been mentioned yet. Giant robots, space travel, time travel, aliens, artificial lifeforms, and alternative dimensions. It's got everything.