Best Space-Based Sci-Fi Shows in the Last 25 Years

[intrinsical]

Star Trek: The Next Generation
I have to include TNG because it kick-started an era of space-based television shows by showing the masses will tune in. Regardless of how badly some of the episodes have aged with time, it will always have a place in my heart. In fact, in a very recent Star Trek Online adventure, my ship was being pounded by a fleet of Jem'Hadar ships and my first officer yelled, "Sir, its the Enterprise!". The very first thought that came to my head was "Oh my god, Picard and crew is coming to MY rescue!"

Star Trek: Deep Space Nine
DS9 showcased a lot of societal, religious, morality issues. DS9 also had many universally great stories, Duet, The Visitor, In The Pale Moonlight, etc... The Dominion War arc is cool too.

Battlestar Galactica
Kudos for showcasing religion from a scifi perspective even I didn't like how the finale ended with the all-reaching, invisible hand of God nuking the Cylons. BSG also has some very nice showcasing of space-based military operations.

Macross: Frontier
I have a soft spot for this one. The story could have been structured better, but I like the premise which is ultimately about turning the tide of a galaxy-wide war by getting a totally alien species to understand what it is to be human, and for humans to understand the Vajira isn't just a swarm of brainless space-insects.

Doctor Who
Doctor Who would have been right at the top of my list if the ranking wasn't for "space-based" sci-fi shows. Space is more of a backdrop or scenery for some Doctor Who episodes and not an integral component of the show. Doctor, I'm sorry. I'm so sorry.

 

[Saul]

I'd dump Firefly.

Star Trek TOS
NBSG
Doctor Who
B5
Legend of Galactic heroes.

 

[Starkers]

Earth 2 ?!?

Yeah I'm actually a fan of the show, bus aside from the opening 10 minutes or so of the pilot it isn't set in space (although I guess the planet it's on is in space but by that token any tv show is space based)

 

[PlainSimpleJoel]

For me, it would be:-

1. DS9
2. Farscape
3. Battlestar Galactica
4. TNG
5. Babylon 5

Firefly would have been higher, if it was on for longer.

 

[Maurice]

Cowboy Bebop
BSG

Those are the only two that I actually watched all the way through. All the other shows failed to engage me.

 

[McDuff]

I pretty much like all of them.

 

[Admiral Buzzkill]

Sorry- G'Kar and Londo were superbly performed.

G'Kar, yeah - Londo, no. Delenn, yeah. All the human characters - bor-ING. One or two good performances does not a decent series make.

...you just can't justify the idea that the writing was lacking.

Oh, there are numerous better, accurate adjectives - turgid, repetitive and prolix, to use a few. I'm glad if it floated your boat, but that doesn't make it good.

Sorry, as you say.

 

[Deckerd]

Sorry- G'Kar and Londo were superbly performed.

G'Kar, yeah - Londo, no. Delenn, yeah. All the human characters - bor-ING. One or two good performances does not a decent series make.

...you just can't justify the idea that the writing was lacking.

Oh, there are numerous better, accurate adjectives - turgid, repetitive and prolix, to use a few. I'm glad if it floated your boat, but that doesn't make it good.

Sorry, as you say.

Sorry Dennis, but you use your tongue purdier than a $20 whore.

 

[stj]

G'Kar's dialogue was JMS' dialogue at its most turgid, repetitive and prolix. Londo was JMS most consistent effort at making a character talk like himself instead of JMS. Singling out G'Kar while complaining about JMS's dialogue is remarkably unperceptive. Some more conventional wisdom parroted from someplace else, supposedly classier than this slum?

Farscape's characters may have talked like twentieth century people but since they mostly weren't, this isn't quite the fine dialogue some people seem to think. Absence of big words does not good writing make. Worse than that, if you could actually remember the episodes, Farscape awarded most of its characters two personalities, to be used as needed. Worst, it disemboweled its own themes, talking out both sides of its mouth so to speak. The thing about Farscape was its shameless determination to entertain, to wear its heart on its sleeve. By the end it was completely brainless, and the mess is hopelessly unrewatchable.

 

[Deckerd]

You can't have it both ways; it was either entertaining or unwatchable.

 

[Roshi]

BSG and Firefly. Scrap the rest.

 

[DarthTom]

Cowboy Bebop
BSG

Those are the only two that I actually watched all the way through. All the other shows failed to engage me.

I don't know which was worse, the terrible over acting by Avery Brooks or the likes of Boxleitner?

The difference for me was that while Brooks was terrible at first he at least grew into the Sisko roll over time whereas Boxleitner and Mira Furlan as Delenn were terrible through the whole series. Also DS9 was forunate to have a supporting cast of Dorn and Terri Ferrell who were outstanding actors-B5 not so much IMO.

 

[Stone_Cold_Sisko]

Battlestar Galactica
Firefly
Farscape
DS9
B5

(there really aren't a lot to choose from)

 

[RAMA]

1. STNG
2. DS9
3. Dr Who
4. Babylon 5
5. BSG(although mainly season 1 and 2)
6. Enterprise
7. Defying Gravity

Can't stand Firefly or Farscape. Dr Who is pretty uneven but taken as a somewhat less serious SF show there are some pretty good stories. Enterprise may be 6th but I'd put some of its best episodes on par with any of the shows on the list.

RAMA

 

[Maurice]

re B5: Andreas Katsulas was a good actor who managed to transcend the frequently turgid JMS speeches given to him. Mira Furlan never much impressed me. re DS9: Terry Ferrell never impressed me at all, and Avery Brooks fell back into his Hawk character more and more as the show progressed.

 

[DarthTom]

re B5: Andreas Katsulas was a good actor who managed to transcend the frequently turgid JMS speeches given to him.

I agree, G'Kar was the one decent character on the show - and well acted. The Vorlon was as well - but he didn't have many lines.

 

[23skidoo]

Looking at the list in the OP, I'd swap things around a bit. I don't agree with Firefly, so would swap it out with Farscape. It's borderline on the 25 years (probably closer to 26) but I might actually pull nuBSG in favor of Max Headroom because of how prescient that series was - and to prove my removal of Firefly isn't a prejudice against short-run series. Reason why taking nuBSG out is that while the first season or so was brilliant, I'm of the opinion they were unable to keep the momentum going so if we're going to go "Top 5" we have to be ruthless.

TNG? Problem I have with that is the show didn't really start to get good (a few standouts notwithstanding) until Locutus arrived. DS9 was far more consistent (it had sucky episodes at the start too, but not what you might term sucky seasons like TNG had), so might have been my choice over TNG.

No arguments on B5 or Doctor Who, though factoring in its long history and rich universe I'd have placed DW at #1. Had nuBSG ended after one season I might have it at #1.

Alex

 

[Goji]

Farscape and Deep Space Nine are my favorites, and I go back and forth over which I like more. I also quite like Firefly, and I enjoyed the majority of the most recent Battlestar Galactica. That's about it for me, but to round out the list I'll toss in Star Trek: The Next Generation. Most of it was too sedate and talky to hold my interest for long, and outside of Picard, Worf and Geordi the characters were banal, but it managed to be good often enough to put it ahead of any competitors in the last 25 years. Lift that restriction, however, and the spot instantly goes to the original Star Trek (which would place third on my list, in that case).

 

[stj]

You can't have it both ways; it was either entertaining or unwatchable.

It was entertaining the first time, but it was so scattered and self-falsified it was unrewatchable. I think the simplest way to explain the problem is to think back to Peacekeeper Wars. As a desperate gun battle against desperate odds blasts on, Aeryn Sun gives birth to a baby while sitting in a water fountain. The band then gets up and marches on to victory, armed with beauty and the script. The Climax. Right? Wrong! Crichton unleashes a wormhole and shows the futility of war, where no one really wins. Except of course they did win, just a few scenes before. I found that knowing how the whole journey was essentially a roller coaster, lots of ups and downs and turns but going nowhere ruined any ability to rewatch the show.

 

[Enterprise is Great]

I'll go with BSG, TNG, DS9, Firefly and Doctor Who.