Overlooked/underrated sci-fi/fantasy TV series

[eyeresist]

With the rise of cable and now online channels, there are so many shows that it's easy for a good one to be overlooked. What genre shows, present or past, do you feel deserve attention they have not yet received?

(I'm not looking at anime, otherwise this will turn into the anime thread.)


Eureka (2006-2012)
A comedy drama set in a small American town populated by science geniuses working for the government. This had a lot of likeable characters, cool sci-fi concepts on a regular basis, and a nice (but not sickly sweet) family feel.
I love this show, and got the boxset from the UK, which I am sure I will rewatch many times over the years. Sadly no complete set has been issued in the US.

Blade the Series (2006)
I think this series is better than the movies. The story goes deeper, dealing with conflict between vampire "houses", and also showing a lot more character development. The show has good action and effects, and doesn't shy away from proper horror.

The Dresden Files (2007)
I've never read the books, but this series is well written and has a lot of charm, particularly the world-weary everyman hero and his humorously cynical assistant.

 

[Vendikarr]

I wouldn't call Eureka overlooked or under rated. It had a five year run on Sci-Fi Channel / Syfy, with decent ratings for that network. And given the show ended and wasn't cancelled shows it was no disaster. If anything, the show isn't very re-watchable. I enjoyed it once but really had no interest in seeing it again.

 

[Hugo Rune]

Continuum (2012) - fascinating look at "who is the hero/who is the villain". A touch self impressed with its own mythology, but a heck of a lot of fun. A pity it was cut short of what the creator intended.

The Almighty Johnsons (2011 - New Zealand) - Although ultra-low budget and never being able to fulfil the promise of "Gods playing in NZ" it was funny as hell, with plenty of fun characters (Thor is a marvel - haha, I kill me sometimes) and a great throughline about family.

Glitch (2015 - Australia) - lovely slow, thoughtful portrayal of the dead coming back to life in Outback Australia. Again, dryly funny and some interesting moral quandries explored. Only lasted a season of 6 episodes, but worth the time,

Journeyman (2007) - for 13 episodes this filled my Time-Travel-Whimsy and at its end was pushing into something truly interesting. After Rome Kevin McKidd needed to be in everything I watched, even with a bland broad North American accent. Plus the outrageously named Moon Bloodgood was an interesting foil for him.

Misfits (2009) - one of the few UK SF/F shows to really experiment with the superhero and young-adult format, with violence, sex, bad language and timey-wimey daftness. Many lament the final few years, but in those last episodes they played with some rather dark and interesting material, but for many the rotation out of the the principle cast was too much to bear.

Better off Ted (2009) - Oh my lord how much I loved this sitcom when it came out. The only comedy show from the US to really play with SF and make it fit. Everybody buys into the daftness of it all, even the straight man, and the SF elements (futuristic products being developed buy a suite of crazy scientists) endlessly made me giggle.

The 4400 (2004) - I'm rarely one to lament over the loss of a show, but what Echevarria, Peters ad Ira Steven Behr did with this show meant a visceral, gutteral reaction from me when it was cancelled. I loved the more grounded elements of this "Superhero" show, the politics of it and the family heart. Some of this was better than what Echevarria/Behr did on DS9 and I always point any fan of that towards the 4400 if they are at a loss of things to watch

Charlie Jade (2004) - remarkable South African SF show set in multiple distinct universes following a Phillip Marlow detective character tracking a mystery through labyrinthine political motives, and in fact, looking back on it, played with many of the same themes as Continuum did (megacorporations running the world, terrorists fighting for a tangible ideal). It's a super-saturated world, heavily stylised in its look and cinematography, but also filled with truly weird and unique characters.

Black Mirror (2011) - Twilight Zone for the Millennials. Wonderful morality tales spun out in SFF trappings. Barely 6 episodes on its initial run, Netflix has commissioned a new larger season and I only hope that its potency is not diluted by an extended run.

Danger 5 (2011) - What is Thunderbirds was live action, dubbed, had the heroes fighting Hitler's dinosaurs and with some of Team America's spoofier elements. I only recommend the first season as the second time jumps (to play with 80's action tropes) and I felt a lot of the humour was dropped to scale up the zaniness. But the first 6 episodes are utterly bonkers, desperately (and deliberately) low budget and unlike almost anything else on TV. Not for everyone, and it is a one note joke that does outstay its welcome, come Season 2, but chuck it on when drunk and you'll be endlessly rewinding trying to keep on top of all the jokes, homages and craziness

Hugo - is that colonel a full bird?

 

[Sparkle Fabulosa]

The Middle Man
Galavant

 

[Mr. Laser Beam]

Charlie Jade (2004) - remarkable South African SF show set in multiple distinct universes following a Phillip Marlow detective character tracking a mystery through labyrinthine political motives, and in fact, looking back on it, played with many of the same themes as Continuum did (megacorporations running the world, terrorists fighting for a tangible ideal). It's a super-saturated world, heavily stylised in its look and cinematography, but also filled with truly weird and unique characters.

I freaking loved that show. I wish it would make it to DVD/BR or at least iTunes. And WHERE'S THE DAMN SOUNDTRACK

Oh, and another overlooked show: Otherworld. It was one of my favorite shows when I was in high school.

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@Hugo Rune: Glitch has, according to Wikipedia, been renewed for a second season...

 

[Vandervecken]

Space: Above and Beyond (1995-1996). ProtoBSG and very cool ideas. Loved the eye prosthetics for the silicates. The Chigs aren't treated as monsters, and that's wondeful too.

Good vs Evil (or G v E). This show was hysterical, I loved it. Where else could Emmanuael Lewis have turned up as a Morlock (demon)? He blowed up real good, too.

This thread is really helpful guys, some cool things to watch being posted, thanks.

 

[Owain Taggart]

My favourite underrated sci-fi show is Being Erica. I'd call it soft sci-fi, maybe edging a bit into fantasy. Had 4 seasons in Canada, but beyond that hardly anyone knows about it outside Canada. The Premise is about a woman who gets the chance to relive pivotal moments in her life to see how different they'd be by making different decisions. One of the best characters ever created in this show is Dr Tom, her therapist, a mysterious character who has the ability to send her back to these points in time. The show's a lot of fun. It can be quirky and funny, and often touching, but also deals with some serious issues.

 

[INACTIVEUSS Einstein]

They wouldn't seem overrated to us, because they are holy in the sci-fi community, but hardly anyone in the general public remembers Farscape or Babylon 5 in the same way that Star Trek, Firefly and Star Wars get re-watched all the time - they are "overlooked" in that sense. It's fucking tragic. Stargate SG-1 fits somewhere between the two in terms of exposure. Trying to get people to even try them is impossible. These shows are still better than drama today; they just use a different format. B5 of course suffers that famous two-season long warm up period in which people might never understand how epic it gets, and Farscape also had a lesser problem of that kind - both are sometimes rejected for their visuals, which are actually really effective and stylistic - people will watch a cheap Shakespeare production in which props are wheeled on, but apparently "can't watch old graphics".

 

[JD]

I've mentioned H2O: Just Add Water a few times in other threads, but it's a pretty fun show. It's an Australian show starring Pre-The Originals/Vampire Diaries Claire Holt and Phoebe Tonkin as 2/3 of a trio of teenage girls who accidentally get turned into Mermaids. It can be pretty cheesy, but it's a fun family show. There's also a sequel series, Mako Mermaids, which follows three mermaids who turn into humans human in order to track down a guy who got turned into a merman.
I'd also like to second Eureka, The 400, Better Off Ted, Misfits, Journeyman, and Continuum.
There are two books that finish up The 4400 storyline, Welcome to Promise City and Promises Broken.
If we're going to include Eureka and The 4400, then I'd also throw Warehouse 13 in there.
I also love Charlie Jade. If any other fans of the show are interested, there is a "season 2 blueprint", that was released online shortly after the show ended.
One that I loved that never seemed to get a lot of attention was Dominion.
I don't seem to hear much about Jericho anymore either. Have any of you guys read the Season 3 and 4 comics?

 

[John Clark]

I wasn't aware that there were Jericho comics, but do have the full series on dvd.

Loved 4400 and have all the dvd's and novels (along with S:AAB, Dresden, Eureka, Continuum and Blade - Yeah, I probably have too many dvds)

I've meant to get Threshold and Charlie Jade at some point too.

 

[Greg Cox]

The Chronicle: A short-lived Sci-Fi Channel series about a tabloid newspaper, akin to the late Weekly World News, whose crazy stories about aliens and Bigfoot and such were all true. Possibly a few years ahead of its time, as it was exactly the kind of light, humorous SF/Fantasy show that later proved successful with Eureka and Warehouse 13.

And the intrepid reporter played by Rena Sofer had one of the best entrance lines ever:

"The Antichrist is full of crap!"

And then there was the bit about the "Swedish Mafia," who, of course, worked out of an IKEA store.

 

[John Clark]

I also enjoyed Early Edition, but at least if wiki is to be believed, the ratings early on seem to have been fairly decent and lasted four seasons, probably doesn't qualify.

One of my friends also recommended Good vs Evil, but I think I missed that

 

[Kai "the spy"]

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[JD]

The Chronicle: A short-lived Sci-Fi Channel series about a tabloid newspaper, akin to the late Weekly World News, whose crazy stories about aliens and Bigfoot and such were all true. Possibly a few years ahead of its time, as it was exactly the kind of light, humorous SF/Fantasy show that later proved successful with Eureka and Warehouse 13.

And the intrepid reporter played by Rena Sofer had one of the best entrance lines ever:

"The Antichrist is full of crap!"

And then there was the bit about the "Swedish Mafia," who, of course, worked out of an IKEA store.

I remember watching that. I was thinking of that show a few months ago just based off of the premise, and it took me forever to finally track the title. Does anyone know if streaming anywhere, I would love to watch it again?
Oh, and I just remembered one of my absolute favorite overlooked SFF series, and I'm kicking myself for forgetting it in my first post, Special Unit 2. I cannot understate how much I love this show. I really really wish it was streaming or on DVD.

 

[Vandervecken]

Oh, and I just remembered one of my absolute favorite overlooked SFF series, and I'm kicking myself for forgetting it in my first post, Special Unit 2. I cannot understate how much I love this show. I really really wish it was streaming or on DVD.

I forgot all about Special Unit 2, it was so much fun! The cloud cuckoolander science geek guy was hysterical. Although come to think of it I liked Sean Whalen's science guy better in season 1, but the replacement guy was still good. And Carl the gnome!

 

[Greg Cox]

THE 4400 still seems to have something of an international following. I still occasionally get email from all around the world asking me if there are going to be any more 4400 novels . . ..

 

[eyeresist]

The Chronicle: A short-lived Sci-Fi Channel series about a tabloid newspaper, akin to the late Weekly World News, whose crazy stories about aliens and Bigfoot and such were all true. Possibly a few years ahead of its time, as it was exactly the kind of light, humorous SF/Fantasy show that later proved successful with Eureka and Warehouse 13.

And the intrepid reporter played by Rena Sofer had one of the best entrance lines ever:

"The Antichrist is full of crap!"

Sounds interesting, but unfortunately it looks like there was no DVD release.

Same with Special Unit 2.

The Almighty Johnsons (2011 - New Zealand)

I enjoyed it for a few episodes, but the coarse nature of the characters eventually turned me off. They are all basically bogans.

I will have to look out for Charlie Jade.

I wouldn't call Eureka overlooked or under rated. It had a five year run on Sci-Fi Channel / Syfy, with decent ratings for that network.

But hardly anyone saw it, and no-one talks about it. It's a great show that was apparently broadcast into a vacuum.

 

[Greg Cox]

But hardly anyone saw it, and no-one talks about it. It's a great show that was apparently broadcast into a vacuum.

I don't know. Back when it was on the air, I remember people discussing the episodes on-line, and I know there was a line of EUREKA tie-in novels as well, and possibly some other merchandise.

 

[eyeresist]

I guess so. This thought was partly prompted by a recent thread in which people started listing dozens of shows in order to demonstrate that we live in a TV "golden age". I was very disappointed Eureka wasn't mentioned.

 

[Owain Taggart]

They wouldn't seem overrated to us, because they are holy in the sci-fi community, but hardly anyone in the general public remembers Farscape

It's currently one of the shows in my watch list, and it's beautiful in HD. Seriously, it holds up much better than a lot of shows from the same period. Consistently amazed at what they've been able to do.

The one thing I find odd though are the 2 or 3-parters. There are a lot of them, and I find the stories kind of drag in those and kind of feel clunky.