SF Shows With GOOD First Seasons

[Mr Light]

Looking back on my favorite SF shows it seems that they almost universally had terrible first seasons. It's understandable, since a SF show is required to create a brand new universe, new technology, new rules, new cultures, new production values, in addition to new characters.

All of my favorite shows had abysmal learning curve first seasons: Babylon 5. Farscape. Deep Space Nine. Hell, any Star Trek. SG1. Atlantis. X-Files (the standalones, anyway).

So, which science fiction TV series had GOOD first seasons? Which one were winners right out of the gate?

--LOST. While the first season pales in comparison to the later years it still got off the ground running with an immediately well defined world. Though in retrospect it's a little funny how the Island was an uninhabited jungle back then when we later find there's old buildings and bases everywhere

--Heroes. Most people only liked the first season. I recently rewatched it and found it to be poorly planned and filler-filled but still very enjoyable.

--New Battlestar Galactica. It's not one of my all time favorites but it's certainly well crafted for what it is and there was nothing wrong with the first season.

--Alias. An amazing first season that was better planned than the rest of the show, unfortunately. But this is barely sci-fi.

--Earth Final Conflict. The first season was the best one. Not very high on my list in any respect, though.

--Andromeda. I liked the first season and it showed a lot of promise, even if the production values left a lot to be desired. Too bad the show had a creative crash and burn in S2 it never recovered from.

P.S. Nobody list Firefly it was a one hit wonder and that's all!

 

[label]

Lost Season 1 was better in my opinion than seasons 2 and 3, so definitely Lost.

Farscape was uneven but had an excellent pilot episode and then 5-6 good episodes towards the middle/end of the season.

New BSG was excellent season 1.

Firefly was brilliant out of the gate. (Fox sucks hard for cancelling that series)

I suppose if Fringe finishes strongly the rest of the way out I'd consider it a good series opener.

Of course Heroes season 1 was pretty good (and certainly better than everything else we got since)

 

[The Sneeze Police]

I liked ENT's first season and it compares favorably to the other new Trek series first seasons.

nuBSG had an excellent first season.

If only Firefly had one complete season...

 

[crouteru]

Lost
Battlestar Galactica
Sliders
Roswell
Star Trek
Alias (borderline sci-fi, I know)
Angel

 

[Count Zero]

Doctor Who (both new and old)
Blake's 7

 

[Mr Light]

Oh yeah, I would have listed new Doctor Who had I remembered. Though I think later seasons were better. // Buffy and Angel I thought had terrible first seasons but later went on to be classic. Angel in particular was pretty embarrassing in S1 but I felt that every year after that was brilliant.

 

[Goji]

I disagree that DS9, The X-Files or Farscape had bad first seasons. DS9 and Farscape certainly got better, but their first seasons were nevertheless quite good on the whole. The X-Files' first season is one of my favorites, and certainly worlds better than anything the show produced from the sixth season on (as well as most of the disappointing fourth season, IMO). The first season of Star Trek is easily its best and most consistent, even if most of my favorite episodes comes from the second season.

 

[Lonemagpie]

Star Trek
Nu BSG
Chronicles Of Narnia
The Twilight Zone (original!)
Dr Who (old and new)
Blake's 7
The X Files

 

[The Borg Queen]

Earth: Final Conflict.

In fact the only crappy season was season 5, which wasn't actually a 5th season, but a spin-off show.

 

[Ethros]

Not counting one season wonders I'd say BSG by a lightyear

 

[Starkers]

TOS for sure, hit the ground running and barely stopped till it reached S3. Blakes 7 also.

 

[Barbados Slim]

Atlantis' first season was the best. After the Siege the show was reconnected to Earth and McKay became the center if attention. The show never recaptured it's season one magic.

 

[I am not Spock]

Another vote for TOS. Still one the best seasons in the Trekverse, IMO.

DS9's first season was a bit lacklustre, I thought. When the Defiant showed up in S3, it started rocking then.

Lost had a pretty good first season, as did Heroes. Shame that Heroes hasn't really reached that high since then.

Nu Who's first season is very good.

Buffy and Angel rule, but their first seasons are definitely not the best.


Still, I prefer a show which starts with a learning curve, as you put it, and then gets much better; than one which peaks early, then crashes and burns in later seasons. No-one likes that, do they?

 

[Harvey]

Sliders was never as good as it was during its first season, in my opinion. At a certain point in season three, I couldn't even watch the DVDs I had paid money for.

 

[Rii]

SeaQuest wasn't bad in its first season as I recall.

 

[auntiehill]

Heroes -the first was probably the best
LOST
Blake's 7
Pushing Daisies
The Twilight Zone
SG1 -I really enjoyed the first 4 seasons. Towards the end, it really started to die.

 

[davejames]

Other than the premiere and season finale, the first season of DS9 was pretty forgettable.

Lois & Clark was also at it's best the first season though (when Lex was the main baddie).

 

[Kirkman1987]

Star Trek
X-files
Quantum Leap
Twin Peaks

 

[Neroon]

P.S. Nobody list Firefly it was a one hit wonder and that's all!

Sorry, no can do. One season or five or seven, it doesn't matter. The one part-season we did get was one of my favorites of all time.

 

[DarthPipes]

--Alias. An amazing first season that was better planned than the rest of the show, unfortunately. But this is barely sci-fi.

Alias definitely. The first two seasons were great and the next three, while good, couldn't come close to matching them. Should never have blown up the show's premise in the middle of Season 2.

Lost and BSG also had great first seasons. The original Star Trek's first season was also great and much better than the first season of any of its spin-offs.