My top 10 the best science-fiction series
There are a few ingredients because I chose this series and how I placed them it that order. Some of them are better quality than other but all of them are worth seeing.
I generally like science-fiction movies and series which have a science factor, even small. Sometimes I think that directors completely forget about it. Elves, dwarves and magicians are in fantasy, but future universes are SF?
Ingredients of my rating
science
| fiction
|
|---|---|
nice special effect
| other species
|
scientific problems and solutions
| impossible scientific solutions
|
future may be - social problems or moral dilemmas
| |
new invention
|
10. Lost
Creating 2004-2010
Number of seasons 6
Prizes
- Golden Globe Award (win once in 2006 and 4 nomination),
- Emmy (win 10 times in 2005, 2007-2010 and 41 nominations),
- Saturn Awards (win 13 times in 2005-2006, 2008-2010 and 41 nominations),
- Satellite Awards (win once in 2005 and 7 nominations),
- People's Choice (4 nominations)
- Teen Choice (33 nominations)
- Screen Actors and Producers and Directors Guild Awards (twice win in 2006 and 12 nominations)
Main plot
"Lost" is series about a group of 48 passengers of the unlucky flight from Sydney to Los Angeles. The plane had a failure and landed in the middle of nowhere, mean on an uninhabited, tropical island. Victims, different sex, status, age, profession, don't know each other, must fight to survive, gain food and water, fire and shelter. They learn to cooperate with each other. Moreover, every episode is about past of one person. Where is science-fiction problems here? Well, the island isn't so uninhabited as it seems at first glance. Mysterious pillboxes, lockdown clock, the same numbers everywhere, medical experiments and other population are only a few paranormal and technical surprises.
Why this series?
Science - surviving techniques, fiction - all these mysterious things. Main plot elements are connected with fictional DHARMA Initiative - an institution which leads research about meteorology, psychology, electromagnetism, zoology and utopianism. Watcher can also observe how different people react in traumatic situations.
A lot of retrospections make this series interesting, at least first seasons. Finish episodes aren't so interesting.
9. Torchwood
Creating 2006-2011
Number of seasons 4
Prizes
- Saturn Awards (2 nominations),
- Satellite Awards (win once in 2005 and 7 nominations),
Main plot
Torchwood is a secret organisation founded by queen Victoria. Series is about a few workers this organisation: captain Jack Harkness, ex-police woman Gwen Cooper, doctor Owen Harper, Ianto Jones and technician Toshiko Sato. They fight with aliens and other unnatural threats which attack Earth.
Torchwood is spin-off Doctor Who.
Why this series?
Mainly because of handsome Jack :) And more serious - I like this English humour and series connect aliens issue (like The X-files) and adventure. It is soft entertainment, not so dark like other series. And from time to time appear technical problems as well. Just nice proposition after a hard day.
8. Kyle XY
Creating 2006-2009
Number of seasons 3
Prizes
- Saturn Awards (win once in 2007 and 5 nominations),
- Teen Choice (2 nominations)
Main plot
A naked teenager without navel is stopped by police. He can't speak and behaves as he was born yesterday. He is named Kyle, he is very confused so he is invited to home psychologist Nicole Trager. Day by day he learns to speak and improves social skills with help all Trager family. But he has got other, strange abilities like programming picture of 0-1 code or learns swimming in 5 minutes. And he can sleep only inside bathtub :) At the end Tragers adopt him, but still no one know who he is, where he come from or why he is stalked.
Why this series?
Conception longer pregnancy isn't now topic but maybe the first time describes by series. Einstein was born after 10 or late month but if it determines his intelligence? This is the fiction part. A science part is Kyle's abilities. This series is mostly for teenagers and science-fiction is only a main line of history. More attention producers keep to social, teen's feelings and adventures. But it always was a good motivation for me to work hard at school :)
7. Stargate Atlantis
Creating 2004-2009
Number of seasons 5
Prizes
- Emmy (3 nominations),
- Saturn Awards (3 nominations),
- People's Choice (win once in 2008)
Main plot
Star Gate Command discovers gate address to legendary Atlantis. They sent an expedition which leads by Dr Elizabeth Weird and John Sheppard, to another galaxy, Pegasus. Atlantis crew visits other worlds makes new alliances and gains new enemies - especially human Genii and insect-human hybrids Wraith.
Why this series?
Atlantis is much weaker than SG-1, but still, we have science technical and medical (Rodney, Zelenka, Carson and Carter) and obvious fiction (Wraith). From time to time also moral dilemma, diplomatic negotiations and a lot of action and really good special effects.
6. Supernatural
Creating 2005
Number of seasons 12 (till now)
Prizes
- Emmy (3 nominations),
- Saturn Awards (8 nominations),
- Satellite Awards (2 nominations)
- People's Choice (win 8 times in 2010, 2012-2016 and 13 nominations),
- Teen Choice (twice win in 2015 and 16 nominations)
Main plot
Two brothers - Dean and Sam Winchester - are hunters. But they don't kill teddy bears or wolfs. Their aim is demons, vampires, werewolves and other nice creatures. And angels, not always so good as we expected. Of course, this supernatural world is hidden to the ordinary man on the street. The main plot is fighting between good and evil, God with angels and devil, where a human is only a pawn in the game.
Why this series?
I saw only 6 seasons. In Supernatural is probably only fiction and this is more adventure series than typical SF. Still, I like way brothers fight, hunt and make an ambush. Presentation of God etc. isn't in accordance with my religion views but I think the real world is one thing and entertainment is the other.
5. Star Wars
Creating 1977-
Number of seasons 7 (till now)
Prizes
- The Academy Awards/Oscars (win 10 times and 20 nominations)
- Golden Globe Award (win once and 4 nominations),
- Emmy (win 10 times in 2005, 2007-2010 and 41 nominations),
- Saturn Awards (win 34 times and 47 nominations),
- Satellite Awards (win 8 times and 11 nominations),
- People's Choice (win 5 times)
- Teen Choice (win 4 times and 21 nominations)
Main plot
Far away, in another galaxy there are Jedi. Probably everyone knows what about are Star Wars :) Jedi with super powers are guardians of peace, but The Chosen One Anakin Skywalker goes to the dark side to protect women he loves. Many years later his son Luke returns him to the light side and evil Emperor is defeated.
Why this series?
Yes, I know they aren't really series but few movies :) But still, they create the specific universe, so... why not? Sometimes SW are terrible when it comes to science - for example, in space, there is void and no gravity so why shut ships fall down? No one explains any technical problems, but we can see laser guns, hyperdrive, light swords, spaceships and other future staff. Jedi is this fiction part. Which movie is the best or the worst is a separate topic. I add only that I love special effects in IV-VI part and hate in I-III :)
4. Smallville
Creating 2001-2011
Number of seasons 10
Prizes
- Emmy (win 3 times in 2002, 2006, 2008 and 4 nominations),
- Saturn Awards (win twice in 2002 and 2005 and 30 nominations),
- Satellite Awards (1 nomination),
- People's Choice (1 nomination)
- Teen Choice (win 4 times in 2002, 2006-2007, 2009 and 38 nominations)
Main plot
Clark Kent is teenager and farmboy. He hides his powers officially but wants to use it for good reasons. Future Superman is supported (more or less aware his abilities) by friends: Peter, Chloe, Lana, in the beginning, Lex Luthor, later also Lois Lane. Besides saving lives and other heroic action Clark searches his origins.
Why this series?
This is next series for teenagers but later is little more serious. Clark powers are fiction, but using them and Chloe's ideas are science. This position Smallville owe special effects, a great plot and nice connection between technician ideas, adventure and from time to time loyalty&moral dilemmas.
3. Battlestar Galactica + Caprica
Creating 2004-2009
Number of seasons 4 + 1
Prizes
- Emmy (win 3 times in 2007-2009 and 17 nominations),
- Saturn Awards (win 7 times in 2006-2007, 2009 and 9 nominations),
- People's Choice (1 nomination)
Main plot
A half century before BSG on planet Caprica there are two families - Greystone and Adama. They compete in the technology race, not always play clean. They construct Cylons - machines with AI, but newborn creatures start a rebellion. First war with human-machines wins man.
After 50 years Cylons attack 12 human colonies. Battlestar Galactica is the military ship which survives and protects few civilian ships. They fight with Cylons, search their spies and mainly go to legendary Earth. They are last humans with small resources.
Why this series?
Seriously because of Starbuck character. The second reason is space fights. And then there are machines with AI, cloning and loading consciousness/personality, space ships and fights. BSG is more fiction, Caprica is more science, so together make a good impression.
2. Stargate SG-1
Creating 1997-2007
Number of seasons 10
Prizes
- Emmy (9 nominations),
- Saturn Awards (win 5 times in 1999-2000, 2004-2005 and 25 nominations),
Main plot
Dream-team SG-1 discovers other planets due to Star Gate. Colonel Jack O'Neill, captain/major/colonel Samantha Carter, archaeologist Daniel Jackson and alien Jaffa Teal'c protect Earth against Goa'ulds, Replicators, Ori and other alien threats.
Why this series?
Science, science, a lot of science :) Time travel, grandfather paradox, alternative realities, black holes, gravity, medical situations, and much more. What important, everything is nicely explained by Carter. And this special effects :) Of course, some episodes have more fiction - alien species etc., some more consider to moral choices but always there is something science.
1. Star Trek
Creating 1966-
Number of seasons
- Star Trek: The Orginal Series - 3
- Star Trek: The Next Generation - 7
- Star Trek: Deep Space Nine - 7
- Star Trek Voyager - 7
- Star Trek Enterprise - 4
- movies - Star Trek: The Motion Picture (1979), Star Trek: The Wrath of Khan (1982), Star Trek III: The Search for Spock (1984), Star Trek IV: The Voyage Home (1986), Star Trek V: The Final Frontier (1989), Star Trek VI: The Undiscovered Country (1991), Star Trek: Generations (1994), Star Trek: First Contact (1996), Star Trek: Insurrection (1998), Star Trek: Nemesis (2002), Star Trek (2009), Star Trek Into Darkness (2013), Star Trek Beyond (2016) - 13 movies
Prizes
- The Academy Award/Oscar (win once time in 2010 and 14 nominations)
- Golden Globe Award (1 nomination),
- Emmy (win 27 times in 1988-1997, 1999, 2001-2002, 2004 and 100 nominations),
- Saturn Awards (win 20 times in 1980, 1983, 1987, 1990-1991, 1993, 1997-1998, 2001-2003, 2005, 2010, 2013-2014 and 98 nominations),
- Satellite Awards (win 3 times in 1998-1999, 2014 and 4 nominations),
- People's Choice (4 nominations),
- Teen Choice (11 nominations),
Main plot
Many years ahead, humans and other species like Klingons, Vulcans, Ferengi, Romulans, Borg etc. explore space and fight each other from time to time. At first, we can follow with crew Enterprise ship and captain James Kirk, at retrospection with Enterprise but captain Jonathan Archer, a half century later the same ship but captain Jean-Luc Picard.
Why this series?
Star Trek universe is so rich - species, moral problems, social problems, technical problems, exploration, wars. But the most important it is really science-fiction series. Do You know that producers anticipated (or inspired next generation to invite) such things like video chat, mobile phone, Bluetooth earphone, optical tweezers (as variation of tractor beam), transparent aluminum, tablet, touch screen, biometrical (recognise voice or biosignature), universal translator, cloak device, laser weapon, dilithium engine, 3d printer ( remember replicator?), eye implant, hypospray, android, wi-fi, slim TV?
