The Best Sci-Fi TV Shows of All Time

Sci-Fi’s influence on film has been felt for nearly a century, starting with the release of Metropolis in 1927. However, the genre’s influence on TV has been a bit more start-and-stop. There have been pockets of popular interest in some decades that has waned in others. That said, today we’re looking at the ten best sci-fi TV shows of all time. Some are very recent, while others got their start in the 50’s. In any event, they’re all stellar sci-fi shows, pun intended.

The Best Sci-Fi TV Shows of All Time

10. Altered Carbon

Photo Credit: Netflix

A gritty, dirty and mean noir show on Netflix, Altered Carbon is based on the novel of the same name. This cyberpunk thriller follows Takeshi Kovacs, an assassin in a future where human consciousness has been digitized. As a result, people’s bodies are no longer their life or death: when your body dies, your “stack,” or mind, can be “re-sleeved,” or placed in a new body. This allows the series to have multiple actors portray Kovacs as he tries to solve a high-profile murder of a wealthy megacorp owner. Of course, the murdered man, Bancroft, commissions Kovacs himself, as he has simply been re-sleeved following his murder. What follows is an intense, gripping and overall sexy cyberpunk detective story.

9. Stranger Things

Photo Credit: Fox News

Equal parts Steven King and H.P. Lovecraft, Stranger Things is a love letter to the 80’s. Following a group of kids in the city of Hawkins, Indiana, the show wears its influences on its sleeve. Channeling the Goonies, It and other films of their ilk, the show is as charming as it is scary. When the gang, led by plucky Dungeons and Dragons player Mike Wheeler, meet a psychic girl named Eleven, their lives become an adventure. The show is sweet-hearted but remains creepy and atmospheric in its depiction of its monsters.

8. Quantum Leap

Photo Credit: Den of Geek

Starring Scott Bakula as Sam Beckett, a theoretical physicist, Quantum Leap follows Beckett as he travels through time. Beckett’s time travel brings him into the bodies of people who were alive during Beckett’s own life, seemingly at random. Upon landing in their lives, Sam must help them overcome some great challenge or adversary before “leaping” to the next life. As the show’s intro reminds: he always hopes his next jump is the jump home. This series has a genuinely warm heart and ran for a solid five seasons in the late 80’s to early 90’s.

7. Star Wars: The Clone Wars

Photo Credit: Star Wars

The Clone Wars started as a continuation of the animated film that took place in between Star Wars Episodes II and III. The computer-animated film had negative reviews, and the show had middling reviews at best in its first season. However, as the series went on it got better and better, and eventually became one of the best ongoing parts of the Star Wars universe. The recent announcement of a revival has many fans excited for what the future holds!

6. Twilight Zone

Photo Credit: Polygon

Endlessly influential, the Twilight Zone was something of an anthology show in the vein of pulp magazines of the 40’s and 50’s. Each new episode followed a different sci-fi premise, often weird or unsettling. The show introduced a generation of Americans in the 50’s to sci-fi and proved quite popular in its initial run. It still sees re-runs in syndication to this day, and its influence can be felt in sci-fi the world over.

5. Doctor Who

Photo Credit: BBC
Nearly as influential as Twilight Zone, if not more so, this British show began airing in the 50’s. The unique premise holds that the protagonist, the titular Doctor, can regenerate when mortally wounded. This regeneration, however, greatly changes the Doctor’s physical appearance and even changes parts of his personality. This has allowed the show an unprecedented longevity, and new seasons are still airing to this very day. In the upcoming season, the Doctor will be portrayed by a woman for the first time. Actor Jodie Whittaker will play the Doctor in the upcoming season, and fans are ecstatic.

4. Futurama

Photo Credit: Metro

The long-running animated sci-fi show Futurama was created by Simpsons mastermind Matt Groening. The show follows Fry, a slacker and pizza delivery boy from the 20^th Century. An accident on New Year’s Eve 1999 sees Fry cryogenically frozen until the year 2999. When he awakens, the world is unlike his in every way. The series deftly uses its smarts to comedic effect but knows when to tug the heartstrings and use Fry’s plight to make us feel something. This show had a notoriously tough time staying on the air and jumped stations for years before finally being laid to rest.

3. Rick and Morty

Photo Credit: Adult Swim

An excellent show with a notoriously awful fandom, Rick and Morty’s reputation precedes it. While the toxicity of its fanbase may give the show a bad reputation, the show is undeniably excellent. While occasionally oppressively dark and often grotesque, the show is still witty and hilarious in its best moments. Truly emotionally affecting when the mood strikes it, this isn’t a show to miss due to negative reactions from overly-toxic fans. Give it a shot on its own merits and ignore the conversation about its fans. You’ll be glad you did!

2. Firefly

Photo Credit: The Verge

The tragically short-lived Firefly has been talked to death, but we’ll talk about it again today. Created by Joss Whedon, famous for his show Buffy and directing the Avengers, Firefly is the definition of a cult show. The show only lasted for one season but was so full of character and originality that its fans were outraged when it was canceled. While the show got a feature film, many still feel as though the show never got its due in its own time. The stars, namely Nathan Fillion, did go on to great things afterwards, but fans still carry that torch to this day.

The Best Sci-Fi Show Ever: Star Trek: TNG

Photo Credit: Nerd Infinite

While the original Star Trek is iconic, the sequel series, The Next Generation, is truly something special. Running from the late 80’s to the early 90’s, TNG revitalized interest in the Star Trek brand and kicked off a generation of new Trek fans. The cast of unforgettable characters were all portrayed with humanity and believability that brought the show to new heights of storytelling. The excellent scripts and genuinely complex moral quandaries the show explored were mature without being edgy. A perfect example of sci-fi TV done right, this is what all other sci-fi shows should aspire to be.