10 Underrated Sci-Fi TV Shows You Should Go Back And Watch

The appeal of Science fiction shows how Black Mirror, Darkand Eleven StationSome of the best dystopian science fiction TV shows are that they explore human truths using the context of technological advancement. From body modifications to time travel, science fiction presents the dream of breaking boundaries that physics and biology impose on usand uses this context to confront viewers with questions about the nature of humanity. Although some programs like Star Trek have such a legacy that they are not only always remembered, but also consistently rebooted; some equally excellent shows meet a more unfortunate fate.

The problem of relying on viewership per season has led to the cancellation of recent sci-fi shows that didn’t deserve it. Show how The 100 that have aired for years provide a rich collection of compelling stories and complex enigmas, but with rampant cancellations, shows rarely have the prospect of doing so anymore. It’s a high-risk, high-reward gamble these days. There are many underrated science fiction gems from the last few decades that have never received the recognition they deserve. Still, that doesn’t mean they’re not worth going back and watching, as they have a lot to offer.

10

Spoiler (2015-2019)

IMDb Rating: 7.2/10

Set in outer space, Spoiler tells the story of three bounty hunters working in the Quad, a system of four planets. They are official agents of the Reclamation Apprehension Coalition, which is a neutral organization that maintains peace in the Quad without claiming allegiance to any of the planetary governments. Set during a period when war looms on the horizon, Spoiler follows the trio of bounty hunters as they pursue dangerous warrants to carry out.

Spurred on by nuanced performances from the talented trio Hannah John-Kamen, Aaron Ashmore and Luke Macfarlane, Spoiler explores how the characters’ pasts complicate their relationships with their work and their contracts. Neutrality about politics proves difficult to maintain when the people you care about are no longer safe. The chemistry of the three main characters, each of whom has a different set of morals and gets along due to common interestshe does Spoiler fun beyond measure as they joke and perform daring stunts to protect each other.

9

Childhood’s End (2015)

IMDb Rating: 6.8/10

Novel by Arthur C. Clarke End of Childhood was adopted for a three-episode miniseries that struggles to live up to the novel but still manages to tell a compelling story in its own right. The arrival of an alien overlord ushers in an idyllic era of prosperity for humanity, as Earth prospers under his influence. However, when he exposes his true form to people, the consequences start a chain of events that eventually leads to catastrophe.

Charles Dance plays the role of overlord and his screen presence perfectly reflects the feeling of despair that leads humanity to inevitably self-sabotage. Mike Vogel is the series’ best featured actor, playing the first human contact of the aliens, who fall victim to many unfortunate circumstances throughout the three episodes. Although Clarke’s novel explores the complexity of the human experience up close, personal, and through a more nuanced lens, End of Childhood It looks exactly like the book, and that justifies watching it at least once.

8

Counterpart (2017-2019)

IMDb Rating: 8.0/10

Set in one, or rather two worlds, Counterpart tells the story of two parallel Earths that are locked in a Cold War after one was suspected of being responsible for the outbreak of a pandemic in the other. The audience’s focus becomes an agent played by JK Simmons, whose job involves exchanging seemingly meaningless messages because he doesn’t have the security clearance necessary to find out more.

The duality of humans is a central theme for Homologueswhere the contrast between versions of the same people from both lands is often a highlight in the stories. The main character himself has a stark contrast between his lives, being a clueless office worker in one world, and an intelligence officer with a propensity for violence in the other. Counterpart is one of those rare TV shows with a 100% on Rotten Tomatoes in each of its seasons. Unfortunately, it falls victim to the cancellation trend of acclaimed sci-fi streaming shows and has not been renewed for a third season.

7

Fringe (2008-2013)

IMDb Rating: 8.4/10

With parallel universes and multiple timelines, Fringe is often considered to have pioneered most of the tropes of modern science fiction shows. A masterfully paced show that begins slowly in its pilot season and gradually builds on the lore by exploring different dimensions of its initial premise, Fringe does not deserve to be as criminally underestimated as it is.

Set in a world where singularities from different parallel Earths pose threats to life, Fringe follows the FBI’s Fringe Division, which uses fringe science to deal with extraordinary circumstances caused by singularities. Each episode of the first season shows the team using some Unique play with the laws of nature to combat the effects of an event orchestrated by people from parallel Earth. With later seasons this expands, as characters’ backstories develop, singularities appear in more places around the world, and even alternate timelines are involved.

6

Lex (1996-2002)

IMDb Rating: 7.3/10

Lex stands out as a science fiction show because it is a cross between science fiction and sex comedy. With a colorful crew of people, including a gimp-masked robot, the Lexx is a sort of spaceship that floats in outer space and goes through a series of misadventures during the first season, which is a set of four feature-length films made – TV movies.

While Lex It becomes more serious in the later seasons, but it also loses track of the world-building it takes place in, introducing magic at one point, which doesn’t sit well with technological advancement being the only form of fantasy thus far. But even though things are chaotic throughout all five seasons, the the show gains its cult following by being crazy at every possible moment. The first few seasons are especially full of sarcastic dark humor and sexual innuendo. But, in addition, the extension, both temporally and spatially, that Lex covers, gives you a premise for hilarious situations.

5

Sense8 (2015-2018)

IMDb Rating: 8.2/10

Created by the Wachowskis and J. Michael Straczynski, Sense8 is underrated considering the call for queer representation in the world right now. Not only does Sense8 features several queer main characters in non-normative relationships, it is also culturally diverse, featuring main characters from around the world whose relationships with their culture define their arcs in the series. Sense8 It definitely would have gotten the kind of fan following it deserved if it weren’t one of the millions of Netflix shows that have been canceled in recent years after just a few seasons.

Due to some inexplicable phenomenon, eight individuals across the world began to share a common consciousness, through which each can use the other’s skills to navigate difficult situations in each other’s lives. They can speak to each other mentally and discover these powers in moments of distress brought on not by an intergalactic threat, but simply by the difficulties they face in their personal lives. Sense8 exclusively places superpowers as a necessity in normal life before introducing supernatural threats.

4

Reign of the Scavengers (2023)

IMDb Rating: 8.6/10

A rare animated sci-fi show for adults, Reign of the Scavengers tells the story of the survivors of a crashed interstellar vehicle as they crash into the planet in capsules. They Fight the planet’s natural threats in your search for the remains of your shipwhich they plan to use to send a signal for help or, hopefully, repair and fly back home.

Given the niche nature of the genre, it’s not hard to see why Reign of the Scavengers is so underrated, despite being beautifully animated and telling a frighteningly human story of survival. Unsurprisingly, it was canceled by Max shortly after the first season. Reign of the Scavengers tells a relatively self-contained story of how distant groups of survivors inevitably meet and have to deal with interpersonal conflicts to survive on the unknown planet. Still, there is hope for a second season, because Reign of the Scavengers season 2 could happen on Netflix.

3

Farscape (1999-2003)

IMDb Rating: 8.3/10

Distant landscape is a traditionally formulaic sci-fi show from the early 2000s that deserves more praise for its visual design alone. While in today’s world of advanced visual effects, Distant landscape may not hold up, it stands out in the period in which it aired for using practical effects and presenting better space navigation than most science fiction media. Even better, there are two animatronic robots that are part of the main characters’ crew, which are an immense joy to watch. Unfortunately, despite a three-hour spinoff miniseries that tries to make up for it, the show ends on a cliffhanger due to a surprise cancellation.

Following a ragtag group of people aboard a living spacecraft, Distant landscape is set in a fictional universe where a corrupt peacekeeping organization is hunting and persecuting innocent people. The diversity of the spacecraft’s crew makes for interesting internal drama, but there is no main arc for a significant portion of Distant landscapefirst season, which consists mainly of self-contained stories. The encouraging story of how people band together and support each other during a time of unjust government is at the heart of why Distant landscape feels relevant and underappreciated today.

2

Legion (2017-2019)

IMDb Rating: 8.1/10

Although it is more traditionally a superhero show due to the advanced state of technology in this series which is based on the Marvel Comics character of the same name, Legion also qualifies as a science fiction show. It is a story told in a unique way that abandons all stereotypical narrative structure in its third and final season, where the arcs are mixed in a glorious climactic moment of reconciliation for the main character who no longer knows whether he is a villain or a hero.

Following schizophrenic David Haller who soon realizes he is a psychic mutant Legion uses visual effects to blur the lines between reality, foreboding, and nightmare, as Legion’s superpowers often take on the appearance of a psychedelic trip. The themes of good and evil drive the story, but LegionThe film’s greatest strength is exploring how the two are often not as different as we like to think. For fans who consider the show criminally underrated, Dan Stevens has expressed interest in reprising his Legion role in the MCU’s X-Men franchise.

1

Paper Girls (2022)

IMDb Rating: 7.3/10

Set in the 80s, paper girlsBased on the comic book series of the same name, it follows four girls who unwittingly get caught up in a war between time traveling factions and end up on wild adventures that take them to their future. Existential in its themes as it explores the meaning of fate in dramatic fashion, leaving aside the action side of things whenever relevant, paper girls It deserved more recognition and a renewal, rather than the cancellation it received after the first season ended.

Despite having a crazy premise, paper girls really finds an emotional core on which to base its central conflicts. Instead of focusing on the technological aspect of things or trying to figure out how characters will return to their timelines, viewers become invested in how their interactions with their future selves will change who they are in the present.