TVSquad

Strange list. Man From U.N.C.L.E. is sci-fi? Batman? Wonder Woman? I wouldn't call The Avengers sci-fi, however many SF plots they might have had. And for those that do qualify as SF, Stargate Atlantis is much too new to belong on any list of greats. Logan's Run lasted half a season; the movie was memorable, the show not so much. (And certainly not worthy of #15 on anybody's list.)

Missing from the list: UFO, which is better or at least more fondly remembered than a lot of the shows that did make the cut; and Farscape, my personal favorite, a far better show than most on the list and certainly a far purer SF show.

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A lot of people around the web have pointed out that some of the shows aren't truly science fiction. Fantasy or Horror, sure, but those genre lines are often blurred. And until the plot points develop, I wouldn't currently consider Lost to be sci-fi any more than Nowhere Man, Twin Peaks, or Fantasy Island.

Some of my favorites missing from the list are DS9, Transformers, Knight Rider, SeaQuest DSV (at least the first season), Thundercats, The Real Ghostbusters, and Red Dwarf. Blake's 7 also deserves credit for having one of the best ways to end a show.

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My site, Trekology.com, covers science fiction television and adds some deep background to this discussion about the top sci-fi shows. Check it out at http://www.trekology.com.

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The Prisoner (if the Avengers is sci-fi, The Prisoner surely is too); Red Dwarf.

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I agree some what with this list. With the shows I've seen I kind of agree with their placing. But some aren't all those super hero shows are Fantasy not really Sci Fi but have slight elements. But WTF? Not DS9 but they had Voyager? There are some serious flaws with this list.

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No DS9 or Farscape but there was Voyager, Sliders, Thunderbirds, and Jetsons? And I love the new Battlestar Galactica, but number 2? It's only been on for 1.5 seasons... how can you already say it's the second best Scifi show ever?

The list smacks of pandering and laziness.

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Andromeda and Stargate Atlantis both above Buffy? And Voyager at number 14 but no Deep Space Nine? This is insane. They did give (deserved) high marks to Firefly, Lost and the new Galactica, but still.

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This list is so insane I don't know where to begin.

Stargate SG-1 is higher rated than The Twilight Zone? Logan's Run is #15, while Buffy is only #27?!

And my God...The Hitchhiker?! What is that even doing on the list (and I could say the same about Wonder Woman, V, and Lost in Space).

This is the danger of making a list of Top FIFTY, instead of narrowing it down to 10 or 20. Of course, if they did that, they'd actually have to do some work, not to mention have seen many of these shows.

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For anyone who doesn't feel like wading through 50 pages...

50: Earth: Final Conflict
49: The Wild Wild West
48: 3rd Rock From The Sun
47: Buck Rogers in the 25th Century
46: That Was Then
45: The Greatest American Hero
44: Lois & Clark: The New Adventures of Superman
43: Nowhere Man
42: Science Fiction Theatre
41: Futurama
40: The Thunderbirds
39: The Man from U.N.C.L.E.
38: Batman
37: Space 1999
36: The Bionic Woman
35: Battlestar Galactica (1978)
34: The Avengers
33: Lost In Space
32: My Favorite Martian
31: Alien Nation
30: Voyage to the Bottom of the Sea
29: The Six Million Dollar Man
28: Adventures of Superman
27: Buffy the Vampire Slayer
26: Stargate Atlantis
25: The Jetsons
24: Wonder Woman
23: Tales from the Crypt
22: Andromeda
21: Quantum Leap
20: The Hitchhiker
19: Dark Angel
18: V
17: Firefly
16: Flash Gordon
15: Logan's Run
14: Star Trek Voyager
13: The Outer Limits
12: Xena: Warrior Princess
11: Lost
10: Sliders
9: Mystery Science Theater 3000
8: Dr. Who
7: The Twilight Zone
6: Stargate SG-1
5: Babylon 5
4: The X-Files
3: Star Trek: The Next Generation
2: Battlestar Galactica (2004)
1: Star Trek

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Just wondering , since they included Buffy where's Angel? Also they have Xena but no Hercules. Does anyone remember Land of the Lost, it was impressive for its time. And what about Red Dwarf? Just a few more to think about.
Caitlin

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4. The X-Files
3. Battle Star Galactica
2. Star Trek: TNG
1. Star Trek

What I do not get, is the three shows after The X-Files are probably better shows in terms of sci-fi ambiance. But The X-Files is mechanically a superior show. Its writing, directing, and overall composition (which makes an entertaining show into a great show) is far better. Just because a show has higher production values (i.e., Star Trek: TNG and Battle Star Galactica) does not mean it is a better show. And finally, not that it matters to any of you, it hardly matters to me, but The X-Files has been nominated for four Outstanding Dramatic Series Emmys. The only other sci-fi show to have been nominated for Outstanding Dramatic Series was Star Trek: The Next Generation. And that one Outstanding Drama Series, was its only, out of forty-three nominations, nontechnical Emmy nomination. Whereas The X-Files, out of sixty-three Emmy nominations has been nominated for twenty nontechnical Emmys.

Well, that's my two cents.

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Its me again, I don't mean to sound like a jerk by coming back and giving yet more credence to why The X-Files is a better show. But, I seemed to have made a huge mistake... Star Trek: The Next Generation is the only other sci-fi show to have been nominated for an Emmy for Most Outstanding Dramatic Series, yes, this is still true. But, what I was mistaken about is when I said it was its only nontechnical nomination, out of forty-three total nominations. It is still its only nontechnical nomination, but it is its only nontechnical nomination out of fifteen total nominations. Man was I off, well thats the last time I go by the Emmy database in my head. Oh, and I checked The X-Files too, and they still have twenty nontechnical nominations, but its out of sixty-two not sixty-three total nominations.
My bad. But hey, its only the Academy of Television Arts & Science.

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