Movies - TV
12 Underrated Sci-Fi Shows That You Need to See
By MARGARET DAVID
Hard Time on Earth
The critics loathed "Hard Time on Planet Earth," which is fair, but not reflective of the show's charm. It's a show ahead of its time that dared to take its absurd premise and have fun with it. Martin Kove is brilliant as an alien prisoner, and it's a shame that this show is utterly forgotten.
V
"V" — the original two-part sci-fi miniseries — is overeager with its concept, leaning hard into its evil space lizard Nazis with an enthusiasm that makes the whole thing thrive in spite of itself. With that blatant theme comes a timelessness that overcomes the huge hair and shiny nylon jumpsuits, and the series remains a lesser-known classic.
Alien Nation
"Alien Nation" is a pretty good TV series with the same premise as the movie of the same name, but it eventually goes in a different direction — and it works. It was canceled after the first season, but it's one of the few canceled sci-fi shows to receive an unlikely rescue as the plot was wrapped up several years later in a series of five TV movies.
Babylon 5
With a fully outlined story mapped to multiple planned seasons, creator J. Michael Straczynski envisioned a grand epic, a science fiction homage to the depth and detail of "The Lord of the Rings," and astonishingly, he succeeded. The show is still beloved by its fans, and Straczynski is still pushing for a reboot, which was put on hold by the buyout of Warner Brothers.
Space Battleship...
One of legendary director Leiji Matsumoto's earliest works, "Space Battleship Yamato," is a brutal and complex series and a must-watch for science fiction fans. Like other Japanese classics, this show, with its princesses and planet destroyers, might have inspired George Lucas more than he wants to admit.