Copyright Screen Rant
Sci-fi TV shows can easily become iconic, with passionate and dedicated fanbases. However, even the best sci-fi TV shows of all time are not always immune to a mid-season slump and some filler episodes once in a while. Even the best sci-fi franchises like Star Trek have some skippable episodes. That said, there are a few sci-fi TV shows that are perfect. To make a 10/10 sci-fi TV show with no bad episodes, each must add something to the story. This often means that the best sci-fi shows are bingeable over a weekend, as there is less chance for the story to lose steam. Still, some sci-fi TV series are excellent throughout, despite their longer length, making each episode a mini-masterpiece. Dark (2017-2020) 26 Total Episodes The mind-bending German Netflix series Dark is the ultimate sci-fi thriller, with three seasons and a critics' score of 95% on Rotten Tomatoes. The show pushes the idea of time travel to the extreme and incorporates intricate plot twists and a multi-generational conspiracy. Dark starts small, with a missing person's mystery, and expands from there, which is part of the reason for its success. Each episode of Dark is perfect, as the writers build the story up gradually. While the story is multi-layered and extremely complex by the end, Dark allows the viewer to get invested by presenting an easily relatable situation before introducing the twists and turns. Unlike many great sci-fi shows with time travel elements, Dark allows the characters to interact with their past and future selves. The way that Dark avoids the typical time travel paradox is a genius twist, and this makes the series feel like a thought experiment at times. However, while this could have made it more style than substance, the characters in Dark are all extremely well-written and compelling, with at least one standout moment in each episode, which saves it from this fate. The Expanse (2015-2022) 62 Total Episodes Despite its 95% positive critics' score on Rotten Tomatoes and a history of praise from astrophysicists, The Expanse is an underrated sci-fi masterpiece. It is set in our solar system and is arguably the most realistic hard sci-fi TV show of all time due to its commitment to presenting the science of space travel in a way that reflects what we already know. The show ran for six seasons, but it's a long-running sci-fi TV show that is 100% worth the commitment. Like some of the most well-written TV shows, The Expanse begins with the relatively small-scale problem of a missing person, and relates it to the way in which humanity has explored the solar system. This is an incredible feat of storytelling, and it reflects perfectly on the source material from which The Expanse was adapted. Thanks to the original novels by James S.A. Corey, the show had a clear plan for every season. As each season had an overarching plot, this helped to keep The Expanse feeling fresh and exciting from scene to scene. Andor (2022-2025) 24 Total Episodes A fault of some Star Wars franchise entries is the over-commitment to nostalgia, and prioritizing this over the values that Star Wars originally stood for. Andor has been described as "the best Star Wars TV show yet" for the way it stripped the story back to the core values in the original movies. Andor's two series cover resistance, bravery, and opposing a fascist authoritarian government. Andor tells the story of Cassian Andor, a thief who becomes key to the struggle against the Galactic Empire. While some reviewers felt that the series started slowly, many others praised its deliberate pacing and buildup, which culminated in some of the best action scenes in a sci-fi TV show. The show is visually exciting while putting the story at the center. Because we know Cassian Andor's tragic fate in Rogue One, the story told in Andor had clear parameters, which helped with the pacing in each episode. Even the smallest scenes told a vital part of the story, and there were no bad or filler episodes in the entire show, making Andor a perfect and inspiring addition to the Star Wars story. Firefly (2002) 14 Total Episodes One of the greatest tragedies in the sci-fi genre is the fact that Firefly was doomed from its first release. The episodes were aired out of order, and the show was not given the attention that it deserved. This failure made Firefly into a cult hit later, but despite the story wrapping up with Serenity, Firefly is still hailed as one of the best sci-fi TV shows that only lasted one season. While each episode can be watched on its own, watching the series in order shows just how well the crew's relationships were built, which adds much more context to emotionally fraught episodes like "War Stories." It is also clear that certain details were added with the intention of addressing them later, like Inara's mysterious syringe and Shepherd Book's backstory.
