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Science fiction TV shows are probably at risk of dating themselves even quicker than other TV genres. As well as the usual technological and social changes that all entertainment has to deal with, science fiction shows need to worry about quirks of scientific development rendering them impossible, and rapid improvements to CGI, given their heavy use of it.
As a result, there are many science fiction shows that have aged poorly, despite the fond memories of their fans and of those who watched them at the time. For any number of reasons, several shows simply do not hold up as the quality they once boasted—but the same cannot be said for all of them.
10 Not As Good: The X-Files Only Shines With Anderson & Duchovny
When people remember The X-Files, they remember the interplay between David Duchovny’s Fox Mulder, a conspiracy theorist extraordinaire, with Gillian Anderson’s Dana Scully, a rational skeptic. The two disagreed personally and professionally but had lightning chemistry.
What people don’t tend to remember is that there were two seasons that didn’t feature the duo together, leaving the show bereft of its central selling point. Furthermore, the show’s mythology and story were too convoluted to be truly enjoyable, and the entire premise has aged poorly, with conspiracy theorists becoming a societal problem in the intervening decades.
9 Holds Up: Firefly Has Aged Well…. In Front Of The Camera
With a focus on character and dialogue, a deliberately rustic aesthetic, and clever tricks to minimize the use of CGI, much of Firefly is still just as enjoyable in the present day as it was in 2002, with there having been little science fiction released since to fill its niche.
That’s in front of the cameras. Behind them, increasing corroborating evidence about Joss Whedon’s conduct on all of his shows, including Firefly, may leave some people unwilling to watch it. But for those who do wish to try and separate the art from the artist, the show is still a sci-fi triumph.
8 Not As Good: The 100 Lost Its Way Early
With a large fandom that gradually died out, and with initially positive reviews, The 100 for a time looked like it could be a major science fiction show of its time. Those who only watched its earlier seasons may remember a show that, if not perfect, nonetheless had compelling characters and interesting backstories and mystery to its arcs.
However, not long into its run, The 100 took several steps that lowered its quality, including killing off popular characters such as Lexa, and losing fan goodwill by returning to the same ‘Sky People vs. Grounders’ plotlines again and again. Overall, the show’s later seasons dragged down the quality of its first few.
7 Holds Up: Life On Mars Strikes A Balance Between Sci-Fi & Police Show
A show with a fairly unique premise, Life on Mars is a BBC show that follows Detective Chief Inspector Sam Tyler after he is knocked into a coma and wakes up in 1973 as part of the Manchester Police. The show makes much of him carrying out police work in the 1970s whilst trying to apply modern techniques, but has unexplained phenomena happening around him throughout.
The show, during its run, expertly balances its high-quality police procedural with the sci-fi mystery of how Sam arrived in 1973, and whether he can escape. Tyler goes from solving crimes in one minute to being haunted by the Test Card Girl the next, and either way it is gripping television.
6 Not As Good: Blake’s 7 Was Always Very Derivative
Blakes 7 was a BBC sci-fi show in the ’70s and ’80s, depicting a small group of rebels aboard a high-tech ship, fighting a covert resistance against the totalitarian Terran Federation that ruled over Earth and its colonies.
Despite its low budget, the show was ambitious, and it enjoyed popularity. However, it is largely comprised of elements taken from other science-fiction and even fantasy properties, like Star Trek, Robin Hood, and Star Wars, all of which had better budgets and productions. An alien invasion was even planned to include Doctor Who‘s Daleks.
5 Holds Up: Futurama Is The Funniest Of Its Sitcom Family
Matt Groening is best-associated with three sitcoms: Disenchantment, The Simpsons, and Futurama. The first certainly has its fans, and The Simpsons is in its thirty-third season, but Futurama was canceled for a fourth time in 2013, dying a seeming final death.
Despite being dropped, Futurama holds up as the most consistently funny of Groening’s three sitcoms. Some seasons dipped, but it never had the long slump that many accuse The Simpsons of suffering from, and many of its jokes aged well. In particular, the show manages to dip its toe into political satire, much of which has aged worryingly well.
4 Not As Good: Westworld Had One Sublime Season
Despite having ended recently, Westworld made its mark on the pre-pandemic world with an astounding first season that audiences flocked to and that many commentators described as some of the best on television. With a complex and layered story that trusted viewers to keep up, shocking plot twists, and gorgeous action and music, the show dazzled many.
It began to age poorly almost immediately, however. Its second season quickly became criticized for being needlessly dense and hard to follow, with many characters becoming more dislikable, all in the service of a less interesting plot and underwhelming twists. The third season was outright panned by some for being basic and overly cynical.
3 Holds Up: Torchwood Prioritizes Character & Emotion
Torchwood doesn’t have the same shelf life as its parent series, Doctor Who, clocking in at four seasons, two of which were miniseries, and it is widely acknowledged to have peaked in its third. It is a show that holds up as long as you remember its decline in the fourth season, which is still enjoyable television.
The show protects itself from aging too poorly by having its focus be on its characters, their reactions to the events they experience, and their interactions with one another. The adventure isn’t the show’s priority, the impact is. As a result, even when the CGI looks poor and the science becomes outdated, the very human connections between the cast remain relevant.
2 Not As Good: Quantum Leap Was Shaky Before The Ending
Aside from its premise, Quantum Leap is best remembered for its sudden and underwhelming ending, with a screen of text misspelling the main character’s name, and informing the audience that he was never able to ‘leap’ back home to his normal life.
This led many viewers to discount the ending, and remember the show as a mostly high-quality science-fiction action show. However, cracks were beginning to show before the ending, including increasingly outlandish storylines, and sudden Deus Ex Machina endings to long-running storylines. Ultimately, Quantum Leap remains enjoyable television, but must be watched with a grain of salt.
1 Holds Up: Star Trek: The Next Generation Has Important Messages
The original Star Trek is dated in some ways, as is its first spin-off, The Next Generation, and yet both still have relevance and things about them that hold up today. Nonetheless, it is the sheer optimism and idealism present in Star Trek: The Next Generation that, if anything, ensures it is more worth watching today than it was when it first came out.
With its messages of harmony, compassion, overcoming flaws, and ultimately becoming a better person, The Next Generation has a somewhat timeless quality, regardless of how far science progresses, or how cheesy the sets begin to look.
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