Science fiction (often shortened to Sci-Fi or SF) is a genre of speculative fiction, typically dealing with imaginative concepts such as advanced science and technology, spaceflight, time travel, and extraterrestrial life. Science fiction often explores the potential consequences of scientific and other innovations, and has been called a “literature of ideas”.
Here are the top 10 best sci-fi TV shows to watch.
1. Altered Carbon
More than 300 years in the future, society has been transformed by new technology, leading to human bodies being interchangeable and death no longer being permanent. Takeshi Kovacs is the only surviving soldier of a group of elite interstellar warriors who were defeated in an uprising against the new world order. His mind was imprisoned for centuries until impossibly wealthy businessman Laurens Bancroft offers him the chance to live again. Kovacs will have to do something for Bancroft, though, if he wants to be resurrected. Bancroft’s request of Kovacs is to solve a murder – Bancroft’s.
2. Westworld
In the 2050s, Delos Inc. operates several theme parks, including the American Old West-themed Westworld. Each environment is populated by “hosts”, biomechanical robots indistinguishable from humans. The hosts are programmed to fulfill the guests’ every desire and will engage in – and be subjected to – every kind of violent and/or sexual activity. However, the hosts’ programming makes it impossible for them to harm any living thing or allow the guests to be harmed.
The park’s operators create narratives for these hosts to carry out while interacting with guests, but the hosts’ memories are wiped after each narrative is completed. Delos Inc. asserts that the hosts, being machines and therefore incapable of experiencing pain, cannot be truly harmed by these scenarios the same way that a human would be.
3. Upload
In 2033, humans can “upload” themselves into a virtual afterlife of their choosing. When computer programmer Nathan Brown dies prematurely, he is uploaded to the very expensive Lakeview, but then finds himself under the thumb of his possessive, still-living girlfriend Ingrid. As Nathan adjusts to the pros and cons of digital heaven, he bonds with Nora, his living customer service rep. Nora struggles with the pressures of her job, her dying father who does not want to be uploaded, and her growing feelings for Nathan while slowly coming to believe that Nathan was murdered.
4. Tribes of Europa
Set in 2074, three siblings set out to change the fate of Europe after a global catastrophe causes the continent to fracture into dystopian warring tribal microstates who vie for dominance over other states. The siblings get caught up in the conflict when they come into possession of a mysterious cube.
5. Raising Dion
Raising Dion follows the story of a woman named Nicole who raises her son Dion after the death of her husband Mark. The normal dramas of raising a son as a single mom are amplified when Dion starts to manifest several magical, superhero-like abilities. Nicole must now keep her son’s gifts secret with the help of Mark’s best friend Pat, and protect Dion from people out to exploit him while figuring out the origin of his abilities.
6. The Expanse
Hundreds of years in the future, things are different than what humanity is used to after humans have colonized the solar system and Mars has become an independent military power. Rising tensions between Earth and Mars have put them on the brink of war. Against this backdrop, a hardened detective and a rogue ship’s captain come together to investigate the case of a missing young woman. The investigation leads them on a race across the solar system that could expose the greatest conspiracy in human history.
7. The Silent Sea
On a near-future Earth suffering from extreme desertification, draconian measures have been put in place for potable water rationing. Scientist Song Ji‑An joins a hand-picked team of elite personnel on a mission to the moon. Their mission is to retrieve a mysterious and sensitive sample. The sample turns out to consist of a new element that ostensibly looks like water, but multiplies like a virus when it comes in contact with living cells. The team is attacked by a violent superhuman girl on the space station, one who is immune to the effects of lunar water. Meanwhile, they must contend with the fact that some members of their own party may have ulterior motives that lead to betrayal.
8. Black Mirror
As Black Mirror is an anthology series, each episode is standalone and can be watched in any order. The programme is an instance of speculative fiction within science fiction: the majority of episodes are set in dystopian near-futures with novel technologies that exaggerate a trait from contemporary culture, often the internet. Many such technologies involve altering the human body or consciousness, with little in-universe concern for the morality of these actions. They provide convenience or freedom to the user, but exacerbate problematic personality traits.
9. Doctor Who
Doctor Who revolves around a Time Lord, referred to as “The Doctor,” who travels through time and space in his TARDIS, a ship disguised as a British police box. Along with his human companions, he battles villains using his boundless imagination and intelligence while attempting to prevent history from being changed.
10. Firefly
Set 500 years in the future after a universal civil war, the crew of a small transport spaceship takes any job so long as it puts food on the table. The disparate men and women just want to survive and maybe have better lives, but they face constant challenges on the new frontier, such as the Reavers – flesh-eating mongrels who live on the fringes of the universe.
