The science fantasy genre has grown immensely over the years, and not only in the movie industry. TV series are being made to not only dive deeper into these fantasy worlds being built, but to test the boundaries of creativity. The genre was created to see imagination on the screen and push thought-provoking conversations with one another.
While the genre allows for a variety of shows due to its wide definition, these TV shows are a great example of science fantasy. Not only are they entertaining, some worth bingeing, these shows also gave inspiration for others. With the help of IMDb for ratings, here is a list of some of the best science fantasy shows.
8 The Witcher (2019- ): 8.3
Starting out as a book series written by Polish author, Andrzej Sapkowski, The Witcher gained fame when it was turned into an RPG game series. A few years after the third game was released, there was conversation about a TV show, which began in 2019 and just released its second season. With a decent IMDb rating, The Witcher is a new series that is going to stick around.
Following Geralt of Rivia, also known as the witcher, fans will immediately get immersed into the world around him. As one of the last of his kind, Geralt is feared and hated by the people around him, yet all he does is fight off the creatures that are invading the land. Geralt soon finds himself tied to a destiny he never wanted and is forced to accept this new life to protect those he cares for.
7 Westworld (2016- ): 8.6
This Wild West themed show focuses on human-like aneroids that work in a theme-park, where humans go and explore their wildest desires. Westworld is inspired on a film with the same name by Michael Crichton. These aneroids are designed to withstand any violent, or sexual, activity that the human wants without the possibility of being harmed for it. So basically, these aneroids were made to be incredibly abused.
With a new update to these aneroids, some became sentient, causing an uprising against the humans. This show follows both sides as they fight, defend, and survive the new world. There have been three seasons so far and a fourth in the works.
6 Doctor Who (1963- ): 8.6
Fans of the science fantasy genre are probably familiar with Doctor Who since it has been running since the 1960s but may not know exactly what it is about. Since the main character, the Doctor, changes appearance quite frequently, it might seem confusing to what the plot is. To put it simply, the Doctor is a Time Lord and spends his life traveling through space and time to save and help those around him.
It’s normal for the Doctor to regenerate to different forms, helping the series progress naturally. There is always a companion by his side, however, they tend to change as frequently as the Doctor. For those who want to explore planets and systems, meet new friends along the way, and potential enemies, this is a great series to binge.
5 The Boys (2019- ): 8.7
This superhero drama is based on the Garth Ennis comics. With only two seasons and third coming, The Boys made a great impression on viewers. When a group of superheroes are abusing their powers, yet, are seen by the public as practically gods, a group of boys’ work on stopping them.
Vought International, a cooperation that monetizes these superheroes, also known as ‘The Seven’, are backing them, and thus creating a challenge for the boys to expose them. The show does an amazing job at bouncing between the two perspectives, one being the vigilantes trying to stop the tyranny, and the ones causing the corruption.
4 Stranger Things (2016- ): 8.7
This supernatural horror series took the internet by storm when it began in 2016 and has since left fans on the edge of their seat for more. Stranger Things not only embraced the 1980s with its costume design and set, but used the 1970s government conspiracy theory of the Montauk project.
When a tear is created that exposes an alternate dimension called the “Upside Down”, one of the children is taken, leaving the group of friends working on finding him. At the same time, a girl who was used for experiments, escapes and finds the group of friends to hide. Together, they work together to fight a common enemy. With season four on its way, viewers can spend the weekend binging this show in preparation.
3 Dark (2017-2020): 8.8
For thriller fans, this is a perfect series to get into. Set in a fictional German town of Winden, where children start vanishing. Four families start to take interest in finding the truth about these vanishings, so the main characters begin to work to find answers. Soon, they will uncover a wormhole and a theory of time travel that’s been in their family’s history for generations.
They discover a parallel world connected with their own, and with an apocalypse threatening their world, the main characters have a lot of choices face. Dark takes a spin on an apocalyptic world, adding in more of the science aspect that is normally seen in space, not within their own town. It’s a perfect mixture of all the science fantasy aspects that fans have loved.
2 The Mandalorian (2019- ): 8.8
Set in the world of Star Wars, this show took fans hearts almost immediately. Starting five years after the events set in Return of the Jedi (1983), a lone bounty hunter, the Mandalorian, is hired to retrieve a child, Grogu. Instead of giving the child away, the Mandalorian choses to protect the infant and reunite the child back to his kind.
With two seasons already released and a third in the works, The Mandalorian is one of the internets favorite tv series so far, whether they are Star Wars fans or not. This show focuses on the two companions traveling the galaxy and have some pretty adorable moments together.
1 The Twilight Zone (1959-1964): 9.1
As the inspiration for the modern take, Black Mirror, The Twilight Zone took a whole new approach to creativity. While the show had five different series and two films, the original only lasted five seasons. And with it came a new way at looking at the genre. The first series was entirely in black and white, and each episode was different.
They touched various topics that met every genre, from dystopian, thrillers, fantasy and science fiction. The imagination, music and costumes alone are enough to make this show stand out. It touched on topics that were rarely talked about and had reoccurring themes like nuclear war and mass hysteria. For those wanting to take a deep dive into the imagination and to have something to think about for a while afterwards, this is the perfect choice.