Sci-Fi: Science in Fiction
Though film-makers started exploring science fiction in movies quite early in the 1950s through detective thrillers and superhero films. However, it wasn’t until Stanley Kubrick’s 2001: A Space Odyssey that sci-fi was revolutionized with impeccable use of visual effects, graphics, and the concept of time-space exploration. As the technology grew, so did the opportunity for film-makers to create exceptional sci-fi content, which could be supported by the use of the latest VFX techniques. This gave rise to shows like Star Trek and sci-fi turned into a completely exclusive genre.
1. Mr. Robot
This show has blown away minds and has set new benchmarks of authenticity and technical accuracy in the depiction of hacking and cybersecurity concepts. Mr. Robot is more of a sci-fi-cum-drama thriller series, following a group of hacktivists led by an anarchist called Mr. Robot, who plans to destroy debt records by encrypting financial data of business conglomerates. What begins a series of thrilling events is when Mr. Robot hires Elliot Alderson, a cybersecurity engineer in his group, who masters in hacking into highly secured networks.
2. Westworld
Studded with a talented cast comprising of Evan Rachel Wood, Jeffery right, Sir Anthony Hopkins, Ed Harris, and James Marsden, Westworld takes place in a technological amusement park inhabited by android hosts. The owners of such parks allow humans to spend time in these parks and experience the olde Western American world. But unbeknownst to the owners, a group of android hosts begins to realize their true selves and start gaining sentience.
3. Orphan Black
Orphan Black follows the complicated plotline associated with human cloning and issues of personal identity. A show of Canadian-origin Orphan Black stars Tatiana Maslany in five different roles, all of whom represent a clone of her character. The show revolves around her clones trying to evade a scientific corporation involved in illegal human experimentation and cloning.
4. The Twilight Zone
5. Star Trek
6. The Outer Limits
Aired originally in 1963, the anthology series has been an inspiration to films like Star Trek, and it laid the ground for integration od scientific research with filmmaking. This aspect has been the forefront of most of modern sci-fi films and television productions. The Outer Limits went on to be revived in 1995, and a new revival is now said to be in the early stages of development.
7. Person of Interest
A billionaire programmer designs a federal vigilance program that can predict potential terrorist activities by collating gathered intelligence and information. Things take a turn when “The Machine” gains sentience and begins identifying non-terrorists perpetrators ignored by the federal government, who only seems interested in threats to national security. The programmer than recruits a former CIA operative to take things in his hands and investigate in the “irrelevant” cases exposed by his sentient machine.
8. Doctor Who
Consisting of a wide ensemble, the show follows an extraterrestrial being called The Doctor, who travels through space and time in different eras and planets to solve issues and wage fight against injustice. The show is best known for its extended continuity despite changing the lead member of the cast over the years. This single narrative spanned in five decades of the timeline has led the show to become an inspiration for writers and directors alike, thus, making the show a cult across continents.
9. The Expanse
10. The X-Files
The X-Files is a perfect blend of suspense thriller and science-fiction, added with elements of psychological mystery and paranormal. The show follows two FBI agents Fox Mulder and Dana Scully, who investigate low-priority cases buried in the FBI’s X-Files section. These cases involve reports of paranormal phenomena and the existence of extraterrestrial life. Spanning over the last 25 years, with the show being revived in 2016 after a fourteen-year break, it is one of the largely praised television series of the early 2000s.
11. Electric Dreams
12. Medium
Starring Patricia Arquette as Allison DuBois, Medium revolves around a psychic, who assist law enforcement in solving crimes. Allison claims to have dreams of events that occurred in the past or which will occur in the future, and she tends to alter the present based on her psychic experiences.
13. The Feed
Set in the future, The Feed revolves around a family of visionaries that invents a social networking machine technology implanted in people’s brains. The technology allows people to share ideas, memories, and emotions through minds as our generation does it on social media. But things go wrong when technology drives people insane, spreading hate, eventually leading people to become murderous. The family is now left to deal with this invisible monster they have unleashed.
14. Under The Dome
15. The Triangle
A decade-old three-part mini-series, The Triangle is a fictional story associated with the famous scientific anomaly of the Bermuda Triangle. The show is an Emmy Award recipient and was well-received at the time of the release. The show also gnarred popularity due to writer Bryan Singer (director of X-Men) being attached to the project.
But if you ask me to pick the best sci-fi amazon prime show out of these, I’ll name four – Orphan Black; The Twilight Zone; Person of Interest; and The X-Files.
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