Review of Sci-fi TV-Series
Andromeda
Babylon 5
Battlestar Galactica
Doctor Who 2005
Farscape
FireFly
Red Dwarf
Star Trek Deep Space Nine (ST:DS9)
Star Trek Enterprise (ST:ENT)
Star Trek The Next Generation (ST:TNG)
Star Trek The Original Series (ST:TOS)
Star Trek Voyager (ST:VOY)
StarGate Atlantis
StarGate SG-1
Andromeda (2000-2005)
wikipediaimdb (6.4/10)
Scifi.dk rating: 5/10
Series with lots of action and funny combat scenes, where they do acrobatic cartwheeling to get away fast instead of just running away. The special effects are actually good, but there are some costumes that are a bit on the funny side. However, this
it not too distracting.
The super hero captain Dylan Hunt (Kevin Sorbo who plays Hercules) is the main character in the series, who gets transported 300 years into the future. Acting is a bit overplayed and artificial. The stories are at time as unrealistic as Flash Gordon, and the episodes vary a lot in quality. It is Sci-fi, and it can be seen if you are bored enough. I got through all 5 seasons, so the series can't be all that bad (otherwise I would have stopped before), and luckily the series does not suffer from serious tempo problems like Star Trek Deep Space 9.
Babylon 5 (1993-1998)
wikipediaimdb (8.8/10)
Sci-fi rating: 7/10
The best advice I can give you: skip season 1! You can easily catch up without
having seen season 1, but if you do see season 1, then you risk abandoning the
series before it gets good. If I had not had season 1 running in the background
while I was don't other things, then I would never have gotten past it. It is
less interesting than watching paint dry!. After season 1 it is okay, and it
features some surprisingly good episode once in a while, The special-effects are
okay, given then age of the series on a budget - it was pretty good then. The
story is what is best in the series. The characters seem two dimensional, and
the acting is not great, but that is forgivable.
Star Trek fans will recognize "Psi Cop" Alfred Bester played by Walter Koenig.
He also played the Russian Starfleet officer Pavel A. Chekov in the original
Star Trek (TOS). IT is quite common to se a great mix of actors from difference
sci-fi series, which actually adds to the experience.
All in all a surprisingly good series after a horrible season 1 start.
Battlestar Galactica (2004 TV series)
imdb (9.1/10)
Scifi.dk rating: 6/10
After the first breathtakingly fantastic pilot episode I was absolutely excited to see how this series would evolve. I have with great pain and perseverance endured all four seasons in the hope that something would happen.
I do not understand what people see in this series - it is painfully slow. The characters are annoying and a pain to watch. Laura Roslin is so unsympathetic a character that I get nauseous when she appears on the screen. There are zero explanations for how and why Number Six can talk to the pathetic self-absorbed Gaius Baltar in his head without anyone else seeing her, and vice versa (him appearing in her head).
Normally you get an exciting explanation or revelation, but not in this series. It also annoys me that the communication with fighter planes is 10 times more distorted than the transmission from the moon in 1969 - to the point where I have to really concentrate to make out what is said.
I do not like watching unsympathetic people doing ridicules things at a snail crawling pace, but having said that - the story is interesting as a whole, but it could have been told in 2 seasons without any problems.
Don't let my opinion hold you back - there are lots of people that absolutely
love this series! I do not want to ruin the ending for anyone, so I'll just say
the whole series is slow, and ends suddenly, which left me disappointed. It had
so much potential! Was that what I waited 4 seasons to see? On the other hand I
was relieved: it was finally over
No, I'm kidding -
it is not that bad.
Doctor Who 2005
imdb (8.8/10)
Scifi.dk rating: 7/10
Doctor Who has been around since 1963, and I have followed the old series with
great interest (although I have not seen some of the first doctors). These old
series are not so viewable today. However, the series has been modernized and
new seasons have been aired since 2005. It is still a low-budget series, but it
is quite entertaining. I enjoy the lightness and imaginative stories. Like the
old days it is not the special-effects that make this series, although they have
been upgraded a bit from the old colored plastic, aluminum foil, slime and a
flashlight
. A lovely light
series.
Farscape
wikipediaimdb (8.9/10)
Scifi.dk rating: 7/10
It has been some times since I have seen these DVD's, but they are certainly okay. What draws the rating down is the pace in the episodes - it is too slow. The pace aside, the seasons do contain some imaginative and entertaining stores.
FireFly
imdb (9.5/10)
Scifi.dk rating: 7/10
After getting used to a world that in the future has reverted to a western-cowboy style world (incl. clothes, muddy streets, guns etc - although they do not shoot bullets), it is quite an okay series. There are only 14 episodes, so it is only a mini series, but should you have missed this one, then you now have the opportunity to catch up. It is nothing special, but certainly worth a watch.
It was this series that was the precursor for the movie Serenity from 2005, but it disappointed me a bit because the series - some like the movie better than the series and vice versa. I like the series better.
Red Dwarf (1988-1999)
imdb (9.1/10)
Scifi.dk rating: 9/10
This is an absolutely fantastic series, that you either hate or love. It is a total low-budget BBC TV series with less than stellar special effects, but that can actually add to the humor in the series. The humor and the imaginative stories are top notch!
When I saw the first few episodes I was sure that this was utterly a waste of time, but it grew on me, and I got hooked. I cannot think about the series now without smiling. There is nothing wrong with season 1. but maybe you should try some newer seasons to start with. Give it a chance, and see 4 episodes before deciding. The series is very inexpensive on DVD if you buy the episodes only version (~$100 for all of the 8 seasons).
They have now after many years decided to make a few more episodes. I'm looking forward to seeing these hopefully goofy episodes!
Star Trek DS9 (1993-1999)
wikipediaimdb (8.1/10)
Scifi.dk rating: 8/10
The "Star Trek Deep Space Nine" series has alot of things that work great. There is drama, character development mixed with an imaginative story. I enjoy watching many if the characters. What really lets the series down is the pace the episodes crawl along with. It makes it a struggle to get through the series. I have a problem with most movies and series with the pace, but this series sets new records for how slow things can develop, so I expect that I'm not the only one who has a problem with the pace. The series as a whole has a lot story to tell, and had it not been for the slow pace, I would have given it a top rating.
Star Trek ENT (2001-2005)
imdb (7.3/10)
Scifi.dk rating: 8/10
Time wise the series "Star Trek Enterprise" is set at a time just before humans work with the Klingons, so the technology is not as advanced as the other series. It is a new twist to the Star Trek series, and it certainly has its moments. The series was stopped after only 4 seasons, which is very short for a Star Trek series, but there was no doubt that it had to stop at that time - it had nothing more to offer.
There are episodes that are set in parallel universes with the same actors, but with different personalities - you do not know these people, and they are acting strange, you have no sympathy for them, and you don't care what happens. It seems like a waste of time, especially because there isn't really any strong ties to the "real" universe. The last two episodes in the series can be skipped, since they happen in this parallel universe, and you are all the time expecting for something to happen that ties it into something that matters or relates to the "real" universe, but that does not happen, and that leaves you with a disappointed feeling, and you end up wishing the series to end.
If you are a fan of the Star Trek series, then there is no way around this series, but you should not set your expectations too high.
Star Trek TNG (1987-1994)
wikipediaimdb (8.8/10)
Scifi.dk rating: 9.5/10
"Star Trek the Next Generation" is one of the best Science Fiction series ever! Good acting, great imaginative stories, okay pace, characters with depth and great special effects (given the time of the series). A must see, although there are episodes with Wesley Crusher's teenage problems that I could have done without - there are still around 150 other episodes to watch. They all look so young in the first seasons, and Worf's makeup is not quite developed yet, so I always smile whenever I see the first seasons again.
Star Trek TOS (1966-1969)
wikipediaimdb (8.6/10)
Scifi.dk rating: 8/10
The birth of all Star Trek series and movies - it is an old school B-series with bad acting, but there is something about this series - nostalgia like nothing else. My favorite character is Spock, and luckily he can be seen in the Star Trek movies too.
Star Trek VOY (1995-2001)
wikipedia
imdb (7.4/10)
Scifi.dk vurdering: 9.5/10
"Star Trek Voyager" is one of the absolute best series. The character develops alot during the series. My favorites are the slightly arrogant Doctor and Seven of Nine. Sure there are episode once in a while that are bad, but they are out weighed more than enough by fantastic episodes. There isn't much to say other than: watch this series.
StarGate Atlantis (2004-2009)
wikipediaimdb (8.5/10)
Scifi.dk rating: 9.3/10
Almost just as good as Stargate SG-1. If one thinks that SG-1 is too primitive, then maybe Stargate Atlantis is the ticket (one could also just start watching season 6 of SG-1 where the special effects are at the level of Atlantis). There is not as much humor in this series (compared to SG-1), but I still give it almost maximum ratings, because it deserves it. Great that this series still runs, although rumor has it that it will stop this season despite good ratings.
StarGate SG-1 (1997-2007)
imdb (8.6/10)
Scifi.dk rating: 10/10
The fact alone that this series has run for 10 years, tells you that a lot of people love this series. It is my favorite. The humor, and "lightness" of this series mixed with nice special effects and great stories make this series a success. I cannot remember what it was that I didn't like about season 1, when I watched it the first time, but I guess I just needed to learn the humor and characters, because when I watched it the second time I could not see what it was I didn't like. After my favorite character Jack O'Neil takes a much less visible role (around season 8 - can't remember), then the series died a bit for me, but the series as a whole features some impressive stories and it is just so great that it cannot get anything else but a 10/10 rating.
