Whether you prefer to escape to a galaxy far, far away or explore alternate dimensions parallel to our own, television wouldn’t be the same without science fiction. With plenty of sci-fi TV to choose from, I’m diving into the best of the best, according to Rotten Tomatoes .
Scoring well on the Tomatometer, these 16 series are worth the watch if you’re looking to explore new worlds.
1. Severance (2022) — 97% on Rotten Tomatoes
“Mark leads a team of office workers whose memories have been surgically divided between their work and personal lives; when a mysterious colleague appears outside of work, it begins a journey to discover the truth about their jobs.”
Apple TV / Via tenor.com
2. Doctor Who (2005) — 96% on Rotten Tomatoes
“An eccentric yet compassionate extraterrestrial Time Lord zips through time and space to solve problems alongside companions from planet Earth. Known as the Doctor, the alien adventurer travels using the TARDIS to battle injustice across the universe.”
Disney+ / Via tenor.com
3. Star Wars : Andor (2022) — 96% on Rotten Tomatoes
Set in the Star Wars universe, Andor is a grittier series that follows “Rebel spy Cassian Andor’s formative years of the Rebellion.” It is a prequel to fan favorite Star Wars film Rogue One.
Disney+ / Via tenor.com
4. Fallout (2024) — 94% on Rotten Tomatoes
“Fallout is the story of haves and have-nots in a world in which there’s almost nothing left to have. Two-hundred years after the apocalypse , the gentle denizens of luxury fallout shelters are forced to return to the irradiated hellscape their ancestors left behind—and are shocked to discover an incredibly complex, gleefully weird, and highly violent universe waiting for them.”
Amazon Prime Video / Via tenor.com
5. The 100 (2014) — 93% on Rotten Tomatoes
“When nuclear Armageddon destroys civilization on Earth, the only survivors are those on the 12 international space stations in orbit at the time. Three generations later, the 4,000 survivors living on a space ark of linked stations see their resources dwindle and face draconian measures established to ensure humanity’s future. Desperately looking for a solution, the ark’s leaders send 100 juvenile prisoners back to the planet to test its habitability. Having always lived in space, the exiles find the planet fascinating and terrifying, but with the fate of the human race in their hands, they must forge a path into the unknown.”
The CW / Via tenor.com
6. Star Trek: The Next Generation (1987) — 92% on Rotten Tomatoes
“Featuring a bigger and better USS Enterprise, this series is set 78 years after the original series — in the 24th century. Instead of Capt. James Kirk, a less volatile and more mature Capt. Jean-Luc Picard heads the crew of various humans and alien creatures in their adventures in space — the final frontier.”
Paramount Global
7. Stranger Things (2016) — 91% on Rotten Tomatoes
“Mysteries unravel in a small Midwestern town in the 1980s, involving supernatural forces, secret experiments, and one strange girl.”
Netflix / Via tenor.com
8. The Mandalorian (2019) — 90% on Rotten Tomatoes
“After the fall of the Galactic Empire, a lone gunfighter makes his way through the outer reaches of the lawless galaxy.”
Disney+ / Via tenor.com
9. Fringe (2008) — 90% on Rotten Tomatoes
“FBI Special Agent Olivia Dunham is assigned to the bureau’s Fringe Division, in which she investigates unusual crimes and occurrences. Assisting Olivia in her investigations are once-institutionalized scientist Dr. Walter Bishop, his jack-of-all-trades son, Peter, and FBI Junior Agent Astrid Farnsworth. As the team investigates cases of science gone awry, they discover connections to their own past and to a parallel universe. As the team solves cases in these interconnected worlds, new discoveries and complications continue to arise.”
FOX
10. Silo (2023) — 88% on Rotten Tomatoes
“In a ruined and toxic future, a community exists in a giant underground silo that plunges hundreds of stories deep; there, people live in a society full of regulations they believe are meant to protect them.”
Apple TV
11. Star Wars: Ahsoka (2023) — 86% on Rotten Tomatoes
“Former Jedi knight Ahsoka Tano investigates an emerging threat to a vulnerable galaxy.”
Disney+ / Via tenor.com
12. Dead Ringers (2023) — 85% on Rotten Tomatoes
“A modern take on David Cronenberg’s 1988 thriller starring Jeremy Irons, Dead Ringers will feature Rachel Weisz playing the double-lead roles of Elliot and Beverly Mantle, twins who share everything: drugs, lovers, and an unapologetic desire to do whatever it takes—including pushing the boundaries of medical ethics—in an effort to challenge antiquated practices and bring women’s health care to the forefront.”
Amazon Prime Video / Via tenor.com
13. Black Mirror (2011) — 83% on Rotten Tomatoes
“Featuring stand-alone dramas — sharp, suspenseful, satirical tales that explore techno-paranoia — Black Mirror is a contemporary reworking of The Twilight Zone with stories that tap into the collective unease about the modern world. Each story features its own cast of unique characters, including stars like Bryce Dallas Howard (“The Help”), Alice Eve, Gugu Mbatha-Raw, Tom Cullen, and Jerome Flynn (“Game of Thrones”). Joe Wright, Dan Trachtenberg, and James Watkins are among the featured directors.”
Netflix / Via tenor.com
14. Dark Matter (2024) — 82% on Rotten Tomatoes
“Jason Dessen is abducted into an alternate version of his life; to get back to his true family, he embarks on a harrowing journey to save them from the most terrifying foe imaginable: himself; based on Blake Crouch’s best-selling book.”
Apple TV
15. Westworld (2016) — 79% on Rotten Tomatoes
“Westworld isn’t your typical amusement park. Intended for rich vacationers, the futuristic park — which is looked after by robotic ‘hosts’— allows its visitors to live out their fantasies through artificial consciousness. No matter how illicit the fantasy may be, there are no consequences for the park’s guests, allowing for any wish to be indulged. Westworld is based on the 1973 Michael Crichton movie of the same name and features an all-star cast.”
HBO / Via tenor.com
16. Firefly (2002) — 77% on Rotten Tomatoes
“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.”
Firefly also garnered an audience score of 96%.
FOX / Via tenor.com
Are there any other sci-fi shows you feel should be on this list? Let me know in the comment section below!