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  The Comprehensive Index of Science Fiction and Fantasy Television Series    
 
  Decade: 1950's  27 Series   View Chronological List  
  1960's  55 Series   View Alpha List  
  1970's  61 Series  
  1980's  72 Series  
  1990's 144 Series  
  2000's 142 Series  
 
 
Text Box: About the List: This list is an attempt to document Science Fiction and Fantasy programs that have appeared on television with a primary focus on shows that have had some exposure on United States television networks. I refer to it as Comprehensive instead of Complete because I have no idea what would comprise a “complete” list. This all gets down to how you define the genre and I am using a very broad definition of which includes series that would fall under the Horror and Supernatural genres. In Britain, programs with these elements are referred to as “telefantasy” which I would say provides a suitable moniker for the genre. Other may prefer a broader or more narrow definition, but I am sticking with that for now. However, I am limiting the list to programs that have Science Fiction, Fantasy, Horror, and/or Supernatural elements as part of their core premise. So by this definition, shows such as Boris Karloff’s Thriller would be included because even though it was primarily a Suspense show, Horror and Supernatural elements were core to its premise as well. I did not include shows such as Alfred Hitchcock Presents because, while it may have ventured into the supernatural from time to time, it was primarily a thriller/suspense series. This of course is going to lead to all sorts of debates as to what should and shouldn’t be included in the list. Does it really make sense to include such sitcoms as I Dream of Jeannie and Bewitched to the list? They are really just fish out of water comedies, but the do have Fantasy and Supernatural elements as part of their core premise. I did draw the line at the Flying Nun, but maybe somebody could make an argument for its inclusion. Then you start to get into your weekend morning/weekday children’s shows. A vast number of those programs have Fantasy elements, but I am not trying to document children’s programming with this list. Therefore, when considering youth-oriented series, I have only included those with a strong focus on the genre elements or those that have had a significant impact on the Science Fiction and Fantasy television. So, by this criteria, I am including Ark II because of its Science Fiction premise and the Power Rangers (though not every incarnation) because they became a cultural phenomenon but I am passing on shows like Gilligan’s Planet and Far Out Space Nuts (wasn’t Bob Denver involved with both of those). Then there are the international shows, which are currently not well represented in this list. As I mentioned above, I am currently focusing on programs that have aired on broadcast and/or cable channels widely available in the United States. The main reason being that these are the shows I am most familiar with. I am including foreign made shows that either had significant exposure in the United States such as Dr. Who or that are considered highly significant entries in the genre such as the British Quatermass serials. I do not pretend to offer a comprehensive list of foreign made shows at this time, especially those that have had little or no exposure to United States audiences. I do hope to continue to beef up this part of the list as time goes by. Another area of deficiency for the list is its representation of Anime. While I have a definite appreciation for the genre, I do not consider myself an expert on the subject. I have included several of the archetypes such as Astro Boy, Science Ninja Team Gatchaman, and Super Dimension Fortress Macross. I have also included shows that have received significant exposure in the Unites States such as Star Blazers (aka Space Battleship Yamato) and Gundam Wing. And I have included ones that I have watched and enjoyed such as Captain Harlock. For shows that were imported to the states in a significantly different incarnation from their source material because of editing, re-dubbing, and/or re-imaging, I have included separate entries, i.e., Battle of the Planets and Robotech. I am not at all adverse to beefing up the list to better represent Anime, because it is significant to the Science Fiction and Fantasy genre, but I will need some help from experts on the subject. If there are any volunteers, feel free to contact me. I have included some mini-series in the list such as Stephen King’s The Stand and Wild Palms, but I know that I still have quite a few deficiencies in this area (the omission of the Earthsea mini-series is intentional, but it will eventually be included when I get over the fact that the producers absolutely massacred Ursula K. Le Guin’s excellent books). I will continue to add mini-series entries as I do further research. I have not included stand-alone TV movies or pilots that failed to fly because this would more than double the length of the list (and my workload for maintaining it). At some point, I may decided to create a separate list of failed pilots. And with all of this, I am still guessing that I have one or two glaring omissions and quite a few minor exclusions. This is still a work in progress and I will ask my readers to send me information on series that I have not included and/or corrections on any entries that have errors. I figure that maybe after a year of so of feedback I will have something that more closely resembles a “complete” list of Science Fiction and Fantasy television series. Also, over the next year I plan on adding reviews and links to external sites which provide additional information for the shows and DVD availability (yeah, they will be sponsored links, got to cover costs somehow). And maybe I will eventually include brief descriptions for each of the series. In the meantime, you can visit TV.com, Wikipedia, and/or the IMDB database for additional information (links below). These are the sites where I gathered most of my information for the list. So for now, enjoy and please send your feedback. -John J. Joex
 
   
   
   
   
   
   
   
   
   
   
   
   
   
   
   
   
   
   
   
   
   
   
   
   
   
   
   
   
   
   
   
   
   
   
   
   
   
   
   
   
   
   
   
   
   
   
   
   
   
   
   
 
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