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    SciFi Beginner Who Needs Help!

    Hi everyone,

    I havent watched much SciFi before and I just wanted your opinions and a brief description on the different shows out there. I am currently waiting for Stargate SG-1 in the mail and I was a big fan of Jericho until it got cut in Australia.

    I have heard shows like Battlestar Galactica and Firefly are great and I have also heard promising things about Farscape and Babylon 5.

    If anyone can help me out and give me a bit of a run down and your opinions on the different shows that would be great.

    I am going to watch the original Stargate movie while I wait for the series to arrive in the mail.

    #2
    you must be pretty confident that you will like SG-1 seeing as you ordered 10 whole seasons, that's 214 episodes!!

    anyway
    Battlestar Galactica - evil robots invade a human civilisation, only one battleship and about 50,000 humans on civvie ships remain running away to find new hope beyond the stars. lots of character building, not too much hard sci fi stuff. the same show could easily be told from the viewpoint of an aircraft carrier on the ocean

    firefly - imagine a western in the future. a few years after a civil war, a space ship crew find themselves in the midst of a government conspiricy when they take on 2 new people.

    farscape - perent day astronaut gets flung through a wormhole to other side of the universe meeting a weird crew on a weird living spaceship, sometimes very serious, sometimes very funny, but always very sci-fi-y

    never really watched bab5
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      #3
      Originally posted by caveman View Post
      Hi everyone,

      I havent watched much SciFi before and I just wanted your opinions and a brief description on the different shows out there. I am currently waiting for Stargate SG-1 in the mail and I was a big fan of Jericho until it got cut in Australia.

      I have heard shows like Battlestar Galactica and Firefly are great and I have also heard promising things about Farscape and Babylon 5.

      If anyone can help me out and give me a bit of a run down and your opinions on the different shows that would be great.

      I am going to watch the original Stargate movie while I wait for the series to arrive in the mail.
      All the shows you've mentioned are fantastic (I haven't seen Jericho though). SG-1 is excellent sci-fi (especially the first 8 seasons), and BSG and Firefly are my two all-time favourite shows so I can't recommend them enough B5 is classic and Farscape, a lot of fun.

      I also highly, highly recommend:
      - Doctor Who (both classic and new)
      - Lost
      - Supernatural (if you're into the scary stuff)
      - Carnivale
      - Buffy/Angel

      If you like SG-1 you should probably check out Atlantis also, it's not quite as good imo but by all means you should give it a try.

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        #4
        Babylon 5 - Usually considered one of the best (if not the best) science-fiction television series, Babylon 5 is the story of Earth's fifth space station of the "Babylon Project," an attempt to build an interspecies meeting place in neutral territory. The year is 2159, ten years after the Earth-Minbari War, in which humanity was nearly annihilated by their now-allies the Minbari, one of the most powerful and advanced races in the galaxy.

        But almost at once, the "last, best hope for peace" is plagued by political intrigue between the major races, and a war quickly breaking out between two of the players. Can Earth hang on to its dreams of a brighter future? Or will they, along with Babylon 5, go up in flames?
        Click the banner or episode links to visit the virtual continuations of Stargate!
        Previous Episode: 11x03 "Shore Leave" | Previous Episode: 6x04 "Nightfall" | Now Airing: 3x06 "Eldest"

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          #5
          Originally posted by Kezia View Post
          All the shows you've mentioned are fantastic (I haven't seen Jericho though). SG-1 is excellent sci-fi (especially the first 8 seasons), and BSG and Firefly are my two all-time favourite shows so I can't recommend them enough B5 is classic and Farscape, a lot of fun.

          I also highly, highly recommend:
          - Doctor Who (both classic and new)
          - Lost
          - Supernatural (if you're into the scary stuff)
          - Carnivale
          - Buffy/Angel

          If you like SG-1 you should probably check out Atlantis also, it's not quite as good imo but by all means you should give it a try.
          Can you tell me a bit more about BSG and Firefly? I have heard that there is an old series of BSG, a miniseries and the current remake. What order should I watch them?

          Also is firefly just a one off series?

          I watch Lost and Supernatural. What is Carnivale about?

          Thanks for your help.

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            #6
            Originally posted by caveman View Post
            Can you tell me a bit more about BSG and Firefly? I have heard that there is an old series of BSG, a miniseries and the current remake. What order should I watch them?

            Also is firefly just a one off series?

            I watch Lost and Supernatural. What is Carnivale about?

            Thanks for your help.
            There was the original BSG from 1978. The mini-series was a re-imagining (2003), but also served as the pilot for the current BSG series (2004). The original and the new BSG are not directly related in terms of their story, so you do not need to watch the original at all.
            If you're going to watch the new BSG, you need to start with the mini-series which follows directly into the episodes proper.
            There is also BSG: Razor, which is a TV movie, that's part of the new BSG also. Razor was aired between season 3 and season 4, so you should watch it then as it is intended. The events take place earlier than this though, but it has more context in it's proper place as it was aired.

            Firefly was cancelled after season 1. It has a sequel movie called Serenity. If you watch Firefly, be warned, almost everyone who watches it comes to love it (yes it really is that good), so you'll end up as depressed about the fact it only got 1 season as everyone else is. However, it's still worth the heartbreak, because it really is that good.


            Anyway, if you want to perhaps try some currently running and soon to start shows try the following:

            Fringe (new this fall, premieres Sept 16) - It's X-Files-esque paranormal investigation. Buzz is high around this since it's from JJ Abrams (Alias, Lost) and co.

            Virtuality (new in 2009) - It's about Earth's first space mission. Over a 10 year mission the crew use VR machines for entertainment. This is what Ron D Moore (Deep Space 9, BSG) is doing next since BSG is wrapping up with the next season, so expectations are high for this also.

            Dollhouse (new in 2009) - It's about people aka Dolls who have programmable personalities and are hired out for various tasks. This is Joss Whedon's (Buffy, Firefly) next TV project, so also expect big things.

            Sarah Connor Chronicles (season 2 premieres Sept 8) - It's basically Terminator: The Series. The first season was excellent and well recieved, should continue to do well hopefully. Also features fan favourite Summer Glau of Firefly fame, being creepy yet hot as always - which is a good thing.

            Heroes (season 3 premieres Sept 29) - The premise is ordinary people find out they have super powers. Don't be fooled into thinking this is going to be cheesy superhero stuff, because it has a very contempory and dark tone. Technically the upcoming season 3 is the back half of what was planned as season 2, but it was always split into two "volumes" anyway. The first season is excellent, the second went of on a bit of a tangent and didn't really take the story anywhere, but after it did so well with season 1, hopefully it will get back to that standard with season 3. Worth checking out.

            Sanctuary (new (to TV at least) this fall, premieres Oct 3) - It started as a web series, and now it's being redone for TV. Very popular around here because it's the creation of one of the Stargate writers, Damian Kindler, and also stars Amanda Tapping, as well as featuring other Stargate alumni. The basic premise is the study of monsters/creatures to the backdrop of Victorian London & Jack the Ripper.


            Edit: Also, Fringe reminded me... X-Files!! Obvious classic that can't be overlooked. I'm sure you know the gist of it if you havn't already watched it.

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              #7
              Originally posted by s09119 View Post
              Babylon 5 - Usually considered one of the best (if not the best) science-fiction television series, Babylon 5 is the story of Earth's fifth space station of the "Babylon Project," an attempt to build an interspecies meeting place in neutral territory. The year is 2159, ten years after the Earth-Minbari War, in which humanity was nearly annihilated by their now-allies the Minbari, one of the most powerful and advanced races in the galaxy.

              But almost at once, the "last, best hope for peace" is plagued by political intrigue between the major races, and a war quickly breaking out between two of the players. Can Earth hang on to its dreams of a brighter future? Or will they, along with Babylon 5, go up in flames?
              Ahem... You're about a century off. The show actually begins in the year 2257.
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                #8
                my favorite scifi shows are:

                1. Stargate Atlantis (my absolute favorite)
                2. Stargate SG-1
                3. Farscape
                4. Battlestar Galactica
                5. Firefly
                6. Heroes
                7. The X-Files

                i've only seen parts of Babylon 5 but what i've seen has been absolutely amazing!
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                  #9
                  BattlestarGalacticaBattlestarGalacticaBattlestarGalactica. That's where you want to start (the remake forget the original). With the best of the best of the best.

                  First, you rent the miniseries. Then you watch it. Then you proceed you hit your head on your coffee table/wall/tv screen wondering why you didn't just buy the season one box set in the first place because you have to see what happens next NOW.

                  Then you buy the season one box set, season 2.0, 2.5, three and Razor (disclaimer: not sure how the sets were released in Austrailia, so this part may vary). And you watch it all over the span of two weeks, during which time you get absolutely no sun and your neighbors start to wonder if they shouldn't go and knock on your door. Then you *cough* acquire season 4.0, that'll last you another two days, if you watch conservatively. Then you'll have four months to contemplate/moan/count the seconds until the final ten episodes with the rest of us!

                  I promise it's the perfect cylon plan.

                  Edit:
                  here's a trailer for the miniseries

                  and here's a trailer for season one
                  Last edited by Trek_Girl42; 06 September 2008, 09:03 PM.

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                    #10
                    I absolutely second the recommendations for Babylon 5 and Moore's Battlestar Galactica respectively.

                    I'm also a rather big fan of Star Trek, particularly The Next Generation and Deep Space Nine, both highly recommended. I haven't seen enough of Voyager to judge its worth compared with the other two. The Original Series is for the big fans, without it most other sci-fi shows probably wouldn't have been made, but it does show its age. I haven't seen any Enterprise yet.
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                      #11
                      Originally posted by maneth View Post
                      I absolutely second the recommendations for Babylon 5 and Moore's Battlestar Galactica respectively.

                      I'm also a rather big fan of Star Trek, particularly The Next Generation and Deep Space Nine, both highly recommended. I haven't seen enough of Voyager to judge its worth compared with the other two. The Original Series is for the big fans, without it most other sci-fi shows probably wouldn't have been made, but it does show its age. I haven't seen any Enterprise yet.
                      was wondering why no one had mentiioned star trek

                      i personally prefer voyager- just everything about it i prefer especially the charcters, i can just iamgine them as real people more than many other tv shows
                      then i'd say next generation
                      deep space nine is good but i think you have to be 'into' star trek to enjoy it don't think as many casual viewers watch but i could be wrong

                      oh god enterprise watched it a couple of times and just could not get into it at all
                      the original series i loved when i was little (like 8/9) but these days no not so good
                      "What we need now is a tactical retreat. Did you see the episode on Stargate where they found themselves on a planet with a culture based loosely on Earth Athens and Sparta?"

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                        #12
                        My favorite sci-fi shows are:

                        new Battlestar Galactica
                        Babylon 5
                        original Star Trek
                        X-Files
                        The Twilight Zone (original)
                        Outer Limits(original)

                        Then there are shows that don't really fit sci-fi like Lost and Carnivale, Buffy, Angel and Dead Like Me.

                        I know it's not sci-fi but I have to plug my latest obsession...Avatar: The Last Airbender. I don't care if it's a kid's cartoon.....it's incredible and appeals to all ages. I love it and I'm proud!!!!!

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                          #13
                          If you like Stargate SG-1 you might like Stargate Atlantis, so make sure you at least try it!

                          Battlestar Galactica - very gritty, be prepared to have your emotions toyed with. Lives up to all of the hype, not to mention brilliant characters and special effects. There's a miniseries followed by 3 and a half seasons so far. The other half is to air next year I think. Oh, and there's a series of webisodes as well as the Razor miniseries in the middle somewhere.
                          Basically, humans are living on 12 different colonies peacefully after a great war with robots called Cylons, until one day the Cylons attack again and wipe most of them out. The remaining 40,000 or so that manage to escape then try to find a way to their original home, Earth while escaping other Cylon attacks. What they don't know (at first) though is that the Cylons have evolved, and now some of them look like humans and have infiltrated the remaining human population...

                          Firefly - In the future, humans have spread out across the galaxy. Some planets are rich, some are poor. The Alliance controls most things, but a group of rebels nicknamed the Browncoats are trying to fight back. The show focuses on a ship called Serenity, on which 9 people live. They survive by smuggling and petty crime, while trying to hide from the Alliance and ruthless creatures called Reavers. Very funny show, done by the same guy who wrote Buffy, Angel and Dr. Horrible's Sing-Along Blog.

                          Farscape - astronaut John Crichton is testing out a ship he designed in orbit above Earth when his module accidentally flies through a wormhole and he ends up in another part of the universe. Upon his arrival, he inadvertently ends up on a ship called Moya, whose crew is trying to flee from the tyrannical Peacekeepers, who control most of the region. He spends the series trying to return home, while having to get used to living on a ship full of aliens and constantly running from the Peacekeepers, who want information from him. A fantastic series, one of my all time favourites. Can really play with your emotions - is funny and sad at the same time, and has some great characters.

                          Eureka - US Marshall Jack Carter crashes his car and goes to the nearest town for help. What he doesn't know is that the town is actually a secret government project named Eureka, in which the best and brightest scientists from all around the world live and invent new technologies for use in the real world. He ends up becoming Sheriff and has to cope with everyone around him being smarter than him, while trying to avert disasters when inventions go wrong. Very funny series, you can watch it without having to think too hard.

                          Terminator: The Sarah Connor Chronicles - I've only seen the first 2 Terminator movies so I have no idea if this is set before or after the 3rd one, but I hadn't seen them before I saw this and I still understand it.
                          In the future, a computer system called Skynet evolves and creates intelligent robots called Terminators that wipe out most of the population of the Earth. John Connor leads the resistance against them and becomes a hero amongst the people of Earth. Terminators are sent back in time to when John was a teenage boy in an attempt to kill him before he can fight back. His mother, Sarah Connor, and a re-programmed Terminator tries to protect him from being killed while trying to stop the invention of the Skynet program. Good special effects, I really enjoy it even though I wasn't a huge fan of the movies.

                          The X-Files - FBI Agents Fox Mulder and Dana Scully investigate paranormal and supernatural phenomenon cases, called X-Files, while trying to unearth a much larger government conspiracy. Mulder also searches for his sister, whom he believes was abducted by aliens when they were children. I've only seen the first 4 seasons and the movies but it's a classic series with some great stories.

                          Doctor Who - I've only seen the new series but I love it. A mysterious alien man called The Doctor travels through space and time in his spaceship, the TARDIS. He travels with various companions from Earth, and shows them the wonders of the universe, while occasionally having to save the odd planet or race. Quirky and funny, can be emotional too. A huge hit in the UK.

                          Torchwood - spin off from Doctor Who focusing on Captain Jack Harkness, a man from the future stuck in our time period. He runs a secret organisation called Torchwood, which tracks down aliens and alien technology to benefit mankind in the future. A bit odd and the first season has some quite 'adult' themes, but the second season gets better.

                          Fringe - done by the same guy who wrote Lost. The only episode that's aired so far is the pilot, but it was similar to the X-Files in that an FBI agent investigates a weird case, with the help of an institutionalised scientist and his genius son. Since there's only one episode out so far you might want to give that a go.

                          Dark Angel - in the future, an organisation called Manticore creates a series of genetically modified child soldiers who have highly evolved eyesight, speed, strength and reflexes. The soldiers rebel and escape, and try to live a normal life in the city. The series focuses on Max (played by Jessica Alba) and her mysterious friend Logan, a computer hacker who has made lots of enemies. Together they try and find Max's lost brother and sisters, while hiding from the government agents who are searching for her.

                          Heroes - people all over the world discover they suddenly have a special ability, be it regeneration, invisibility, the ability to fly or all of the above. But one of them is killing them off one by one and stealing their special powers. The Heroes have to find each other and band together in order to overcome the rogue among them, as well find information about a mysterious organisation called The Company, but some are more willing to help than others. Meanwhile, those with abilities find that their daily routines and personal lives are starting to fall apart thanks to their new powers.

                          The 4400 - over many decades, people have been going missing for no apparent reason, just vanishing into thin air. Then one day, all 4400 of them return suddenly in exactly the same place. Unsure why or how they were taken, a government division called NTAC quarantines them and tries to find out what happened to them. There, they discover that every one of them has some sort of special ability they didn't have before. One of the NTAC agents, who has close personal ties to some of the abductees, makes an important discovery about the purpose of their abilities and who took them in the first place. It's a bit like Heroes only with less hype.

                          Roswell - more of a teenager's show I think. Three alien children, Max, his sister Isobel and their friend Michael arrive on Earth and are adopted by humans. They live in secret for many years until the human girl Max likes is hurt. He heals her and ends up revealing his identity to her, and eventually some of her friends. Meanwhile, the local sheriff is asking questions and suspicions are raised. The trio try to find out who they are and why their real parents send them to Earth. Then, they discover that they're not the only aliens living on the planet, and the others aren't quite as friendly...

                          Sorry if my summaries suck, it's 3:30am where I am. I hope you manage to find something you'll like.
                          Last edited by firefly827347; 11 September 2008, 06:42 PM.

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                            #14
                            Originally posted by Kezia View Post
                            All the shows you've mentioned are fantastic (I haven't seen Jericho though). SG-1 is excellent sci-fi (especially the first 8 seasons), and BSG and Firefly are my two all-time favourite shows so I can't recommend them enough B5 is classic and Farscape, a lot of fun.

                            I also highly, highly recommend:
                            - Doctor Who (both classic and new)
                            - Lost
                            - Supernatural (if you're into the scary stuff)
                            - Carnivale
                            - Buffy/Angel

                            If you like SG-1 you should probably check out Atlantis also, it's not quite as good imo but by all means you should give it a try.

                            Oh I just saw Carnivale! It's amazing. I actually didn't know how they would go beyond a season two until the last couple of episodes where all was very creepily revealed!

                            ..of course it was then canceled *sigh* but what can I do?

                            Oh and Carnivale is a story about good versus evil and Supernatural powers in the American dust bowl in the 1930's and it's very very weird.
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                              #15
                              if your into wierd creepy sci fi you should definatly check out lexx, its the wierdest sci fi you'll ever see

                              another show you might be interested in is blake 7, yes its old but its a goodie, its about a bunch of rebels banning together to take out the tyrannical (did i spell that right?) federation

                              you might also like quantum leap, starring scott bakula (from enterprise) a failed experiment sends him back through time in other people's bodies so that he can prevent certain things from happening, if he does something right he gets closer to his own time frame

                              and ofcourse theres

                              babylon 5
                              battlestar galactica
                              heroes
                              lost
                              smallville
                              star trek enterprise
                              star trek deep space nine
                              star trek the next generation
                              star trek the original series
                              star trek voyager
                              stargate sg-1
                              stargate atlantis
                              the sarah connor chronicles
                              x-files
                              Last Movie Watched
                              X-men - First Class

                              Last Video Game Played
                              Life is Strange

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