# New SF shows you'd like to see **URL:** \ **Category:** Cafe Society\ **Created:** [September 2, 2006, 9:36pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/new-sf-shows-youd-like-to-see/371242 "2006-09-02T21:36:24Z")\ **Posts on this page:** 20\ **Page:** 2
**Author:** ![msmith537](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/m/d9b06d/32.png) [@msmith537](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/msmith537)\ **Post date:** [September 5, 2006, 1:50am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/new-sf-shows-youd-like-to-see/371242/21 "2006-09-05T01:50:48Z")
Battlestar Galactica and Doctor Who are about all the Sci Fi I can handle right now. Here’s a handy worksheet for planning your new series: Time Period (check one) Near future Far future Non Earth timeline Universe Inhabitants (check all that apply) Interstellar humans Aliens AI/cyborgs clones Main Characters (check up to six) Space outlaw, male Earthling ( From past, From future, from pre-interstellar Earth) Friendly Robot Sexy alien, female Assassin Brash military officer Goofball tech guy Alien warrior By the book engineer Hard nosed ace pilot, female Spiritual alien Self centered opportunist Antagonists Alien invader Evil megacorporation AI run amok Corrupt authorities Interstellar criminals The action primarily takes place on A large capital warship A small customized freighter A space station ---
**Author:** ![Lumpy](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/lumpy/32/446_2.png) [@Lumpy](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Lumpy)\ **Post date:** [September 5, 2006, 2:14am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/new-sf-shows-youd-like-to-see/371242/22 "2006-09-05T02:14:32Z")
[QUOTE=Monty] I would love to see a movie made based on [Christoper Priest’s _The Inverted World_](http://www.amazon.com/inverted-world-A-novel/dp/0060134216/sr=8-3/qid=1157412113/ref=pd_bbs_3/104-6485718-6043142?ie=UTF8&s=books); however, a SF TV series would also get my attention. [/QUOTE] Sounds fascinating, but I don’t know when I’d ever have time to find a copy and read it. Would you give me a synopsis in spoilers please? ---
**Author:** ![Tapioca\_Dextrin](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/t/3d9bf3/32.png) [@Tapioca\_Dextrin](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Tapioca_Dextrin)\ **Post date:** [September 7, 2006, 7:47pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/new-sf-shows-youd-like-to-see/371242/23 "2006-09-07T19:47:49Z")
Why not remake old SF shows, but turn the politics on their head? For example, what if there was a show filmed in the Babylon 5 universe, but funded by Psi-Corps? A show that showed how the migthy Klingons hunted down that cowardly cur the humans call Kirk? I’d watch it 🆒 ---
**Author:** ![Oakminster](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/o/77aa72/32.png) [@Oakminster](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Oakminster)\ **Post date:** [September 7, 2006, 7:52pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/new-sf-shows-youd-like-to-see/371242/24 "2006-09-07T19:52:30Z")
[QUOTE=Tapioca Dextrin] For example, what if there was a show filmed in the Babylon 5 universe, but funded by Psi-Corps? [/QUOTE] That already exists. Think they call it “Fox News”… ---
**Author:** ![nemminie](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/n/ecb155/32.png) [@nemminie](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/nemminie)\ **Post date:** [September 9, 2006, 3:07am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/new-sf-shows-youd-like-to-see/371242/25 "2006-09-09T03:07:58Z")
[QUOTE=Evil Captor] I’d like to see a prime-time soap opera series based on Roger Zelazny’s Amber series. Call it “House of Amber.” The same basic setup as in the series, but more focus on the personalities and faction of the member of the House of Amber as they struggle for power and whatnot. It would be much like a story about a medieval power struggle, except of course that the Amber families’ ability to shape reality makes them basically godlings, and we could throw in conflict with member of the Courts of Chaos, who ain’t all that human, for good measure. As in most soap operas, much of the expensive action – whole alien armies struggling with one another on behalf of this or that Amber faction – would be offscreen, but we could still have shots of this or that Amberite encamped on an alternate Earth where the majordomos are blue-skinned aliens. And since the Amberites can and do sleep with humans and bear children, there could be plenty of half-godlings thrown into the mix with their various schemes and ambitions. It could go on forever, and unlike your average soap opera, has enough room for maneuver built into the basic premise that it COULD go on forever in a very entertaining fashion. [/QUOTE] Wonderful if done well, but if it’s done at all I don’t want to begin to imagine your disappointment. ---
**Author:** ![AncientHumanoid](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/ancienthumanoid/32/278_2.png) [@AncientHumanoid](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/AncientHumanoid)\ **Post date:** [September 9, 2006, 12:46pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/new-sf-shows-youd-like-to-see/371242/26 "2006-09-09T12:46:12Z")
[QUOTE=nemminie] Wonderful if done well, but if it’s done at all I don’t want to begin to imagine your disappointment. [/QUOTE] This is, imho, a major point that needs to be hammared home. Compared to written fiction, TV Sci-Fi is just not going to be “done well.” Not that there haven’t been _entertaining_ sci-fi TV shows, mind you. Look at the legions of Whovians, Trekkers and Trekkies, B5 and BSG fans, and the disproportionally vocal Whedon fans (including me). But, TV just HAS to be differently done than written fiction. It’s a different market. It has to appeal to a wide range of tastes and intelligences to get on air at all, much less to stay there. So, what am I saying? Not a single one of these ideas (and I like them, btw) have a chance of ever even being considered, definitely not made. A whelk has a better chance in a supernova. But, it’s still a fun thread. Lot’s of ideas that I personally find interesting. Alas, us 20 people don’t make a very good TV market, I’m afraid. ---
**Author:** ![BrainGlutton](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/b/82dd89/32.png) [@BrainGlutton](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/BrainGlutton)\ **Post date:** [September 9, 2006, 2:53pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/new-sf-shows-youd-like-to-see/371242/27 "2006-09-09T14:53:37Z")
[QUOTE=NoClueBoy] This is, imho, a major point that needs to be hammared home. Compared to written fiction, TV Sci-Fi is just not going to be “done well.” Not that there haven’t been _entertaining_ sci-fi TV shows, mind you. Look at the legions of Whovians, Trekkers and Trekkies, B5 and BSG fans, and the disproportionally vocal Whedon fans (including me). But, TV just HAS to be differently done than written fiction. It’s a different market. It has to appeal to a wide range of tastes and intelligences to get on air at all, much less to stay there. [/QUOTE] But, can’t a genuinely intelligent show appeal to persons of average (or lower) intelligence, if it’s well-written enough? ---
**Author:** ![ddgryphon](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/d/8c91f0/32.png) [@ddgryphon](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/ddgryphon)\ **Post date:** [September 9, 2006, 3:38pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/new-sf-shows-youd-like-to-see/371242/28 "2006-09-09T15:38:34Z")
Not a premise, but I’d like to see a self-contained season (similar to 24 or telenovellas) that tell a single story based around a set of characters and a situation. Think of it as a Visual Novel. You could either base it on some pre-existing material like the first three foundation books, or develop an entirely new concept. I think television should pretty much move in this direction anyway (self-contained seasons) since the DVD market is supplanting the re-run market as the place to recoup your money. ---
**Author:** ![ddgryphon](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/d/8c91f0/32.png) [@ddgryphon](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/ddgryphon)\ **Post date:** [September 9, 2006, 3:42pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/new-sf-shows-youd-like-to-see/371242/29 "2006-09-09T15:42:00Z")
Oh, in relation to my post, I’d like to see an adaptation of “The First,” “Ruse,” or “Meridian” from the defunct Crossgen line. Linky: [CrossGen - Wikipedia](http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/CrossGen#Titles) ---
**Author:** ![gonzomax](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/g/e8c25b/32.png) [@gonzomax](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/gonzomax)\ **Post date:** [September 9, 2006, 4:59pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/new-sf-shows-youd-like-to-see/371242/30 "2006-09-09T16:59:12Z")
Where can you go. Right now sci fi has a movie on. A guy smuggles a chupacabra aboard a cruise ship and things go wrong. What a surprise that would be.Followed by rotweiller,sasquatch,and bats.The barrel has been scraped. ---
**Author:** ![Evil\_Captor](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/e/f17d59/32.png) [@Evil\_Captor](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Evil_Captor)\ **Post date:** [September 9, 2006, 5:18pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/new-sf-shows-youd-like-to-see/371242/31 "2006-09-09T17:18:12Z")
[QUOTE=nemminie] Wonderful if done well, but if it’s done at all I don’t want to begin to imagine your disappointment. [/QUOTE] Well, one reason I thought in terms of a space opea was that I didn’t want to ask the TV guys for more than they knew how to handle. Soap opera is a familiar genre for them. Besides, it could hardly be worse than the movie that was adapted from Zelazny’s “Damnation Alley.” ---
**Author:** ![AncientHumanoid](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/ancienthumanoid/32/278_2.png) [@AncientHumanoid](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/AncientHumanoid)\ **Post date:** [September 9, 2006, 5:34pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/new-sf-shows-youd-like-to-see/371242/32 "2006-09-09T17:34:15Z")
[QUOTE=BrainGlutton] But, can’t a genuinely intelligent show appeal to persons of average (or lower) intelligence, if it’s well-written enough? [/QUOTE] Sure. Until the suits get hold of it and dumb it down, rework the ideals, or screw it out of profitable time slots. Or until the unwashed masses get tired of the phenom and move on to the next reality show. I’m a huge Sci-Fi fan. I love it on TV (even on FOX), at the movies, in short story collections, magzines, novel series, and stand alone novels. But I recognise that there’s very little overlap in well written sci-fi and long lasting (read: profitable) TV. ---
**Author:** ![Stuffy](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/s/f17d59/32.png) [@Stuffy](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Stuffy)\ **Post date:** [September 9, 2006, 8:10pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/new-sf-shows-youd-like-to-see/371242/33 "2006-09-09T20:10:10Z")
It’ll never happen but I’d love to see the Honor Harrington series on TV. Start with On Basilisk Station as maybe a mini-series. The rest of the books can be done as seasons. ---
**Author:** ![BrainGlutton](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/b/82dd89/32.png) [@BrainGlutton](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/BrainGlutton)\ **Post date:** [September 9, 2006, 9:03pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/new-sf-shows-youd-like-to-see/371242/34 "2006-09-09T21:03:07Z")
[QUOTE=Stuffy] It’ll never happen but I’d love to see the Honor Harrington series on TV. Start with On Basilisk Station as maybe a mini-series. The rest of the books can be done as seasons. [/QUOTE] Why would that never happen? ---
**Author:** ![silenus](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/silenus/32/166_2.png) [@silenus](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/silenus)\ **Post date:** [September 9, 2006, 9:41pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/new-sf-shows-youd-like-to-see/371242/35 "2006-09-09T21:41:14Z")
Because it would be intelligent, entertaining and thought-provoking. Also expensive. ---
**Author:** ![Stuffy](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/s/f17d59/32.png) [@Stuffy](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Stuffy)\ **Post date:** [September 10, 2006, 1:06am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/new-sf-shows-youd-like-to-see/371242/36 "2006-09-10T01:06:24Z")
[QUOTE=BrainGlutton] Why would that never happen? [/QUOTE] Because I want it to. That said, I wonder if they’d use Muppets or CGI for Nimitz. ---
**Author:** ![Typo\_Knig](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/t/cdc98d/32.png) [@Typo\_Knig](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Typo_Knig)\ **Post date:** [September 10, 2006, 1:45am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/new-sf-shows-youd-like-to-see/371242/37 "2006-09-10T01:45:57Z")
I think the Vokosiganverse could make a good set of miniseries. Until The Suits decide to bring in the young audience by casting Britney Spears and Kevin Federline as Cordelia and Aral … 😕 :eek: :smack: :mad: ---
**Author:** ![brianjedi](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/b/3be4f8/32.png) [@brianjedi](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/brianjedi)\ **Post date:** [September 10, 2006, 2:17am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/new-sf-shows-youd-like-to-see/371242/38 "2006-09-10T02:17:23Z")
[QUOTE=gonzomax] Where can you go. Right now sci fi has a movie on. A guy smuggles a chupacabra aboard a cruise ship and things go wrong. What a surprise that would be.Followed by rotweiller,sasquatch,and bats.The barrel has been scraped. [/QUOTE] A chupacabra on a boat? I suppose next you’ll be telling me they made a movie where someone brings snakes on a plane or some such nonsense. I’d love to see a series in the B5/DS9 vein, with big space battles, collaboration/conflict between multiple species and well-written dialogue above all else. ---
**Author:** ![NDP](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/ndp/32/55_2.png) [@NDP](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/NDP)\ **Post date:** [September 10, 2006, 2:19am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/new-sf-shows-youd-like-to-see/371242/39 "2006-09-10T02:19:06Z")
[QUOTE=silenus] Oh, there should also be hookers. Space hookers. [/QUOTE] And black jack! ---
**Author:** ![Loach](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/loach/32/350_2.png) [@Loach](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Loach)\ **Post date:** [September 10, 2006, 2:23am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/new-sf-shows-youd-like-to-see/371242/40 "2006-09-10T02:23:29Z")
[QUOTE=CalMeacham] Some existinf SF books already lend themselves to the idea of a series: 1.) Philip Jose Farmer’s **Riverworld** books. Ignore the stupid SF channel TV-movie (which wasn’t very faithful, what with horses and all, and suffering from the same US-centeredness that ruins a lot of other ideas). They’ve already had two collections of Riverworld short stories by writers other than Farmer to prove the concept works. It gives you a great excuse to bring together famous figures from different periods in history and different cultures, and have them cope with limited technology to accomplish – any of a number of goals. [/QUOTE] It would have to be done on pay cable. No way it works without the nudity and the sex. [Previous page](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/new-sf-shows-youd-like-to-see/371242.md?page=1)