# Whither the great cheesy fantasy and SF shows of yesteryear? **URL:** \ **Category:** Cafe Society\ **Created:** [January 16, 2005, 5:13pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/whither-the-great-cheesy-fantasy-and-sf-shows-of-yesteryear/285034 "2005-01-16T17:13:56Z")\ **Posts on this page:** 20\ **Page:** 2
**Author:** ![Tangent](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/tangent/32/3098_2.png) [@Tangent](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Tangent)\ **Post date:** [January 16, 2005, 9:04pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/whither-the-great-cheesy-fantasy-and-sf-shows-of-yesteryear/285034/21 "2005-01-16T21:04:47Z")
There was **NightMan** , a superhero show that was adapted from an UltraVerse comic book that I thought I was the only person to have ever read (though it was actually a decent book). I was floored when I saw that they’d made it into a TV show. Let’s not forget **Baywatch Nights** , sort of a cross between Baywatch and X-Files. 😕 And there’s the Highlander spin-off, **The Raven**. It was pretty bad, but I watched it every chance I got because of Elizabeth Gracen’s hotness. ---
**Author:** ![gobear](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/g/8dc957/32.png) [@gobear](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/gobear)\ **Post date:** [January 16, 2005, 9:09pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/whither-the-great-cheesy-fantasy-and-sf-shows-of-yesteryear/285034/22 "2005-01-16T21:09:45Z")
For some reason, the Sci-fi Channel launches and then abandons interesting shows. The Chronicle–a fun show about the staff of a supermarket tabloid tackling monsters. The vampire Elvis imitators ep was the best. The Invisible Man–about a thief turned invisible and forced to work for the government Tripping The Rift–Haven’t seen any new eps in a year, so I’m guessing it’s dead. Tremors: The Series–Like it sounds. I enjoyed the episodes featuring the genetic monsters caused by the GM virus. ---
**Author:** ![GuanoLad](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/guanolad/32/42_2.png) [@GuanoLad](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/GuanoLad)\ **Post date:** [January 16, 2005, 9:33pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/whither-the-great-cheesy-fantasy-and-sf-shows-of-yesteryear/285034/23 "2005-01-16T21:33:49Z")
Wasn’t there something called VR-5? It had Lori Singer in it or someone llike that. Cyberpunk never seems to work on TV. It barely works in film, the Matrix being a singular exception, and even that’s arguable. ---
**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:** [January 16, 2005, 10:15pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/whither-the-great-cheesy-fantasy-and-sf-shows-of-yesteryear/285034/24 "2005-01-16T22:15:39Z")
OK, I had to assure myself that this show wasn’t a dream: [Conan the Adventurer](http://www.tvtome.com/tvtome/servlet/ShowMainServlet/showid-4075/Conan/) ---
**Author:** ![Bosda\_Di\_Chi\_of\_Tricor](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/bosda_di_chi_of_tricor/32/16845_2.png) [@Bosda\_Di\_Chi\_of\_Tricor](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Bosda_Di_Chi_of_Tricor)\ **Post date:** [January 16, 2005, 10:39pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/whither-the-great-cheesy-fantasy-and-sf-shows-of-yesteryear/285034/25 "2005-01-16T22:39:39Z")
_Tales Of The Gold Monkey_ --very nifty Raider rip. I look on it fondly. _The Man From Atlantis_ —starred Patrick Duffy. Aquaman-lite, but nice. ---
**Author:** ![Steve\_Wright](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/s/848f3c/32.png) [@Steve\_Wright](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Steve_Wright)\ **Post date:** [January 16, 2005, 11:05pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/whither-the-great-cheesy-fantasy-and-sf-shows-of-yesteryear/285034/26 "2005-01-16T23:05:36Z")
There was _Harsh Realm_. Sort of a cross between _The Matrix_ and _Tour of Duty_, as envisaged by Chris Carter. Cancelled after nine episodes, which was at least four, and more likely nine, too many. ---
**Author:** ![Eats\_Crayons](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/e/278dde/32.png) [@Eats\_Crayons](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Eats_Crayons)\ **Post date:** [January 16, 2005, 11:36pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/whither-the-great-cheesy-fantasy-and-sf-shows-of-yesteryear/285034/27 "2005-01-16T23:36:16Z")
> [@Otto](#): > > Gah, the memories come flooding back! > > Highlander: the Series > War of the Worlds: the Series > Tracker > > All starring Adrian Paul. He must be stopped! Although I rather liked WotW. Ah, let’s not forget _Highlander: The Raven_ a spinoff series for the character Amanda. An immortal chick who died from the plague and has a penchant for cat-burglary. _Witchblade_ based on the comic. Had a lot of potential but a disasterous production manager and a lead actress who had, uh, “personal problems”. Rumour has it the may be back but they would likely recast the lead role to avoid future problems. My favourite TV shows as a kid (and oh, the were bad) was a show called _Phoenix_ about an astonaught from an ancient civilization, named Benu. Only lasted something like 5 episodes. LOVED it as a kid. And I had a really weird thing for _The Powers of Matthew Star_. I thin I was brain damaged at the time and had really low expectations. ---
**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:** [January 17, 2005, 12:09am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/whither-the-great-cheesy-fantasy-and-sf-shows-of-yesteryear/285034/28 "2005-01-17T00:09:04Z")
> [@GuanoLad](#): > > Wasn’t there something called VR-5? It had Lori Singer in it or someone llike that. > > Cyberpunk never seems to work on TV. It barely works in film, the Matrix being a singular exception, and even that’s arguable. Oh, yeah, I had high hopes for VR5, but it never really worked. Which reminds me, anybody remember “The Lone Gunmen”? They DEFINITELY coulda let that one go a little longer … had some potential. I mean, what was Fox dropping it for? Some teen mellerdrammer, I bet. And wasn’t there a series about some kind of elite group of young hackers who fought evil stuff on the Internet? ---
**Author:** ![Snooooopy](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/s/ee7513/32.png) [@Snooooopy](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Snooooopy)\ **Post date:** [January 17, 2005, 12:12am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/whither-the-great-cheesy-fantasy-and-sf-shows-of-yesteryear/285034/29 "2005-01-17T00:12:43Z")
> [@Evil Captor](#): > > And wasn’t there a series about some kind of elite group of young hackers who fought evil stuff on the Internet? Is it “freakylinks” that you’re thinking of? ---
**Author:** ![Reepicheep](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/r/ed655f/32.png) [@Reepicheep](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Reepicheep)\ **Post date:** [January 17, 2005, 12:15am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/whither-the-great-cheesy-fantasy-and-sf-shows-of-yesteryear/285034/30 "2005-01-17T00:15:24Z")
Brimstone – putting bad people back in hell – gotta go for the eyes. Forever Knight – Vampire/Cop who wants to be human. ---
**Author:** ![shy\_guy](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/s/a6a055/32.png) [@shy\_guy](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/shy_guy)\ **Post date:** [January 17, 2005, 12:18am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/whither-the-great-cheesy-fantasy-and-sf-shows-of-yesteryear/285034/31 "2005-01-17T00:18:04Z")
> [@](#): > > Oh, and how can I forget the Mortal Kombat series? Awful, awful awful! Now, in its defense, Mortal Kombat: Conquest had my favorite series finale ever (even if it was obviously just because they expected the show to go on for another season). ---
**Author:** ![tremorviolet](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/t/e47774/32.png) [@tremorviolet](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/tremorviolet)\ **Post date:** [January 17, 2005, 12:24am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/whither-the-great-cheesy-fantasy-and-sf-shows-of-yesteryear/285034/32 "2005-01-17T00:24:38Z")
> [@Tangent](#): > > There was **NightMan** , a superhero show that was adapted from an UltraVerse comic book that I thought I was the only person to have ever read (though it was actually a decent book). I was floored when I saw that they’d made it into a TV show. _Nightman_ has got to be the absolute _worst_ sci-fi-ish show I’ve ever seen. (and I even kinda liked Cleopatra2525 so that says a lot) > [@](#): > > After lightning strikes saxophonist Johnny Domino, he finds he is _telepathically tuned to the frequency of evil._ (italics mine) This gives him an edge for finding the bad guys, and some special classified wearable gear gives him an edge for fighting them. “tuned to the frequency of evil” :dubious: And then there was the incredibly cheesy [costume](http://www.brianbero.com/photo12.html) and the horribly miscast lead [actor](http://us.imdb.com/name/nm0566157/) - who, from his IMDB listing looks to actually be a stuntman. ---
**Author:** ![DocCathode](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/doccathode/32/18773_2.png) [@DocCathode](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/DocCathode)\ **Post date:** [January 17, 2005, 12:28am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/whither-the-great-cheesy-fantasy-and-sf-shows-of-yesteryear/285034/33 "2005-01-17T00:28:08Z")
Sinbad- Awful. It lacked the Ray Harryhausen monsters that made the movies great. Plus, Sinbad is thoroughly caucasian, and beardless for the first season. It also featured a mute black guy, a nutty inventor, a villianess guided by the still living head of her sorcerer father, and a jolly fat guy with a big sword as Sinbad’s brother (Said fat guy now plays a member of The Dominion on Mutant X). Conan- I saw a few episodes. IMHO Not that bad. Conan’s performance was lacking, but I liked some of the SFX and supporting cast. The dwarf actor from Seinfeld was one of the sidekicks. I know without clicking the link that the dark wizard Hyss Hazuul had a demon servant that manifested as a sarcastic talking skull in a cauldron of bubbling goo. He and Hyss Hazuul pass the time by wagering rubies. You have to remember that while the original Howard stories were great stuff, they were as cheezy as they come. Cleopatra 2525- This IMHO had potential. The acting could be good. The writing could be good. It strated out as SS T&A but started to become much more. Then it got cancelled. Special Unit 2- Once you realized that the writers knew how screwed up the science on the show was, it was a lot of fun. ‘Yes, we know this show makes no sense according to basic evolutionary theory, chemistry, or biology. But, just shut off that bit of your brain and have some fun.’ Black Scorpion- I disagree that her butt was the only good thing on the show. She had nice boobs and lips too. Not mentioned yet Kindred The Embraced- Lets’s give every clan all the disciplines, and ignore the rules. Dead At 21- MTV made this series about government experiments with implanting microchips in the brains of embryos. The subjects are born with strange powers, and all die at 21. Every scene had loud background music from the top of the charts. ???- Nickelodeon did a teens in space show featuring a chick with a rainbow wig, and the original American black Power Ranger. Strange World- A doctor is dying of an incurable disease. A mysterious (adn hot) Asian babe comes to his hospital room and cures him. She continues to provide him with this mysterious drug in return for his investigating cases for the mysterious agency she works for. All the episodes I saw had a medical theme. Jake 2.0-Nerd is given superpowers by nanites. Never watched it. StarHunter- Gruff dude runs spaceship and wants to find his son (kidnapped by a group of ex-military revolutionaries who are sterile due to exposure to biowarfare). There’s a young hacker chick, a black Kiwi chick, and a holographic AI named Caravaggio. Mostly crap. However, one episode actually dealt with a comic relief conman’s same sex relationship in a sympathetic and sensitive way. Vanishing Son- The above mentioned Action Pack martial artist flees to US series. The guy either speaks to the ghost of his brother or hallucinates. I never bothered to find out. Wiliam Shatner’s Tekworld-Hoo boy. Future cops. Hackers. Digital drugs. Bad acting. Bad writing. Do cartoons count? Gargoyles- Not cheezy, darn good stuff. Still ‘Stone by day, warriors by night’ adventures included meeting King Arthur, Oberon, Puck. Macbeth and the three weird sisters were recurring characters. Voices included Marina Sirtis, Johnathan Frakes, and Brent Spiner. The Zeta Project- Oswald (or is it Lewis? The dark haired UPS driver) voices an android built by the government as an assassin. He achieves sentience, gets a conscience, and escapes. Red Forman (of That 70’s Show) voices the government agent trying to track him down. The beginning credits end with Ro (Z’s teenage sidekick) saying “We’ll get you your freedom Z. I know we will.” ---
**Author:** ![Ephemera](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/e/8baadc/32.png) [@Ephemera](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Ephemera)\ **Post date:** [January 17, 2005, 12:35am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/whither-the-great-cheesy-fantasy-and-sf-shows-of-yesteryear/285034/34 "2005-01-17T00:35:10Z")
> [@shy guy](#): > > Now, in its defense, Mortal Kombat: Conquest had my favorite series finale ever (even if it was obviously just because they expected the show to go on for another season). Did everyone die? > [@DocCathode](#): > > ???- Nickelodeon did a teens in space show featuring a chick with a rainbow wig, and the original American black Power Ranger. _Space Cases_. Dreadful show, even to a sixteen year old who loves vaguely sci-fi-ish shows. > [@DocCathode](#): > > Jake 2.0-Nerd is given superpowers by nanites. Never watched it. Very cool show. I loved it for the ten or so episodes it was on. ---
**Author:** ![SteveG1](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/s/bb73d2/32.png) [@SteveG1](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/SteveG1)\ **Post date:** [January 17, 2005, 12:51am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/whither-the-great-cheesy-fantasy-and-sf-shows-of-yesteryear/285034/35 "2005-01-17T00:51:58Z")
> [@Eats\_Crayons](#): > > Ah, let’s not forget _Highlander: The Raven_ a spinoff series for the character Amanda. An immortal chick who died from the plague and has a penchant for cat-burglary. > > _Witchblade_ based on the comic. Had a lot of potential but a disasterous production manager and a lead actress who had, uh, “personal problems”. Rumour has it the may be back but they would likely recast the lead role to avoid future problems. Wasn’t one of the main premises of the Highlander “thing” that to become immortal, they had to die violently? I remember the episode where she has plague and they trundle her out in a cart, but wasn’t paying close attention. I do know that when her detective friend was diseased and dying, it was a big deal that she had to kill him in order to save him. Witchblade was OK, but that stupid “Let’s reboot the whole thing” really annoyed me. That and the “Time is wound around itself like a spool of film” nonsense. ---
**Author:** ![Eats\_Crayons](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/e/278dde/32.png) [@Eats\_Crayons](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Eats_Crayons)\ **Post date:** [January 17, 2005, 1:04am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/whither-the-great-cheesy-fantasy-and-sf-shows-of-yesteryear/285034/36 "2005-01-17T01:04:29Z")
> [@SteveG1](#): > > Wasn’t one of the main premises of the Highlander “thing” that to become immortal, they had to die violently? I remember the episode where she has plague and they trundle her out in a cart, but wasn’t paying close attention. I do know that when her detective friend was diseased and dying, it was a big deal that she had to kill him in order to save him. “Bring out your dead!..” They fiddled around with that in the canon of the series, IIRC. I think it started out as a less specific “premature” death rather than a “living out your natural lifespan” death, and then they changed it to “death by violence” (whether accidental or otherwise) later. Kinda like the inconsistencies in how long it took to wake up from being killed. Sometimes they could be shot dead and pop right back up within seconds, other times there was enough of a lag for them to be processed at the scene of the crime and end up in the morgue naked, wearing nothing but a toe tag. ---
**Author:** ![DocCathode](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/doccathode/32/18773_2.png) [@DocCathode](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/DocCathode)\ **Post date:** [January 17, 2005, 1:06am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/whither-the-great-cheesy-fantasy-and-sf-shows-of-yesteryear/285034/37 "2005-01-17T01:06:51Z")
> [@Reepicheep](#): > > Brimstone – putting bad people back in hell – gotta go for the eyes. I thought this also had potential. But, instead of dealing with things like the nature of sin and redemption, or even just giving Stone tattoos that actually had anything to do with the souls he was capturing, they went for generic action. One episode did stand out. The devil tells Stone that he was hellbound long before he killed Gilbert Jax (the man who raped his wife). An angel, played by the same actor as the devil, tries to convince Stone that the devil is just lying to him, that he’s done a lot of good, and that he almost made it into heaven. ---
**Author:** ![AveDementia](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/a/bc8723/32.png) [@AveDementia](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/AveDementia)\ **Post date:** [January 17, 2005, 1:52am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/whither-the-great-cheesy-fantasy-and-sf-shows-of-yesteryear/285034/38 "2005-01-17T01:52:14Z")
**Doc** you just reminded me of a short-lived show I liked. (IMO) I think it was a Sci-fi channel show, it was called _Good vs. Evil_. According to IMDb, the title is now [G vs E](http://www.imdb.com/title/tt0195462/?fr=c2l0ZT1kZnxteD0yMHxzZz0xfGxtPTIwMHx0dD1vbnxwbj0wfHE9Z29vZCB2cy4gZXZpbHxodG1sPTF8bm09b24_;fc=2;ft=15;fm=1). It was a rather quirky show, with twists and bits of surrealness. It was cancelled before it really got a chance to take off. Why does the Sci Fi channel kill so many of their shows? ---
**Author:** ![AveDementia](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/a/bc8723/32.png) [@AveDementia](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/AveDementia)\ **Post date:** [January 17, 2005, 1:53am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/whither-the-great-cheesy-fantasy-and-sf-shows-of-yesteryear/285034/39 "2005-01-17T01:53:18Z")
Don’t know where that IMO came from… hmmm. ---
**Author:** ![Johnny\_Ecks](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/j/bcef8e/32.png) [@Johnny\_Ecks](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Johnny_Ecks)\ **Post date:** [January 17, 2005, 2:03am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/whither-the-great-cheesy-fantasy-and-sf-shows-of-yesteryear/285034/40 "2005-01-17T02:03:15Z")
Once A Hero- Comic book hero leaves comic to live in the real world Werewolf- The series “time and again” or something like that- guy is killed and given a new super body, but must be a government agent. [Previous page](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/whither-the-great-cheesy-fantasy-and-sf-shows-of-yesteryear/285034.md?page=1) [Next page](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/whither-the-great-cheesy-fantasy-and-sf-shows-of-yesteryear/285034.md?page=3)