Essential Science Fiction and Fantasy TV Nominations

[Extollager]

BionicGriff has started an interesting thread

Essential Science Fiction and Fantasy Reading

for nominations not for "my favorites" but for essential SF and fantasy books.

What about essential science fiction and fantasy (including ghost stories) on television? Please, not necessarily your personal favorites, but rather individual teleplays (not series) that you think have the characteristics deserving their being designated as essential. Yes, I'm not defining how "essential" should be understood, at this time. Maybe some examples will indicate indirectly what I'm thinking.

The Twilight Zone (1959-1964): "The Invaders"; "Nightmare at 20,000 Feet", "The After Hours"; etc.

The Outer Limits (Original Series, 1963-1965): "Demon with a Glass Hand"; "A Feasibility Study"; "The Zombie Misfits"... probably more

Star Trek (1966-1969): "The Cage" (pilot): "The City on the Edge of Forever"

The Prisoner (1967-1968): "Arrival"; "Free for All"; "Once Upon a Time"

Whistle and I'll Come to You (1968) adaptation of M. R. James's story, featuring Michael Hordern

The Woman in Black (1989 television movie)

 

[BAYLOR]

Babylon 5 The Greatest science fiction series of all time. Why? superb writing and its 5 year story arc. This helped raise the bar for science fiction television.

 

[Danny McG]

BionicGriff has started an interesting thread

Essential Science Fiction and Fantasy Reading


The Prisoner (1967-1968): "Arrival"; "Free for All"; "Once Upon

Spookily enough I'm reading this post about The Prisoner episode 'Once upon a time' - glanced up at Television and it's playing on my screen now. Freesat channel 142

Serendipity?

 

[BionicGriff]

Individual episodes definitely makes this tougher... I know the episode 'The Inner Light' from SNG, was a very highly rated episode. Also 'Sacrifice of Angels' from DS9 was pretty big.

I think the star trek episode that stands out the most to me though would be 'Q Who' being the episode where fans are first introduced to the Borg, significant I think as they're one of the most recognizable enemies from all science fiction.

I'm sure some episodes from the X- Files could be included as well, but someone more familiar with that show may need too help me out.

 

[Extollager]

Babylon 5 The Greatest science fiction series of all time. Why? superb writing and its 5 year story arc. This helped raise the bar for science fiction television.

Baylor, Baylor -- I don't want series, I want individual teleplays.

 

[Randy M.]

Have to think more about this, but off the top of my head,

At least the first & third Quatermass screenplays: The Quatermass Experiment and Quatermass and the Pit (film version in U.S., 5 Million Years to Earth)

X-Files: “”Pilot”; “Squeeze”; “Beyond the Sea”; “Humbug”; “Clyde Bruckman’s Final Repose”; “Jose Chung’s From Outer Space”

Buffy, the Vampire Slayer: “Welcome to the Hellmouth”/”The Harvest”; “Nightmares”; “Passion”; “Anne”; “The Wish”; “The Zeppo”; “The Prom”; “Graduation Day (parts 1 & 2)”; “Pangs”; “Hush”; “The Body”; “Once More, with Feeling”

Angel: “City Of”; “I Fall to Pieces”; “Rm w/a Vu”; “I Will Remember You”; “Hero”; “To Sanshu in L.A.”

The problem with defining specific episodes as essential for X-Files, Buffy and Angel is that each show’s episodes are analogous to chapters in a novel: They may be episodic, but nearly every one contributes directly to an over-arching storyline which, when it works well, makes each chapter/episode all the more effective.


Randy M.

 

[SilentRoamer]

Ok well I watched this last night and was reminded how much of a fantastic episode it is:

Star Trek TNG: Measure of a Man

 

[Extollager]

The problem with defining specific episodes as essential for X-Files, Buffy and Angel is that each show’s episodes are analogous to chapters in a novel: They may be episodic, but nearly every one contributes directly to an over-arching storyline which, when it works well, makes each chapter/episode all the more effective.

I've never seen any of these, I suppose -- we don't do cable. But maybe there needs to be a separate thread for essential series

 

[hitmouse]

Doctor Who. Genesis of the Daleks. The Ark in Space.

Hitchhikers Guide to the Galaxy

The Box of Delights.

 

[Extollager]

These are individual stories, Hitmouse? (For purposes of this thread, a single story told in a few installments is fine, but I'd rather that folks start a thread for ongoing series or adaptations that go one for a whole bunch of installments.) Thanks.

 

[hitmouse]

Those are individual Doctor Who stories. Icould think of half a dozen more.

Short BBC serialisations of Hitchhikers and BOD.

 

[Randy M.]

These are individual stories, Hitmouse? (For purposes of this thread, a single story told in a few installments is fine, but I'd rather that folks start a thread for ongoing series or adaptations that go one for a whole bunch of installments.) Thanks.

I think in the U.S. the popularity of prime-time soap operas in the 1980s (Dallas, for instance) led to other dramas adopting an over-arching story line. The first I recall was China Beach and then Twin Peaks, and that led to the series-long story line in The X-Files which wasn't entirely successful, eventually attenuating into incomprehensibility, and the modification that Joss Whedon adopted of a season long story line. Especially for Buffy and Angel each season is rather like a novel told in 21-22 episodic chapters.

Randy M.

 

[psikeyhackr]

Baylor, Baylor -- I don't want series, I want individual teleplays.

Actually, because of its arc nature, B5 is a loooong teleplay.

 

[Galactic Journey]

BionicGriff has started an interesting thread

Essential Science Fiction and Fantasy Reading

for nominations not for "my favorites" but for essential SF and fantasy books.

What about essential science fiction and fantasy (including ghost stories) on television? Please, not necessarily your personal favorites, but rather individual teleplays (not series) that you think have the characteristics deserving their being designated as essential. Yes, I'm not defining how "essential" should be understood, at this time. Maybe some examples will indicate indirectly what I'm thinking.

The Twilight Zone (1959-1964): "The Invaders"; "Nightmare at 20,000 Feet", "The After Hours"; etc.

From my perspective, The Twilight Zone ended in 1962! But though the third season was the least consistent, it did have my favorite episode: "Little Girl Lost."

 

[Vladd67]

Doctor Who : Inferno, Pyramids of Mars.
UFO : The Square Triangle,

 

[Brian G Turner]

Babylon 5
3:10 "Severed Dreams". Also, 1:20 "Babylon Sqaured" along with 3:16 & 17 "War Without End - parts 1 & 2"

Battlestar Galactica
Season 2, episodes 10-12: "Pegasus", "Resurrection Ship - parts 1 & 2". Also episode 15 "Scar".

There were a few standout episodes of Star Trek TNG - "All Good Things - parts 1 & 2" at the end of the final season (7:25/26 I think). There was also one where I think it was Ryker subjected to different realities in order to extract information from him - can't remember the title or season, though.

 

[Galactic Journey]

Doctor Who : Inferno, Pyramids of Mars.
UFO : The Square Triangle,

I'm watched all of Dr. Who through the 12th season (previewing the Future!) and the 7th season with the 3rd Doctor (really, from WarGames through end of 7th season) is excellent Who. I wish they'd stayed in that more sf-y, serious vein.