Of all science fiction genres,space operabelongs among the most popular. It’s been around for decades and continues to captivate new audiences thanks to the genre’s inherent rich imagination. What separates space opera from other science fiction genres isn’t only its setting that’s most commonly in space or on alien planets.
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The space opera genre also tends to explore the joy and danger of discovering space. More often than not, the heroes are forced to take on threats and fight to save themselves, the planet, or even the entire universe. While they’re busy fighting and exploring, space opera shows explore the relationships between the characters at the same time. The best space opera TV series make it easy to understand why the genre continues to be popular among viewers.
5Red Dwarf
Even though some episodes of theBritish sci-fi seriesRed Dwarfare set on Earth, the majority of them take place in space, among the stars, which is a typical trait of a space opera. Set three million years in the future, the series follows the adventure of four very different characters who are trying to find their way to Earth, which may or may not still exist.
The series puts a lot of emphasis on humor, making it more light-hearted than many other space opera TV shows. At the same time, it primarily focuses on the main characters, like space operas tend to do. As a result, the audience gets to know the main four in great detail, and the quips and arguments between them, combined with their different reactions to meeting aliens, helped to makeRed Dwarfthe classic that it is today.
4Star Trek
MultipleStar Trekshows have strong elements of space opera butStar Trek: The Original Serieshelped revive the genre and started it all. Once again, the crew meets countless alien species and has to face not one big threat, but multiple smaller ones, in almost every single episode. The series takes the time to establish the relationships between the characters and further develop them, especially the friendship between Captain Kirk andhis first officer Mr. Spock.
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Star Trek: The Original Serieshas the kind of optimism typical for the oldest space opera TV shows. It shows that even though space can be dangerous and not all aliens are friendly, it’s still worth trying to discover it and go on an adventure; to boldly go where no one has gone before.
3Futurama
Space opera is most commonly associated with live-action TV shows and movies, but there are a few notable exceptions to this rule. One of the best-rated ones isFuturama,which takes the audience into the year 3000. Afterthe main hero Fry is frozen for a thousand yearsand wakes up in the future, the viewers learn more about alien worlds and species via Fry’s eyes as well as the eyes of his crew.
With the importance being placed on showing the richness of the universe and developing the characters' relationships,Futuramadraws a lot from previous space opera series, most notablyStar Trek. It’s not a coincidence that several of the actors fromStar Trek: The Original Seriesvoiced themselves inFuturama, and there’s even a special episode dedicated toStar Trek.
2Doctor Who
Boththe classic and the modernDoctor Whoseriesfeature episodes that take place on Earth, and those set on alien worlds thousands of years in the future thanks to the power of time travel. The Doctor takes their companions on adventures throughout space and time, allowing both the characters and the viewers to explore the galaxy. As is typical for space opera,Doctor Whointroduces many alien species, some more human-like, others distinctly alien.
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Space operas can be dark, but the original ones have a sense of wonder and discovery to them.Doctor Whofits the bill as it contains both funny and horror episodes, switching between different moods with ease that many other sci-fi shows could be envious of. Even though the classic series also has many episodes that are worth watching, the modernDoctor Whois arguably a lot more accessible to those who are just starting with the series.
1Firefly
Where space opera TV shows are concerned,Fireflyis the uncrowned king of this genre of the 21st century. It became iconic, even more so due to the show’s prematurecancelation after just one season- a decision the fans continue to question more than two decades later. One of the characteristics of a space opera is that the heroes often take on an enemy that’s seemingly impossible to defeat, far out of their league. In this case, Captain Mal Reynolds and his crew attempt to avoid the law after a war that Mal’s side lost a few years back. Unfortunately for the crew, however, the law doesn’t always avoid them.
The series has western elements to it just likeStar Trek, and the emphasis on the crew and the relationships between them markFireflyas one of the best space opera TV shows of all time. Those who would like to see more of their favorite characters after they finish watching all fourteen episodes of the show shouldn’t miss out on watching the 2005 movieSerenity,which also belongs to the space opera genre.
