From Farscape to Watchmen: 8 Sci-Fi Miniseries That Earn 10 Notes-Free Ratings
A format with a long history
Miniseries tell complete stories across a limited, predetermined number of episodes, without plans for future seasons. The form became a prominent American broadcasting phenomenon around the 1970s, though it has roots in British television.
The first science fiction miniseries is widely considered to be The Quatermass Experiment, which aired in 1953. Since then, the format has offered a way to tell science fiction stories with a defined ending.
Farscape finds its ending
The Australian science fiction adventure series Farscape became a cult favorite, but its cancellation left the story on a cliffhanger. Producer Brian Henson secured the franchise rights and developed the three-hour miniseries Farscape: The Peacekeeper Wars to bring the story to a close.
The miniseries had the difficult task of resolving the show’s chaotic, emotionally intense universe in three hours. It is described as a beloved entry in science fiction television and a satisfying conclusion to the series.
Near-future political warnings
Russell T Davies created and wrote Years and Years, a BBC and HBO co-production released in 2019. Its dystopian story begins in the near future rather than placing its events decades or centuries away.
Across six episodes, the series examines political and thematic questions about the world people leave behind and their role in its decline. The account describes it as a prescient work of dystopian science fiction.
Reworking familiar worlds
Damon Lindelof’s HBO miniseries Watchmen continues the 1986 DC Comics series by Alan Moore and Dave Gibbons. Lindelof described his approach as a “remix,” and the show recontextualizes superhero conventions while addressing systemic racism, vigilantism and violence.
Adventure Time: Distant Lands followed the conclusion of Adventure Time. HBO Max asked the show’s writers to develop partially formed ideas from episodes that had not been produced, as the service sought to build its subscriber base and gauge audience interests.
Key points
- Farscape: The Peacekeeper Wars used three hours to resolve a cliffhanger.
- Years and Years places its dystopian story in a chillingly near future.
- Watchmen continues the comic series and critiques systemic racism, vigilantism and violence.
- Adventure Time: Distant Lands developed ideas from unproduced episodes.