My Top 5 Favorite Sci-Fi / Horror / Mystery Shows (Not Including Anime)

I’ll admit, I don’t watch a lot of TV (it’s a productivity killer). And today’s landscape for media is a completely different world than from just a few years before, with video games, the interwebz, youtube, niche blogging, streaming services, and social media–your eyeballs have more interactive and engaging experiences than previous generations. TV proper is a subconscious guilty involvement–I suspect more enjoyed in the background while most folks play on tablets and smartphones while their significant other checks facebook on the laptop.

To me, that’s why all of these shows are locked in a different era (the latest running show ending in 2005, before the stranglehold web 2.0 would take with the mighty one-two punch of facebook and smartphones). The thought of watching a show on broadcast makes me cringe. What? Tune in at what time? What channel? Who pays for cable anymore? I only liked Adult Swim, and even that has been more lackluster than we want to admit for years on end. Reruns of King of the Hill or Family Guy? Anyone?

I’ll wait for the Netflix if it’s that good. Yeah, I checked out Breaking Bad. I may have watched all bagillion episodes in three days or something, but I haven’t seen anything broadcast beyond that, and I can wait until it pops up in my email. (DREW, DID YOU KNOW THERE ARE NEW EPISODES OF BREAKING BAD ON NETFLIX OMGWTFBBQ). It would have been better if it just said *Knock knock as the subject line, and when you open it there is a pic of Bryan Cranston in his underpants with an impact font that says I AM THE ONE WHO KNOCKS. WATCH MY NEW EPISODES. I MADE A HELLUVA COMEBACK. DID YOU SEE TOTAL RECALL? I KNOW, IT WAS STUPID, BUT I’M IN IT. WELL, TRY AND STAY AWAKE NEXT TIME.

Incidentally, Portlandia FTW.

This post does not include anime, western animation, comedy, or reality TV. (More posts promised in the future that cover those subjects). To my knowledge, I’m not really interested in other kinds of shows.

*In order of first broadcast date–don’t make me choose favorites! We’re all special (at least that’s what my teacher told me).

Max Headroom

Original run: March 31, 1987 – May 5, 1988
Filming location: 20 minutes into the future, UK. 

Star reporter Edison Carter exposes high-tech crime and corruption while balancing the inherent mistrust within his own TV network, along with his sidekicks: computer genius Bryce and ‘Controller’ Theora in this cyberpunk tale set twenty minutes into the future.

The first cyberpunk series to come to television (at least in the states), and one of the two best. It’s amazing this show lasted as long as it did, simultaneously ripping on network censorship, distribution of wealth, and questioning authority while remaining humorous and sincere. Every single plot is more imaginative than later attempts in the genre; with most avoiding these subjects entirely.

Survivors of the 80’s will remember the show’s title character crossing over to a variety of media, including commercials, transforming the passive experience into one that questioned your surroundings. What else is there to say? It is written well, cast superbly, acted-out-the-wazoo, thoughtful, imaginative, entertaining, and it makes you think! You’ll fall in love with the characters, and hate the antagonists with a passion. You’ll cheer them on as they go from one dark setting to the next, only to find more depravity.

Available on amazon.com

Friday the 13th: The Series

Original run: October 3, 1987 – May 26, 1990
Filming location: Toronto, ON

Wow ’87 was a good year for TV! the bizarrely named Friday the 13th: The Series, should have been called The 13th Hour, as the producer wanted to capitalize on the completely unrelated big-screen romps of Jason and his hockey camp for dim-witted teens. This show focuses on Jack Marshak, Ultimate Grandad, and Micki and Ryan, proprietors of a strange antique shop, as they try to recuperate cursed objects thanks to one of the worst uncles in history–usually resulting in much death to be had all around.

I have the fondest memories of watching this syndicated joy as a child late at night, never staying awake long enough to finish the hour-long episodes, as they were so soothing. There is such a magic here in the performances all around, the whimsical setting of a never named city (I imagined it being Toronto during my completion viewing), and the eternal mystery that just gets deeper as time goes along. None of its imitators hold a (cursed) candle to it.

Great characters, stories, and all around good fun. I don’t want to spoil too much; other than to say it’s worth watching, and there are surprises no show would dare attempt in today’s environment. Highly recommended.

available on amazon.com

Twin Peaks

Original run: April 8, 1990 – June 10, 1991
Filming locations: Rural Washington and Malibu, CA



Damn good coffee! and HOT.

Well here’s a show that set the world on fire! The US went crazy when Twin Peaks aired in the 90’s. Greedy studio execs killed the show with their reckless requests to change the direction of the story, but today many of the characters featured on the show are still remembered fondly by the fans–some even going so far as to hold annual events that tour the filming locations.

Can’t say enough good things about this show; the mystery will keep you hooked, the performances are stellar, and the vibe is not possible to duplicate (although a few did try). It stumbled pretty badly in the second season, but few shows have a first season that good in the first place. This show oozes co-creator David Lynch from every pore, and his unique fan base will get every drop of it, and put it in their coffee–hot, black, and with a slice of pie.

Available to stream on netflix!

The X-files

Original run: September 10, 1993 – May 19, 2002
Filming Locations: Vancouver, BC (seasons 1–5) & Los Angeles (seasons 6–9) 

My most mainstream choice. I wasn't really into it at first, it took until about ’95 or so for me to discover that it was more than just a ‘mystery of the week’ type of deal. By then I was watching it with my Dad, strangely obsessed with the government conspiracy type of story they were doing well with for a while. It had a large cast of insanely memorable characters–even if when they popped up you couldn’t remember if they were friend, or foe, or foe –turned-friend again–and the mystery that just got deeper and weirder until–finally–it was just too damn convoluted. Mulder and Scully are a leveled-up version of Friday the 13th’s Ryan and Mickey, as is the show in most other respects (the principals even look alike!).

Move along, we all know about this show, this is no hidden gem. However, it is very watchable, and Duchovny and Anderson carry the HELL out of it. Its only flaw (besides not bowing out gracefully) is that it feels too much like a network TV show to me (it was, but hey). The vibe is still pretty cool. I still have not sat down and watched all 202 (yikes!) episodes IN ORDER. I’m saving that for a literal rainy day.

Streaming on netflix!

Charlie Jade

Original run: April 16, 2005 – August 20, 2005
Filming Location: Mainly Cape Town, South Africa.



Holy genre challenger, Cyberpunk-Man! Weren't we just speaking about hidden gems? This show is AMAZING; in all caps amazing. Strangely Broadcast at like 3am on the Sci-Fi (Yes it was called Sci-Fi before SyFy wtf is that really whatever I hear it’s just a wrestling network these days anyways and imagine greater is ugggggggggg) channel, It never caught on here in the states. Luckily our blood-sworn enemies in the great white north have some sense and carried the series to its complete short run.

I don’t know where to begin. The last true cyberpunk series, it hits you in the face! You’ll feel like you just got punched, spit up blood and then asked for more! From the performances to the sets, the writing, the theme ZOMG this is goooood. Jeffrey Pierce kicks ass and trades the bubble gum for whiskey or beer or BASHING PEOPLE’S HEADS IN WITH A SINK. The mystery and overall plot line is so well developed you won’t be able to pull away. You might even put down the iPad (before picking it up to see what else he’s done).

The other unsung heros in this unsung hero fest is Michael Filipowich as 01 Boxer (Yeah that’s his name, and he will kill you). File him under a James Purefoy for dummies; a great actor who's highly underutilized.

This show returns to the Max Headroom Cyberpunk formula, and twists it in directions you never saw coming, launching a full-scale assault on topics such as corporate corruption, environmentalism, comprehension of reality, and human responsibility–all while keeping to a tight, action packed, atmospheric experience unrivaled in television today. It’s pretty strange that it never got good air time here; It makes all other shows look inferior with every frame, boasting one of the best openings ever and the music to boot.

What’s it about? I’m not going to tell you. That would spoil it. Don’t read the wiki- don’t do it…GET BACK HERE. You’ll ruin your experience, seriously. Go buy it and get back to me. Oh, what’s that? IT’S ONLY AVAILABLE IN PAL FORMAT? How surprising. The corporations don’t want you to see it man! Well, buying a PAL DVD player is worth it just for this show. It is! Really!

Just kidding! It's streaming on netflix!

In closing:

Interesting how a lot of these shows are tied to Canada or the UK.
I had a list of honorable mentions, but I think I’ll save that for a future post.

Did I miss your favorite show? Let me know about it in the comments!

(Predictions; Buffy the Vampire Slayer, Battlestar Galactica, Doctor Who?, Star Trek: all of them, Stargate, Supernatural, Firefly, The Walking Dead, and Lost)



Drew Mars is a practicing musician, DJ, graphic designer, writer, and club promoter who has been slaving over a science fiction novel for about a year. You can check out his band Graver Zeit, keep up with his shows under Das Oontz, and buy his book in March 2013. Also, The Future™