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The 2026 TV calendar has proven fruitful. Between new programs and returning shows, the non-stop binge has been filled with extraordinary content. From networks to premium cable and streamers in between, the boundaries have been pushed to bring viewers to their screens. And when it comes to science fiction, the shows are delivering. We’re here to celebrate the best sci-fi TV of the year so far. If you love science fiction, your appetite has been satisfied.
This year, we’ve seen many returning shows prove they are nowhere near a sophomore slump. There have been first-season spin-offs of long-running hits that have been as good, if not better, than the flagship show. And then there were daring new concepts with all-star casts willing to play in the sandbox of fantastical stories. The ranking reflects the entire season; thus, Silo is not going to be included. We’ll likely put that series in at the end of 2026. It’s already been a great year, so it’s truly splitting hairs in a few of these spots. Which is your favorite so far?
7
‘The Beauty’ (Season 1)
Ryan Murphy is always going to be represented on screen. Whether with returning series or new shows, the Murphy vision is alive and well. At the end of 2025, Murphy gave the world a campy hot mess. In 2026, he dropped the camp for a high-concept sci-fi body horror that actually worked, and that may be due to the blueprint he had to work from. The Beauty, based on the graphic novel by Jeremy Haun and Jason A. Hurley, centers on a sexually transmitted virus that magically transforms ordinary people into physically perfect beings, but carries a terrifying, lethal cost. The lab-engineered miracle drug dubbed “The Beauty” spreads as an STD, granting overnight physical perfection. Created by Byron Forst (Ashton Kutcher), a shadowy tech billionaire, the drug acts as the ultimate shortcut to extreme beauty, youth, and confidence. However, eventually, those affected suffer from extreme internal burning, physical deterioration, and uncontrollable rage, leading to an investigation by FBI agents Cooper Madsen (Evan Peters) and Jordan Bennett (Rebecca Hall).
Though dark in premise, The Beauty is presented in a way that is anything but. It serves as a satirical commentary on modern societal beauty standards, celebrity culture, and extreme interventions in the era of GLP-1 weight-loss drugs. It depicts the dark lengths to which people will go to achieve an unattainable ideal of physical perfection. The Beauty is an addictive, campy dark thriller that is provocative and viscerally daring. The show thrives on unapologetic, grotesque gore to hammer home its thesis. A big part of why the show is addictive is the cavalcade of stars who are willing to go ham, including Anthony Ramos, Jeremy Pope, Isabella Rossellini, Ari Graynor, Bella Hadid, Jon Jon Briones, Ben Platt, Meghan Trainor, Billy Eichner, and more. If you don’t mind watching your favorites explode before your eyes, The Beauty is high-octane entertainment.
6
‘For All Mankind’ (Season 5)
In this era of streaming, lasting five seasons is a feat and a triumph, especially when it lacks high-profile superstars. Fortunately, For All Mankind stands proudly on its own two feet as an underrated gem in the sci-fi realm. Widely praised for its thrilling “what if” premise, grounded character development, and meticulous world-building, the series moves into the 2010s, focusing on the escalating tensions between a massive, bustling Happy Valley colony on Mars and a controlling Earth. Years after the Goldilocks asteroid heist, Earth’s nations demand strict law and order on Mars. This sparks a rebellion in which Miles Dale (Toby Kebbell) blows up the Helios base’s command crew, and the Mars governor, Leonid “Lenya” Polivanov (Costa Ronin), turns against Earth. A tense, localized war breaks out in Happy Valley before a ceasefire is finally called, and Miles is sworn in as the new governor of Mars.
Season 5 continues to do what it does best: storytelling and production. The series continues its trend of stellar visual effects, showcasing a bustling Mars with schools, gift shops, and space elevators while pushing expeditions further out to Titan. Season 5 is a bridge season of sorts as decades of history and emotional weight come to a head. New characters arrive, including children of beloved long-running characters like Alex Baldwin (Sean Kaufman), as others depart. While the series sadly says goodbye to beloved characters, including Ed Baldwin (Joel Kinnaman), who has died from cancer, and Kelly Baldwin (Cynthia Wu), who sacrifices herself to get her crew back to Earth after discovering alien life, Season 5 does a great job establishing a new adventure in the 2020s for Season 6.
5
‘Star City’ (Season 1)
Fans of the flagship series may be disappointed that Star City ranks above For All Mankind, but a new, refreshing show that is more than just a companion series deserves a bit more praise. Star City explores an alternate-history space program from the perspective of the Soviet Union. Created by Ronald D. Moore, Matt Wolpert, and Ben Nedivi, the space race thriller takes place in the same universe as For All Mankind, where the Soviets were the first to land on the moon, but focuses on the claustrophobic, paranoid, and highly secretive reality behind the Iron Curtain. Instead of focusing purely on triumphant space exploration, Star City examines how human nature, engineering, and personal ambition are stifled by a totalitarian regime.
For the first season, the narrative centers on cosmonauts, engineers like “Chief Designer,” aka Sergei Korolev (Rhys Ifans), and KGB intelligence officers like Lyudmilla Raskova (Anna Maxwell Martin), who are constantly monitoring one another. It acts as an intense spy thriller where the psychological tension and danger on the ground are just as deadly as the risks taken in space. Season 1 is a slow-burning story that swiftly escalates into a thrilling cinematic tale. Although it exists in the For All Mankind universe, the series is entirely self-contained. You do not need to watch the original show to enjoy this gritty, historical-alternate thriller. It just might make it juicier.
4
‘Fallout’ (Season 2)
Season 1 of Prime Video’s Fallout certainly wet our whistle, but Season 2 was a highly entertaining and bloodier continuation that expands the universe with the iconic New Vegas setting. Based on the iconic video game series, Fallout is a post-apocalyptic drama series set two centuries after a nuclear holocaust destroyed society. The season picks up right where Season 1 left off, following Lucy (Ella Purnell) and The Ghoul (Walton Goggins) on a quest to hunt down her father, Hank (Kyle MacLachlan). The season also balances the Vault storylines alongside Maximus’ (Aaron Moten) struggles within the Brotherhood of Steel. All this to set up a potentially epic third season. Filled with campy humor and violent atmosphere, Season 2 proves that with a brilliant blueprint to build a series around, Fallout isn’t solely for gamers; the series stands alone as a brilliant entity that unites old and new fans alike.
Just like Season 1, Fallout continues the effortless blend of cartoonish, post-apocalyptic violence with genuinely emotional character moments and dark, retro-futuristic comedy. Season 2 strengthens and hardens many of our favorite relationships. Lucy began as a gleeful delight, only to emerge as a young woman not only willing to accept the truth but turn on her blood for the betterment of the water. The season did a remarkable job of bringing some fan-favorite elements from the game while introducing series-only weaponry. The primary ensemble was better than ever, with breakout performances coming from Annabel O’Hagan as Steph and Moises Arias as Norm MacLean. Perhaps the best part of the season came from the cameos of Kumail Nanjiani and Macaulay Culkin. Watching the series explore New Vegas to its fullest extent became the best decision of Season 2. Season 3 will no doubt do it again.
3
‘The Testaments’ (Season 1)
For six seasons, viewers were taken on a wild ride through Margaret Atwood’s dystopian drama The Handmaid’s Tale. Gilead was a terrifying world, and yet Atwood had more in store. Based on the 2019 novel, The Testaments became the companion sequel series to The Handmaid’s Tale, extending the story through a new perspective. The coming-of-age drama follows a new generation of young women growing up inside the regime — including June Osborne’s (Elisabeth Moss) biological daughter, Agnes MacKenzie (Chase Infiniti), and a Canadian outsider, Daisy (Lucy Halliday). The story focuses on privileged daughters of Commanders attending an elite “Wife School,” governed by a regime intent on molding them into submissive spouses. Rather than just surviving in a constant state of torment, the younger characters actively deprogram Gilead’s brainwashing and plot to free themselves. Through an exploration of political control of women’s bodies, religious hypocrisy, the power of testimony in preserving truth, and the complex moral choices required to resist systemic injustice, it offers a newfound perspective on recurring themes.
The Testaments is a gripping drama that revitalizes the dystopian world of Gilead by shifting the focus to a new generation. It features suspenseful spy-thriller pacing and a fresh, compelling look at young women slowly unraveling into a new sense of identity. The Testaments may be a part of the overall story but can be enjoyed proudly on its own. One of the best connective tissues is the return of Ann Dowd as Aunt Lydia, this time operating outwardly as a high-ranking enforcer but secretly working to subvert the regime. The season also explores flashbacks revealing how she survived the initial revolution and the choices that led to her rise. It may not be her story, but she continues to dominate the screen. Infiniti, who was robbed of an Oscar nomination this year, rightly earned an Emmy nom. Her breathtaking portrayal of Agnes was like watching Moss during her first season of the main show — a star shining brightly. If you miss Moss as June, it’s a good idea to watch. There are a few familiar faces that pop in when you least expect them.
2
‘The Boroughs’ (Season 1)
Pour one out for The Boroughs. Gone too soon. Though Season 1 ended in a manner that allowed it to be a limited series, it was such a brilliantly addictive binge-watch, and we all wanted more of this wild story and star-studded ensemble. Created by Jeffrey Addiss and Will Matthews and executive produced by The Duffer Brothers, the series tells the tale of a lovable group of retirees living in a seemingly idyllic desert retirement community in New Mexico who discover a dark, supernatural conspiracy lurking beneath their perfect surface and must band together to stop a monster from stealing their time. Flipping the “kids on bikes” sci-fi trope in exchange for seniors with a mission, The Boroughs balances a monster mystery with heartfelt explorations of grief and aging led by an all-star ensemble.
Despite earning great acclaim, The Boroughs was one-and-done, which is unfortunate. The show was filled with nostalgia, firing on all cylinders. It’s what made it so fresh. The isolated, secluded, corporate-run retirement community in the New Mexico desert made for an unlikely horror-mystery, especially as authority figures and facility staff often try to dismiss the retirees’ claims of otherworldly monsters as mere dementia. It operates on a comical level while also highlighting what happens to those individuals of a certain age. The story is charming and thrilling but also serves as a poignant memento mori. The Boroughs boasts a cast with undeniable chemistry, including Alfred Molina, Geena Davis, Alfre Woodard, Denis O’Hare, Clarke Peters, and Bill Pullman. The Boroughs may be gone but never forgotten, which is fitting, as that’s the heart of the story.
1
‘Paradise’ (Season 2)
It doesn’t get much better than Paradise. After a solid first season last year, it returned even better for Season 2. Created by Dan Fogelman, the hit series follows a Secret Service agent (Sterling K. Brown) as he investigates the assassination of a former president (James Marsden). The investigation exposes a massive conspiracy: the seemingly idyllic town is an underground bunker housing the elite survivors of a catastrophic, world-ending event. The second season exploded the lore as Collins left the bunker to search for his wife, Teri (Enuka Okuma), who survived the global apocalypse. Meanwhile, the utopian shelter faces social collapse and reveals shocking origins, while time glitches and quantum AI named “Alex” begin to actively bend reality. As the season pivoted from mystery to a science-fiction thriller, Paradise Season 2 showcased what happens when an idyllic haven implodes within due to mistrust and betrayal.
Paradise works better than most sci-fi thrillers because it never gets bigger than its ambition. The intense, emotional twists are earned and warranted. The mystery box unfolds masterfully and in a gripping way. Paradise is a highly bingeable series because the cliffhangers and twists don’t linger too long. You get your answers, whether you like them or not, when they need to be revealed. Paradise features some of the best acting of the year, especially from Julianne Nicholson and Shailene Woodley. Both actresses bring raw emotion that will have you bawling by the end. The sprawling world-building got bigger in Season 2, only for it to come crashing down by its solid finale. Season 3 has us all eager because it’s truly a new frontier.
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Michael Block
Almontather Rassoul
