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Prime Video’s Best Sci-Fi TV Shows to Transport You to Another World

di Antonello Cicciù9 Agosto 2024ICT

Prime Video has the goods if you’re looking for your next sci-fi TV show obsession.

Back in the day, home audiences were given a mere handful of episodic science fiction titles to enjoy week in and week out. Star Trek rocketed viewers to new worlds, Twilight Zone took audiences to the furthest reaches of their minds and X-Files proved that the truth was out there.

The streaming TV era has changed all that. The genre has grown with time, with a unique array of stories packing Prime Video’s programming lineup. Whether it’s Jonathan Nolan’s wild ride into the mutant-filled apocalypse, Philip K. Dick’s history-twisting tale of a Hitler-ruled America or the ultraviolent superhero satire based on Garth Ennis’s iconic comic book run, the streamer’s content library doesn’t mess around.

We’re just cracking the surface here. From a brooding time-travel Western to a fan-favorite political space saga, there’s something for every type of science fiction fan. Want proof? Read on for our guide to the best sci-fi shows on Prime Video right now.

Read more: The 32 Absolute Best TV Shows to Watch on Prime Video

JoJo Whilden/Prime Video

Fallout is a fun, kinetic, action-packed video game adaptation that upholds the vibe of Bethesda’s iconic franchise while also charting a new course, story-wise. You don’t need to be familiar with the games to enjoy this show. Sure, there are loads of cool Easter eggs for fans to appreciate. But Fallout was made with a broader audience in mind. And thanks to the killer performances by the cast — Walton Goggins and Ella Purnell are perfect — and the detailed world-building, you won’t want to miss taking this wild ride into the Wasteland.

Sophie Mutevelian/Prime Video

The Peripheral

Cyberpunk icon William Gibson wrote the novel that inspired The Peripheral. Created by Jonathan Nolan and Lisa Joy — the duo that brought Westworld and Fallout to the small screen — the series stars Chloë Grace Moretz as Flynne Fisher, a woman who becomes involved in a reality-bending virtual reality video game. A trip to future London and an unexpected mission to save the world flip her life, and this series, on its head.

Liane Hentscher/Prime Video

From The Office to Parks and Recreation and The Good Place, Greg Daniels has extensive experience bringing game-changing comedies to the small screen. In Upload, he brings his quirky sensibilities to the afterlife with a program that posits that, in the near future, tech companies will offer virtual resorts where the consciousnesses of the recently deceased can enjoy a heavenly forever vacation. That is, of course, if they can afford it.

Amazon Studios

The Expanse

The Expanse is The Little Engine That Could of science fiction TV shows. The series explores a future reality where humanity successfully colonized the solar system. It began as a scripted original series on SyFy, but after three seasons, the network dropped the ax on the program. Thankfully, Amazon swooped in to save it from cancellation. Over its six-season run, the series found its legs and audience, blossoming into an intelligent, riveting sci-fi drama.

Amazon Studios

A few years after Garth Ennis’s Preacher achieved mild success on AMC, the writer’s famous superhero comic The Boys touched down on Prime Video and blew the doors off. In the series, a group of corrupt celebrity superheroes grapple for power and fame as a gang of outlaws (aka The Boys) hunts them down individually. It’s a violent spectacle that smacks the audience in the face with a heaping helping of social and political commentary. And it’s quite good, too.

Read our review of The Boys.

Brooke Palmer/Prime Video

As powerful, violent and bewildering as its parent series, Gen V shines a light on the next generation of genetically altered superheroes. The usual social and political tropes are on display here. Additionally, Gen V digs into topics like the influence of social media, body image, classism and race in the realm of higher education.

Amazon Studios/YouTube/CNET Screenshot

Tales from the Loop

Inspired by the narrative art book by Swedish retro-futuristic artist Simon Stålenhag, the series balances the sleek aesthetic of a tech-heavy future world with the quiet quaintness of rural America. Jonathan Pryce and Rebecca Hall deliver standout performances in this quirky, slow-burn sci-fi series.

Karen Kuehn/Amazon Studios

Outer Range

If Yellowstone and The X-Files had a baby, it’d probably be Outer Range. The sci-fi Western follows Royal Abbott (Josh Brolin), the patriarch and owner of the Abbott family ranch. His family lives in the wake of the unexplained disappearance of his daughter-in-law. When a stranger comes to stay with the family, Royal must reckon with his past, present and potential future. This would be it if you’re looking for a trippy series grounded in its writing and stellar performances.

Read our Outer Range review.

Amazon Studios

The Man in the High Castle

What if America didn’t win World War II? That’s the central question The Man in the High Castle aims to answer. Based on Philip K. Dick’s novel of the same name, the series takes place in the 1960s and presents an alternate reality where Nazi Germany and Japan share control of the US. When newsreel footage from an alternate timeline where Germany and Japan lost the war surfaces, the seeds of rebellion are planted. Ridley Scott executive produced the poignant, thought-provoking series.

Elizabeth Sisson

Philip K. Dick’s Electric Dreams

Bryan Cranston (Breaking Bad), Ronald D. Moore (Battlestar Galactica) and Michael Dinner (Justified) came together to bring Philip K. Dick’s Electric Dreams to life. The futuristic anthology series explores how technology can impact humanity in various fantastic and horrific ways. Narrative similarities between Electric Dreams and Black Mirror most certainly abound. However, each episode of the Prime Video program takes inspiration from the work of the titular sci-fi author.

Chuck Hodes/Amazon Studios

Thematically, Night Sky feels reminiscent of Close Encounters of the Third Kind and Cocoon. The slow-burn series, which only lasted one season, stars J.K. Simmons and Sissy Spacek as an aging married couple grappling with the trials and tribulations of their golden years. Also, a mysterious portal to a strange planet exists underneath their shed. This sentimental mystery box series explores aging and mortality in a surprisingly heartfelt way — thanks to the engaging performances of the two leads.

Amazon Studios

Invincible

Inspired by Robert Kirkman’s comic series of the same name, Invincible follows Mark Grayson (Steven Yeun), an ordinary high school kid who happens to be the son of Omni-Man (J.K. Simmons) — the most powerful superhero on the planet. When Mark exhibits special abilities, he discovers the unfortunate truth about who his father is and the insidious things he’s done. This animated series is beautifully designed, well-written and wonderfully acted. It’s seen by many as the best superhero show on TV, and for good reason.

Katie Yu/Prime Video/Amazon Studios

In The Power, Prime Video’s series based on Naomi Alderman’s 2016 novel of the same name, teenage girls all over the globe suddenly develop the ability to shoot electricity from their hands. How exactly does this superpower change the female experience in America and beyond? Toni Collette and Jon Leguizamo star alongside a cast of talented young women in a series that aims to flip gender tropes and dynamics on their heads.

Prime Video/Amazon Studios

Paper Girls

It’s easy to compare Paper Girls to Stranger Things. Parts of the story take place in the ’80s and follow a group of kids struggling to make sense of a supernatural event in town as they ride around on their bikes. The similarities end there, though. Based on the Brian K. Vaughn comic books of the same name, the one-season program kicks off when our 12-year-old paper delivery girls face their future selves and fight for survival amid a time travel war that unfolds around them.

Amazon Studios

Truth Seekers

As surprising as it may seem, Truth Seekers is the first TV show Simon Pegg and Nick Frost have created together. Over the past few decades, the duo cultivated a reputation for kicking out hilarious genre jams from Shaun of the Dead to End of the World. Truth Seekers may not be as laugh-out-loud funny as their previous collaborations, but that’s okay. The ghost-hunting series is still chock full of horror homages, and thanks to the fun chemistry of its ensemble cast, it’s a worthwhile low-stakes binge.

Amazon Studios

The genre anthology series boom that followed Black Mirror’s initial success helped bring The Feed to Prime Video. It’s another program that explores the darker side of technology. The program takes place in a near future London, where people can livestream their day-to-day lives thanks to an implant in their head. Tapping into society’s obsession with social media and the dopamine rush that drives terrible decisions, The Feed features a top-notch cast that includes names like David Thewlis (Wonder Woman, Harry Potter and the Prisoner of Azkaban) and Game of Thrones alum Michelle Fairley.

Niko Tavernise/Prime Video

Dead Ringers

Prime Video took a big swing with Dead Ringers. This updated twist on David Cronenberg’s cult horror classic finds Rachel Weisz in the dual-starring role as doctors Elliott and Beverly Mantle. Their drive to push the health care envelope throws medical ethics to the wind. The result is a program that never shies away from exploring topics like big pharma’s control over women’s health, antiquated reproductive practices, body autonomy and so much more.

Amazon Studios

The rotoscoping animation used in Undone offers a dreamlike tapestry for the audience to take in. One could easily view the show as an ethereal work of art, but there’s also deep substance here. The show follows Alma (Rosa Salaza), a troubled 20-something whose life is turned on its head after she suffers an accident. As her reality shatters itself into something else, she must fight to make sense of her trauma. Part mystery, part thriller and part family drama — it’s safe to say that Undone is unlike any TV show you’ve seen before.

Jessica Miglio/Amazon Studios

Not to be confused with the short-lived sitcom starring Patrick Warburton, this live-action take on the blue superhero with wiggly antennae is more extensive, more action-packed and takes the comic book genre it’s parodying a bit more seriously. Ben Edlund, the creator of the original comic and 2001 TV series, executive produced this iteration of the character, ensuring the program’s sense of humor and vibe stayed true to his original vision. Peter Serafinowicz and Griffin Newman have a wonderful chemistry together. Jackie Earle Haley’s villainous portrayal of The Terror is an absolute delight. It makes the three-season series a must-watch for any comic book fans.

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