There's just something special about serialized science fiction. When they can sprawl out over hours and hours of TV, the whizbang tech or unfamiliar worlds become like second nature, and the delightful themes and character arcs get an opportunity to breathe. Even with the limited budget most shows are burdened with, television sci-fi gets a lot closer to the highs of novels than most movies ever can.

Now that the summer weather is here (and so is the toxic air), allow me to recommend five TV shows that are so much better than they have any right being. And if you have your own favorite show to recommend, shout it out in the comments below.

'The Expanse' (2015)

"The Expanse" is an adaptation of the novel series of the same name from Daniel Abraham and Ty Franck under the name James S. A. Corey. It started out on the Syfy cable network only to be canceled in a very unfinished state. Thankfully, Amazon picked it up for Prime Video and gave it a whopping three additional seasons to wrap everything up. How lucky can one show be?

A game set in the "Expanse" universe is also set for a July release, so here's your opportunity to familiarize yourself before jumping in.

'Total Recall 2070' (1999)

"2070" is an odd one-season show that tried to ride off the name recognition of the 1990 Schwarzenegger movie, but didn't really want to deal with those characters or plot details. In a way, it's ended up being a backdoor "Blade Runner" series instead, and that's for the best because it freaking rules.

There's an ambition here that the budget and '90s tech can't quite handle, but you can't watch all 22 episodes and not respect what they were going for.

'Terminator: The Sarah Connor Chronicles' (2008)

While the vast majority of "Terminator" media after "T2" has been wildly disappointing, this one-and-a-half-season marvel holds up surprisingly well. After the first season was cut short by the last writers' strike, the second season ended up exploring Sarah and John's relationship with machines better than any of the better-funded film competition.

It's worth noting that this lost out on a third season in favor of Joss Whedon's miserable "Dollhouse" program, and I'm still mad about it all these years later. I will die mad.

'Nier: Automata Ver1.1a' (2023)

"Nier: Automata" is an all-time favorite game for me, but I know I'm never going to convince most people to play through dozens of hours of middling combat to see five different endings and be fully satisfied with the experience. Thankfully, you can now watch an anime adaptation of this incredible story, and get a taste of the madness that is Yoko Taro.

'The Lone Gunmen' (2001)

I love "The X-Files" with my whole heart, so it really eats at me that this strange spin-off only lasted 13 episodes before getting canned. It follows the three goofballs from the main series doing their conspiracy theory shtick that we all know and love, so I can't fully work out why the network iced it so quickly. Maybe in the end, they knew the raw power of Mulder and Scully were the real draw. Still, it's worth tracking these down for a completionist experience.

Looking for more sci-fi goodness? Check out some underappreciated sci-fi flicks.

[Image: Aniplex USA]