Sci-Fi Television in the 1980s
by mike_sean | created - 07 Mar 2011 | updated - 20 Feb 2015 | PublicNotable science fiction television shows from the eighties (1980-1989).
See also: Sci-Fi Television in the 1950s | 1960s | 1970s | 1990s | 2000s | 2010s
Related sci-fi list: Sci-Fi Cinema in the 1980s
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1. V (1984–1985)
TV-PG | 1,088 min | Action, Adventure, Sci-Fi
A year after Liberation Day, courtesy of the red-dust bacteria, the humanoid, lizard-like aliens develop a resistance to the micro-organism and try to regain control of the Earth--only now, some humans are knowingly working with them.
Stars: Marc Singer, Faye Grant, Michael Ironside, Jane Badler
Votes: 14,024
2. Galactica 1980 (1980)
60 min | Adventure, Sci-Fi
When the Battlestar Galactica finally arrives at Earth, they find they must subtly raise its tech level while protecting it from the Cylons.
Stars: Kent McCord, Barry Van Dyke, Robyn Douglass, Lorne Greene
Votes: 4,090
3. Beyond Westworld (1980)
60 min | Action, Crime, Mystery
The security chief of an android manufacturing company must stop a mad scientist, who's sending the failed theme park's androids to infiltrate society for his own ends.
Stars: Jim McMullan, James Wainwright, William Jordan, Connie Sellecca
Votes: 357
4. X Bomber (1980–1982)
30 min | Animation, Action, Adventure
Created by Go Nagai, this sci-fi/fantasy puppet series sees heroes Shiro Ginga, Bongo Heracles, and Bigman Lee protect a girl named Lamia from the evil Gelma Armada, with the supership X Bomber and its giant robot component, Big Dai-X.
Stars: Toshio Furukawa, Jay Benedict, Mikio Terashima, Peter Marinker
Votes: 355
5. Astronauts (1981–1982)
25 min | Comedy, Sci-Fi
Mattocks, Fost and Ackroyd are Britain's first three astronauts. They must live in small, cramped space station orbiting the earth. Naturally, these conditions make coexistence difficult for them, but funny to us.
Stars: Christopher Godwin, Carmen Du Sautoy, Barrie Rutter, Bruce Boa
Votes: 27
6. Kinvig (1981)
30 min | Comedy, Sci-Fi
Lazy, unambitious repairman and UFO enthusiast Des Kinvig encounters a spaceship captained by the beautiful Miss Griffin from Mercury. Or is it all just the fantasy of a man having a quiet breakdown?
Stars: Tony Haygarth, Patsy Rowlands, Prunella Gee, Colin Jeavons
Votes: 83
7. The Phoenix (1981–1982)
60 min | Sci-Fi
An ancient and powerful human-like alien is pursued on modern Earth while he searches for his long lost partner.
Stars: Judson Scott, Richard Lynch, E.G. Marshall, Carmen Argenziano
Votes: 342
8. Under the Mountain (1981)
24 min | Family, Sci-Fi, Thriller
Teenage twin siblings, Rachel and Theo, on a summer vacation in Auckland visiting their aunt and uncle, meet a certain Mr. Jones, a mysterious man who helped find them when they got lost in... See full summary »
Stars: Kirsty Wilkinson, Lance Warren, Roy Leywood, William Johnson
Votes: 427
9. Il était une fois... l'espace (1982–1983)
26 min | Animation, Adventure, Family
A team of peacekeepers travels the galaxy solving disputes and exploring new worlds. Set against a story of a dispute between a dictatorial planet vying for more power and the rest of the union.
Stars: Roger Carel, Annie Balestra, Alain Dorval, Vincent Ropion
Votes: 1,872
10. Play for Tomorrow (1982)
60 min | Drama, Sci-Fi
An anthology of six plays that offered predictions of the future ranging from 1997-2016. Made by the same team behind the more regarded Play For Today, it lasted for a single series.
Stars: Gavin Campbell, Sylvestra Le Touzel, Robin Ellis, Tracey Childs
Votes: 29
11. The Powers of Matthew Star (1982–1983)
60 min | Action, Adventure, Sci-Fi
The adventures of high-school student Matthew Star, who is actually a superpowered alien Prince from another world.
Stars: Peter Barton, Louis Gossett Jr., Amy Steel, James Karen
Votes: 530
12. Q.E.D. (I) (1982)
60 min | Adventure, Comedy, Mystery
In 1912, Quentin E. Deverill, an eccentric expatriate American professor, uses his unique skills to solve mysteries in London.
Stars: Sam Waterston, A.C. Weary, George Innes, Caroline Langrishe
Votes: 169
13. Voyagers! (1982–1983)
TV-G | 60 min | Adventure, Family, Sci-Fi
A member of a league of time travelers and a boy travel through time repairing errors in world history.
Stars: Jon-Erik Hexum, Meeno Peluce, David Cadiente, Stephen Liska
Votes: 1,752
14. Automan (1983–1984)
70 min | Adventure, Comedy, Crime
A computer-generated superhero and his human creator fight crime in the city.
Stars: Desi Arnaz Jr., Chuck Wagner, Heather McNair, Gerald S. O'Loughlin
Votes: 2,102
15. Benji, Zax & the Alien Prince (1983–1984)
22 min | Family, Sci-Fi
Far distant from Earth on a red planet of Antars, a tyrant Zanu has killed their king and imprisoned the queen. The crown prince, their son, named Yubi (Christopher Burton) has escaped to ... See full summary »
Stars: Chris Burton, Ric Spiegel, Ken Miller, Benjean
Votes: 528
16. Terrahawks (1983–1986)
TV-G | 23 min | Action, Adventure, Family
The missions of a planetary defense organization dedicated to protecting Earth from a Martian menace.
Stars: Jeremy Hitchen, Denise Bryer, Anne Ridler, Robbie Stevens
Votes: 818
17. Chocky (1984)
25 min | Drama, Sci-Fi
A story centered on a young schoolboy and his strange relationship with an extraterrestrial entity.
Stars: James Hazeldine, Carol Drinkwater, Andrew Ellams, Zoë Hart
Votes: 395
18. Photon (1986– )
Action, Adventure, Family
Bhodi Li earth's world champion at Photon is selected to join an elite team of Photon Warriars. The Guardians of the Light of Photon work to keep the evil warlord of Arr from taking over the universe.
Stars: Christopher Lockwood, Loretta Haywood, Graham Ravey, Eros Rivers
Votes: 113
19. The Transformers (1984–1987)
TV-Y7 | 30 min | Animation, Action, Adventure
Two opposing factions of transforming alien robots engage in a battle that has the fate of Earth in the balance.
Stars: Frank Welker, Peter Cullen, Corey Burton, Christopher Collins
Votes: 23,527
20. The Tripods (1984–1985)
TV-PG | 30 min | Adventure, Drama, Sci-Fi
Earth has been conquered by an alien race known as the Masters using their giant Tripods. When humans reach the age of sixteen, they must undergo a process known as capping which places ... See full summary »
Stars: John Shackley, Ceri Seel, Jim Baker, Robin Hayter
Votes: 1,569
21. Star Wars: Droids (1985–1986)
TV-Y7-FV | 24 min | Animation, Action, Adventure
The adventures of R2-D2 and C-3PO years before serving the Rebel Alliance. The series features several story arcs and one hour-long special.
Stars: Anthony Daniels, Graeme Campbell, Dan Hennessey, Don Francks
Votes: 2,173
22. Star Wars: Ewoks (1985–1987)
TV-G | 30 min | Animation, Adventure, Family
The young Wicket and his Ewok friends have fantastic adventures on the forest moon of Endor.
Stars: Jim Henshaw, James Cranna, Cree Summer, Sue Murphy
Votes: 2,238
23. Misfits of Science (1985–1986)
60 min | Adventure, Comedy, Sci-Fi
The adventures of a team of misfit superheroes who fight crime for a scientific think tank.
Stars: Dean Paul Martin, Kevin Peter Hall, Mark Thomas Miller, Courteney Cox
Votes: 1,254
24. Otherworld (1985)
60 min | Action, Adventure, Fantasy
Thrown into another dimension, a family must keep ahead of a tyrannical state's hunters while searching for a way home.
Stars: Sam Groom, Gretchen Corbett, Tony O'Dell, Jonna Lee
Votes: 583
25. Robotech (1985)
TV-Y7 | 30 min | Animation, Action, Adventure
An alien spaceship crash lands on Earth and the technology and secrets she bears lead Earth into three destructive interplanetary wars.
Stars: Steve Kramer, Tom Wyner, Robert Axelrod, Bill Capizzi
Votes: 4,021
26. Small Wonder (1985–1989)
TV-G | 30 min | Comedy, Family, Sci-Fi
The zany adventures of a suburban family, their next-door neighbors, and an innovative robot designed to look like a human child.
Stars: Richard Christie, Marla Pennington, Jerry Supiran, Tiffany Brissette
Votes: 5,327
27. The Twilight Zone (1985–1989)
TV-PG | 45 min | Drama, Fantasy, Horror
A collection of tales which range from comic to tragic, but often have a wicked sense of humor and an unexpected twist.
Stars: Robin Ward, Charles Aidman, Richard Mulligan, William Atherton
Votes: 12,243
28. ALF (1986–1990)
TV-G | 30 min | Comedy, Family, Sci-Fi
When an ugly creature, who loves eating cats, crash-lands into the Tanner family's garage, they treat him as a guest and allow him to live with them as he comments on the stupidity of mankind.
Stars: Mihaly 'Michu' Meszaros, Paul Fusco, Max Wright, Anne Schedeen
Votes: 39,099
29. Outlaws (1986–1987)
60 min | Crime, Sci-Fi, Western
Five cowboys are sent forward in time from 1899 to 1986, where they start their own detective agency.
Stars: Rod Taylor, William Lucking, Charles Napier, Patrick Houser
Votes: 169
30. Starman (1986–1987)
60 min | Sci-Fi
An alien returns to Earth years after an earlier visit to reunite with his Earth son and together, they search for the alien's human wife.
Stars: Robert Hays, Christopher Daniel Barnes, Michael Cavanaugh, Patrick Culliton
Votes: 970
31. Captain Power and the Soldiers of the Future (1987–1988)
Not Rated | 30 min | Action, Sci-Fi
A group of guerrilla fighters battles the evil machine forces that dominate a future Earth.
Stars: Tim Dunigan, Peter MacNeill, Sven-Ole Thorsen, Maurice Dean Wint
Votes: 1,457
32. The Highwayman (1987–1988)
60 min | Action, Sci-Fi
Series featuring a large high-tech automobile whose driver, the "Highwayman" of the title, is part of a team of federal marshals tasked with righting wrongs.
Stars: Sam J. Jones, Mark 'Jacko' Jackson, Tim Russ, Jane Badler
Votes: 544
33. Max Headroom (1987–1988)
60 min | Comedy, Sci-Fi
In the near future, an intrepid investigative TV reporter does his job with the help of his colleagues and a computerized version of himself.
Stars: Matt Frewer, Amanda Pays, George Coe, Chris Young
Votes: 3,008
34. Out of This World (1987–1991)
30 min | Comedy, Family
A teenager discovers that her birth father is an alien and that she has supernatural powers.
Stars: Donna Pescow, Maureen Flannigan, Burt Reynolds, Doug McClure
Votes: 2,209
35. Star Cops (1987)
55 min | Crime, Drama, Mystery
The adventures of the International Space Police Force, led by Nathan Spring, in 2027. The Star Cops are made up of officers from all over the world: the British Colin Devis, the Australian... See full summary »
Stars: David Calder, Erick Ray Evans, Trevor Cooper, Linda Newton
Votes: 227
36. Star Trek: The Next Generation (1987–1994)
TV-PG | 45 min | Action, Adventure, Drama
Set almost 100 years after Captain Kirk's 5-year mission, a new generation of Starfleet officers sets off in the U.S.S. Enterprise-D on its own mission to go where no one has gone before.
Stars: Patrick Stewart, Brent Spiner, Jonathan Frakes, LeVar Burton
Votes: 135,841
37. Probe (1988)
60 min | Comedy, Crime, Mystery
An eccentric scientific prodigy and his secretary investigate mysteries.
Stars: Parker Stevenson, Ashley Crow, Jon Cypher, Clive Revill
Votes: 225
38. Red Dwarf (1988– )
TV-14 | 30 min | Comedy, Sci-Fi
The adventures of the last human alive and his friends, stranded three million years into deep space on the mining ship Red Dwarf.
Stars: Chris Barrie, Craig Charles, Danny John-Jules, Robert Llewellyn
Votes: 37,266
39. Something Is Out There (I) (1988–1989)
60 min | Horror, Sci-Fi
Jack Breslin was a somewhat maverick police detective paired (unofficially) with a beautiful alien possessing strange powers and abilities named Ta'Ra. Posing as his cousin and keeping her ... See full summary »
Stars: Joe Cortese, Gregory Sierra, Maryam d'Abo, Neill Barry
Votes: 217
40. War of the Worlds (1988–1990)
TV-PG | 45 min | Action, Adventure, Horror
Humanity must resume its war against the Martians when they revive after decades of hibernation following their defeat in the 1950s.
Stars: Jared Martin, Lynda Mason Green, Philip Akin, Richard Chaves
Votes: 1,468
41. Alien Nation (1989–1990)
TV-14 | 60 min | Crime, Drama, Sci-Fi
In the near future, a human cop and his alien partner fight crime and discrimination in Los Angeles.
Stars: Gary Graham, Eric Pierpoint, Michele Scarabelli, Lauren Woodland
Votes: 5,504
42. Hard Time on Planet Earth (1989)
60 min | Action, Adventure, Comedy
Jesse, an alien exiled to Earth, finds himself in Los Angeles. His only companion is a floating, orb-shaped robotic parole officer named Control. Doomed to stay on Earth until Jesse can ... See full summary »
Stars: Martin Kove, Danny Mann, Brad Koepenick, Kent Stoddard
Votes: 417
43. Quantum Leap (1989–1993)
TV-PG | 60 min | Action, Adventure, Drama
During an experiment into time travel, a scientist finds himself trapped in the past, "leaping" into the lives of different people, sorting out their problems and changing history in hopes of getting back to his own life in the present.
Stars: Scott Bakula, Dean Stockwell, Deborah Pratt, Dennis Wolfberg
Votes: 36,444
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