In Common Side Effects, Marshall makes a key discovery.
Warner Bros. Discovery
Cataclysms, conspiracies and uprisings feature in many of the biggest sci-fi shows of 2025. And while all this instability is bad for the state of our world, at least it has contributed to the emergence of fantasy television. Here are six shows that should be on your watch list.
Two of the best shows of the year were in no rush to return for new seasons. When Andor (Disney+), which first aired in 2022, didn't seem quite real. A Star wars a show that was as enjoyable for newcomers as it was for seasoned fans? A prequel about Rebel Alliance spy Cassian Andor, written and performed with the zeal usually reserved for Shakespeare? And is this actually a good thing? “You’re turning me on,” I thought then.
But it's really brilliant. And somehow the second and final (sob) season Andor even better than the first one. Now dedicated to the fight against the Galactic Empire, Cassian steals ships and rescues operatives on the orders of the shadowy spymaster Luten, but something more looms on the horizon. Timely in our authoritarian era, uncompromising and beautifully written. Andor was undoubtedly the best show of the year.
Another laggard, also from 2022, was Severance pay (Apple TV), which follows a very different group of rebels. The action takes place in the mysterious company Lumon Industries. It tells the story of a group of employees who decided to be “cut off”: their memories of work were separated from the rest of their consciousness, effectively creating another person known as an “innie” who had never known the light of the sun.
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The instability present in many 2025 sci-fi shows reflects poorly on our world, but it has contributed to the creation of sci-fi television.
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The innie's miserable life means they are terrorized in countless ways by Lumon's middle managers, while the “outsider” who sent them to this hellhole remains blissfully unaware. Their only option? Death after retirement. Season two takes the characters in horrifying directions, revealing even more of Lumon's strange work. Severance pay is an enjoyable mystery, smart enough to break through the storylines and actually answer your questions, even if it then leaves you with more.
James Marsden as President Cal Bradford in Paradise
Disney Copyright: Disney/Brian Roedel
Here's a show that might not seem like it New scientist choose: Paradise (Disney+/Hulu), which became a hit back in January. It starts out as a run-of-the-mill political thriller, albeit one with common sense: Sterling K. Brown plays Xavier Collins, a US Secret Service agent, and James Marsden plays Cal Bradford, President Collins, a suspected assassin. Their chemistry is amazing and their shenanigans are insane.
It should have been a fun but memorable entertainment, but the sci-fi twist that comes at the end of one of the best first episodes I've seen in years lifts the mood. Paradise from simply entertaining to exciting. No spoilers here, but it casts a chilling shadow on the investigation and keeps things from getting too silly. Because it's silly – a lot of the key moments involve covers of 1980s power ballads – but in just the right way.
The end of the world is shown thousands of times on television every year, but some apocalypses are better than others. One of the best in 2025 was Eternaut (Netflix), which brings Hector Herman Oosterheld's classic sci-fi comic to the present day.
After a deadly snowfall hits Buenos Aires, former soldier Juan Salvo puts on a gas mask and goes outside in search of his family. It soon becomes clear that the snow is just the beginning: Juan and several other survivors must figure out exactly what happened and how to stop it.
Immersed in the true story of Argentina's military dictatorship in the late 1970s and Oesterheld's murder at its hands, Eternaut approaches the source material with the respect it deserves. This chilling series has one of my favorite scenes of the year – a claustrophobic sequence in which the survivors, huddled in an apartment complex, realize that Juan's clothes allow him to survive on the streets, so they must take them from him.
If you prefer warmer dystopias, try For many (Apple TV), new series from Breaking Bad created by Vince Gilligan and set in the sunny climes of New Mexico. His hero, tormented novelist Carol Sturka, is no hero at all, especially when most of humanity is overwhelmed by sudden happiness. They all strive to serve Carol, one of the few who remains unaffected no matter how she wishes. And if they learn how to fix what makes it different, so much the better.
Suppose there is a utopia, and not everyone may like it? Carol doesn't want to be part of this obligatory love affair, but finding a way to return things to normal won't be easy – not least because there's a lot to like in a world without war and selfishness.
For many it's painfully self-confident, taking you in directions you wouldn't expect, all backed by a fantastic central performance.
Surprises in the store
Speaking of happiness, let's end on something lighter. Common Side Effects (Channel 4/Cartoon Network) – This is the show that surprised me the most this year, not because it was good – which was almost guaranteed thanks to the participation of Joe Bennett, co-creator of the excellent Kingdom of Scavengers – but because it attracted a large enough audience to be renewed for a second season.
In this animated series, mushroom expert Marshall makes a remarkable discovery: a mushroom that seems to cure all illnesses and injuries. Naturally, the Blue Angel, as it is called, is a hot commodity that must be kept out of the hands of Reutical Pharmaceutical, a firm that, unbeknownst to Marshall, employs Frances, his childhood friend with whom he has just been reunited.
He soon has plenty of enemies on his tail – but this isn't just a conspiracy thriller or a tirade against big pharmaceutical companies. Common Side Effects is a thoughtful and funny show about building a better world. Let's try to follow her example in 2026.
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