The Science Fiction genre in television shows would encompass four of the most popular television series of all time: The Twilight Zone, Star Trek, Star Trek: The Next Generation, and The X-Files. While there is a distinct difference, say, in the optimism and hope for the future exhibited in the original Star Trek TV series in comparison to the more bleak and nihilistic portrait provided in Star Trek: The Next Generation, all of these shows in the science fiction genre tend to exhibit an overarching similarity. The main purpose driving all four of these shows appears to be, on close examination, a desire to ôredeem humanity.ö This analysis will discuss a number of the textual and contextual features of these four shows in order to demonstrate this underlying purpose behind each. In addition to this analysis, a discussion of how these textual and contextual features have pushed science fiction genre television shows from ôcult statusö to ômainstream popularityö will be provided. A conclusion will address the future of the science fiction series genre on television.
The original Star Trek series aired on television from 1966-1969. However, once it went off the air, it gained an enormous following of fans. As James Hibberd (p. 28) writes, ôIt was the first cult TV show.ö No longer are science fiction television shows the stuff of cult adoration. Sleek, trendy shows like The X-Files and Star Trek: The Next Generation, with over 12 million viewers weekly at its peak, are now beloved by mainstream audiences in American culture. As TV GUIDE maintains in an early assessment of The X-Files, ôIt is emerging from cult status to become a mainstream hitö (Grossberger, p. 30).
Likewise, shows adopting new technologies to enhance special effects, like Star Trek: The Next Generation not only attracted mainstream audiences but also was responsible for helping spawn the science fiction genre among television programming. ...