[EveningStar]

ping

[marron]

Yes, pretentious of course, but I never missed either Babylon 5 or either Battlestar Galactica.

Hey, its slim pickings out here.

[ThomasThomas]

2. Beauty and the Beast (1987 - 1990) - Nauseatingly sappy ????

[Nachum]

Danger! Danger Will Robinson!

[buccaneer81]

Everything in the Star Trek franchise since 1986. Except for the 2009 movie.

[HangnJudge]

(RELAX - THE CYNICISM IS ALL IN FUN!):

OK, OK
The blood pressure is coming down
I Liked Babylon 5, darn it

[Viking2002]

One more factoid about Babylon 5 - it had a series consultant and occasional guest star by the name of Mr. Harlan Ellison. Care to name a more pretentious sci-fi writer alive today?

[KarlInOhio]

I remember one on Saturday mornings back in the 70s called Ark II. The premise seemed to be that if we don't stop polluting, civilization will collapse and everything will become as dry and dusty as the Hollywood back lots are. I was a little kid back then and even I though it was heavy handed.

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Ark_II

[gussiefinknottle]

Buffy is a great, funny show! A little too liberal but very
well written.

[sten]

B5 was great until the end of season 4... then it limped (due to studios messing with project budgets)

[Gothmog]

#1 on your list should be The West Wing

[Brett66]

Star Trek The Next Generation

Voyager

Enterprise

[buccaneer81]

Earth II and Seaquest DSV on NBC.

El stinko.

[Tublecane]

How was Beauty and the Beast sci-f? People throw that name around a bit too carelessly.

[oldleft]

3. Red Dwarf

2. Mork and Mindy

1. Futurama

[ransomnote]

I remember the actor who portrayed the ‘lion man’ in the Beauty and the Beast series remarking that theirs was not exactly an equitable relationship because he was to retreat to and live in a sewer quietly until she needed him for something, at which point she would summon him by banging on drainage pipes. He would spring forth to serve her...and then retreat to the sewer again.
Also, a TV reviewer noted the series was two years old by saying “It’s been two years and it doesn’t look like their relationship is going anywhere....isn’t it time that she start dating other beasts?”

[delapaz]

I know you're looking for TV, but Silent Running has to get a mention here.

70's era environmentalism. Ugh.

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Silent_Running

[dead]

Buffy rocked. It wasn’t pretentious. It never took itself too seriously. They referred to themselves as the Scooby Gang whenever they were trying to solve some mystery.

[LiberConservative]

The Outer Limits. The new and old versions. Most were awful, some pretty good. But all of them were preachy, preachy and preachy.

[fr_freak]

Easily the most ridiculous, sappy and pretentious sci-fi/fantasy show out there today is Smallville. It is the most pathetically incompetent, neutered, and feminized incarnation of Superman, ever. Clark Kent spends at least 50% of his screen time looking woeful and lamenting his feelings, and a full three-quarters of his superhero efforts result in his monstrously stupid rear end being saved by one of his many girl friends, all of whom are indestructible ninjas, who must drag Clark YET AGAIN away from the glowing green “meteor rock” that Clark runs into face-first with alarming regularity. Meanwhile, we discover that Clark Kent is also the only learning disabled Kryptonian, ever, who has to take flying lessons from his own (female) cousin and STILL can’t get off the ground. To top it off, whenever Clark gets into a really big jam, the first thing he does is run to a crystal recording of his daddy. Truly pathetic.