After 15 Years, This Is Still the Best One-Season Sci-fi TV Series (And It’s Not Even Close)

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I still think about this show all the time, even though it ended so abruptly 15 years ago! Joseph Fiennes was fantastic as the FBI agent, and it really stands out as one of the best sci-fi shows that only lasted a single season. We’ve seen so many great shows – like Doctor Who, Star Trek, The Leftovers, Battlestar Galactica, and Lost – use sci-fi to tell incredible stories. But it’s tough out there, and so many promising shows get cancelled after just one season, and this one really deserved more.

Many beloved science fiction TV shows, like Firefly, Station Eleven, Watchmen, and Almost Human, were unfortunately cancelled after just one season. Whether they didn’t attract a large enough audience or didn’t perform well with their networks, these shows all deserved to continue. However, one stands out as particularly deserving of a longer run. Adapted from a 1999 novel and brought to ABC by Brannon Braga (known for 24 and Star Trek Generations) and David S. Goyer (The Dark Knight, Foundation), this series had the potential to be the next Lost, but it ended after a promising first season.

FlashForward’s Mind-Bending Concept Makes It One of the Best Sci-Fi Shows Ever

The TV series FlashForward, created by Braga and Goyer, took significant liberties with Robert J. Sawyer’s original 1999 novel, but these changes ultimately made the show more gripping and enjoyable. Airing on ABC from September 2009 to May 2010, the series centers on a global mystery: nearly everyone on Earth briefly loses consciousness. During those 137 seconds, people see visions of their lives six months ahead. This intriguing premise and fast-paced plot are exactly what viewers look for in a science fiction show.

Joseph Fiennes, a SAG Award winner, starred as FBI Special Agent Mark Benford in FlashForward. The show followed Benford’s investigation into the mysterious blackout he witnessed during a brief vision of the future. FlashForward was full of surprises, including a suspect who didn’t experience the blackout, a puzzling figure named D. Gibbons, a similar event that happened in Somalia in 1991, and the idea that multiple futures are possible. It was a fast-paced, well-developed sci-fi series with compelling characters, emotional moments, and intriguing questions – many consider it one of the best of its kind, despite only lasting one season.

FlashForward Season 1’s Ending Perfectly Set Up Future Instalments

The final episode of FlashForward, titled “Future Shock,” wrapped up Mark Benford’s investigation and showed other characters trying to influence the events they’d seen in their visions. Benford figures out another flashforward is about to happen, and the FBI uses this to warn everyone. However, this time, instead of seeing just one future date, people experience flashes to many different times. The show ends there, leaving the door open for future seasons, but ABC ultimately decided not to continue the series.

Despite a cliffhanger ending that hinted at exciting future storylines, the show FlashForward was cancelled due to low ratings. We’ll never get answers to the mysteries left hanging: where Lita took the unconscious Janis (wearing a special ring that protected her from the blackout), who the young Charlie Benford saw in his vision, or why the second global blackout differed from the first. The show posed many intriguing questions, but ABC’s decision to cancel it 15 years ago means they’re likely to remain unanswered.

FlashForward Included Important Themes As Well As Brilliant Sci-Fi Twists

Unlike many science fiction shows that stick to simple stories, FlashForward used its futuristic premise to explore deeply human themes. It tackled big questions about free will versus fate, how knowing the future affects our choices today, and the complexities of love and relationships – even the idea of soulmates. The show’s story was very detailed and ambitious, and really needed more than just one season to fully develop.

With a fantastic cast featuring Joseph Fiennes, Sonya Walger, John Cho, and many others, FlashForward was a truly special show. It had the potential to be the next Lost – something a lot of series have aimed for in recent years. Sadly, FlashForward only lasted one season, but it remains one of the most captivating, fun, exciting, and intelligent sci-fi shows ever made, and it’s well worth watching.

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2025-11-14 21:45