10 Sci-Fi Shows That Are the Perfect Weekend Binge

Image via Apple TV Published Sep 5, 2026, 5:18 AM EDT Diego Pineda has been a devout storyteller his whole life. He has self-published a fantasy novel and a book of short stories, and is actively working on publishing his second novel. A lifelong fan of watching movies and talking about them endlessly, he writes reviews and analyses on his Instagram page dedicated to cinema, and occasionally on his blog. His favorite filmmakers are Andrei Tarkovsky and Charlie Chaplin. He loves modern Mexican cinema and thinks it's tragically underappreciated. Other interests of Diego's include reading, gaming, roller coasters, writing reviews on his Letterboxd account (username: DPP_reviews), and going down rabbit holes of whatever topic he's interested in at any given point. Sign in to your Collider account Every fan of the science fiction genre knows just how irresistibly fun it can be to binge-watch a whole show in a single weekend; and thankfully, there are plenty of great sci-fi shows out there that lend themselves perfectly to such a watch session. These are gems both classic and modern, both animated and live-action, both delectably creative and intellectually compelling. In other words, these shows are everything that a sci-fi fan looking for a good show to binge-watch over the course of a weekend could possibly want. The show in question could still be ongoing, like Severance, or have already come to an end, like Neon Genesis Evangelion. Either way, as long as the whole series takes 20 hours or less to binge-watch, it can result in a pretty comfortable weekend binge. 10 'Severance' (2022–Present) Image via Apple TV It's typically sci-fi shows which are already fully finished that make for the best binge sessions, which is the only reason a show like Severance can't be higher on a list of this nature; because otherwise, Apple TV's sci-fi magnum opus would be a downright perfect weekend binge. Part workplace satire, part character drama, part mystery box sci-fi, Severance is a full-fledged masterpiece. It's one of the most addictive sci-fi shows that are impossible to stop watching, a nail-bitingly tense experience which loves to bring up a few fascinating mysteries for every question that it decides to answer. Twisty, creative, darkly humorous, and full of delightful surprises, it so far provides just under 16 hours of pure sci-fi bliss. It will likely no longer be all that comfy of a weekend binge by the time season three comes around; but, in the meantime, it should do just fine. 9 'Cyberpunk: Edgerunners' (2022–Present) Image via Netflix Upon launch, Cyberpunk 2077 was nothing short of a broken, glitchy, buggy mess. Since then, however, the game has seen one of the most dramatic comebacks in the history of gaming, and from that success came Cyberpunk: Edgerunners. While this is another instance of a sci-fi show that isn't over yet, its first season tells a single self-contained story; and with its second season fast approaching, it's about as great a time as any to binge-watch Edgerunners. Much like its title would have you expect, it's one of the best cyberpunk anime of all time. Rarely has history seen an animated sci-fi show that better balances brutal action with absolutely stunning animation, emotionally riveting writing, and clever science fiction elements. In just five-and-a-half hours, one can be treated to one of the most perfectly hyperkinetic animated shows the world has ever seen. 8 'Devs' (2020) Image via FX on Hulu Perhaps still best-known for his work as a screenwriter, Alex Garland made his jump to the director's chair with the incredible Ex Machina. From there, he had nowhere to go but up. From that expansion of his artistic skills came his first show: Devs, a sort of perfect companion piece to Ex Machina, which all those who love science fiction about artificial intelligence should check out. Devs is nothing short of one of the best sci-fi shows with eight episodes or fewer, a gripping thriller miniseries which provides just under 7 hours of pure thought-provoking entertainment. The way it blends a riveting corporate conspiracy with a philosophically profound, often mind-bending study of determinism and free will is something that any true sci-fi fan should be able to appreciate. 7 'Neon Genesis Evangelion' (1995–1996) Image via TV Tokyo Hideaki Anno's Neon Genesis Evangelion completely revolutionized anime television, its intelligent subversion of the traditional mecha genre proving that auteur-driven storytelling could very much deliver something truly special in the medium. With time, it has continued aging as one of those anime masterpieces that became a blueprint for the genre going forward. It's still one of the most widely influential shows Japan has ever produced. In just 13 hours, people can experience what many could confidently call one of the greatest anime series of all time; and even though fans generally dislike the show's original ending (which led Anno to make the movie The End of Evangelion as a response), it's still absolutely worth it as a weekend binge. Powerfully abstract and wonderfully artsy, it's probably not the best introduction to anime for the uninitiated, but it sure is a masterpiece nonetheless. 6 'Station Eleven' (2021–2022) Image via Everett Collection, HBO Dystopian stories were a dime a dozen throughout the 2010s, but toward the latter half of the decade, the trend began to die down a bit. With the market now de-saturated, the 2020s have delivered some exceptional dystopian pieces of media—including the fantastic HBO Max miniseries Station Eleven. There are many great sci-fi shows with 10 episodes or fewer out there, and this is one of the very best. Just a bit over seven-and-a-half hours are all it takes for Station Eleven to deliver a thought-provoking tale about survival, connection, and how humanity recovers after a global catastrophe. Rejecting the traditional dark tone of post-apocalyptic stories, Station Eleven is instead a gorgeously hopeful story celebrating humanity's unending resilience and the power of art itself. Collider Exclusive · Sci-Fi Survival Quiz Which Sci-Fi World Would You Survive? The Matrix · Mad Max · Blade Runner · Dune · Star Wars Five universes. Five completely different ways the future went wrong — or sideways, or up in flames. Only one of them is the world your instincts were built for. Eight questions will figure out which dystopia, galaxy, or desert wasteland you'd actually make it out of alive. 💊The Matrix 🔥Mad Max 🌧️Blade Runner 🏜️Dune 🚀Star Wars TEST YOUR SURVIVAL → 01 You sense something is deeply wrong with the world around you. What do you do? The first instinct is often the truest one. APull on every thread until I understand the system — then figure out how to break it. BStop asking questions and start stockpiling — food, fuel, weapons. Questions don't keep you alive. CKeep my head down, observe carefully, and trust no one until I know who's pulling the strings. DStudy the patterns. Every system has a rhythm — learn it, and you learn how to survive it. EFind the people fighting back and join them. You can't fix a broken galaxy alone. NEXT QUESTION → 02 In a world of scarcity, what resource do you guard most fiercely? What we protect reveals what we believe survival actually requires. AKnowledge. If you understand the system, you don't need resources — you can generate them. BFuel. Everything else — movement, power, escape — runs on it. CTrust. In a world of fakes and informants, a truly reliable ally is rarer than any commodity. DWater. And after water, information — the two things empires are truly built on. EShips and credits. The galaxy is big — you survive it by being able to move through it freely. NEXT QUESTION → 03 What kind of threat keeps you up at night? Fear is useful data — if you're honest about what you're actually afraid of. AThat reality itself is a lie — that everything I experience has been constructed to keep me compliant. BA raid. No warning, no mercy — just the roar of engines and then nothing left. CBeing identified. Once someone with power decides you're a problem, you're already out of time. DBeing outmanoeuvred — losing a political game I didn't even know I was playing. EThe Empire tightening its grip until there's nowhere left to run. NEXT QUESTION → 04 How do you deal with authority you don't trust? Every dystopia has a power structure. Your approach to it determines everything. ASubvert it from the inside — learn its rules well enough to weaponise them against it. BIgnore it and stay out of its reach. The further from any power structure, the better. CAppear to comply while doing exactly what I need to do. Visibility is the enemy. DManoeuvre within it carefully. You can't beat a system you refuse to understand. EResist openly when I have to. Some things are worth the risk of being seen. NEXT QUESTION → 05 Which environment could you actually endure long-term? Survival isn't just tactical — it's physical, psychological, and very much about where you are. AUnderground bunkers and server rooms — cramped, artificial, but with access to everything that matters. BOpen wasteland — brutal sun, no shelter, constant movement. At least the threat is honest. CA dense, rain-soaked city where you can disappear into the crowd and nobody asks questions. DMerciless desert — extreme heat, no water, and something enormous living beneath the sand. EThe fringe — backwater planets and busy spaceports where the Empire's attention rarely reaches. NEXT QUESTION → 06 Who do you want in your corner when things fall apart? The company you keep is the clearest signal of who you actually are. AA tight crew of believers who've seen behind the curtain and have nothing left to lose. BOne or two people I'd trust with my life. Any more than that and someone talks. CNobody, ideally. Alliances are liabilities. I work alone unless I have no choice. DA community bound by shared hardship and mutual survival — people who need each other to last. EA ragtag team with wildly different skills and total commitment when it counts. NEXT QUESTION → 07 Where do you draw the line — if you draw one at all? Every survivor eventually faces a moment that tests what they're actually made of. AI won't harm the innocent — even the ones who'd report me without hesitation. BI do what I have to to protect the people I've chosen. Everything else is negotiable. CThe line shifts depending on who's asking and what's at stake. DI draw a long-term line — nothing that compromises my people's future, even if it'd help now. ESome lines, once crossed, can't be uncrossed. I know which ones they are. NEXT QUESTION → 08 What would actually make survival worth it? Staying alive is one thing. Having a reason to is another. AWaking others up — dismantling the illusion so no one else has to live inside it. BFinding somewhere — or someone — worth protecting. A reason to keep moving. CAnswers. Understanding what I am, what any of this means, before time runs out. DLegacy — shaping the future in a way that outlasts me by generations. EFreedom — for myself, for others, for every world still living under someone else's boot. REVEAL MY WORLD → Your Fate Has Been Calculated You'd Survive In…Your answers point to the world your instincts were built for. This is the universe your temperament, your survival instincts, and your particular brand of stubbornness were made for. The MatrixYou took the red pill a long time ago — probably before anyone offered it to you. You're a systems thinker who can't help but notice the seams in things. You're drawn to understanding how the system works before figuring out how to break it. You'd find the Resistance, or it would find you — your instinct for spotting constructed realities is the machines' worst nightmare. You function best when you have access to information and the freedom to act on it. The Matrix built an airtight prison. You'd be the one probing the walls for the door. Mad MaxThe wasteland doesn't reward the clever or the well-connected — it rewards those who are hard to kill and harder to break. That's you. You don't need comfort, community, or a cause larger than the next horizon. You need a vehicle, a clear threat, and enough fuel to outrun it — and you're good at all three. You are unsentimental enough to survive that world, and decent enough — just barely — to be something more than another raider. In the wasteland, that distinction is everything. Blade RunnerYou'd survive here because you know how to exist in moral grey areas without losing yourself completely. You read people accurately, keep your circle small, and ask the questions others prefer not to answer. In a city where humanity is a legal designation rather than a feeling, you hold onto something that keeps you functional. You're not a hero. But you're not lost, either. In Blade Runner's world, that distinction is everything. DuneArrakis is the most hostile environment in the known universe — and you are precisely the kind of person it rewards. Patience, discipline, and political awareness are your core strengths — and on Arrakis, they're survival tools. You understand that the long game matters more than any single victory. Others come to Dune and are consumed by it. You'd learn its logic and earn its respect. In time, you wouldn't just survive Arrakis — you'd begin to reshape it. Star WarsThe galaxy far, far away is vast, loud, and in a constant state of violent political upheaval — and you wouldn't have it any other way. You find meaning in being part of something larger than yourself — a cause, a crew, a rebellion. You'd gravitate toward the Rebellion, or the fringes, or whatever pocket of the galaxy still believes the Empire's grip can be broken. You fight — not because you have to, but because standing aside isn't something you're capable of. In Star Wars, that willingness is what makes all the difference. ↻ RETAKE THE QUIZ 5 'Cowboy Bebop' (1998–1999) Image via Sunrise Cowboy Bebop is one of the most groundbreaking and important anime series in history, having helped popularize the medium in the Western world between the late '90s and early 2000s. It's a neo-noir space Western that's unlike anything else anime television has ever seen, one of those precious anime classics whose every episode is a masterpiece. Blending an exquisitely creative and idiosyncratic visual identity with a genre-defining jazz score, a deep and character-driven story, and an episodic structure that makes every episode feel like its own masterful adventure, it really is one of the greatest animated sci-fi series of all time. Just 13 hours are all it takes to enjoy this borderline revolutionary gem, a must-see for those who think that animation doesn't deserve as much respect as live-action science fiction. 4 'Scavengers Reign' (2023) Image via HBO Max It's an absolute tragedy and an unforgivable affront to the art of animation that HBO Max canceled Scavengers Reign after only one season and that Netflix didn't renew the show after acquiring it. It would be all the more of an affront, however, for people who love science fiction to not watch what's easily one of the best cartoons that the genre has ever seen. Indeed, Scavengers Reign is a masterpiece from top to bottom, one of the best overlooked animated shows that deserves more attention. It still had plenty of gas left in the tank, but since it was originally pitched as a self-contained miniseries, its six hours of content provide some of the most creative and visually stunning televisual sci-fi content that any fan of the genre could find. 3 'Andor' (2022–2025) Image via Disney+ For the longest time, Star Wars' contributions to the small screen were exclusively limited to animation, and it wouldn't be until 2019 that the franchise would finally make the jump to live-action television. Who could have possibly foretold that it would be a live-action show that would eventually deliver the best piece of media that the galaxy far, far away had seen since the '80s? Indeed, Andor is as much of a masterpiece as any film from the original film trilogy. One of the most perfect thriller shows shorter than five seasons, Andor is a must-see even for those who don't typically love Star Wars content. Over the course of 16 hours that could make for an engrossing weekend binge, it offers a celebration of rebellion in the face of tyranny that, aside from bringing the Star Wars franchise back to its roots, feels incredibly timely nowadays. 2 'Arcane' (2021–2024) Image via Netflix Arcane is science fantasy at its very best, a show so nearly-perfect that even those who aren't the least bit familiar with League of Legends should consider watching. It is, after all, one of the most perfect fantasy shows of the last 20 years, a steampunk masterpiece whose two seasons deliver some of the most visually striking and best-written sci-fi content the world has seen throughout the 2020s. The character writing is wonderfully deep and complex, the world-building is absolutely incredible, the thrilling action scenes are bolstered by the downright perfect music and animation, and the story is as emotionally engaging as it is surprisingly thought-provoking. Anyone who likes putting down animation as a lesser form of sci-fi television ought to check out the 12-hour-long Arcane, and if that doesn't change their minds, nothing ever possibly could. 1 'Firefly' (2002–2003) Image via FOX There is perhaps no instance of an incredible sci-fi show that was tragically canceled after a single season more infamous or notorious than Firefly. As the years have passed, this space Western's cancellation hasn't become even slightly less painful, because it's still widely remembered as one of the greatest sci-fi series to have graced the small screen throughout the 21st century. One of the best single-season action TV shows in history, Firefly more than lives up to the hype even 23 years after its conclusion. And with a new animated continuation finally in the works after decades of waiting, now seems to be the best possible time for those who haven't watched Firefly to binge-watch its 8 hours' worth of content over the course of a single incredible weekend. Firefly Release Date 2002 - 2003-00-00 Network FOX Cast Gina Torres Zoë Washburne