Streaming Sci Fi TV: Tracking down sci fi and fantasy shows of interest available on the streaming services. Note that streaming availability can change with little or no notice.
What Are They?
Hercules: The Legendary Journeys follows the heroic exploits of the title character–the half-god, half-human son of Zeus–as he travels ancient Greece battling monsters, warlords, and the occasional god. Aided by his loyal friend Iolaus, Hercules uses his superhuman strength and compassion to defend humanity against the whims of the gods, especially his vengeful stepmother Hera.
Aired 1994-99, Syndication, 6 Seasons Totaling 111 Episodes + 5 Movies
Starring: Kevin Sorbo, Michael Hurst
Created By: John Schulian, Robert Tapert
Xena: Warrior Princess–a spin-off from Hercules–centers on a fierce warrior seeking redemption for her violent past. With her companion Gabrielle, she travels across the ancient world using her formidable combat skills—and trademark chakram—to fight for the oppressed and right past wrongs.
Aired 1995-2001, Syndication, 6 Seasons Totaling 134 Episodes
Starring: Lucy Lawless, Renee O’Connor, Bruce Campbell
Created By: Christian Williams, Robert Tapert
Why Watch Them?
Hercules: The Legendary Journeys arrived at a time when sci fi and fantasy entries were thriving in syndication, led by Star Trek: The Next Generation which had first become a big hit in the late ’80s. Hercules started out with several tryout movies and proved popular enough to continue to an ongoing series. Sam Raimi and Robert Tapert of Evil Dead fame helmed the show and went with a family-friendly, tongue-in-cheek approach. It delivered decent fantasy adventures on a syndication budget, and while it may not count as a genre classic, the show could be plenty of fun when at its best. And Kevin Sorbo proved to be a good, beefy lead for the series, playing straight man to the many guest stars who enjoyed chewing up the scenery with their appearances.
Xena: Warrior Princess was a spin-off from Hercules, with the character introduced during the first season of that Kevin Sorbo show. She was originally supposed to die off after a three-episode arc, but the creative team realized that she had potential to carry on in her own series and moved forward with that. Xena was very much in the same spirit as Hercules, though focused on two strong female leads. And it ultimately became the more popular of the two, edging it into consideration as one of the all-time genre greats.
Where Are They Streaming?
Both shows are currently available for streaming on Amazon’s Prime Video. You can watch them with a subscription to Prime, or subscribe to just the Prime Video service starting from $8.99 per month for a plan that includes ads. And you can upgrade to higher-tier plans without ads for a little more money. Prime Video has quite a number of other sci fi and fantasy shows available for streaming as well as a notable lineup of originals (you can see the rundown of those at this link), so if you work your way through the 200+ episodes of Hercules and Xena, you will still have plenty more to watch.
Stream Hercules: The Legendary Journeys of Prime Video (or Purchase VOD)
Stream Xena: Warrior Princess on Prime Video (or Purchase VOD)
Keep up with the status of all the current sci fi and fantasy shows as well as news and updates on new and upcoming shows at CancelledSciFi.com.
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Sci Fi TV Highlights: Listings for the upcoming week along with the latest sci fi TV news and trailers.
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