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[March Climber]

These are both two sets of media that I've never checked out but I've heard such great things about.

My questions:

• Are they worth the investment of time in today's age?
• Which TV show should I start watching first?
• Which version of said TV show should I start watching?
• Where should I start with each?
• Are their movies worth watching?
• Have they aged well?

 

[poppabk]

Haven't watched Stargate so can only recommend Battlestar Galactica but it is still definitely worth watching even if it fails to stick the landing and goes a little off the rails.

 

[NotMyProblemAnymoreCunt]

These are both two sets of media that I've never checked out but I've heard such great things about.

My questions:

• Are they worth the investment of time in today's age?
• Which TV show should I start watching first?
• Which version of said TV show should I start watching?
• Where should I start with each?
• Are their movies worth watching?
• Have they aged well?

I love Battlestar Galactica show but I haven't seen any of the Stargate shows yet

I love the Stargate movie even more than Battlestar Galactica

I'll be watching Stargate SG1 next year though

 

[DeepEnigma]

Stargate SG-1 is GOAT to me.

 

[jshackles]

 

[Hookshot]

Only ever watched a few episodes of stargate but I must have missed every episode to the main plot as I never saw the greys or replicators etc. Just medieval forest planets over and over.

 

[MrTroubleMaker]

my 2 cents

Battlestar Galactica 1978 series is good
Battlestar Galactica 1980 series is not good, they cut costs.
Battlestar Galactica 2004-2009 is good for the first year or so, then gets bad

Stargate SG-1 1997-2007 a lot of good episodes
Stargate Atlantis 2004-2009 hit and miss
Stargate Universe 2009-2011 hit and miss

 

[reinking]

Only one of those series has The Adama Manuever. It gets my vote.

*deleted. Too big of a spoiler for someone who has never seen it.


edit - One thing occurred to me. I watched these in an era before binge watching. I absorb things from shows much differently when watching them week-to-week vs binge watching. I still go with BSG because it is one of my all-time favorite series (just behind The X-Files) but I know it would not have been the same experience if I had binge watched it.

 

[TVexperto]

my 2 cents

Battlestar Galactica 1978 series is good
Battlestar Galactica 1980 series is not good, they cut costs.
Battlestar Galactica 2004-2009 is good for the first year or so, then gets bad

Stargate SG-1 1997-2007 a lot of good episodes
Stargate Atlantis 2004-2009 hit and miss
Stargate Universe 2009-2011 hit and miss

Atlantis is leagues above universe

 

[March Climber]

Atlantis is leagues above universe

If it's possible to not spoil the reason, why's that?

 

[Drew1440]

Never seen Stargate, though its on my watch list. I loved the 2004 version of Battlestar Galactica and even it's spin off, Caprica.

 

[Punished Miku]

My questions:

• Are they worth the investment of time in today's age?
• Which TV show should I start watching first?
• Which version of said TV show should I start watching?
• Where should I start with each?
• Are their movies worth watching?
• Have they aged well

100% worth it still

 

[yet_another_alt]

SG-1 is great. I've never watched the older BSG stuff but the 2000's one was basically naval space battle porn. Yeah, the drama gets ridiculous sometimes but the scifi part hardcarries it.

 

[Nocty]

my 2 cents

Battlestar Galactica 1978 series is good
Battlestar Galactica 1980 series is not good, they cut costs.
Battlestar Galactica 2004-2009 is good for the first year or so, then gets bad

Stargate SG-1 1997-2007 a lot of good episodes
Stargate Atlantis 2004-2009 hit and miss
Stargate Universe 2009-2011 hit and miss

A man of culture

 

[Burning Blade]

The Expanse
J/K BSG IS amazing (2004 run)

 

[Dirk Benedict]

Come on. You know what I voted for.

 

[jshackles]

If it's possible to not spoil the reason, why's that?

Atlantis (mostly) ditches the SG-1 series' "monster of the week" format in favor of a more focused arcing story told across multiple seasons. Not quite the same, but similar to the differences between TNG and DS9 in Star Trek.

Meanwhile, Universe is an entirely serialized mystery show that happens to be set in space - there are almost zero ties to the legacy / established rules from the previous movies / series, so it may as well not have been called "Stargate". Trying to think of a similar Star Trek analogy, and all I can turn up in my mind is the Section 31 movie (but Universe is at least interesting on its own and far better than that garbage film).

 

[WoJ]

I'm rewatching BSG (2004) and through season 2. Season 1 was one of the best seasons of TV I've ever watched. Season 2 was more uneven but still good.

The real answer here is to watch Farscape.

 

[TVexperto]

If it's possible to not spoil the reason, why's that?

Since my english is not perfect I asked Google:

Fans often prefer Stargate: Atlantis (SGA) over Stargate: Universe (SGU) because SGA maintained the classic, adventurous, "exploration of the week" feel with strong team dynamics and humor, similar to SG-1, while SGU shifted to a darker, character-focused, serialized drama with heavier themes and internal conflict, which alienated some fans and felt less like traditional Stargate, even though SGU's serialization allowed for deep character arcs and mature storytelling.
Why Atlantis is often favored (without major spoilers):

• Familiar Formula: SGA successfully continued the SG-1 model of a military-science team exploring new worlds, facing episodic threats, and building relationships within the beloved Pegasus Galaxy setting.
• Strong Ensemble: It developed beloved characters with great chemistry, like Sheppard, McKay, Teyla, and Ronon, offering consistent humor and heartwarming moments alongside the action.
• Sense of Discovery: The series excelled at capturing the wonder and danger of discovering ancient technology and facing new alien races, keeping the spirit of adventure alive.

Why Universe was different (and divisive):

• Darker Tone & Serialization: SGU embraced a more grounded, Battlestar Galactica-esque style, focusing on survival, psychological stress, and complex character drama over episodic adventures.
• Internal Focus: With the Destiny ship stranded far from home, the conflicts were often about resource scarcity, power struggles, and personal breakdowns, rather than outward exploration.
• Maturity & Realism: It explored heavier themes like morality, leadership, and existential dread, which some viewers found compelling but others found too bleak or slow compared to SGA's lighter tone.

In essence, Atlantis delivered more of what fans loved about Stargate (adventure, humor, teamwork), while Universe tried to evolve the franchise with a more mature, serialized, and darker sci-fi approach, which appealed to a different, but smaller, segment of the audience.

 

[Avid Reading Horse]

SG-1 was fun for most of its Showtime run and ran out of gas. The spinoffs were bad.

70s BSG can be safely left in the 70s.

Ronald D Moore BSG is the GOAT.

 

[The Cockatrice]

Shame to say I havent watched Battlestar Galactica either, except bits and bobbles here and there when I was young and was briefly looking at the TV. Stargate was great tho(the og series, not the modern stuff), first movie included. Need to rewatch it.

 

[Von Hugh]

I watched Battlestar Galactica (2004 - 2009) for the very first time two years ago, and I could start watching it now again in a heartbeat. I can't say the same thing for 99 % of TV series out there.

 

[winjer]

I have only watched Battlestar Galactica 2004. It was very good. Though the ending was underwhelming.
Never watched Stargate. Though sometimes I watch some clips of it, on sites like 9gag. And it seems cool.

 

[clarky]

BSG season one (2000's version) is some of the best Sci-fi ever created. After that not so much but still worth a watch.

 

[ShirAhava]

I like the 70s Battlestar Galactica more than ANYTHING other than V the mini series, Star Trek and the Time Tunnel

SG-1 and the movie were awesome didn't like the spinoffs

I'd put SG-1 over the modern Battlestar Galactica tho quality wise that show was all over the place to me certain seasons are amazing others I can barely get through....still sad about Caprica

 

[StueyDuck]

Both are great, both vastly improved post original series/film

The only thing I would say is that of the 2 Stargate as been watered down with more content which some has not been so great where BSG has kept its ip less open for usage.

 

[Trilobit]

Battlestar Galactica from 00s is far superior to anything from Stargate, not even close. But I did enjoy the original movie and Atlantis very much. The SG-1 show became a bit dull after a while. Let's not mention Universe.

 

[Punished Miku]

Battlestar Galactica from 00s is far superior to anything from Stargate, not even close. But I did enjoy the original movie and Atlantis very much. The SG-1 show became a bit dull after a while. Let's not mention Universe.

Stargate is just much, much, much bigger. It's one of the best shows out there at building up lore, and doing call backs 3 seasons later to something you saw once. It's still pretty much the best sci-fi show ever made. It isn't going for the same movie level production or drama as BSG, but for the TV format it's unrivaled. SG-1 delivers over and over on the sci-fi fantasy. You'll start watching the show and be thinking to yourself, "man it would be cool if someday it goes here." And it always actually does.

 

[OmegaSupreme]

2004 Battlestar is my favorite show ever.

 

[Trilobit]

Stargate is just much, much, much bigger. It's one of the best shows out there at building up lore, and doing call backs 3 seasons later to something you saw once. It's still pretty much the best sci-fi show ever made. It isn't going for the same movie level production or drama as BSG, but for the TV format it's unrivaled. SG-1 delivers over and over on the sci-fi fantasy. You'll start watching the show and be thinking to yourself, "man it would be cool if someday it goes here." And it always actually does.

It's bigger like a pizza is bigger than an exquisite Scotch fillet. SG is good at what it does, but BSG is a far superior and fulfilling experience.

 

[Punished Miku]

It's bigger like a pizza is bigger than an exquisite Scotch fillet. SG is good at what it does, but BSG is a far superior and fulfilling experience.

Both are great, and are different from each other. And I wouldn't ever want either one to copy the other; aka SGU.

 

[Trilobit]

Both are great, and are different from each other. And I wouldn't ever want either one to copy the other; aka SGU.

Yeah, SGU tried to take Stargate in a direction it never should have gone in. Just like taking Star Trek in the same direction in Discovery completely ruined what made the IP unique and compelling.

 

[Sand Dan Glokta]

BSG is an amazing show. It has my vote.

 

[Trogdor1123]

Watch them all. They are great.

 

[falconhoof]

Been a question on my mind for years. I wanted to watch a non-Star Trek sci-fi show, as I never got into any properly. Maybe watched the odd episode.

Babylon 5
Stargate
Farscape
BSG

 

[jason10mm]

Only 1 has glorious full frontal nudity though! I suspect that scene has been excised from any version of the show available today.

BSG had such highs that I can overlook it's incredibly messy lore and inconsistent cylon technology application. The writing, emotional beats, and powerhouse acting carry it.

Stargate I think is far more fun, funny, and more thought provoking as they explore a lot more concepts, I think. Where BSG is a feast for "moral quandaries", SG1 has a lot to say about the human condition and tech "what if's". Plus it has a lot more internal consistency and solid world-building.

If we expand to Babylon 5, that's space opera at it's finest, up till the end of the 4th season it really worked in a mythic tale of good, evil, and space ships.

Farscape was visually sumptuous but really silly and overacted. But damn was it a marvel to see on TV and some of the larger arcs hit really hard.

Firefly was so good, probably because it was so short. No show came out of the ball pit swinging so hard though, everyone was firing on all cylinders from scene 1. Most of the rest of these shows took a season to really hit their stride, other than BSG I think where I feel it eroded over time.

No need to talk about Andromeda, Cleopatra2525, Lexx, or some of the other similar shows from 'round this time period. We were blessed though with a plethora of content.

Definitely started petering out in the 2010's, with really just Expanse, Dark Matter, and the endless Star Trek and Star Wars content, which I sorta splinter off from this category.

I miss this kind of stuff. Space based TV like "Another Life" or "Beacon 23" don't have the strong teamwork and competence based relationships I prefer. The new Lost in Space was decent but also a bit of a different thing.

 

[falconhoof]

A few more that come to mind:

Space 1999
Blake's 7
Space Precinct

Dunno if any of them hold up today.

 

[Valonquar]

Imagine a timeline where the writer's strike didn't fuck up Battlestar's momentum.

 

[Avid Reading Horse]

I guess I forgot an actual watch recommendation. Do BSG2003 (~4 episode mini-series) and then the show proper. You can skip the TV movies (the young Adama one was okay but The Plan wasn't good)... and Caprica I liked but it got cancelled after one season so a pretty easy skip. Someone mentioned they wouldn't know how they would feel about BSG if they binge watched it. IMO it works better with some binge watching. BSG2003 was the show Star Trek Voyager should have been.

Same case for Farscape which when it aired I was pretty disappointed with season 4 and Peacekeeper Wars but it held up better rapid fire even though the untimely cancelation still hurt. And yeah it wasn't mentioned in the OP but since it was brought up, I would totally watch Farscape before SG-1. And you might develop an affinity for certain actors who may show up later into SG-1 so it really wouldn't hurt. Farscape watch order is fairly simple, just the show in order and then Peacekeeper Wars as the finale. Granted some of the episode order got jumbled between airing, DVD order, and streaming, so you might run into some continuity issues but it's not that big of a deal. For my money this show was the best 'feels' series in sci-fi... and what can I say I loved the muppets and all the goofy Australians. My love for this show is a large reason why I hate the Guardians of the Galaxy movies. Pale imitation IMO, even though they threw Ben Browder a cameo.

If you really want to watch SG-1, go for it have fun bro, start with the movie if you've never seen it... honestly I like the vibe of that one a bit more as SG-1 gets a little too unserious for my tastes.. Later stage Richard Dean Anderson really started to grind my gears. Just watch SG-1 until you get bored. And if you never get bored I guess also start up on Atlantis at whatever the correct chronological time is, I don't really remember. Skip Universe though as it's hot garbage.

 

[Ozzie666]

I do wonder how many people in this thread actually watched the original Battlestar Galactica or even Buck Rogers when they aired originally. I certainly did. Coming off Star Wars mania, it was a pretty big TV event at the time. Ships and effects from people who worked on Star Wars too.

Expensive show but impressive as hell for TV. My child mind exploded, I was so there for Muppit (if you know, you know). Pretty legendary TV show, the toys were good too. Even the concept of Earth and finding it, then protecting it. Was pretty great. The new series failed to land the ending after 2-3 seasons of such promise.

Galactica 80, really did some damage to the overall status of show. Even though as a kid, the flying bikes, cloaked ships and kids with abilities due to different gravity was all the rage.

In terms of movie to TV series, I much rathered preferred Terminator Sara Connor chronicles to Star Gate. Even V was much more impactful overall.

 

[jason10mm]

I do wonder how many people in this thread actually watched the original Battlestar Galactica or even Buck Rogers when they aired originally. I certainly did. Coming off Star Wars mania, it was a pretty big TV event at the time. Ships and effects from people who worked on Star Wars too.

Expensive show but impressive as hell for TV. My child mind exploded, I was so there for Muppit (if you know, you know). Pretty legendary TV show, the toys were good too. Even the concept of Earth and finding it, then protecting it. Was pretty great. The new series failed to land the ending after 2-3 seasons of such promise.

Galactica 80, really did some damage to the overall status of show. Even though as a kid, the flying bikes, cloaked ships and kids with abilities due to different gravity was all the rage.

In terms of movie to TV series, I much rathered preferred Terminator Sara Connor chronicles to Star Gate. Even V was much more impactful overall.

OG BSG was a blast. Anxiously awaiting the inevitable battle sequence each episode and wondering which of the 7 or 8 canned shots we would get. Cylon flying into the big ship, the flak lasers chasing down a fighter, a viper blasting through an exploding cylon, etc. They had about 90 seconds of premium footage with models and they used it all, over and over

Buck Rogers was less cool, though I did have his space fighter as a toy. Erin Gray though....yum. Can't say I actually remember much about the show itself, other than maybe the title sequence....

The full theatrical sequence



and the TV version



I'm kinda surprised we haven't gotten some sort of Buck Rogers or Flash Gordon reboot. That kind of masculine fantasy seems like an evergreen project.

 

[Trunx81]

Still feel sorry that Caprica did run so short. It was ahead of its time in terms of storytelling and world building. At least we got a flash forward in the end.