By
Angel Shaw
Published 2 hours ago
Angel Shaw is a Lead Writer and Peer Mentor on ScreenRant's New TV team, covering new-release TV shows across all major streaming platforms. She has been a writer with ScreenRant since 2022 and specializes in Harry Potter, The Lord of the Rings, and fantasy.
Angel holds a bachelor's degree in language interpreting and is passionate about all things culture and communication—especially in how it relates to popular media throughout history (from Shakespeare to Friends to Game of Thrones).
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Apple TV's Foundation is easily one of the best science fiction TV shows of the generation. Though the sci-fi genre has been around for decades, quality and popularity have ebbed and flowed over the years, especially across individual subgenres. Space operas, for example, reached their initial peak with projects like Star Trek and Star Wars. Aside from spinoffs within these franchises, we've seen far less of this type of show.
Space operas never went entirely out of style. Rather, it's just been harder to find a good one. Recently, climate fiction, cyberpunk, and psychological sci-fi shows have been better bets. Fallout, Severance, Pluribus—these are all great shows that we can't stop talking about. However, science fiction just isn't the same without a good space opera. Thankfully, Foundation is here to hold down the fort in that regard.
Apple TV's Foundation Is On Another Level
Lee Pace as Brother Day in a sleeping pod in Foundation
Apple TV's Foundation is a breathtaking sci-fi space opera in its purest form. It checks off all the requirements of the subgenre to perfection. We get deeply complex lore and world-building on a massive scale, far beyond what TV typically captures. The conflicts and stakes are built to match this scope, and they are led by dynamic characters across every archetype.
Of course, sci-fi audiences also tend to require a cerebral experience, now more than ever before. Foundation mixes this into the standard space opera formula. The show uses its complex lore to enhance political themes, all the while diving into the nitty-gritty of social psychology. The moral stakes are even higher than the physical ones, and the calculated, scientific look at future challenges invites viewers to reflect on their own societal truths. Sci-fi really doesn't get much better.
Foundation Would Not Have Worked In Another Streaming Service
A big part of Foundation's success is its home on Apple TV. This production company may not produce as many television shows a year as Netflix, Disney+, or Prime Video, but that's because it is entirely focused on quality. It's rare for Apple TV to have a dud, and the platform's meticulous attention to detail is precisely why it has thrived in the sci-fi genre.
A "good enough" sci-fi show can be pulled off with relative ease. AppleTV doesn't bother with this approach. This platform covers the major subgenres of sci-fi with one or two shows rather than dozens, allowing each to shine. We have Severance, Pluribus, Silo, For All Mankind, Dark Matter, and, of course, Foundation, each of which has performed remarkably well. Were Foundation to have been produced by another streamer, it could never have captured that massive scope.
Television Needs More Shows Like Foundation
Laura Birn as Demerzel in Foundation season 3
The success of Foundation is a reminder of what space operas can be. They are the heart and soul of sci-fi, and though film has been the more common medium for this subgenre, so much more can be achieved with TV. In Apple TV's hands, we've seen the genre's full potential. Hopefully, this platform will have more to contribute. Regardless, the whole industry needs to get on board with more shows like Foundation.
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Foundation
10 stars 9 stars 8 stars 7 stars 6 stars 5 stars 4 stars 3 stars 2 stars 1 star Like Follow Followed TV-MA Drama Sci-Fi Release Date September 23, 2021 Network Apple TV+ Showrunner David S. Goyer Directors Alex Graves, Roxann Dawson, Jennifer Phang, Mark Tonderai, Andrew Bernstein Writers Jane Espenson, Leigh Dana Jackson, Liz Phang, Eric Carrasco, David Kob, Addie Manis, Marcus Gardley, Lauren Bello, Olivia Purnell
8 Images
Jared Harris looking concerned as Hari Seldon in Foundation
Foundation Stars Terrance Mann & Cassian Bilton Explain "Unrecognizable" Cleon Dynasty In Season 3
Jared Harris as Hari Seldon and Lou Llobel as Gaal Dornick in Foundation
Song touching her arm in Foundation
The Cleons sharing a drink in FoundationClose
Cast
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Jared Harris
Hari Seldon
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Laura Birn
Demerzel
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Foundation
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