Paramount’sHaloseries was among the very few successful video game adaptations on modern television, but the show was ultimately canceled ahead of its third season because of budgeting problems and financial cuts. This decision understandably left plenty of fans disappointed, as the show was really building towards an epic third season that would delve deeper into the mythos of the video games and pay off some long-standing plotlines. While it’s frustrating thatHaloended before introducing some great charactersfrom the games, there are plenty of shows that can scratch the same itch.
Halois based on the popular video game series of the same name and follows a group of humans in a futuristic world that’s under siege by powerful aliens with advanced technology aiming to conquer the planet. It’s a pretty simplistic alien invasion story, but it thrives due to the entertaining characters and electric action sequences. The show was widely considered one of the strongest video game adaptations in recent memory, but unfortunately, the recent cancellation means thatseveral interestingHalostorylines will ultimately go unfinished.
Falling Skies
Cast
When Earth is invaded by extraterrestrials, humanity loses the battle against the alien attackers. Picking up after the defeat of the human race, Falling Skies tells the story of a former college professor (Noah Wyle) who becomes the leader of the Second Massachusetts, a group of soldiers and civilians who are struggling to fight against the occupying force.
Falling Skiesis rarely considered among thebest sci-fi showsof the past few years, but it certainly deserved to be part of the discussion. This inventive drama follows a group of human survivors in the wake of a devastating alien invasion, who band together and form a resistance against their extraterrestrial oppressors.
Where You’ve Seen Halo Actress Kate Kennedy Before (& What’s Next For Her Career)
Halo star Kate Kennedy has done plenty of acting and voice work in her career and she’s slowly become one of the defining video game actresses.
It’s much less action-packed than shows likeHalo, but its strength lies in its precise writing and intricate character work. The show received plenty of praise whilst it was airing, but it’s become even more of an underrated hidden gem in the years since.
Lost In Space
Premiering on Netflix in 2018, Lost in Space is a reboot of the 1965 TV series, and stars Molly Parker, Toby Stephens, and Parker Posey, with a further ensemble cast. The series focuses on the Robinson family, who crash-land on a strange but habitable alien planet after their colonizing mission to the Alpha Centauri system goes awry. While the story differs quite a bit, the series does make multiple references and homages to the original Lost in Space from 1965.
Netflix’sLost in Spaceis another show that follows a group of human survivors fighting against their alien enemies - but in this instance, it’s the humans who take the fight to them. The show centers around the Robinson family of human colonists as they travel deep into space in search of a new planet to call home, but their crash-landing in enemy territory quickly spells trouble when the aliens begin to fight back. It has many of the same action-packed set pieces asHalo, butits focus on familial dynamics and humanity’s purposeis what makes it so moving.
Fallout
Set 200 years after an apocalypse, Fallout follows residents of luxury shelters as they re-enter a post-nuclear world. Confronted with a bizarre and violent landscape, the series explores the stark contrasts between their sheltered existence and the harsh realities of the outside universe.
Beyond both shows being inspired by video games, there are plenty of similarities between Amazon’sFalloutseries and Paramount’sHalo. Both shows take place in a dark, futuristic society where humans are being driven out of their cities - but inFallout’s case, it’s not by aliens and machines, but rather by nuclear devastation. The show takes place in the depths of a scientific bunker, where humans must work together to fight against the collapsing world on the surface. While everybody has theirpredictions forFallout’s second season, the first is avery strong and self-contained series anybody can enjoy.
The Expanse
The Expanse is a sci-fi series set in the distant future where humanity has spread out across the solar system, but the alliances between the three most potent governing bodies have reached a state of the cold war. In the series, a mixed crew finds themselves at the center of a dangerous intergalactic conspiracy that threatens to bring war to the colonized worlds.
The Expansehas pretty much set the gold standard for sci-fi television over the past decade; the show is a brilliant example of how to make complex ideas digestible for general audiences without excluding those seeking a richer, more in-depth sci-fi experience. Following an interstellar police detective named Josephus Miller on the search for a missing woman,The Expanseraises plenty of important questions about humanity’s place in the cosmosand where our society is heading in the not-so-distant future.
The Mandalorian
Released on July 31, 2025 The Mandalorian follows a lone gunfighter navigating the galaxy’s outer reaches after the Galactic Empire’s fall. As a skilled bounty hunter, he operates in a lawless universe, undertaking various missions on the fringes of the New Republic’s territories.
Perhaps the most widely-praised of theStar Warsfranchise’s TV efforts,The Mandalorianis an excellent show that takes audiences on an in-depth tour across all four corners of this fictional sci-fi universe. Told from the perspective of a bounty hunter who’s sworn to protect an important young alien,The Mandalorianuses its episodic format to explore many different stories while keeping these characters at the center of the narrative. Thankfully,The Mandalorianwill lead directly into the nextStar Warsmovie, so audiences won’t have to wait too long to see what happens next for Din Djarin and Grogu.
Halo
A live-action adaptation of the video game franchise of the same name, Halo follows Master Chief Petty Officer John-117 (Pablo Schrieber) as he fights his part in a war between humanity’s United Nations Space Command (UNSC) and the Covenant, an alliance of multiple hostile races of aliens intent on destroying the human race. The Master Chief is supported by Cortana (Jen Taylor) - an AI construct based on the personality of Dr. Catherine Halsey, who created the Spartan supersoldier program - implanted in his brain.
