The 5 best science-fiction TV and Netflix shows to watch in honour of the 50th anniversary of the Apollo 11 moon landing

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Documentary-style shows like Mars and series like the exciting Star Trek: Discovery make our list of the top spaced-themed series

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Michelle Yeoh stars as Captain Philippa Georgiou (left) and Sonequa Martin-Green is First Officer Michael Burnham in 'Star Trek: Discovery'.

In honour of the 50th anniversary of the moon landing, kick back and enjoy one of these fantastic science-fiction shows.

Star Trek: Discovery (2017-present) 

The original Star Trek was born during the space race, when the USA. and the former Soviet Union competed against each other to be the fist to send a man to the moon, and the canon has grown over the last half-century. This newest series is set about a decade before the original Star Trek series and follows the adventures of Commander Michael Burnham and the crew of the USS Discovery.

Mars (2016-present) 

The National Geographic miniseries is an intriguing mix of documentary and science-fiction drama. It blends the fictional story arc of a group of astronauts landing on Mars with documentary-style interviews with scientists and big names like Elon Musk, Neil deGrasse Tyson and author Andy Weir to discuss what it would take to get to and set up a human colony on Mars. It’s based on Stephen Petranek’s 2015 book How We’ll Live on Mars.

The best space movies to watch in honour of the 50th anniversary of the Apollo 11 moon landing

The Expanse (2015-present) 

TV series based on novels by James S. A. Corey. Alien technology discovered and misused by baaaad humans upends our solar system, where conflicts were already bubbling among Earth, colonised Mars and the colonised outer planets (including asteroid belt). It’s very gripping and very realistic.

Battlestar Galactica (2004-09)

With an incredible cast, acting and writing, the show explored the fuzzy line between human and cyborg, the roots of religion, the rise of political movements, and questions of what constitutes terrorism and what tactics are justified to combat it. The cast was well balanced between women and men, and not in a token-ish kind of way. The staging was brilliant in avoiding the claustrophobic, monotonous shipboard look of many other space shows.

The best space-related fiction books to read on the 50th anniversary of the Apollo 11 moon landing

Firefly (2002-03)

Firefly is basically director Joss Whedon’s take on cowboys in space. A ragtag group of misfits take to the stars in an old spaceship to make a dime by taking on contracts, bounties and fares, but naturally find a great deal of trouble along the way. You won’t find a lot of science in this series, but the storytelling and the charming cast of characters is hard to beat.

Gifs via GIPHY

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