It’s hard to overstate how ahead of its timeFringetruly was. When it premiered in 2008, sci-fi TV was on the cusp of a shift, becoming darker, more serialized, and less afraid to get weird.Fringewasn’t just prepared for that shift - itwasthe shift. Created by J.J. Abrams, Alex Kurtzman, and Roberto Orci, this five-season saga mixed FBI procedural with high-concept science fiction in ways that felt revolutionary. Its DNA is all over today’s genre shows, and yet,Fringenever chased trends, itmadethem. From fringe science experiments to parallel universes, it served up brainy ideas with emotional depth, long before that was the norm.
However, whenFringewas airing, it never really got the recognition it deserved. Despite critical praise and a cult following, it remained underrated, overshadowed by flashier network hits and misjudged by viewers expectinganotherX-Filesclone. The years that have passed since the show conculded, however, have only proved how muchFringewas doing before everyone else caught on. While others have tried to replicate its magic, few have matched its ambition, its character work, or its vision.Fringedeserves much more appreciation than it currently gets, especially when it comes to innovation and flipping the procedural sci-fi TV show script.
Fringe Was Television’s Best Sci-Fi Show For 5 Years
Fringe Combined Procedural Storytelling And Serialized Sci-Fi With More Intelligence And Emotion Than Almost Anything On TV At The Time
Fringedebuted on Fox in September 2008, created by a powerhouse team already known for shows likeAliasandLost. The show followed FBI agent Olivia Dunham (Anna Torv), who gets pulled into the world of “fringe science” while investigating a mysterious, reality-bending pattern of crimes. She’s soon partnered with theeccentric scientist Walter Bishop(John Noble) and his estranged genius son Peter (Joshua Jackson), forming one of TV’s most unique investigative teams.
WhileFringebegan as a procedural - each week featuring a new case involving bizarre science - it quickly evolved into a complex mythology-heavy drama that tackled alternate realities, time travel, and the limits of human consciousness. However, what truly setFringeapart was how it balanced heart, horror, andhigh-concept sci-fi without ever losing its emotional core.
Walter’s damaged brilliance, Peter’s reluctant heroism, and Olivia’s resilience made for deeply layered storytelling. Despite this though,Fringealsomanaged to remain fun and accessible- even when it dove into full-blown multiverse territory. Its mix of monster-of-the-week and long-form arcs eventually gave way to full-blown serialized storytelling by the final season, but the series never abandoned its characters or their humanity.
During its five-season run from 2008 to 2013,Fringebuilt a loyal fanbase that stuck with it through timeslot changes and uncertain renewals. It was never a mainstream hit, butits influence far outpaced its ratings. Today,Fringeholds a 91% critics score onRotten Tomatoes, with an audience score of 80% - a rare feat for a show that only grew more complex over time. It’s notable that, more than a decade after its finale, fans are still discussingthe bestFringeepisodesas some of the greatest in sci-fi TV history. Simply put,Fringewas the best sci-fi show on television while it aired, and one of the best of all time.
Fringe Popularized A Lot Of Sci-Fi Tropes That Are Now Common
Fringe Introduced Multiverses, Time Loops, And Science-Based Superhero Storytelling Years Before They Were Mainstream
Long beforeLokiorEverything Everywhere All At Once,Fringewas diving deep into the multiverse. One of its most impressive feats was making wildly complex science-fiction ideas feel grounded, logical, and emotionally resonant. From season 2 onward, the show began exploring the idea of parallel universes not as a gimmick, but as a narrative necessity - complete with doppelgängers, universe-spanning wars, and consequences that felt permanent.
Fringehelped turn science fiction into something serialized, character-driven, and philosophically rich.
That kind of high-concept storytelling is everywhere now, but in 2009, it was unheard of on network TV. Procedural shows have always flirted with the fantastic, butFringehelped turn science fiction into something serialized, character-driven, and philosophically rich. While early episodes mirroredX-Files-style investigations,Fringequicklyproved it wasn’t afraid to explain its wildest concepts through real theoretical science- quantum entanglement, neural mapping, genetic engineering - without talking down to its audience.
The show’s ability to mix emotional storytelling with concepts like time loops, observer paradoxes, and cross-dimensional identity crises made ita precursor to so many modern shows, fromDarktoThe Flash. Even superhero television owesa surprising debt toFringe. Many Arrowverse shows borrowed its formula: a core team dealing with weekly threats, anchored by emotional arcs and a deepening sci-fi mythology.
The wayFringeused science as a form of storytelling, rather than magic with a lab coat, made it feel uniquely plausible. It wasn’t afraid to go big, but it always respected the intelligence of its viewers. These were ideas that could have failed in less capable hands.Fringe,however, popularized them and made them feel not only cool but essential.
Fringe Is Still An Underrated Show For How Important It Was
Fringe Deserves More Credit For Shaping The Modern Sci-Fi TV Landscape
For a showas groundbreaking asFringe, its legacy remains surprisingly under the radar. UnlikeLost,Breaking Bad, orBattlestar Galactica,Fringedoesn’t always make the lists of the greatest shows of the 21st century, but it absolutely should. Despite influencing everything from multiverse storytelling to the structure of genre procedurals, it’s often spoken about as a cult hit, not a defining force. And yet, almost every modern sci-fi series owes something to it.
Part ofthe reasonFringegets overlooked is timing.It aired just before streaming changed how people watched TV. In today’s binge-friendly landscape, a show likeFringewould have thrived, especially with its interconnected arcs, shifting realities, and evolving characters. However, airing weekly on Fox, with timeslot changes and minimal promotion, meant it never quite got the viewership it deserved. Still, the fans who found it - many of whom came after it ended - recognized its brilliance immediately.
Even in 2025,Fringefeels fresh. Its themes like grief, identity, morality, and scientific responsibility, are more relevant than ever. It’s the kindof underappreciated sci-fi showthat grows in stature the more you revisit it, and one that’s increasingly being cited as foundational by younger creators and fans alike. It may not have gotten the awards or the headlines, butFringechanged the game. It redefined what sci-fi on television could be - bold, brainy, emotional - and it deserves to be celebrated as one of the most important shows of its era.
