Space Opera is something that has been alive as long as tv has been. Think back to the days of the original Doctor Who and Star Trek days and you’ll see just how popular the genres become. Well, in this post we’re giving our top 10 favorite tv space operas. This list will include both live action and animated (cartoons and anime). Enjoy.

 [1] Star Wars: The Clone Wars

Jedi Knights lead the Grand Army of the Republic against the droid army of the Separatists.

Cast: Tom Kane, Matt Lanter, James Arnold Taylor, Ashley Eckstein

Network: Cartoon Network, Netflix, Disney+

Also featured in:

• Top 100 TV Shows of All Time (21-30)

[2] Cowboy Bebop

Set in the year 2071, the series follows the lives of a bounty hunter crew traveling in their spaceship called the Bebop.

Cast:

Network: TXN (TV Tokyo), Wowow

[3] Firefly

Five hundred years in the future, a renegade crew aboard a small spacecraft tries to survive as they travel the unknown parts of the galaxy and evade warring factions as well as authority agents out to get them.

Cast: Nathan Fillion, Gina Torres, Alan Tudyk, Morena Baccarin

Network: Fox

Also featured in:

• Top 100 TV Shows of All Time (1-10)

[4] Farscape

Thrown into a distant part of the universe, an Earth astronaut finds himself part of a fugitive alien starship crew.

Cast: Ben Browder, Claudia Black, Anthony Simcoe, Lani John Tupu

Network: Nine Network, Sci-Fi Channel

[5] Outlaw Star

The plot follows protagonist Gene Starwind and his motley crew of an inherited ship dubbed the Outlaw Star, as they search for a legendary, outer space treasure trove called the “Galactic Leyline”.

Network: TV Tokyo

[6] Andromeda

Captain Dylan Hunt and the crew of the Andromeda Ascendant set out on a mission to rebuild the Systems Commonwealth 300 years after its fall.

Cast: Kevin Sorbo, Lisa Ryder, Laura Bertram, Gordon Michael Woolvett

Network: Global, Sci-Fi Channel

[7] Mobile Suit Gundam Wing

The plot of Gundam Wing centers on a war in the future between Earth and its orbital colonies in the Earth-Moon system.

Network: TV Asahi

[8] Star Trek: The Next Generation

Set almost 100 years after Captain Kirk’s five-year mission, a new generation of Starfleet officers set off in the U.S.S. Enterprise-D on their own mission to go where no one has gone before.

Cast: Patrick Stewart, Brent Spiner, Jonathan Frakes, LeVar Burton

Also featured in:

• Top 100 TV Shows of All Time (31-40)

[9] The Mandalorian

The travels of a lone bounty hunter in the outer reaches of the galaxy, far from the authority of the New Republic.

Cast: Pedro Pascal, Gina Carano, Giancarlo Esposito, Chris Bartlett

Network: Disney+

Also featured in:

• Top 100 TV Shows of All Time (41-50)

[10] Doctor Who

The series follows the adventures of the time traveling alien known as the Doctor and their companions as they protect the world and universe from various threats.

Cast: Jodie Whittaker, Peter Capaldi, Pearl Mackie, Matt Smith

Network: BBC One

Also featured in:

• Top 100 TV Shows of All Time (1-10)

Thanks for checking out the post and in the comment section below let us know what your favorite space opera television shows are.