Best of the decade: What were the top 10 female-fronted sci-fi shows of the 2010s?
By Shaun Stacy
Orphan Black (BBC America), 2013-2017
This might be cheating a little bit, but Orphan Black managed to take the landscape of sci-fi television and flip it on its head by tackling the taboo subject of human cloning. The series revolves around a group of female clones who slowly discover each other, while trying to find out who created them and why.
That sounds a bit like an oversimplification for a series that did, literally, what no show had ever done before: used one actress to play five leading ladies. Similarly to other titles on our list, the show heavily featured themes of identity and consent throughout much of its duration, as the clones found themselves being hunted by an evil organization that wanted to replicate what was originally done to them — or kill them trying.
Tatiana Maslany gives a tour-de-force performance as Sarah Manning, a con-artist who assumes the identity of of one of her fellow clones, Beth Childs, following Beth’s suicide. She eventually uncovers a web of lies and intrigue, discovering her other selves such as scientist Cosima Niehaus, soccer mom Alison Hendrix, and the impulsive Helena (all portrayed, often simultaneously, by Maslany). The series also featured Evelyne Brochu as Dr. Delphine Cormier, Cosima’s girlfriend and fellow scientist, and Maria Doyle Kennedy as Siobhan Sadler, Sarah’s foster mother.
The series also has a wonderful male supporting cast, including Jordan Gavaris as Felix, Sarah’s flamboyant foster brother, Kevin Hanchard as Det. Art Bell, Beth’s police partner, and Kristian Bruun as Donnie Hendrix, Alison’s doting husband. After five seasons, the show lives on today through comic books and a recently announced audiobook series from Serial Box, with Maslany reprising her roles within the “Clone Club.”
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