8 Best High-Fantasy TV Shows
Game of Thrones is not the only fantasy show you should have watched.
The term high-fantasy is used to describe a story explicitly located in a world that is entirely separated from ours, wholly different to our own. These wonderful worlds contain fantastical elements, functioning in ways that totally contradict the logic and rules of our existence, often featuring magic and monsters that help to solidify the idea that the setting is entirely a stranger to us.
This genre is one that does not often receive visits on the small screen. It's a popular form of storytelling in most mediums, but due to its requirements, it's not often that TV shows based entirely in fantasy worlds exist. This isn't exactly surprising, as the budget required to create worlds like these needs to be extensive, and the viewer demand consistently high.
With the new Lord of the Rings series promised to appear at some point, there is still clearly an audience that craves this form of story. Now seems like a great time to look back and examine what some of the best examples of high fantasy have been in the world of the small screen.
8. The Legend of Hercules
Not all TV shows need to be good to be successful: some can be a cheesy bit of fun that takes the viewer to an unfamiliar world and lets them just enjoy it.
Based upon the legend of the Greek hero Hercules, this show took the myth and altered it to form a great television series that ran for six seasons. The traditional tale of the character was changed, making Hercules a demi-god who chose mortality and fought on behalf of humanity against the malicious hatred of his stepmother Hera.
The show did not take itself seriously at all, and this led to a lot of its charm. It was an easy watch with some amusing costumes and terrible visual effects. The style of the storytelling was entirely episodic, and this meant that it was incredibly easy to pick up on and watch for the sake of killing time.
It doesn't stand up too well against the modern ideals of TV, but for the time, it was undoubtedly an enjoyable product. It even overtook Baywatch as the number one syndicated action show. But its title would be taken by another.