5 Cyberpunk TV Shows That Every Sci-Fi Fan Needs to Watch

Cyberpunk is a subgenre of science fiction defined by the phrase “high-tech, low life.” It’s not hard to understand why dystopian near-futures, often ruled by corporate entities, artificial intelligence, or a surveillance state, are becoming increasingly popular. However, the silver lining is that the surge in interest has led to an increase in fantastic cyberpunk movies and TV shows popping up over the last few decades.  

For many fans, the entry point into cyberpunk TV shows might be something like Altered Carbon, Ghost in the Shell: Stand Alone Complex, or even Black Mirror; all of which brought the genre’s aesthetic and themes to wider audiences to some degree. But if you’re looking to dive deeper into these bleak digital futures, we’ve got five cyberpunk series for you to tackle next. 

5) Better Than Us

Netflix’s Russian sci-fi series Better Than Us is a distinctly grounded take on the matter of artificial intelligence. Set in a near-future Moscow where androids are already integrated into daily life, we follow Arisa, a humanoid robot designed as a secret military weapon. However, unlike the other service bots, Arisa develops emotional awareness and reasoning, making her suddenly both incredibly valuable and dangerous. Paulina Andreeva stars as Arisa, alongside Kirill Käro and Viktoriya Isakova as members of a fractured family pulled into the political power struggle.

While firmly cyberpunk, Better Than Us is unique because it focuses on domestic life as opposed to street-level rebellion. A lot of the series takes place in apartments, hospitals, and offices, and depicts the real-life implications of AI on relationships, work, parenting, etc. Clearly inspired by Isaac Asimov’s work, the show integrates these ideas into its story about post-Soviet life.  The show’s grounded, cold approach makes it perfect for crossover fans of hard sci-fi.

4) Pantheon 

Based on short stories by Ken Liu, AMC’s Pantheon revolves around “Uploaded Intelligence,” or UIs: human minds that have been scanned and digitized after death. At the heart of the story is bullied teen Maddie Kim (Katie Chang), who starts receiving mysterious online messages from someone claiming to be her dead father, voiced by Daniel Dae Kim. Soon, the mystery expands into a global conflict involving tech giants.

Across its two dense seasons, Pantheon probes the implications of digital afterlife more thoroughly than almost any comparable series. A classic cyberpunk theme, the characters grapple with whether uploaded minds are truly human or merely advanced simulations, while the show’s great writing and understated animation make it truly special. Despite limited reach and a turbulent release schedule, Pantheon has built a devoted fanbase that continues to grow each year.

3) Mr. Robot 

A contemporary cyberpunk classic, Mr. Robot takes the idea of “high tech, low life” and applies it to a present-day setting. Created by Sam Esmail, the series stars Rami Malek as Elliot Alderson, a socially isolated cybersecurity engineer who moonlights as a vigilante hacker. Recruited by the anarchist collective fsociety, led by Christian Slater’s titular Mr. Robot, Elliot becomes central to a plot to bring down E Corp, a megacorporation controlling the global economy.

Obsessed with corporate power and digital surveillance, Esmail worked closely with real cybersecurity consultants to ensure realism in how the tech was depicted. Over four seasons of Mr. Robot, you get both a fun techno-thriller and a psychological study on capitalism. Its experimental cinematography, unreliable narration, and fourth-wall-breaking finale elevate it to the status of must-see for sci-fi fans. 

2) Max Headroom

In the days of yore, before cyberpunk was a buzzword you could Google, the glitchy, sarcastic AI Max Headroom was created for a 1985 British TV movie, Max Headroom: 20 Minutes into the Future. Two years later, George Stone, Annabel Jankel, and Rocky Morton adapted the concept into a series for ABC. The story follows investigative journalist Edison Carter (Matt Frewer), who uncovers corruption within Network 23 after suffering a near-fatal accident. His consciousness is partially digitized, creating the sarcastic AI persona Max Headroom, also played by Frewer. 

Despite its short two-season run, Max Headroom was way ahead of its time. The show predicted reality TV culture, viral personalities, and even hinted at things like algorithms and influencer branding. A fun mix of noir, satire, and cyberpunk sci-fi, laid the groundwork for later speculative series like Black Mirror. The character of Max himself became a pop culture icon, showing up in commercials and music videos, and today the show remains a staple of the subgenre.

1) Cyberpunk: Edgerunners 

Produced by Studio Trigger and directed by Hiroyuki Imaishi, Netflix anime Cyberpunk: Edgerunners is set in the same universe as CD Projekt Red’s Cyberpunk 2077 video game. The series follows David Martinez, a poor student living in Night City who turns to cybernetic enhancements and mercenary work after personal tragedy pushes him into the city’s criminal underworld, where he joins a crew led by the mysterious Lucy, voiced in English by Emi Lo.

Edgerunners earned itself a 100% on Rotten Tomatoes thanks to breathtaking animation and an intensely emotional story. Every major character, from Rebecca to Maine, is a tragic embodiment of one of the genre’s fixations. The visuals showcase Trigger’s signature exaggeration amid gritty urban decay, while its soundtrack, including Franz Ferdinand’s “This Fffire,” has gained fans of its own. Beyond being a must-watch, Edgerunners revitalized interest in Cyberpunk 2077 and the genre as a whole. 

What’s your favorite cyberpunk TV series? Leave a comment below and join the conversation now in the ComicBook Forum! 

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