“What if?” is always a good question and over the years, several TV shows have attempted to creatively come up with scenarios where known historical events occurred in a different manner. The slight change in events ends up changing the future as well. Most of the time, the changes aren’t always positive.

From the Axis powers winning World War I to assassinated presidents being saved, several alternative scenarios have been imagined. But not all have been impressive. Some have been downright bizarre. Here are some of the most impressive and least impressive alternate timelines in TV shows.

10 Best: SS-GB (2017)

BBC drama series SS-GB takes a daring approach as it covers an alternate timeline where things don’t go so well for the British. Winston Churchill gets captured and executed by the Nazis during the Second World War.

They occupy the United Kingdom and keep King George VI as a prisoner of war. Elizabeth (the current queen) survives and goes to exile where she oversees the formation of a parallel UK government that’s against Nazi rule. The series has an 89% score on Rotten Tomatoes.

9 Worst: Timeless (2016-2018)

Timeless isn’t just focussed on one alternate timeline. It covers several of them and perhaps that’s where it goes wrong. The series focusses on a villainous organization that seeks to change several events in history using a time machine.

Several key events such as the Hindenburg Disaster and the assassination of Abram Lincoln are altered in order to set up a chain of events that would be beneficial to evil people in the world. The series was canceled twice by NBC. After the first season, the network canceled it but renewed it three days later only to cancel it again after the second season.

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8 Best: 11.22.63 (2016)

The Hulu sci-fi miniseries is adapted from Stephen King’s 2011 novel titled 11/22/63. The plot? Thanks to time-travel, a divorced English teacher named Jake Epping (James Franco) gets persuaded by a long-time friend to go back in time to stop the assassination of President John F. Kennedy.

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He manages to stop the shooter Lee Harvey Oswald but sadly, his actions lead to the infamous Alabama Governor George Wallace (known for promoting segregation) becoming president after Kennedy’s term ends. The title of the series refers to the date in which President John F. Kennedy was assassinated.

7 Worst: Cavemen (2006)

Caveman has a 20% score on Rotten Tomatoes. Not a good sign to any potential viewer. Events happen in a world where cavemen didn’t morph into modern-day humans. Instead, they evolved into a different intelligent species that now coexist with humans.

The idea could have probably worked if the series was of the drama genre. Instead, it was set up as a comedy. The cavemen make several attempts to be funny but the jokes never quite land. Their appearance isn’t that cool either.

6 Best: Hollywood (2019- Present)

The miniseries reimagines Hollywood’s Golden Age as a time when inclusivity was already the norm and opportunities were available to women, people of color, and members of the LGBTQ community. It follows a group of young actors as they try to make a mark in the era but still face a couple of unforeseen challenges.

Several real-life individuals are featured as characters in the series though the histories of some are changed to fit the narrative. The series received a whopping 12 nominations at the recent 72nd Primetime Emmy Awards/

5 Worst: Danger 5 (2012)

The Australian TV series which ended after two seasons revolves around a group of five highly skilled spies from different Allied nations who are tasked with killing Hitler. Leading them is the weird Colonel Chestbridge who likes finishing each speech with the words, “Kill Hitler!”

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However, the spies fail in their mission and Hitler ends up becoming the ruler of the whole world which he names “Hitlerland.” The dictator declares German as the official and only language. Under his command, everyone is also required to be vegetarian!

4 Best: 1983 (2018)

Netflix’s first Polish series explores a world where The Iron Curtain (the imaginary boundary separating Soviet Europe from Western-influenced Europe) is still very much in place. The Cold War is still going on as well.

As that is going on, an investigator and a law student end up discovering crucial government secrets that could potentially lead to a revolution. Amidst all that, there are terrorist attacks too and everything that would make a series like this interesting. A second season is reported to be in development.

3 Worst: Crossbones (2014)

NBC canceled Crossbones before it ended and even removed the two final episodes from its schedule. This was all due to poor ratings. The plot revolves around the legendary 16th century English pirate Edward *Blackbeard” Teach.

In the series, Blackbeard doesn’t die in 1718 like in historical accounts. Instead, he survives and goes on to become an influential political leader. Perhaps the show’s biggest undoing is its dull dialogue. Nothing the characters say brings any form of excitement.

2 Best: The Man In The High Castle (2015 – 2019)

The axis powers, led by Hitler’s Nazi regime, suffered a devastating loss at the end of World War II. But what if that didn’t happen? The Man In The High Castle imagines a world where Germany and Japan were so strong that they defeated America and the Allies.

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The two nations even went ahead to colonize America, dividing it into two major sections: The German-occupied Nazi Reich tp the east and the Japanese-occupied Pacific States to the west. With such an interesting premise, it’s thus not surprising that the series has a strong 95% score on Rotten Tomatoes.

1 Worst: Motherland: Fort Salem

Supernatural elements are rife in Motherland: Fort Salem. In the series, the real-life Salem Witch Trials of 1962 and 1963 (in which several citizens were persecuted for practicing witchcraft) are stopped and an agreement known as the Salem Accord is set up.

Witches are then given several rights, including the right to join the army. However, a group of moral individuals chooses to rebel. Pretty much everything in the series is overdone, including the special effects and dialogue.

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About The Author


Philip Etemesi
(1215 Articles Published)

Philip Etemesi is an author, journalist, screenwriter and film critic based in Nairobi. Kenya. As a child, he preferred watching movies like The Goodfellas instead of Home Alone. His girlfriend constantly has to pull him from the front of the TV but he just keeps returning. Stubborn dude! An animal lover, Philip also has a pet giraffe called Refu.

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