Small screen sci-fi and fantasy delights to warm up your summer nights

We're at the start of the summer entertainment season this holiday weekend and while many of us will be flocking to the multiplex for some indoor fun, some folks just won't be able to see the likes of Godzilla or X-Men: Days of Future Past due to personal budget restraints.

However, that shouldn't get you down, as the new wave of summer shows is fast approaching with plenty to offer the sci-fi and/or fantasy viewer. On June 30,for example, the second season of Under the Dome rolls out with an episode written by the big man himself Stephen King. Now I know that the first time out, this series had a few awkward moments and a couple of missteps but it was intriguing to watch. Even for those who read the book it was based on(that includes me!), UTD offered some surprises and food for thought, so tuck in your napkin and let the funky feast begin:

Another based on the book series debuting around the same time is The Leftovers, with HBO taking Tom Perrotta's novel about the world dealing with the aftermath of a possible Rapture.

The story picks up at the three year anniversary of that strange event in which two percent of the world's population suddenly vanished without a trace or clue of what's to come.

  Most people have become the emotionally walking wounded while others have founded a cult of silent white clad followers awaiting the rest of the "end times" to start up. The cast is pretty solid, with the likes of Justin Theroux, Amy Brenneman, Christopher Eccleston and Liv Tyler on board and having Damon Lindelof as the showrunner here is another good sign of things to come:

For July, Halle Berry headlines a sci-fi suspense series entitled Extant, where a female astronaut returns from a year long solo mission in space to find herself pregnant by an unknown source.

Granted, this could easily turn into a Rosemary's Baby meets Alien kind of deal but the more I see the promos for this show, the more I am intrigued.

 In this trailer alone, there does seem to be a hint that this new life form may not be a direct threat to humanity unless of course, you're someone in authority out to manipulate extraterrestrial contact for less than benevolent purposes.  At the very least, I am willing to give Extant a fair shot:

Even August holds promise as Starz premieres the time traveling historical romance series Outlander, based on the novels by Diana Gabaldon.

Having finished the first book in that series(and planning to take up the second one,Dragonfly in Amber,as part of my summer reading), I am just as eager as long time fans of this story where WWII nurse Claire winds up stepping back into ancient Scotland and meeting her true love of more than one lifetime. Oh, how hard it is to wait!:

So I wish you all a Happy Memorial Day weekend( that does sound odd in context, doesn't it?) and hope you enjoy this first frolic in the summer media fun. Oh, and do keep in mind that we have plenty of fantasy TV to look forward to this fall such as Constantine, which harkens back more to the original comic book version of this snarky Brit blonde supernatural detective than the big screen Keanu Reeves take a few years ago(I do like the Reeves one but bad boy Brits are my weakness):