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I personally think Person of Interest is just barely in the Sci-Fi realm, for being centered around a fictional, near-omniscient automated surveillance network. It also has some themes that overlap with other common Sci-Fi/Fantasy stories, such as vigilante heroes and government conspiracies. Overall though, it seems a bit closer to crime drama (as mentioned on Wiki) than true Sci-Fi.

I'm asking because I have a question about the show which is actually not about any of the Sci-Fi aspects. I can see that there is already one question about the show here - with an accepted answer from myself, no less. However, I thought it might be best to double-check here before making a habit of asking about the series on Sci-Fi instead of Movies & TV.

  • I haven't seen the show, but from the Wikipedia entry I'd agree with your "just barely" assessment. However, if the question itself isn't about the science fiction aspects of the show, this site may not be the best fit; I seem to remember reading a meta question covering whether or not such questions are on-topic but I can't find it. – Anthony Grist Feb 15 '13 at 11:35
  • @AnthonyGrist To clarify a bit: The question is of the "character background" sort. So, it is about the show and in-universe events. It just would happen to not likely be anything tied to the Sci-Fi aspect (in this case, "The Machine"). – Iszi Feb 15 '13 at 14:49
  • With how the last season ended, I think it's pretty much switched over to the "dystopian future" type of sci-fi... We'll see how much it changes once it returns end of next month, I suppose – Izkata Aug 4 '14 at 1:39
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I think that a question about the computer would be on-topic, but I think that questions about anything else should be asked on Movies and TV.

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    This. The computer/program is 'above-now-tech'- as such, sci-fi. Science-fiction isn't always two-thousand-years-away. If this was a question about why dude-from-Lost didn't bleed out right away after a gunshot to the kidneys, elsewhere. – Solemnity Feb 19 '13 at 6:00
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I actually posted a question on Movies & TV about this very issue, and I think the answer given is evidence that the show is on-topic here:

From an interview (July 2013) with creator Jonathan Nolan:

... A lot of people who don't watch the show think of it as a kind of crime procedural, but we really think of it of it as a science fiction show. We think of it as a genre show, there is a lot of comic book mythos woven into it...


From another interview (October 2013, shorty after the start of Season 3):

We know what next season —if we’re lucky enough to get a fourth season— we know what that’s about.

I think viewers who have as much of an affection for science fiction —film, television— as we do, and a really good ear, will already know what next season is going to be, based on the first handful of episodes here.

If the creator believes he's making a Science Fiction show, who are we to say otherwise, regardless of what the question is?

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    That depends on the creator... I definitely wouldn't just be taking his word for it if it was a SyFy original. – Iszi Aug 4 '14 at 1:17
  • @iszi - Especially when the sequel is titled "Person of Interest vs the Mega-Sharknado" – Valorum Aug 4 '14 at 7:40

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