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{{trope}}
{{quote|''"The result is speculation built on fact. What I offer is not a firm prediction - more an exploration of possibilities."''|'''Dougal Dixon''', ''[[After Man: aA Zoology of The Future|After Man, A Zoology of the Future]]'', Author's Introduction}}
 
This genre openly combines elements of traditional documentaries with [[Speculative Fiction]]. While the pure [[Documentary]] is entirely based on fact, the Speculative Documentary adds elements which are either an interpretation of actual events based on a combination of speculation and extrapolation from known science, or completely fictional. While a Speculative Documentary can also be [[Mohs Scale of Science Fiction Hardness|Hard SF]], a [[Documentary of Lies]], or [[Mockumentary]], the Speculative Documentary takes a very scientific approach to asking "what if" that differentiates it from other fiction. While [[Mohs Scale of Science Fiction Hardness|Hard Science Fiction]] focuses on [[Characters]], [[Plots]] and [[Justified Trope|justifying]] [[Speculative Fiction|fantastical]] elements, and the Mockumentary uses a documentary style to tell a dramatic or comedic fictional story, the Speculative Documentary [[Hand Wave|handwaves]] any [[Speculative Fiction|fantastical]] elements and downplays characters and plots to focus on implications and educating viewers about [[Real Life|real]] science.
 
{{examples|Examples}}
 
== Envisioning the Distant Past ==
 
* ''[[Clash of the Dinosaurs (TV)|Clash of the Dinosaurs]]''
* ''[[Deadliest Warrior]],'' a show that uses SCIENCE! to figure out who would win in a fight between ancient or modern warriors who would never normally meet on the battlefield.
* ''[[Dinosaur Planet]]''
* ''[[Planet Dinosaur]]''
* ''[[Jurassic Fight Club (TV)|Jurassic Fight Club]]''
* ''[[March of the Dinosaurs (Animation)|March of the Dinosaurs]]''
* ''[[Walking Withwith Dinosaurs]]'' and its various sequels, spinoffs, etc.
* ''[[When Dinosaurs Roamed America]]''
* ''[[Dinosaur Revolution (TV)|Dinosaur Revolution]]''
* ''[[Monsters Resurrected (TV)|Monsters Resurrected]]''
 
== Envisioning the Distant Future ==
* ''[[After Man: aA Zoology of The Future]]'' (1981) by Scottish paleontologist and geologist [http://en.[wikipedia.org/wiki/Dougal_Dixon:Dougal Dixon|Dougal Dixon]]
* Animal Planet's ''[[The Future Is Wild]]'' TV series, created with feedback from Dixon. Something of an updated [[Spiritual Successor]] and [[Adaptation Expansion]] of ''After Man''.
* ''[[Life After People]]''
* ''[http://en.[wikipedia.org/wiki/:Hyperland |Hyperland]]'' (Ironically, or maybe not coincidentally, the Internet boom made Hyperland a near-reality just a few years later).
* The collaborative ''[[OrionsOrion's Arm]]'' sci-fi setting.
* [[The Weather Channel]]'s ''[[It Could Happen Tomorrow]]'': A [[Speculative Documentary]] series where the results of a serious weather incident like a hurricane or tornado, or natural disaster like an earthquake or levee break, would affect a major American city.
 
== Envisioning Alien Worlds ==
 
* ''[[Cosmos]]'' by [http://en.[wikipedia.org/wiki/Carl_Sagan:Carl Sagan|Carl Sagan]].
* The 1990 [[Mockumentary]] book ''[http://en.[wikipedia.org/wiki/Expedition_:Expedition (book) |Expedition]]'' by [http://en.[wikipedia.org/wiki/Wayne_Barlowe:Wayne Barlowe|Wayne D. Barlowe]].
** [[Your Mileage May Vary]] on the scientific plausibility of the alien ecosystems and creatures, but it was very imaginative and subversive for its time (when [[Rubber Forehead Aliens]] and [[Call a Rabbit Aa Smeerp|smeerps]] were still the norm in sci-fi). Like Dixon's ''[[After Man: aA Zoology of The Future]]'', it helped give birth to a lot of [[Inspired By]] / [[In the Style Of]] projects over the years.
* ''[http://en.[wikipedia.org/wiki/Alien_Planet:Alien Planet|Alien Planet]]'', the 2005 Discovery Channel adaptation of Barlowe's ''Expedition''
* ''[http://en.[wikipedia.org/wiki/Extraterrestrial_:Extraterrestrial (TV_program)TV program)|Extraterrestrial]]'', made by National Geographic
* The ''[httphttps://web.archive.org/web/20080804002749/http://www.nemoramjet.com/snaiad.html Snaiad]'' project has lots of vividly imagined alien vertebrates from an Earth-like planet (sadly, the website seems to be currently down and available only via archived form)
 
== Envisioning Alternate Realities ==
* Dougal Dixon's third speculative book, ''[http://en.[wikipedia.org/wiki/The_New_Dinosaurs:_An_Alternative_EvolutionThe New Dinosaurs: An Alternative Evolution|The New Dinosaurs]]'' (1988) and ''[https://web.archive.org/web/20081228101712/http://www.unet.univie.ac.at/~a0000265/Spec/index.html Specworld]'' show what life might be like if dinosaurs never went extinct.
* ''Ivory Extraordinaire'': Deadly safaris on an alternate Earth where elephants out-competed all other big herbivores, and carnivores have grown larger to keep up
* [http://en.[wikipedia.org/wiki/:Aftermath:_Population_Zero Population Zero|''Aftermath: Population Zero'']] explores what would happen to Earth if humans disappeared without a trace. High source of [[Nightmare Fuel]].
** Like the aforementioned ''[[Life After People]]'', that is also based on the book ''The World Without Us''.
** They also made other "what if" style ''Aftermath'' documentaries, which explore topics like what if the world suddenly stopped spinning, what if we completely ran out of oil, and others.
* ''[[CSA: Confederate States of America]]''
* ''The Death of a President'' conjectures the consequences to the United States of America if George W. Bush had been assassinated.
 
== Reverse Engineering Fantasy using [[Real Life|Real]] Science ==
* ''[https://web.archive.org/web/20080423131834/http://www.history.com/minisite.do?content_type=Minisite_Generic&content_type_id=54406&display_order=9&mini_id=54078 Star Wars Tech]''.
* Science of Star Wars
* The Science Of [[Star Trek]]
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== [[Mockumentary]] supported by real science, also known as (in [[The Other Wiki]]) a [[Docu Drama]] ==
* ''[http://en.[wikipedia.org/wiki/The_Day_Britain_Stopped:The Day Britain Stopped|The Day Britain Stopped]]''.
* ''[[Earth 2100 (Film)|Earth 2100]]'' details the events that led to the creation of the [[After the End]] [[Crapsack World]] that the protagonist, Lucy, lives in on June 2nd2, 2100.
* [[Animal Planet]]'s ''[http://en.[wikipedia.org/wiki/The_Last_Dragon_:The Last Dragon (docudrama) |The Last Dragon]]'' aka ''[[Dragons: aA Fantasy Made Real]]'' aka ''Dragon's World''.
* ''[http://en.[wikipedia.org/wiki/Prehistoric_Park:Prehistoric Park|Prehistoric Park]]''.
* ''[http[wikipedia://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Supervolcano_Supervolcano (docudrama) |Supervolcano]]''.
* ''The Snouters: Form and Life of the Rhinogrades'': a joke "natural history treatise" on a non-existent group of mammals that walk on their noses. A popular in-joke among comparative anatomists is to cite this book in their texts.
* ''[[Threads]]'' and its predecessor, ''The War Game''
* ''[httphttps://www.youtube.com/watch?v=8r97xoSOEjM&feature=relatedF-dzfnXVM1w After Armageddon]'', a hypothetical [[After the End]] scenario.
 
{{reflist}}
[[Category:Speculative Fiction]]
[[Category:The National Geographic]]
[[Category:Speculative Fiction Tropes]]
[[Category:Literature Genres]]
[[Category:National Geographic Channel]]
[[Category:Speculative Documentary]]
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