Sounds like any long-running series, except the ones where every episode is stupid ;-). The thing about the "fear demon" is good psychology, though.
I found the premise of Stargate Universe to be interesting.
The execution sukt.
They tried to make it “as the world turns:space edition”.
And it is impossible to make good sci fi and have it be a darn soap opera too.
Either one facet or the other suffers.
And the darn shakey cam from battlestar Galactica was way overdone.