The Best TV Moments of 2024

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A character death you can’t get retired of your head. A wild reveal that leaves you reeling. A killer fight, a portion of longstanding lore explained, oregon conscionable a truly large philharmonic number: these are the precise champion TV moments io9 saw this year, connected each the sci-fi, horror, and phantasy shows we watched successful 2024.

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Oz strangles Vic – The Penguin

Through the entirety of The Penguin, we knew Oz was susceptible of immoderate earnestly unspeakable stuff. He was doing truthful overmuch unspeakable stuff, successful fact, helium had to enlistee and bid a right-hand man, Vic, to assistance him. But erstwhile Oz’s enemies find his mother, helium realizes anyone helium cares astir tin beryllium utilized against him—which is erstwhile Oz does the unthinkable and strangles Vic to death. It was a shocking infinitesimal filled with meaning. To go the transgression kingpin of Gotham, you’ve got to springiness up everything, including the ones you love.

The apocalypse begins – Fallout

What if the apocalypse began astatine the nonstop infinitesimal you were astatine a children’s day party—entertaining portion dressed successful a cowboy costume, nary less—having conscionable explained to your young girl that if she sees a mushroom cloud, holds up her thumb, and gauges that the unreality is bigger than her thumb, that’s the extremity of the world. Then it happens: a flash, and a monolithic unreality begins to instrumentality shape… bigger than 100 thumbs enactment together. It’s a horrible, hypnotic sight. Then different 1 drops, and another, and there’s nary moving distant from what happens next—and that’s the opening country of Fallout.

Battle astatine Rook’s Rest – House of the Dragon

Season two, occurrence four seems similar precocious clip to get the warfare your amusement is built around—the Dance of the Dragons—out onto an existent battlefield, oregon rather, precocious supra the battlefield, acknowledgment to an unthinkable dragon fight. It’s Targaryen versus Targaryen, but the sides go muddled erstwhile Prince Aemond turns connected his ain brother, King Aegon. They some past to proceed their sibling rivalry, but Princess Rhaenys (along with her dragon) is mislaid forever—and the assemblage is near breathless arsenic the credits roll.

Genoshan genocide – X-Men ’97

X-Men ’97 started retired strong, but it genuinely stepped into precocious cogwheel with “Remember It,” which pivoted its nostalgic revisit to the X-Men‘s popularity roar successful the ’90s to amusement america it had the wound to connection a modern lens connected the Mutant metaphor. In a stunning, tragic moment, we spot the enactment of the Mutant federation of Genosha undone successful a brutal Sentinel onslaught that sees Rogue, Magneto, and Gambit emergence to the occasion… and lone 1 of them get backmost up from it. It’s the infinitesimal the bid went from thing bully to thing incredible, and arsenic Remy commanded, we volition beryllium remembering it for a precise agelong time.

Maddie’s decease – Arcane

Arcane isn’t a comedy, but it loves to beryllium comic during different tense moments. Just arsenic you’re wondering if it makes consciousness for Cait’s enactment fling Maddie to beryllium a Noxian agent, she’s astir to execute Cait herself. And then… well, convey Mel Medara for giving Mads an all-time, Looney Tunes-ass exit.

Gandalf’s sanction explained – The Lord of the Rings: The Rings of Power

From the archetypal occurrence of The Rings of Power, erstwhile the skinny dude with magic powers and a beard showed up from the sky, each azygous idiosyncratic watching thought “I wonderment if that’s Gandalf.” And so, aft 2 seasons of teasing, erstwhile that quality yet gets a unit and a purpose, helium besides gets a name. You guessed it: Gandalf, an improvement of “grand elf.” We each saw it coming, but the infinitesimal of the uncover was cathartic.

Bruce Wayne vs. carnies – Batman: Caped Crusader

We’ve each accepted that Bruce Wayne can’t instrumentality 5 steps without collecting an orphan kid of Gotham. Batman: Caped Crusader doesn’t springiness him a Robin, but it presents the aboriginal sidekicks to beryllium successful a wholly Bruce-free discourse for a azygous episode. When those kids extremity up kidnapped astatine a carnival, Bruce tries to analyse nether his regular identity, and the carnies footwear the crap retired of him. It doesn’t afloat substance whether they deliberation he’s a weirdo, oregon are conscionable trying to screen for 1 of their own; it’s a bully quality infinitesimal that shows however classical elements of his quality would beryllium met successful an earlier clip period.

“To me, my X-Men!” – X-Men ‘97

X-Men ‘97’s first occurrence showcases however overmuch cooler Cyclops is than you retrieve from the live-action movies and then-comics. Even erstwhile he’s freefalling toward the ground, Scott Summers gets a accidental to amusement disconnected he’s chill arsenic hell. And Scott nailing his landing earlier rallying the squad to enactment successful a great, crowd-pleasing infinitesimal successful a large commencement to a large revival.

Stranger slaughter – Star Wars: The Acolyte

With the chill disguise and treble lightsabers, the Stranger was already beauteous scary. But erstwhile helium comes crossed a squad of Jedi and systematically kills astir each of them, including 2 of The Acolyte’s main characters (RIP Jecki and Yord) it was simultaneously precise breathtaking but besides perfectly terrifying. Real stakes and consequences successful Star Wars? What a concept. And now, with The Acolyte canceled, thing we whitethorn ne'er spot again.

Acro-Silky’s Origins – Dan Da Dan

Dan Da Dan has mostly excelled truthful acold with its exaggerated absurdity, the zany enactment of its mish-mash of sci-fi and supernatural genres giving america over-the-top enactment and gags week in, week out. But readers of the manga knew that soon capable the anime would dive into a infinitesimal that would amusement radical what the bid was susceptible of—and it got determination successful its seventh episode, telling the tragic backstory of the yokai Acro-Silky. Sumptuously animated, it’s the infinitesimal Dan Da Dan proved it could truly bash much than the sum of its genre mixups and springiness a truly compelling bosom to what it was exploring astir these characters, and did truthful with its ain premix of daze and calamity that near america reeling (whether we’d work the manga already oregon not).

All of Sofia’s backstory – The Penguin

This is cheating a spot but we’re going to number episode 4 of The Penguin, “Cent’anni,” arsenic 1 infinitesimal because—holy crap. What an episode. Not lone bash we spot the tragic backstory that’s been propelling Sofia, but its shocking revelations wholly crook The Penguin on its head. You thought Sofia was 1 thing, but it turns retired she’s another, and instantly your loyalties arsenic a spectator change. So overmuch chaotic worldly happens that, yes, the full occurrence deserves its ain spot successful this list.

Blood and Cheese – House of the Dragon

The Game of Thrones prequel kicked disconnected its 2nd play by giving fans a source-material infinitesimal they’d been longing to see—the brutal execution of a kid successful enactment for the Iron Throne. The country was suitably ghastly, but what made the “Blood and Cheese” incidental reverberate adjacent much came weeks later, erstwhile writer George R.R. Martin aired retired his frustrations with the changes made to his communicative successful the adaptation process.

Mansion onslaught – X-Men ‘97

We’ve seen the Xavier Institute attacked before, but not rather similar this. With Rogue retired of commission, it falls to Wolverine and Nightcrawler to support her from a horde of Prime Sentinels arsenic their location burns down. It’s arsenic tense and harrowing, portion besides a large reminder of however deadly those 2 circumstantial X-Men tin beryllium erstwhile forced to spell backmost to back.

Sekai Taikai finale – Cobra Kai

Multiple seasons of Cobra Kai had each been starring to the biggest, baddest karate tourney connected the planet: the Sekai Taikai. And the lawsuit lived up to the hype with each mode of large fights and competitions, some connected and disconnected the mat. Truly, you had nary thought however it could each travel unneurotic successful a nice, cleanable mode and it didn’t. The last matches turned into knock-down, drag-out, no-holds-barred royal rumbles of karate with each dojo warring for their lives. Literally. In the end, 1 of Cobra Kai‘s captains, Kwan, is killed. Mistakenly, sure, but it made for an unforgettable crook of events.

Durin fights the Balrog – The Lord of the Rings: The Rings of Power

Much of Rings of Power‘s sophomore play focused connected the communicative of the Elven rings, and the powerfulness and information they represented arsenic Sauron played his manus successful Eregion. But its concealed champion communicative astir the corruption of the rings of power, and the anticipation that specified temptation could beryllium thwarted, was recovered not among the Elves, but successful the caverns of Khazad-Dum. Durin and his selfnamed lad had 1 of the champion affectional arcs of the season, with their damaged narration providing a premier ace for Sauron’s acquisition to exploit, but its climax with a begetter sacrificing himself for his son—realizing excessively precocious the outgo of the greed the rings had stoked wrong him—was what made it each deed truthful well, adjacent beyond the splashy spectacle of a little entanglement with shadiness and flame.

The William Hell Overture – Dan Da Dan

Dan Da Dan has managed to propulsion thing singular and implicit the apical astatine america astir each week since it started airing, but Okarun and Momo’s tag-game-to-the-death with Turbo Granny is 1 of the series’ aboriginal animation highlights. The absurdity of it all, the connection of the chase’s momentum, it’s the spectacle of the bid astatine its best—elevated by Kensuke Ushio’s inspired determination to people it each to a weird, electro-poppy remix of Rossini’s operatic classic. Bizarre and hilarious successful each the close ways.

“The Ballad of the Witches’ Road” stone set jam – Agatha All Along

Once Agatha All Along established that “The Ballad of the Witches’ Road” was a smash-hit azygous successful the show’s in-world popular culture, it was lone a substance of clip earlier we got a afloat performance. Episode 4 delivered, with a 1970s-flavored mentation featuring members of the coven connected instruments and Agatha connected the mic (plus occurrence and a demonic curse), and formed a spell connected audiences successful the signifier of an earworm we inactive can’t get escaped of. “Down, down, down the road, down the Witches’ Rooooaaaad!”

Antichrist baptism – Evil

In Evil’s last season, the forces of acheronian are conscionable starting to spot their sinister program statesman to wage disconnected erstwhile they piss disconnected the incorrect follower. What’s the worst happening that could hap to the Antichrist? How astir baptizing the small guy? Despite plentifulness of demonic interference, babe Timothy does so get his blessing, successful a creepy yet clever country arsenic unexpected arsenic it was satisfying.

Sugar is an alien? – Sugar

While everyone was marveling astatine Colin Farrell’s show connected HBO’s The Penguin, deservedly so, we were inactive trying to wrapper our heads astir the large mid-season uncover successful his other streaming bid this year: Apple TV+’s Sugar. Ostensibly a neo-noir astir an LA backstage oculus wrapped up successful a missing-person case, things took rather the genre crook erstwhile audiences realized Farrell’s quality was actually… a blue-skinned alien successful disguise.

***Judgment Day* demolition – *3 Body Problem***

We larn 1 of 3 Body Problem’s characters has created a high-tech nanofiber successful occurrence one. But we don’t recognize however terrifying the invention has the capableness of being until occurrence five, erstwhile it’s utilized arsenic portion of a hopeless program to get immoderate much-needed but well-guarded information. The ligament is truthful good and crisp slices though an full ship, including its precise amazed passengers, successful a special-effects marvel that was 3 Body Problem’s astir audaciously visceral accomplishment.

“Secret Agent Man” – The Umbrella Academy

If The Umbrella Academy’s 4th and last play had occupation surviving up to the heights of the seasons that came before, 1 infinitesimal did seizure the goofy amusive that archetypal made fans autumn successful emotion with the series: Diego and Luther battling their mode retired of a CIA bureau portion “Secret Agent Man” blared connected the soundtrack. It starts successful an elevator, Luther instantly loses his pants, Diego loses his shirt, staplers and forks are weaponized, and on the mode the siblings joyfully rediscover what’s amusive astir being superheroes again.

The instrumentality of Jackie Daytona – What We Do successful the Shadows

In the finale, we got a flashback to the 1950s that showed Laszlo’s been perfecting his “regular human” disguise for decades. It’s the toothpick, of course! Works each time.

Whenever Laios is connected 1 – Delicious successful Dungeon

Delicious successful Dungeon is an utterly ridiculous show, and its formed is simply a large crushed why. Main quality Laios is simply a closet freak that’s managed to enactment successful adventurers to assistance prevention his kidnapped sister Falin—and has besides convinced them to indulge successful his long-desired imagination to chop up the dungeon’s monsters and devour them. Whether he’s rattling disconnected monster facts oregon geeking retired implicit seeing thing wholly new, helium is the Most character, and his respective Japanese and English actors Kentaro Kumagi and Damien Haas bash a large occupation capturing his unbridled, often exasperating joy.

The Voice origins – Dune: Prophecy

Before determination was the Bene Gesserit, determination was the Sisterhood—and arsenic the Dune prequel bid has shown us, that’s wherever a batch of the group’s signature talents were refined. That includes “the Voice,” which we larn successful a flashback archetypal emerged erstwhile Valya Harkonnen utilized it to prevention her member from drowning. But successful the show, we archetypal spot her usage her startling acquisition successful a much alarming way: to compel a rival Sister to instrumentality her ain life.

Garak and Bashir, unneurotic astatine past – Star Trek: Lower Decks

It’s not our universe’s Garak and Bashir, but it doesn’t matter. Lower Decks‘ multiversal setup to its impending bid finale provided plentifulness of opportunities for self-referential gags and riffs connected the tiring tropes of interconnected parallel realities, but its top justness was 1 decades successful the making: bringing back Deep Space Nine‘s Andrew Robinson and Alexander Siddig to dependable versions of Garak and Dr. Bashir that got to beryllium successful a narration together, arsenic they and legions of Trek fans had advocated for since the amusement thrust the improbable duo together. And it wasn’t conscionable immoderate quiet, inheritance thing, but a important arc of the full episode!

Agatha and Rio/Death’s emotion communicative – Agatha All Along

The MCU yet has a mates that are believably horny for each other! Death aka Rio (Aubrey Plaza) and Agatha’s (Kathryn Hahn) creation astir each different successful Agatha All Along provided Marvel with an disconnected and connected romance that oozed disconnected the screen. They had a past, they decidedly laid with 1 different and broke each other’s hearts. And that physique to the last conflict with immense reveals broke the hostility and our hearts too—sealed with a kiss.

Qimir successful the water – Star Wars: The Acolyte

The Dark Side has ne'er been truthful seductive arsenic the infinitesimal that Qimir (Manny Jacinto), formerly known arsenic the Stranger, lays it each bare to amusement Osha (Amandla Stenberg) there’s thing to beryllium acrophobic of with him successful regards to her power… by skinny dipping successful a water and leaving her to instrumentality his lightsaber. We could person genuinely had it all.

Who is the father? – Bluey

In Bluey‘s play finale, we get a glimpse astatine the aboriginal of the amusement and the uncover that Bandit is being targeted by his grandchild, Bluey’s kid. The framework has the fandom divided with arguments implicit the individuality of the babe daddy: French Labrador Jean-Luc (if they reunite from their conscionable cute summertime abrogation occurrence aft becoming friends)—or puerility person Mackenzie the Border Collie.

Fates and Zeus confrontation – Kaos

When Zeus (Jeff Goldblum) realizes that his prophecy is self-fulfilling, the specifics of it are presented by the Fates the astir petty way—they fto themselves beryllium burned to alteration the realms of the Gods. Led by Suzy Eddie Izzard, they were immoderate of the astir iconic and delightful characters of Kaos—but excessively atrocious we won’t spot what was planned next, arsenic the ambitious bid was not renewed.

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