The Best TV of 2024

At io9, we ticker a batch of TV and we’re not acrophobic to admit it. And from each those hours binged and streamed, these 16 bid roseate supra the rest. If that seems similar a batch of favorites, well, we already made it perfectly clear: we ticker a batch of TV! Here are io9’s favourite sci-fi, fantasy, horror, and animated shows of 2024.

Photo by Chuck Zlotnick/Marvel

Agatha All Along

We already knew we loved the main character—Kathryn Hahn’s Agatha Harkness—in the spin-off bid from the aforesaid creator down WandaVision, 1 of Marvel’s astir entertaining Disney+ bid to date. And Agatha All Along much than lived up to the catchy ditty that provided its title, exploring issues of powerfulness and individuality arsenic good arsenic celebrating witches successful pop-culture acold beyond comic books.

Arcane

Despite losing retired to Fallout arsenic the champion video crippled adaptation astatine the Game Awards, Netflix’s Arcane inactive stands astatine the apical of the person committee for the year—and of all-time. Its fusion of painstakingly hand-painted animation and 3D modeling, catchy needle drops, and sprawling communicative represents the champion exports of 1 of gaming’s astir gatekeep communities. What’s more, you don’t person to endure done playing League of Legends to admit it.

Bluey

In what is present known to beryllium creator Joe Brumm’s last play of the animated show, Bluey play 3 caps disconnected what began arsenic the mundane adventures of the the show’s Heeler household with immoderate large decisions for the parents successful “The Sign.” Girl-dad Bandit has to marque the immense determination connected whether oregon not to merchantability the location wherever we’ve witnessed Bluey and Bingo turn up successful the affectional and almighty finale (that mightiness beryllium precise autobiographical for Brumm). And determination was, of course, that clip leap into Bluey’s aboriginal arsenic a parent, which near america with truthful galore questions. Bluey‘s aboriginal whitethorn beryllium uncertain connected the tiny surface but we’ve astatine slightest got the movie arsenic Brumm’s last bow for an all-time large household animated popular civilization phenomenon.

Image: Yukinobu Tatsu/SHUEISHA, DANDADAN Production Committee

Dan Da Dan

Anyone who was already speechmaking Yukinobu Tatsu’s smash-hit manga knew pairing its oddball supernatural/sci-fi mashup with the talents of Science Saru was going to marque for an unthinkable anime–but nary 1 knew conscionable however unthinkable its debut was going to be. Capable astatine being sharply comic and over-the-top and profoundly sentimental and intimate successful adjacent measure, Dan Da Dan manages to delicately rotation galore plates crossed its tonal and genre mashups to present a amusement wherever you ne'er truly cognize what to expect next, adjacent if you’re a manga reader. We can’t hold to spot however Science Saru takes connected the remainder of the communicative from here!

Delicious successful Dungeon

On the surface, Delicious successful Dungeon is simply a cooking anime disguised arsenic a Dungeons & Dragons-type show. However, it’s really deeper than that. If anything, it’s really a benignant of  messed-up anime astir however emotion tin marque folks disrespect the laws of quality to fulfill their appetites, beryllium it virtually oregon by utilizing alchemy to bring backmost a loved one. And it’s quirky, fun, and daring connected apical of that.

Evil

In this Paramount+ series, which wrapped up its tally this year, a trio of investigators, ostensibly moving for the Catholic Church but precise overmuch bringing their ain perspectives and opinions to the table, acceptable retired to debunk (or prove) possessions (and miracles, ghosts, werewolves, and beyond). Evil’s blend of fascinating characters, clever writing, and a willingness to propulsion boundaries ne'er disappointed, with episodes capable to incorporated apocalyptic terrors and dinners made of “candy salad” with cleanable balance.

Image: Prime Video

Fallout

The Fallout games were already blockbuster hits, truthful it seemed apt that Prime Video’s series, shepherded to the surface by the assistance of squad Westworld, would find astatine slightest an assemblage among its built-in fanbase. But Fallout transcended that and beyond, gathering a vivid post-apocalyptic satellite with a enigma oregon 2 astatine its core, and characters truthful chill and intriguing (and/or ghoulish and dorky, depending connected who you’re talking about) we can’t hold to spot what they get up to successful play two.

Interview With the Vampire

The 2nd play of AMC’s adaptation of Anne Rice’s caller brought  the events from the archetypal Vampire Chronicles caller to the tiny surface successful some a faithful yet creatively reimagined way. Delainey Hayles arsenic Claudia was a circuit de unit alongside Jacob Anderson, some of whom notched performances that elevated the book’s material. And of people portion this play was abbreviated connected Sam Reid arsenic Lestat, helium chews up the scenery with his appearances—perfectly mounting up the Vampire Lestat to instrumentality halfway signifier successful play three.

Kaos

Netflix’s clever and modern adaptation of Greek myths from Charlie Covell (The End of the F***ing World) was possibly a canceled a spot excessively prematurely. With deed games similar Hades and Webtoon comic titan Lore Olympus, the amusement was connected way to find its audience. It had Jeff Goldblum arsenic Zeus (!), not to notation tons of soapy play we were near wanting much of.

Image: Prime Video

The Lord of the Rings: The Rings of Power

Season 1 of Prime Video’s Tolkien adaptation was… let’s conscionable accidental it: it was excessively slow. Season two, however, picked up the gait considerably, with existent rings on-screen arsenic good arsenic parallel stories of characters (good guys, atrocious guys, very bad guys) battling for power of Middle-earth’s destiny. As before, the visuals were stunning and the performances were top-notch, and the communicative was truthful involving we present can’t hold for the adjacent limb of this epic journey.

The Penguin

When HBO announced it was doing a TV amusement based connected Colin Farrell’s quality from The Batman, nary 1 had immoderate existent expectations. Sure, Colin Farrell is awesome. And the thought of a Batman villain spinoff amusement was intriguing. But however bully could it be? Turns retired the reply is really, truly freaking good. The Penguin was similar a DC Comics blend of The Sopranos and The Wire, showing a metropolis astatine warfare and the lengths radical indispensable spell to execute power. Through acts of axenic evil, it showed america conscionable however hard it really mightiness beryllium to go a due supervillain. It besides introduced america to Cristin Milioti’s Sofia Falcone, instantly a top-tier DC villain.

Star Wars: The Acolyte

Toxic fans dismissed it, and Lucasfilm cancelled it. But we had a large clip with The Acolyte, a amusement that dared to amusement Star Wars’ vaunted Jedi successful a less-than-flattering light, portion exploring darker and much mystical aspects of the franchise’s longstanding lore. It was besides shockingly convulsive astatine times—and different times, possibly adjacent much shockingly, alternatively sexy. The Acolyte took large swings, and we’re gladsome this caller constituent of presumption made its mode to Disney+—if lone for 1 season.

Photo: Michael Gibson/Paramount+.

Star Trek: Discovery

Discovery bowed retired this twelvemonth successful the mode lone Discovery truly could: existent to the totality of its earnest, messy self. Its last ngo had its ups and downs, and its last moments surely made immoderate choices successful however it ended the Star Trek amusement that started disconnected this full era. But Discovery reminded america each of the humanity astatine its bosom with a connection of changeless improvement and learning—and that adjacent successful the farthest-flung aboriginal we’ve seen successful Trek up to this point, adjacent our astir idealized heroes successful Starfleet are perpetually moving connected achieving the utopia the bid has ever dreamed for. 

Star Trek: Lower Decks

Lower Decks‘ last play built itself astir a azygous connection astir re-learning lessons and challenging yourself to grow, and though it mightiness person banged that drum a small excessively frequently, it allowed the amusement to spell retired a beardown thematic halfway that showed america conscionable however acold these wacky ensigns (turned Lieutenants Junior Grade) person truly travel crossed the past 5 seasons of shenanigans. With a cleanable one-two punch of a nonstop disconnected that balanced sincere Trek nostalgia and geekery with a fitting climax to this section of Mariner, Boimler, Tendi, and Rutherford’s adventures, 1 acquisition we learned alongside them was that we’re gonna miss the hellhole retired of this show. Lower decks! Lower decks! Lower decks! 

3 Body Problem

A blockbuster sci-fi caller bid from China, the squad down Game of Thrones, and the powerfulness of Netflix combined to bring this intelligence yet thrilling communicative to the streaming realm. When 1 aggravated quality invites aliens to invade Earth, a radical of geniuses who’d alternatively that not hap effort to fig retired however to un-invite them. Along the way, relationships and morals are turned wrong out, and large questions astir beingness and beingness get enactment to the test.

© Marvel

X-Men ’97

Coming into Marvel Animation’s resurrection and continuation of the ’90s classic, determination was a interest that X-Men ’97 mightiness conscionable beryllium contented with fanning the flames of nostalgia and delivering throwback contented to thin connected the vibes and small else. What we got alternatively was a existent spiritual sequel that did much than conscionable remainder connected its laurels. X-Men ’97 celebrated the mutant metaphor arsenic an allegorical tool, a amusement assured to propulsion guardant with its ain riff connected decades of X-Men storytelling to archer a communicative of absorption and resilience that championed the benignant of themes that person ever made mutantkind immoderate of Marvel’s astir fascinating characters. X-Men ’97 wasn’t conscionable a fitting tribute to a aureate property of Marvel animated adaptations, but a blueprint for everything immoderate aboriginal MCU mentation of these characters should strive for.

Want much io9 news? Check retired erstwhile to expect the latest Marvel, Star Wars, and Star Trek releases, what’s adjacent for the DC Universe connected movie and TV, and everything you request to cognize astir the aboriginal of Doctor Who.