Best TV of 2024
Apparently everyone hated 2024. But at least there was some good TV.
I’ve never seen a year where everyone’s Instagram posts were like, “WORST YEAR OF MY LIFE, BYE!” quite like 2024. Not only was it economically and politically disastrous, but the pop culture kinda sucked. End-of-year best new music lists read like they were from 2007 ( Hozier is back???), Charlie XCX made the worst shade of green cool, and everyone is renovating their homes to look like a craft swap in 1985. At least we had the Mormon housewives to teach us all to put Coffee-Mate in Dr. Pepper?! (Loved that show, though.)
Thankfully, TV was surprisingly good this year, which makes little sense because we’re still in the fallout of a writer’s strike / pandemic. But I’ll take it! Here were the shows I really liked, binged and loved this year.
Industry
Industry wasn’t on a lot of TV critics’ top 10 lists, but for those who actually watched it, it shouldered its way into first place, just like the psycho-socio-pathic, sexually charged characters in the wild west of finance. The first season kind of feels like a migraine, but if you get past that it’s the best show of the recent past.
Baby Reindeer
My husband told me that I looked at my phone 99% less during this show than any other show. Riveting, weird, and sad, it explores the relationship between a male comedian and his stalker in a way that’s gut-wrenchingly sad and funny.
Presumed Innocent
This Apple TV show starring Jake Gyllenhaal is another David E. Kelley gem that balanced legal drama with fun dialog, and threw in Peter Sarsgaard to boot.
The English Teacher
I love a good narrative send-up that exposes the pitfalls of trying to be a good person. Brian Jordan Alvarez and Stephanie Koenig are perfect as disenfranchised high school teachers, and also writers of teenage dialog.
Rivals
This British drama about enemies warring for control over British network TV was captivating, plus it featured Barty Crouch Jr. from Harry Potter.
Fantasmas
Love everything Julio Torres does, from Los Espookys to My Favorite Shapes, but he really came into his own this year. His full-length film, Problemista, was a colorful, dystopian tale about acquiring a U.S. Visa, and Fantasmas was its perfect chaser. Imagine a sketch comedy that feels like Michel Gondry directing Tim & Eric. Yes please …
Bad Sisters
I’ve been a Sharon Horgan devotee since Catastrophe, but season 2 of Bad Sisters was her best work yet. Fiona Shaw as Angelica added a perfect frenemy vibe, and I definitely cried a lot at the end.
The Franchise
Another great show no one watched. Made by a former Veep producer, it parodies Marvel-era Hollywood in a way that’s so over-the-top that it has to be true.
Under the Bridge
Set in British Columbia, this show follows the true story of a teenage girl who was murdered by her classmates. It’s captivating and emotionally intelligent.
Colin from Accounts
This Australian comedy about a couple brought together by hitting a dog with a car was lots of fun. Don’t worry, the dog is ok.
Honorable Mentions:
No Good Deed: Lisa Kudrow is married to Ray Romano and they are selling a haunted mediterranean house. I love whoever thought of that, even if it was just an algorithm.
Black Dove: This Keira Knightley spy drama is pretty perfect—I just haven’t finished it yet. I also saw an Instagram post arguing she’s never had botox because her eyebrows have such dynamic range, which is very fun to analyze as you watch!
Laid: Another comedy that comes to us by way of Australia, Laid follows a 33-year-old woman whose exes start dying off. Stephanie Hsu from Everything Everywhere All at Once is perfect as the lead.
The Sticky: Margo Martindale is finally a leading lady in this Canadian attempt to make a Fargo-like thriller about stolen maple syrup. It’s fine, but, like, you have nothing better to do.
Last Bite Hotel: HBO is doing such fun things with food TV lately. This thriller starring Top Chef alumni features Tituss Burgess as a host.
High Potential: Kaitlin Olsen (Always Sunny) plays a nonchalant savant in this detective comedy. Related: Elsbeth was delightful in this same vein. (Although my dad called her “Too much.”)
Kaos (RIP): Another great show no one watched, which was sadly canceled. Jeff Goldblum starred as Zeus in a musical, colorful and theatrical retelling of Greek myth.
Culinary Class Wars: This South Korean cooking contest pitted elite chefs against up-and-comers, in a very original take on the format.
Other winners of 2024:
-Olympic Gymnasts: Simone Biles, Suni Lee, Rebeca Andrade and co. made me briefly believe that actions had consequences and good things happen to good people again. Then the election happened lol.
-Tim Walz: So many thoughts about this whole moment but I hope he takes a stab at running for president someday. We Minnesotans love our gov.
-McDonald’s: What a weird year McDonald’s had, from an e. coli outbreak to Luigi Mangione’s capture. I would love to live a day in the head of their PR lead.
-Substack: Writers I used to follow in 2010 are suddenly back and blogging. It’s a nice vibe change in this TikTok era.
Anyway, 2024 was not my favorite year.
Here’s to February 2025, when Love is Blind comes to Minneapolis, White Lotus and Severance return, and we get the premiere of Suits LA. You know what I’m doing this Valentine’s day.