A potentially controversial opinion: the television offerings of 2024 have been stronger than the film offerings. As the line between the two forms continues to blur — in terms of production quality and even actors and directors — studios like Warner Bros. and Disney continue to pump large amounts of resources towards the small screen.
This year, television took us into a Sopranos-like Gotham, revisited fare from the 1970s and early 2000s, and brought us into the world of one of Canada's most iconic musical acts. For all the reimagining of known IP, some truly unique and innovative shows also emerged that arguably created the most discussion within the TV discourse.
It's been a fantastic year for telly and we were absolutely spoiled for choice — here are Exclaim!'s 10 best TV series of 2024. Read all of our year-end 2024 coverage, including our 20 favourite films, here.
10. Conan O'Brien Must Go
Created by Conan O'Brien
(Crave)
The two best aspects of any Conan O'Brien show (whether Late Night, The Tonight Show or Conan) has always been: his remotes with his employees and his travel episodes. With Conan O'Brien Must Go, fans have been downright spoiled with 45-minute long episodes of everyone's favourite ginger in his element from dressing up as a Viking, sampling street food in Bangkok and visiting his ancestral homestead in Ireland. Conan O'Brien Must Go embodies everything that's made him an enduring and resilient success — like Kedakai's portrait, the series is as God made him.
Rachel Ho
9. Under the Bridge
Created by Quinn Shephard
(Disney)
The horrific true crime story of a missing 14-year-old, Reena Virk (Vritika Gupta), in Victoria, BC unfolds sensitively and keeps audiences on edge as the pieces of the puzzle come together. Unlike other crime dramas, all the loose ends are tied up and each of the actors serve to make this an intriguing expose. In addition to the heavyweights Lily Gladstone and Riley Keogh, the young actors of the series carry the emotional weight. Vritika Gupta and Chloe Guidry are among the actors who turn in impressive performances and are ones to watch out for.
Marriska Fernandes
8. Baby Reindeer
Created by Richard Gadd
(Netflix)
Richard Gadd leads an adaptation of his one-man play in Baby Reindeer, a limited series based on his own life. Finding viral success upon its release, the show's portrayal of sexual violence and trauma comes with the nuance and insight that first-hand experience allows. With outstanding (and Emmy-award winning) performances from both Gadd and Jessica Gunning, Baby Reindeer is an uncomfortable, unflinching narrative that refuses to lower its gaze, a true standout among Netflix's many releases.
Karlie Rogers
7. Somebody Somewhere, Season 3
Created by Hannah Bos and Paul Thureen
(Crave)
With its tender approach to the hilarity and heartbreak of everyday existence, this dramedy about the joy of finding your people concludes with its final season by reminding us of the completeness that emerges from within. Sam (Bridget Everett), the reluctant returnee that embraced her newfound family, must now face the fact that everyone seem to be moving on without her. As these fallible but undeniably lovable misfits all face new challenges, their friendships are tested but their unbreakable bonds inevitably endure.
Barbara Goslawski
6. Mr. & Mrs. Smith
Created by Donald Glover and Francesca Sloane
(Prime Video)
Mr. & Mrs. Smith reinvents the old spy thriller with a fresh, funny and heartfelt twist. Donald Glover and Maya Erskine have excellent chemistry as mismatched agents posing as a married couple for an unnamed covert organization. Balancing explosive action with sharp humour and tender moments, the series explores compatibility, trust and the challenges of partnership while on a mission and at home. The writing is clever, the leads are dynamic and this re-imagining brings real emotional depth in one of the years biggest and most entertaining surprises.
Matthew Simpson
5. The Tragically Hip: No Dress Rehearsal
Directed by Mike Downie
(Prime Video)
The four-episode docuseries is more than just a celebration of one of Canada's best-loved bands; it's also an emotionally fraught acknowledgement of the tensions that bubbled beneath the surface, which pulled them apart before their reconciliation amidst singer Gord Downie's cancer diagnosis and tragic death. With touching commentary on what the Hip means to Canadians provided by an all-star cast of celebs (Geddy Lee, Dan Aykroyd, Justin Trudeau, etc.), plus emotionally raw interviews with the surviving members, it honours the Hip without glossing over the messy bits of the story. The Hip's many classic songs will be rattling around viewers' brains for days after watching.
Alex Hudson
4. Shōgun
Created by Rachel Kondo and Justin Marks
(Disney)
The first season of Shōgun broke the record for the most-awarded television season in Emmy history with 18 total wins, and for good reason. The show's ensemble cast shines, but Anna Sawai is the unmistakable star — her performance as the resolute translator, Toda Mariko, is an understated yet powerful display of her screen presence, which I expect to see much more of in the future. With immaculately detailed costumes and props and cinematically stunning shots, Shōgun weaves an epic tale of war, power, romance and politics that rivals 2024's big-screen releases.
Leina Gabra
3. Fallout
Created by Lisa Joy and Jonathan Nolan
(Prime Video)
Somehow, Prime Video pulled off another anti-corporate series that's also one of the year's best. Whereas last year's I'm a Virgo honed in on its Oakland-isms and send ups of blockbuster cinema to dissect capitalism and audiences' roles within it, Fallout takes the aesthetics of its source material to do the same on an even bigger scale. We've seen the post-nuclear wasteland of a 1950s-inspired America for years, but Fallout's discussions of how it came to be makes it special. That balancing act between morbid, IP-based fun and freakish prescience becomes Fallout's biggest success. With a soundtrack full of mid-century bangers and populated by an ensemble cast at their best, Fallout is a rare adaptation that expands, and possibly even betters, what came before.
Nathan Chizen
2. The Penguin
Created by Lauren LeFranc
(Crave)
The Penguin expertly taps into the anger and insecurities that are becoming more common as the chasm between the wealthy and everyone else grows. Willing to literally kill anyone to become a "somebody," Oz Cobb's (Colin Farrell) desperate need to be loved is as prevalent as his frequent lack of personal accountability. A monster with kingly aspirations, Cobb's battle of wills with vengeance-seeking Sofia Falcone (Cristin Milioti) provides an intoxicating case study on how class, power, male ego and family secrets can lead to a dangerous game of chess where the most vulnerable in society are the ultimate pawns.
Courtney Small
1. English Teacher
Created by Brian Jordan Alvarez
(Disney)
The quietly brilliant and extraordinarily funny Brian Jordan Alvarez finally breaks through with English Teacher, a single-camera sitcom so goddamn sharp you better hold it by the handle. Writing, directing and starring in each episode, Alvarez channels his auteur comedic vision into this irreverent series about Evan, a queer high school teacher in Texas navigating the absurdities of a post-AI, post-pandemic, post-school-shooter world.
On the surface, English Teacher might seem like a traditional workplace comedy, yet beneath its witty exterior lies a show as cerebral and subversive as Community was when it disrupted sitcom norms 15 years ago.
Stephanie Koenig, playing history teacher Gwen Sanders, emerges as the show's secret weapon. Her unmatched physical comedy and chemistry with Alvarez, first seen in their unmissably funny 2016 web series The Gay and Wondrous Life of Caleb Gallo, add depth to an already killer ensemble. A perfect 1980s-fueled soundtrack punctuates the undeniable heart and humour English Teacher bravely wears on its sleeve.
Josh Korngut