It’s tough to say what even counts as TV anymore. Shows bounce from streamer to streamer, major stars headline prestige series that have somehow been running for three years with hardly anyone watching, and everybody’s paid a fraction of what they used to be except for the folks who star on those CBS shows that never come close to penetrating your consciousness but that your great aunt never misses. But we all keep finding things to watch anyway, don’t we? We’re an inspiring species.
Television We Liked in 2024
Aaron’s Picks
I will forever sing the praises of the streaming service Dropout, which picked up where College Humor left off when that was private equity-ed out of existence, and recommend it to anyone who enjoys smart improv, multilayered comic writing, and just watching fun, talented people having a blast. Of particular note are long-running D&D actual-play series “Dimension 20,” which in the past few years has garnered a following that rivals that of “Critical Role”; the mind-bending game show “Game Changer”; and a new addition this year: “Very Important People,” which pits a soft-focus Barbara Walters-style fluff interviewer (Vic Michaelis) against bespoke improvised weirdos wearing space helmets or piggy facial appliances or, in one case, just a big suit of rocks. The current “VIP” season features folks like Paul F. Tompkins, Chris Redd, and Lisa Gilroy. Dropout is a measly $6 a month. You should subscribe.
I am an old-ass dad who could tell you, without prompting, who played drums on Steely Dan’s “Hey Nineteen” vs. “Deacon Blues” (ha, that’s a trick question — the former had a drum machine, although Rick Marotta played the fills; and the latter was Bernard Purdie, duh), so it’s no surprise that I both watched and enjoyed Max’s “Yacht Rock: A Dockumentary.” Did I learn anything? Not really, because that presupposes I didn’t already know way too much about Michael McDonald — whose memoir my kids got me for Father’s Day this year — and his ilk altogether. But hey, I had a lot of fun watching it, and you might, too. It also features the most Donald Fagen thing that ever Donald Fagen’ed, so enjoy that.
– EIC Aaron Retka
Ruby’s Picks
I got into “Taskmaster” this year and watched the whole British original version in about two months. It’s so fun! The Taskmaster, Greg Davies, and his assistant, Alex Horne (who is actually the show-runner), set up ridiculous tasks for a set of five comedians per season, who are then shown their attempts and awarded points. The show scratches a particular itch for well-made, fun game creation that we try to hit here at Trivia Mafia. The contestants have all the tools they need to accomplish the tasks, whether or not they know it. I started with Season 4, which I recommend as a good entry point. Season 15 is also very good and available on YouTube in its entirety. To get something new in here, there is a brand new children’s version called “Junior Taskmaster,” which is extremely fun. I’ve never heard a Scottish child talk before, I realized, and it was a delight (especially because he got to do insults as part of his challenge).
– Editor Ruby
Brenna’s Picks
Do you miss “The West Wing” but mostly just for C.J. Cregg? Then you should watch “The Diplomat”! Not only does Allison Janney appear in the second season, but the showrunner previously worked on WW, so the cadence is familiar. It’s slightly less quippy but also less speechy than its network predecessor, and Keri Russell sells the hell out of the whole deal. Just some light geopolitical fun, for those of us who don’t want to watch another show about some dude trying to fight or shoot his way out of a situation. The marriage at the center of the show is a fascinating take on how much work relationships can be, especially when you’re at work.
– EVP Brenna
Greg’s Picks
FX continued to rule the roost for my TV watching this year. Lamorne Morris achieved justice for “New Girl” by winning an acting Emmy for “Fargo,” a darkly funny series I dip into every winter as the temps dive and my spirit gets maudlin. The folks behind “What We Do in the Shadows” brought it to a quiet-but-satisfying end with plot lines that riffed on both Frankenstein and office drone culture to ask what makes a person truly human. The real stand-out for me this year is “Interior Chinatown,” a genre-spanning show that analyzes Chinese American and Asian American identity through the lens of crime procedurals, murder mysteries, and kung-fu cinema. Jimmy O. Yang and Ronny Chieng both deliver stellar work, and frequent Dropout Lisa Gilroy is a delight as a buttoned-up Olivia-Benson-type. (I also echo Aaron’s assessment above: Dropout is the best streaming service you’re not subscribed to.)
– Private Events Manager Greg
Ira’s Picks
The final season of “Arcane” slayed me with Dickensian storytelling, stellar character-building, booming sound design and Ella Purnell’s second-best video game adaptation performance of 2024. Most memorably, it boasts some of the most vivid, energetic, and just plain impressive animation I’ve seen onscreen. It’s a show of epic ambition that I would love to rewatch in a movie theater. Recommended for fans of “A Tale of Two Cities,” “Avatar: The Last Airbender,” “Into the Spider-Verse,” and “Tank Girl” comics.
“Fallout” takes place in an even more dire dystopia, but manages the neat trick of being an amiable, almost bubbly adventure set against the bleakest backdrop imaginable. That’s partly a product of its half-campy vibe and bold set design, but it also has a ton to do with two magnetic lead turns by Ella Purnell (in her best video game adaptation performance of 2024) and Walton Goggins. There aren’t too many actors you can say were born to play a noseless, undead killer with ruthless methods and righteous intent, but Walton Goggins is precisely that.
Speaking of bleak comedy, I haven’t seen a better encapsulation of the Sisyphean reality of the gig economy than the second season of “Killing It.” Craig Robinson, Claudia O’Doherty (a strong contender for our funniest living human) and a host of top-flight comedy writers and character actors paint a grimly hilarious portrait of people on the fringes making all the right moves toward success and getting shafted by the system at every turn. In 20 years this will be celebrated as a vital snapshot of whatever our current era ends up getting called. (Technically a 2023 release, but I didn’t see it until this year and you probably haven’t either.)
– Editor Ira Brooker
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