https://blacknerdproblems.com/bnp-staff-favorites-for-2024-television/

So…2024 was a hell of a year. Both eventful and in some respects…hellish. But that doesn’t mean there weren’t some high points. We had a series of favorites when it came to television series–see what captivated our staff below!

Shogun (FX)

The one correct answer for Best Television Series of 2024 is Shogun. This is a technically flawless series whose singular fault is being based on a book that uses a White Man as a vantage point character and hence the first scene of the Japanese historical drama is unfortunately this random White Man. But once you get past that, you get a clinic on how to do historical fiction.

You have Hiroyuki Sanada as Lord Toranaga, deftly navigating a treacherous political game, with the help of Cosmo Jarvis’ John “Anjin doomed to stay in Japan for however long Toranaga is entertained by him” Blackthrone, and Anna Sawai as Lady Mariko, Toranaga’s translator, key component to several machinations, and all around one of the most badass ladies in all of fiction, and many more that flesh out a beautiful world.

There is a reason Shogun became the first Japanese-language series to win an Emmy for Outstanding Drama series, and then 18 other awards for good measure (a record by the way). There is a reason what was pitched as a mini-series was instead converted to a season 1 and already renewed for a season 2 and season 3.

You want action? You want romance? You want mystery and intrigue? You want Will Evans, our editor in chief to come out of a four year hiatus from the recap game for one last rodeo? The answer is: you want Shogun. -Mikkel

Kaos (Netflix)

I know what you all are thinking… she is going to say Girls 5Eva is the best show of 2024. Oh ok, maybe you have never heard of that show, and that’s fine, but it is a pure gem for those who miss the Kimmy Schmitts and the 30 Rocks of it all. And yes, we all agree the best show of 2024 is the X-Men ‘97 period. But, what you might not know about me is I have an affinity for Greek mythology. Now, I said affinity, not expertise, love, or obsession. I am generally intrigued and captivated by the folklore, characters, and intertwining stories. When I saw the trailer for Kaos and caught Jeff Goldblum as Zeus –  I was immediately hooked. 

No spoilers here, but the show is canceled, BTWs, and I am devastated. The series uses magical realism to tell the tale of the gods/demi-gods and the idea of power and fate. In this world, the presence of the gods is very real – they exist, and everyone on earth knows it to be true (more or less.) The story is told from the perspective of Prometheus, of all storytellers. Without giving too much away, the series plays the gods as they are – power-hungry entities that play with the lives of humans, but there are SO MANY secrets revealed that give the show a multitude of depth and emotion. The performances are out of this world, the comedy is timed perfectly, and the nuance is everything. Expertly shot, this show is a visual delight. I’m about to start some fan fiction just to finish it off. 

The show is not perfect, as nothing truly is, but it struck such a chord with me that brings it to the top of my 2024 favs list. At a time when we all feel like we’re being played with for the gain and power of others, this show hits a bit close to home, but it is the artistic perspective that we all needed. Many characters feel the weight of hopelessness, yet something comes along to push them to rip through the fissures of an already cracked society and step into their fate for the betterment of humanity, no matter how much it hurts. I feel this so deeply and is why I am starting a petition to keep Kaos going. Not really, but I do wish we could have explored this unorthodox take on this classic mythology through to the end. –Aisha

X-Men ’97 (Disney+)

Had Mikkel not given Shogun their props, I would’ve done so myself. No hard feelings because now I get to talk best joyous show of 2024 and there is no other option besides X-Men ’97 chu heardddd!

The beauty of the X-Men lies in their realness. Jumping enemies, political stances, and bold fashion choices are just a few of their trademarks and X-Men’ 97 wasted no time leaning into the political elements with the mutant x black in America parallel coming in hot exactly 1 minute into the series premiere. The fits were always fire, and this series has Jubilee and them going hard in the street drip, basketball gear, and combat suits. X-Men ’97 is rife with protagonists and they all could get the squad beat down smoke if they’re daring enough to step to gang and them, leading to some incredibly animated action scenes every episode.

Few expected X-Men ’97 to live up to the greatness of it’s 90s predecessor and far less expected it to surpass one of the greatest animated shows of all time (fight me) but ’97 was so well written that there’s a lot of room to argue just that. Magneto leaving the dark side and fighting on behalf of the X-Men made this show an instant must watch and the progression from start to season finale was unbelievably well paced. Including a bevy of new ideas and a new character or 2 instead of regurgitating the same, overused comic book storylines makes for much more compelling television. Don’t get me wrong, ’97 stayed comic book accurate but Beau DeMayo and the entire team really pushed the envelope in all the best ways. -Ja-Quan

Mr. McMahon (Netflix)

There is something perversely compelling about seeing how a truly evil person ticks. I’ve seen enough media about serial killers and cult leaders to know this to be true. And in those circumstances it’s one thing – we get a few eyewitnesses but by and large, the people who’d know that side of someone best are, necessarily, not available for comment. I think that not being the case here (with there being plenty of firsthand accounts) combined with my undying affection for pro wrestling (and it runs deep) made the Netflix docuseries, Mr. McMahon, an immediate must-watch.

The series is part biography of the man and part of the company and entertainment mainstay that he defined for decades. It gets into the nitty gritty of the Hogan era of the 80s, the New Generation, the Attitude Era, and is surprisingly unflinching about the darker sides of Vince McMahon’s psyche and life, and his shortcomings both personal and professional. Everything from the lawsuits that ended his tenure with TKO/WWE and his flops like the XFL and the World Bodybuilding Federation are at least touched upon, if not given life through conversations with his family, his top stars, and current and past wrestlers who approach him and his works from all angles.

With interview segments from Shane McMahon, The Rock, John Cena, Cody Rhodes,, and even Hulk Hogan, this is a series that stretches across time and place and doesn’t miss a beat in its true crime-inspired pacing and its peek behind the curtain. If memoir, wrestling, or true crime pique your interest, you can’t miss checking this out. -D.J.

Agatha All Along (Disney+)

Down, down, down the road! Down The Witches Road, y’all!

God [OR DIETY OF CHOICE, OR LACK THEROF] bless Katherine Hahn for returning to Westview to lead the Disney+ fantasy show Agatha All Along, the sequel to 2021’s For Magical White Girls Who Have Considered Altering Reality When Therapy Was Enuff, (aka WandaVision).

In Agatha All Along, we got to experience a group of downtrodden witches struggling with their own personal (sometimes literal) demons, their faded magic, and the hardships caused by existing under modern American capitalism. Wicked witch Agatha Harkness was our guide through The Witches Road, a deadly supernatural obstacle course that should a witch complete, they will be granted one wish each. Agatha’s trademark sarcasm and self-centered personality had us side-eying her every episode, but series star Katherine Hahn’s nuanced portrayal showed us Agatha’s emotional underbelly too.

Through Hahn, we gained an understanding of Agatha’s compounded grief over losing her mother, her lover, and even her child, and how all of that grief impacts her. Audiences can judge for themselves whether Agatha was justified in her shady shenanigans. But Agatha All Along does a pretty fantastic job of explaining WHY she is the way she is, without letting her off the hook for her choices.

Another standout performance came by way of Saturday Night Live alum Sasheer Zameta as Jennifer Kale. Zameta shined as Kale, a lawsuit laden cosmetics brand founder, potions witch, midwife, and rootworker (sis got more jobs than Keke Palmer) whose powers were bound by a nefarious white male doctor a century prior. Zameta’s portrayal of a Black American woman struggling to hold her own in a racist, sexist word that hates, yet craves her power hit home especially hard for Black women (and some of us brothas too).

Agatha All Along was one of the most fun shows in 2024, and Wednesday nights haven’t been the same since our favorite supernatural swindler and her teenage twink sidekick rode off into the MCU sunset. Did the final episode of the show end with unnecessary fight scenes and gratuitous special effects? Maybe. Did every individual character’s arc have a satisfying conclusion? Maybe not. But if 10 weekly episodes of Agatha All Along taught us anything, it’s that sometimes it really is about the journey, and not the destination. -Skylar

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The post BNP Staff Favorites for 2024: Television appeared first on Black Nerd Problems.