2024 brought viewers another wave of exceptional television, from FX standouts like Shogun and a new season of The Bear to HBO’s Sopranos-esque crime drama The Penguin and a new season of Netflix’s top-notch political thriller The Diplomat. Amid all that great TV, this was also a year during which several unforgettable shows not only captured viewers’ attention — they also managed to earn the rare distinction of a perfect score on Rotten Tomatoes.
House of Ninjas (Netflix)
One of my favorite TV shows of 2024 that took me completely by surprise was the Japanese Netflix series House of Ninjas — and before I go any further, I need to pause and implore you to check out the trailer for the show below. It’s one of the most thrilling trailers from Netflix that I’ve seen in quite some time, not giving too much away and using a mesmerizing soundtrack to get you hooked. Glimpses of epic fight scenes in the trailer help to seal the deal.
Basically, this show is about a family of modern-day ninjas who’ve sheathed their swords and are trying to live a normal life. Until, that is, a terrifying threat emerges, and a call for help is put out to the reluctant warriors. A jaw-dropping clash between good and evil ensues.
Supacell (Netflix)
Another of 2024’s TV shows that wowed critics enough to earn a perfect Rotten Tomatoes score was Supacell, a drama from Rapman that brought a fresh twist to the superhero genre.
The six-episode series is about a group of five ordinary people who develop superpowers like telekinesis and super speed. The twist is that they don’t seem to have anything in common with each other, but for the fact that they’re all Black South Londoners — moreover, it comes down to one man who brings them all together in order to save the woman that he loves. “Finding a fresh approach to the superhero genre,” reads the Rotten Tomatoes critics’ consensus summary, “Supacell works as both a savvy social commentary and satisfying entertainment.”
Slow Horses (Apple TV+)
You may think you have a toxic boss, but rest assured that he or she is nowhere near as abusive and overbearing as Jackson Lamb — the HR nightmare of a spymaster portrayed with relish by Gary Oldman in the hit Apple TV+ Slow Horses.
Season 4 of the show, which debuted in September and is based on Mick Herron’s novel Spook Street from his Slough House series, was arguably the best outing yet for this addictive series that turns the spy genre on its head (by presenting the inhabitants of the secret world as washed-up, rather than James Bond types). From my review of the fourth season: “Aside from the same cynical tone that fans have come to know and love — and the show’s familiar presentation of London as a once-great city rotted out by institutional decline — surprises abound in Season 4. Not the least of which is the emergence of a shady mercenary played by Hugo Weaving who’s connected to the pasts of both River Cartwright and his grandfather (David Cartwright, aka “The Old Bastard”).
“Other new faces this time around include Claude Whalen, the irritatingly image-obsessed new “First Desk” of MI5, whose ineptitude stands in contrast to the icily efficient head of operations Diana Taverner (Kristin Scott Thomas). And, oh yeah, there’s a mystery to solve — namely, who bombed a posh London shopping center, and why does one of the breadcrumbs point back to the security service? Also, what’s the bombing’s connection to the elder Cartwright, who narrowly survives assassination while also suffering from dementia?”
Pachinko (Apple TV+)
Continuing with unforgettable Apple TV+ standouts from 2024, I don’t think I’ve ever watched a TV show that’s left me reeling quite like Pachinko — Apple’s adaptation of Min Jin Lee’s bestselling novel, which traces the lives of four generations of a Korean family in Japan.
Both the book and the show immerse viewers in a multi-layered narrative that captures the complexities of family, resolve, and ambition. Moreover, Pachinko accomplishes this by giving viewers dual timelines to follow. The earlier timeline presents Sunja, the protagonist, as a young woman forced to make life-altering choices, while the more recent timeline captures her family’s present-day struggles. It’s a testament to the enduring legacy of resilience across generations.
In Season 2, we pick up with Sunja in Osaka circa 1945 as her family struggles to survive during World War II (the episode that presents the aftermath of the atomic bomb is one of the most harrowing things I’ve ever seen on TV). Simultaneously, we follow Solomon in the 1989 version of Tokyo as he embarks on new beginnings. At the risk of sounding overly enthusiastic, I know this is just a TV show — but, believe me, this is the kind of art that adds something to your life. I’ll leave it at that.
Colin from Accounts (Paramount+)
Rounding out this list of some of the most acclaimed TV shows of 2024, here’s something you almost never see.
The Australian comedy Colin from Accounts (which Paramount+ picked up to stream in the US) has a perfect 100% critics’ score on Rotten Tomatoes for both of its available seasons. A 100% score is rare enough for one season of a TV show, let alone a second. Of course, make of that what you will.
As for what it’s about, allow me to quote myself once again from my earlier preview of the show. It “basically revolves around a wacky meet-cute between two polar-opposite singles — newly heartbroken medical student Ashley (Harriet Dyer) and brewery owner Gordon (Patrick Brammall), brought together by the following sequence of events: A nipple flash, which leads to a car crash involving a dog.
“To unpack that just a little bit more, Ashley basically flashes Gordon — who, mesmerized by the sight, unwittingly hits the unsuspecting pup. Making this all the more hilarious, at least to me, is that Dyer and Brammall (the creators and writers of this series) are also married to each other in real life. These two sloppy, lonely, likeable characters bond over the need to take care of the cute canine — and, at some point between that car crash and the end of the season, you will absolutely be rooting for them, a la Jim and Pam.”
