Rueben's Ramblings

With the strikes out of the way and productions back in full swing, there were a LOT of programming options for TV viewers, covering all facets of stories and genres, whether it was on the major or cable networks as well as the ever-growing streaming services.

Throughout the year, TV fans have been able to enjoy their favorite shows, good, bad or otherwise along with new shows for which we became obsessed with; outstanding performances, lots of streaming shows to get hooked on, unexpected departures and much, much more.

Please join me as I focus on the top highlights for 2024 (listed in no particular order):

Top Actress – Juno Temple, Fargo (FX)

The FX series, now in its 5th season, found former child actress Juno Temple becoming the standout, delivering what has been described as “perfect comedic timing, charm and range, making a mostly engaging experience” as Dorothy “Dot” Lyon, a “wonderfully unhinged” character who brought “not only perfect…zingers but also the necessary charm to ground the chaos that began unfolding” around her. [Source: Collider]

Fresh New Face (Actress) – Anna Sawai, Shogun and Monarch: Legacy of Monsters (FX and Apple TV)

Anna took the industry by storm this year, starring in the remake of Shogun, earning an Emmy as Lead Actress in a Drama Series for her performance as Lady Mariko, becoming the first Japanese actress to win the category. Her performance has been “thoroughly convincing and captivating [Source: The New York Times]; and she also starred as Cate Randa, a San Francisco school teacher dealing with PTSD whose search for her missing father led her to uncover his involvement with Monarch in the Apple TV+ series Monarch: Legacy of Monsters at the end of 2023, leading into January of this year.

Standout Performance – Kenneth Choi, 9-1-1 (ABC)

Getting to the church on time took a whole new meaning for Howard “Chimney” Hahn in the May episode of 9-1-1 entitled “There Goes the Groom” for Kenneth Choi. Chimney had to overcome not only an undiagnosed case of viral encephalitis, which led to brain swelling and memory loss, causing him to completely forget about his bride-to-be (series regular Jennifer Love Hewitt). Acting out the hallucinations Chimney was experiencing could have taken a bad turn if not for the incredible talent of Choi.

Top Actor – Tom Hollander, Feud: Capote vs. The Swans (FX)

Hollander literally disappeared into his role of the one-and-only Truman Capote in the FX anthology series Feud that focused on the literary “genius” and The Swans, a socialite group of New York City high society, consisting of Babe Paley, the wife of William S. Paley, the man who founded CBS, Lady Nancy ‘Slim’ Keith, fashion icon C. Z. Guest, Lee Radziwill, the younger sister of Jackie O, former showgirl Ann Woodward and Joanne Carson, ex-wife of late night talk show host Johnny Carson.

Highest Rated Drama – Matlock (CBS)

This new series is only reminiscent of the popular 1980s to 1990s legal drama in name only. Kathy Bates plays Matty Matlock, nee wealthy retired attorney Madeline Kingston, in this revitalized and intriguing new CBS drama that includes a great ensemble cast. The series has been averaging well over 6 million viewers a week, ranking higher than any other new drama on any of the major networks.

Most Reviled New Drama – Doctor Odyssey (ABC)

Despite being a close second, nee third, in terms of viewership for a new drama this TV season, Doctor Odyssey seems to have far more haters out there than fans. There has also been this crazy theory that the Odyssey (the ship on which the show is based) is a dream of Dr. Max Bankman, played by Dawson’s Creek alum Joshua Jackson, as viewers, at least after a few episodes, came to believe he is still sick from COVID and everything that has happened on the Odyssey is nothing more than a dream of his coma-like state.

Most Disappointing Final Season – The Umbrella Academy (Netflix)

The Umbrella Academy came to an end in August after four seasons on Netflix, airing only six episodes, which for many of its devoted fans – who, for the most part, enjoyed the previous seasons – felt were six episodes too many. What should have been a great swan song for this irreverent and outlandishly enjoyable series turned into an excruciating trip down the strangest rabbit hole of warped storylines and a stuck in an alternate world love affair that tainted the viewers love for the series. The Umbrella Academy deserved more than the disturbing end that they received.

Best Couple – Joanne and Noah, Nobody Wants This (Netflix)

Kristin Bell and Adam Brody each have their own devoted (so to speak) fanbase because of their previous TV roles in Veronica Mars and The O.C. (respectively) [don’t get me started, though, on the vitriol from fans because of what happened in season four of Veronica Mars, ok?!] In this “based on somewhat true events” in the life of series creator, actress Erin Foster, Bell and Brody play Joanne and Noah, an agnostic podcaster and rabbi (no this isn’t the start of some weird joke), an unlikely pair who quickly became a swoon-worthy couple [how about that first kiss, am I right?! They put the chemistry between Chenford, Lucy Chen and Tim Bradford from The Rookie, my choice for Best Couple last year, to shame.

Honorable Mention – Brian Dietzen, NCIS (CBS)

The episode entitled “The Stories We Leave Behind,” paying tribute to Dr. Donald “Ducky” Mallard (and in essence the actor who portrayed him, David McCallum) on the CBS drama NCIS, was written by long-time series star Brian Dietzen. And what a moving tribute to the man it was! Dietzen not only honored the man he had acted beside for over two decades with a touching episode but also found a way to tie the story back to the long-running show’s pilot episode. As the folks over at TV Line shared, “Dietzen skillfully communicat(ed) the incredibly deep loss felt by Dr. Jimmy Palmer.” If you weren’t at least a little bit moved by the flashbacks and tribute paid to McCallum/Ducky, then you aren’t really a fan of the show.

Best Line – Wild Cards (CW)

From the debut episode, entitled “The Infinity Thief,” of the Canadian transplant series Wild Cards on CW, which stars Riverdale alum Vanessa Morgan as con woman Max Mitchell and Grey’s Anatomy hunk Giacomo Gianniotti as demoted detective Cole Ellis, in their first “case” together:

Max to Cole: “Damn that was amazing. We’re like Bones and that dude from Buffy or Castle and that hot girl.”

Best Awards Show Performance – Ryan Gosling, The 2024 Oscars (ABC)

Ryan Gosling took center stage at this year’s Oscars, belting out the song “I’m Just Ken” from the award-winning box office movie Barbie to not only a packed audience at the Dolby Theatre in the heart of Hollywood but also to the countless viewers watching, nee salivating, at home. He proudly wore sunglasses and a bejeweled pink suit, and with the help of dozens of Kens (including Doctor Who star Ncuti Gatwa and Shang-Chi star Simu Liu, among others), Gosling delivered what TV Line called a “deliriously fun performance (which) captured what made Barbie so entertaining on the big screen.”

Bittersweet Endings (TIE): Series Finale of Superman & Lois (CW) and Season Finale of Will Trent (ABC)

Superman & Lois came to an end on December 2 with an emotional series finale especially for those who stuck with the show for its four seasons on CW. The final 10-minutes packed a wallop, including seeing the twins as grown men (including series lead Bitsie Tulloch’s real-life husband David Giuntoli from Grimm and A Million Little Things fame playing Jonathan), seeing Clark as an older man and even Krypto the dog not to mention Lois in that knock-out red dress. If you don’t cry over the video below, well, then you just don’t have heart:

Whereas, the season finale of season two of Will Trent aired on May 21 and the last, roughly 6 minutes of the episode was surprising, sweet, tender and then heartbreaking, as Will envisioned his future with his on-again off-again love Angie Polaski as they got married, had two daughters, a foster son and grew old together until he had to do his job and arrest Angie.

Here is the full season finale of Will Trent, but you can watch that specific scene starting at the 38:06 minute-mark and watch to the end, and judge for yourself.

Fun New Cast Addition – Edi Patterson, Resident Alien (Syfy)

Edi Patterson played Heather, the Blue Avian alien paramour (see the inset picture to the right), to Alan Tudyk’s literally out-of-this-world Harry Vanderspeigle. She was able to keep pace with Tudyk, who is known for his improv, managing to rival his outlandish performance in every scene until Heather broke Harry’s heart, and she left back to her own world.

Why Was This Show So Popular – Baby Reindeer, Netflix

This series became a surprise hit back in April at the streaming service (for some reason) despite its harrowing, or more to the point, excruciatingly disturbing subject matter. Scottish comedian Richard Gadd played a fictionalized version of himself, recounting the ordeal he dealt with after being stalked by a middle-aged woman who claimed to be a fan, which in turn made him face a buried trauma that he had been sexually assaulted by an older male TV industry mentor. Like I said, harrowing and disturbing and for some reason, it received 85 million views. ARGH!

Best Parodies – Scarlett Johansson and Maya Rudolph, Saturday Night Live (NBC)

Both actresses were dead-on in their parodies of Alabama Senator Katie Britt and Vice President Kamala Harris (respectively). As TV Line stated, Johansson “perfectly channeled Britt’s frenzied delivery (of her State of the Union response), predicting doom and gloom with a smile from her family kitchen.” Britt herself was criticized for her “performance” in that response because it was so eerie and disturbing, but Johansson turned it into just a great performance.

Whereas, Rudolph got every head tilt, voice pattern and even the laugh of our should-have-been-voted to President of the United States Harris down pat even working alongside the actual Vice President in a close-to-election day appearance where they were mirror images of each other. It was something to behold.

Most Disappointing Cancellation – So Help Me Todd (CBS)

This legal dramedy, starring Marcia Gay Harden and Skylar Astin, was pulled from the CBS line-up after only two seasons; and while many of the scenes between these two, who played mother and son, were outlandish and, quite frankly, a bit over-the-top at times, the series was actually performing fairly well ratings-wise and was leading up to quite an interesting third season.

Handsome Newcomer – Deniz Akdeniz, High Potential (ABC)

Akdeniz plays Lev “Oz” Osman on the wildly popular new ABC drama High Potential. He may be a little better know in his home country of Australia, but he has had guest appearances in quite a number of American dramas like Jane the Virgin, Once Upon a Time, S.W.A.T. and most recently The Flight Attendant and he even had a recurring role in the short-lived spin-off series The Rookie: Feds.

What have been the stand-out moments on the small screen (networks or streaming) for you? Who was your favorite actor for the year? What series, special or TV event disappointed you the most? Please share your thoughts on TV from this year below.

TOMORROW: The Rhythm is Gonna Get You