The first three parts of my 40 best TV shows of 2024, contained a wide variety of program genres. The top 10 has just as much program diversity, but more significantly has the greatest amount of platform diversity. My top 10 series come from eight different platforms – only Netflix and HBO (with two apiece) are represented more than once. This is a sign of a robust television landscape.
Another positive sign is that 23 of my top 40 series are new (compared to 16 last year and 18 two years ago). And just two were in their final season (compared to 10 last year and 7 two years ago). This is because several top-tier television series finished their runs over the past two seasons, including, Better Call Saul, The Good Fight, Killing Eve, Ozark, and Peaky Blinders in 2022, and Barry, Billions, Jack Ryan, The Marvelous Mrs. Maisel, Reservation Dogs, and Succession in 2023.
So, even as press headlines shout that streamers are cutting back on spending and there are fewer new shows being produced, there are still so many linear and streaming series on so many platforms, that there’s something (actually many things) for everyone. The era of Peak TV+ is far from over.
That said, the schedules I’ve seen for 2025 original scripted series do indicate that there are significantly fewer new shows planned on virtually every major streaming platform compared to the past few years. It will be interesting to see how many new series make the cut for my top 40 list next year. I’m hoping quality over quantity will rule the day.
As I’ve pointed out in previous reports, trying to place shows as different as The Penguin, Black Doves, Shogun, Industry, and Hacks in rank order is kind of silly. Depending on your generation and personal genre tastes, your ranking is doubtless different from my own. So, you can take the order with a grain of salt. And, of course, I may have left off some shows you would put on your list that might be just as good or better than some of the ones I included. Opinions invariably vary, and any “best of” list is by definition subjective.
That said, on the following pages are my top 10 shows of 2024. If you haven’t seen a series that has been on for more than one season, I suggest watching the previous seasons first.
Just as a reminder, #40-11 were, Elsbeth (CBS), High Potential (ABC), Presumed Innocent (Apple TV+), Will Trent (ABC), Joan (CW), Cross (Prime Video), Hightown (Starz), The Brothers Sun (Netflix), Murder in a Small Town (Fox), NCIS: Origins (CBS) The Sticky (Prime Video), Only Murders in the Building (Hulu), Star Trek: Discovery (Paramount+), The Walking Dead: Daryl Dixon – The Book of Carol (AMC), Griselda (Netflix), 3 Body Problem (Netflix), True Detective: Night Country (Netflix), Tulsa King (Paramount+), The Agency (Showtime with Paramount+), The Bear (Hulu), Matlock (CBS), Agatha All Along (Disney+), Masters of the Air (Apple TV+), Mayor of Kingstown (Paramount+), Sugar (Apple TV+), The Gentlemen (Netflix), The Old Man (FX), Lioness (Paramount+), A Man on the Inside (Netflix), and The Veil (HBO).
#10 - The Day of the Jackal (Peacock)
Nov. 2024
This British thriller is a modern reimagining of the 1971 novel (and 1973 feature film) of the same name. Eddie Redmayne is riveting as Alexander Dugan, aka the Jackal, an internationally renowned contract killer, highly-skilled sniper, and chameleon-like master of disguise.
The series starts out with the Jackal assassinating a German politician. When Bianca Pullman (Lashana Lynch), a brilliant MI6 agent, firearms expert, and former police officer, learns that the kill shot was from a distance of more than two miles (a shot deemed impossible by all expert assessments), she’s intrigued, and becomes obsessed with finding out who he is, and capturing him before he can carry out his next hit.
The Jackal and Bianca are almost like two sides of the same coin. Both are charismatic and expert at manipulating people to do what they want, both can be brutal and put innocent lives in danger to accomplish their goals, and both have families they are forced to lie to and often abandon at the drop of a hat – he when his “job” dictates and she when a new clue emerges. They both see collateral damage as the ends justifying the means. And both are addicted to what they do, which is why their jobs almost always come before their families.
But while Bianca and MI6 might put others in danger if it will help with a mission, the Jackal will coldly murder anyone, whether friend, ally, or innocent bystander, if he thinks they might provide clues to his whereabouts or evidence against him.
There are several flashbacks to Dugan’s time in Afghanistan, when he was an elite sniper in a squad tasked with killing Taliban leaders. The main purpose of these scenes seems to be to create some empathy by showing the events that might have turned him into a ruthless killer. But the end result is to show the viewer that he might have been a monster all along.
Because the Jackal is so charming, and in many ways more likeable than those who are relentlessly pursuing him, you’re often not sure who to root for. It’s easy to lose sight of the fact that he’s a sociopath. His calm demeanor makes it more jarring each time he eliminates an innocent civilian who gets in his way. He occasionally seems pained by what he does, showing mercy to a potential victim (although you never know when he will choose to do so or whether it will last).
The Jackal’s Spanish wife, Nuria (Ursela Corbero), knows him as Charles Calthrop, but she eventually discovers his deception, which puts a rift between them. When he is trapped and on the verge of being discovered in Budapest, he reaches out to her – but will she help him escape? Bianca’s personal life is no less rocky as her husband Paul (Saul Rimi) and daughter Jasmine (Florisa Kamara) are initially unaware of the true danger of her MI6 job (until it hits close to home).
As the Jackal tries to complete a high-profile hit, the wealthy and powerful group who hired him are planning to eliminate him rather than risk anyone finding out they were involved. At the same time, the final confrontation between the Jackal and Bianca comes to a tension-filled conclusion (different from the movie version).
Sleek, stylish, and suspenseful, with a James Bond-ish opening credit sequence, the cat-and-mouse game between Bianca and the Jackal plays out over 10 intense and exhilarating episodes, as the Jackal continually escapes being caught (often by the skin of his teeth), and leaves bodies of potential witnesses in his wake. Since this version focuses on fictional prey, rather than the real-life target in the original, the viewer has no idea what will happen next, which increases the tension.
With the Jackal still needing to attend to some unfinished business, the series has been renewed for a second season.
#9 - The Penguin (HBO, Max)
Sept. 2024
This is an example of how superb acting can elevate a series to unexpected heights. An unrecognizable Colin Farrell gives a stunningly good performance as Oswald “Oz” Cobb, aka The Penguin, reprising the role he played in the 2022 The Batman theatrical movie. It follows the DC Comics character as he rises to power in the Gotham City criminal underworld.
Cristin Milioti provides an equally mesmerizing performance as Sofia Falcone, the psychopathic daughter of the deceased former crime boss of Gotham, who battles The Penguin for control of the city. Her father’s death (at the end of The Batman) created a power vacuum that several gangsters have been trying to fill.
In lesser hands this might have seemed cartoonish (as non-Joker Batman villains often are), rather than the intense and compelling drama it turned out to be.
You need not know anything about Batman heroes or villains to appreciate and enjoy this thrilling crime drama. If you bypass it because it’s based on a comic-book villain, or because you didn’t like the most recent Batman movie, you’ll miss two of the most brilliant (and I hope award-winning) performances in years from Farrell and Miloti.
The series is basically an origin story of the two main villains, getting into details about the harrowing backstories that turned Oz and Sofia into the hardened criminals they are today.
Sofia has just spent 10 years in the brutal psychiatric hospital, Arkham Asylum, which houses Gotham’s criminally insane. She was accused of being a serial killer and strangling numerous prostitutes (which gave her the nickname, “Hangman”) – crimes she was framed for by her father, the real killer. Sofia’s time at Arkham turned her into a real psychopath. After she is released, she takes her revenge against family members who helped keep her imprisoned all these years.
Oswald Cobb, was Sofia’s driver before she was sent to Arkham, and helped her father cover up his involvement in the crimes. Ironically, Sofia treated Oz with the same disregard and disrespect with which her father treated her, which likely contributed to his agreeing to betray her. Oz then slowly rose through the ranks of the criminal underworld, allowed to run a nightclub and be involved in the drug trade, but still not respected or trusted by the top mobsters.
Oz’s craving for respect (he does not like being called the Penguin) drives him to become a dominating force in trying to control Gotham City. When he impulsively kills Carmine’s son and heir apparent, who had been ridiculing him and his aspirations to be a powerful mobster, events spiral forward at a breakneck pace, with Oz constantly being on the verge of triumph or disaster. His talent for talking his way out of trouble gets him out of one mess after another, until it doesn’t.
The supporting players are all excellent, several of whom you might recognize from character roles in other series.
Rhenzy Feliz is Victor Aguilar, a homeless teenager who was one of a group of teens attempting to steal rims from Oz’s car. Oz spares him when he hears him stutter and recruits him to be his driver – Oz has a disability of his own, which causes him to limp, so he has some empathy toward Vic. Reluctant at first to commit any violent acts, Vic slowly settles into the role of Oz’s enforcer. Oz displays moments of seemingly genuine affection and tenderness toward Vic, but his true nature shows through in the end in one of the more brutal scenes of the year.
Dierdre O’Connell is Francis Cobb, Oz’s mother, who suffers from early-onset dementia. She has a love/hate relationship with Oz, who she blames for the deaths of her other two sons when he was a child (the events of which are seen in flashbacks). When kidnaped by Sofia, her performance, alternating between a tough-as-nails gangster mom, and a confused, vulnerable woman living in the past, is remarkable. Emily Meade portrays a younger Francis in flashbacks.
Clancy Brown is Salvatore Maroni, a mob boss and drug trafficker who Carmine Falcone informed on, sending him to prison. He teams up with Sofia in an effort to destroy Oz and take over his operation.
Michael Kelly is Johnny Viti, the underboss of the Falcone crime family and acting boss following Carmine’s death. He threatens Sofia that unless she leaves town, he will have her killed. He continues to underestimate her until she gets her revenge.
Theo Rossi is Dr. Julian Rush, a former psychiatrist at Arkham and Sofia’s therapist. After participating in her electroshock “treatments” at Arkham, he realizes she is innocent and quits. He has been obsessed with and in love with her for years, and eventually joins her in her bid to become head of her own crime family.
Marie Botha is Magpie, an Arkham inmate who tries to befriend Sofia during her incarceration. But her overbearing demeanor and non-stop chatter drives Sofia crazy. She starts believing Magpie is spying on her for her father, and brutally attacks her.
Oz and Sofia’s power struggle comes to a head in the action-packed season finale. We see what a true monster Oz is (and always was), and what a monster Sofia has become. While her actions are ruthless, callous and lead to dozens of deaths, he does something more intimate and shocking, which is sudden and jarring, and is sure to disturb many viewers.
There’s also a surprise or two at the end of the season finale which might bring another Batman villain into this universe, and leads into the next Batman movie, slated to be released in 2026 (in which Oz will reportedly have a role).
The Penguin was designed as a miniseries and no plans for a second season have been announced. But given its popularity, another season wouldn’t surprise me – particularly if the show accumulates some high-profile awards (which seems likely).
#8 - Black Doves (Netflix)
Dec. 2024
British spy thriller starring Keira Knightley as Helen Webb, the seemingly loving wife of the U.K.’s Secretary of Defence Wallace Webb (Andrew Buchan). She is secretly a Black Dove, a spy working for an organization that sells industrial, political, and diplomatic secrets to the highest bidder. Although based in the U.K., the Black Doves are not aligned with any country or part of any branch of government.
As the series opens, Helen is having a passionate affair with a civil servant named Jason (Andrew Koji), and is seriously considering leaving her husband and her secret life. But events soon spiral out of her control.
When Jason is shot and killed in a park by a long-range sniper, Helen becomes obsessed with finding out who killed him and why (and seeking revenge). Was there more to Jason than meets the eye? Fearing Helen’s life as a Black Dove might be exposed and her life in danger, her handler, Reed (Sarah Lancashire), sends Sam (Ben Whishaw), an elite triggerman and old friend of Helen’s, to protect her. He has his own problems – seven years earlier, he disappeared before finishing a hit for Lenny Lines (Kathryn Hunter), head of a criminal organization. She is now demanding that he finish the job or she will kill his ex-boyfriend Michael (Omar Douglas), whom he still loves, and his young daughter.
In a flashback to 2017, we discover Sam was assigned to kill the Newman brothers, but failed to complete the job when he discovered that Hector Newman was just a child. Although he did kill all of his adult brothers, his “code” prevented him from killing a kid. When assassins are sent to kill Sam, a then pregnant Helen saved his life and he escaped. Now he’s back to return the favor
In a flashback to 2014, Helen, who is going by the name Daisy Bradshaw, applies for a job as a translator (she’s fluent in multiple languages). The interviewer seems to know a lot about Helen’s mysterious past (she had left the country for 10 years), and forwards her to Reed, who offers her the opportunity to become a Black Dove.
After Reed explains that the job entails becoming a spy and selling state secrets to the highest bidder, Daisy asks Reed why she thinks she’d want to do something like that. Reed tells her, “Because you’re a highly intelligent risk taker, because you’re a survivor…and because when most people look at you they see a beautiful woman. But me, I see a coiled spring. I see a weapon. You sized me up the minute I walked up to you. You’ve got an escape strategy in your head. You know where all the exits are. You know I’m not wearing shoes I can run in. I’ll bet you remember my car number plate (which Helen promptly recites). And don’t think I don’t know you have your hand balled up into a fist in your pocket, ready to swing it… Daisy isn’t your real name is it? How would you like a new one?” Needless to say, Daisy, soon to be Helen, accepts the offer. There’s a reason we’re not yet privy to why the idea of starting a new life with a new identity appeals to her.
In present day, after years of playing the loving and supportive wife, while covertly providing government secrets to Reed, Helen has something of an identity crisis. While she seems to love her husband and their two kids, he is her long-term mark, and her identity as Helen Webb was created just for that purpose. She doesn’t always know if this life is still a pretense or if this is who she actually is now.
The MacGuffin that drives the plot forward is that the Chinese ambassador to Great Britain has been killed, and the Chinese believe the U.S. is responsible and that the British are helping to cover it up. Apparently there’s a recording device that captured the entire incident on tape that everyone is searching for, including Alex Clark (Tracy Ullman), head of the powerful Clark crime family, who might be implicated in the crime. This puts our heroes’ lives in grave danger – particularly when the Clarks kidnap Sam and the Chinese ambassador’s daughter Kai-Ming (Isabella Wei) and demand that Helen find the recording device and hand it over to them the next day or they will torture and kill them.
While all this is going on, Reed, decides she no longer trusts Helen (thinking her personal life is getting too messy and in the way of her being cold enough to carry out her assignments). She instructs Dani (Agnes O’Casey), a new Black Dove, to get close to Secretary Webb and prepare to replace Helen. This leads to a thrilling knife-fight showdown between Helen and Dani.
Some comic relief (and a considerable amount of violence) is provided by a couple of oddball professional assassins Williams (Ela Lily Hyland) and Eleanor (Gabrielle Creevy), who work for Lenny Lines, and have agreed to help Sam hunt down and kill Hector Newman (for a price) and protect Kai-Ming. They have numerous, and often hilarious, nonchalant conversations and arguments on any number of topics as they plan and carry out hits. For example, when Sam tells them their odds of survival are 80/20 that they will all die, they are unconcerned about the danger and spend much of the car ride arguing about whether Sam’s estimate is a percentage, a fraction, or a ratio.
In one of the trio’s first attempts to find Hector at a discotheque, they kill about 20 bad guys as the soundtrack plays Johnny Cash’s The Little Drummer Boy. There are a number of other pitch-perfect background songs on the soundtrack as violence and mayhem ensue.
A lot happens in just six episodes, which all comes to a thrilling conclusion in the season finale, which sets up a second season (the series was renewed before the first season aired). If you like spy thrillers, this is one of the best.
#7 - Slow Horses – season 4 (Apple TV+)
Apr. 2022, Dec. 2022, Nov. 2023, Sept. 2024
Based on Mick Herron’s novels of the same name. British MI5 agents who screw up are exiled to Slough House, a decrepit London building that serves as an administrative purgatory, where drudgery and paperwork are the tasks of the day. The motley crew of agents who were deposited at Slough House either because of embarrassing failures or just bad luck are a surprisingly talented and resilient bunch (when properly motivated), and somehow keep being pulled into investigations of major threats to Britain (and the world).
Known derisively as slow horses, these outcasts report to the notorious Jackson Lamb (played with relish by Gary Oldman). He is seemingly past his prime, slovenly, borderline alcoholic, and contemptuous of those he is forced to oversee. As the apropos opening song, Strange Game (by Mick Jagger) goes, “Surrounded by losers, misfits and boozers…” Lamb’s acerbic and obnoxious demeanor, however, belie the keen mind of a legendary intelligence officer (still respected by the higher-ups at MI5, and feared by just about everyone). He’s also fiercely loyal to his people, although you’d never get him to admit it.
Part taut conspiracy thriller, part workplace comedy, the sharp writing and Gary Oldman’s terrific performance make Slow Horses a winner. The supporting cast of characters are also top notch. It's definitely a good idea to watch the first three seasons before season 4. Each is just six episodes, so catching up is not a daunting task.
Here are some of the main players:
Jack Lowden is River Cartwright, an up-and-coming MI5 agent who got assigned to Slough House in season 1. He actually proves to be one of the company’s best agents. His grandfather is retired MI5 royalty, which has on occasion saved him from being fired because of his tendency to go rogue.
Rosalind Eleazar is Louisa Guy, also assigned to Slough House in season 1. After an agent she was involved with is killed, she has to deal with that trauma while trying to save another agent from the same fate.
Saskia Reeves is Catherine Standish, the office administrator (and recovering alcoholic) who keeps Slough House running as smoothly as possible. She has a complicated relationship with Jackson Lamb and worked for his long-deceased predecessor (whom she idolized and Lamb hated).
Christopher Chung is Roddy Ho, a brilliant computer tech whiz who was relegated to Slough House because he’s so obnoxious no one wants to work with him.
Aimee-Ffion Edwards is Shirley Dander, a competent agent who has anger and drug issues. Her partner, Marcus Longridge (Kadiff Kirwan), has a gambling problem. They are constantly pressing each other’s buttons. They both joined Slough House in season 2.
Tom Brooke is J.K. Coe, a former operative from Psych Eval, suffering from PTSD, who joins Slough House in season 4. He is constantly wearing a hoodie, seldom speaks, and seems decidedly out of place even among the other outcast agents. He initially shows nothing but disdain for the other slow horses.
Jonathan Pryce is David Cartwright, River Cartwright’s grandfather and legendary MI5 officer, who knows where all the bodies are buried. In season 3, he starts showing the first signs of dementia.
In season 1, when MI5’s Deputy Director-General Diana Taverner (a perfectly cast Kristen Scott Thomas) tries to blame Slough House for a failed MI5 false-flag operation that results in potential disaster, the slow horses spring (or trot) into action in an effort to uncover the truth and save a hostage (and themselves), all the while trying to stay one step ahead of elite MI5 operatives determined to stop them and blame them for the mission’s failure.
Season 2 is even better than the first season, as they no longer needed to spend time introducing us to all the characters and the dynamics of Slough House. We get right down to business here as the team investigate whether Russian sleeper agents have been embedded in British society, which MI5 had previously dismissed as a hoax. The agents are in considerable danger as one of their own dies suspiciously and they go all out to find the killers. At the same time, they discover Russian plans to set off a chemical attack on the streets of London, and race against the clock to stop them.
Season 3 hits the ground running, with a brisker pace than the first two seasons. One of Slough House’s own has been abducted by a rogue MI5 agent. As our heroes try to figure out what’s going on and how to get her back, they become enmeshed in yet another scandal. But this time the real danger comes from within MI5. In an attempt to cover up some dirty business from the past, Ingrid Tearney (Sophie Okonedo), Director-General of MI5, Diana Taverner’s main rival, ordered a hit on an agent who was about to expose them. The dead agent’s brother (also an MI5 operative) seeks revenge, and entices two Slough House agents to help him find the evidence. When they get too close to the truth, they become targets as well.
In the superb fourth season, the stakes are higher than ever, and more personal, as the series shows no signs of slowing down. A suicide bomb goes off in a London shopping mall. Frank Harkness (Hugo Weaving), a former CIA operative turned mercenary, with mysterious ties to one of the slow horses, puts a hit out on River Cartwright and his grandfather (Harkness has spent the last 30 years secretly training an assassination squad). Are these events related? And, as seems to always be the case here, there’s a high-level coverup by MI5, which has used Harkness’s assassins over the years for their own purposes. There’s lots of action as the slow horses battle assassins while also being pursued by MI5 security forces.
One of the more interesting aspects of the show is that unlike the typical broadcast procedural, where you can be reasonably sure none of the main characters will be killed off, that is not necessarily the case here. The danger is real, their lifestyle and chosen profession have consequences, and everyone doesn’t always walk away unscathed.
At just six episodes per season, the stories are tight and move along at a crisp pace. Four seasons contain only slightly more episodes than a single season of most dramas on a broadcast network. Apple TV+ announced it’s been renewed for a fifth and sixth season.
#6 - The Diplomat – season 2 (Netflix)
Apr. 2023, Oct. 2024
At just six episodes (the first season had eight), season 2 of this terrific political thriller is tight and fast-paced with virtually no exposition. It begins immediately following the season 1 finale’s cliff hanger and might be a bit confusing if you don’t immediately recall all the characters and what happened (since there was a year-and-a-half between seasons). I recommend re-watching the season 1 finale before starting the new one. If you haven’t seen the show yet, you need to watch the first season to understand what’s going on.
Here's a brief season 1 recap.
Kate Wyler (Keri Russel), the newly appointed U.S. Ambassador to the U.K., starts her job just as an international crisis is unfolding. A British aircraft carrier in the Middle East is attacked, killing more than 40 sailors. No one claims responsibility (was it Iran, the Russians, or someone else?). A career diplomat used to operating under the radar in war zones, Kate now has to forge new alliances in her high-profile position in London, and help figure out what to do next.
Initially underestimated by her new colleagues, superiors, and subordinates, Kate quickly demonstrates that despite her lack of experience in this particular role, she’s usually one of the smartest (and most competent) people in the room.
This political thriller is also a romantic comedy (at least in the first season). In addition to dealing with international crises, Kate has to navigate her turbulent, on the verge of ending but never quite over, marriage to the former ambassador Hal Wyler (Rufus Sewell), a political star, whose reputation as a rogue, but brilliant operator often overshadows her. He’s expected to now be the ambassador’s “wife,” as Kate once was, but this is not his style, and it is virtually impossible to rein him in. Then there’s the growing and mutual attraction between Kate and the U.K. Foreign Secretary, Austin Dennison (David Gyasi), and a romance between Kate’s assistant, deputy chief of mission at the U.S. embassy (Ato Essandoh), and the no-nonsense CIA station chief Eidra Park (Ali Ahn).
At the same time, there is a political scandal brewing in the U.S. that might cause the resignation of the current Vice President. Kate’s name has been floated as a possible replacement.
All this political and romantic maneuvering are taking place as the increasingly unpopular British Prime Minister Nicol Trowbridge (Rory Kinnear) raises global tensions by telling a grieving widow of a sailor killed in the attack, that he will “rain hellfire” on Iran if they are found to be responsible (which quickly goes viral). After a significant amount of behind-the-scenes intelligence gathering, the Iranian ambassador reveals that Roman Lenkov, the head of a Russian mercenary group, directed and provided funding for the attack. The question now is who hired him?
As plans are being formulated on how to proceed, Kate comes across information that leads her to believe the attack was a false-flag operation that went wrong, and the Russian mercenary may have actually been hired by either the Prime Minister himself or one of his people. Then a car bomb explosion throws everything and everyone into disarray.
Season 2 starts off right after the explosive season 1 finale. Romantic entanglements are virtually all put on the back burner as everyone scrambles to figure out who ordered the attack on the British aircraft carrier in the Persian Gulf, who planted the car bomb, and how to avoid a potential international catastrophe.
Allison Janney (great as always) joins the cast as Grace Penn, Vice President of the United States. At first, she warms to Kate, giving her advice on how to look the part of VP, but slowly starts to see her as a threat. As the tension between them mounts, both of these strong, fiercely independent and powerful women warily start to plan their next moves.
There’s a big reveal in episode five, followed by gasp-worthy final moments in the episode six season finale, which is sure to shake things up in season 3 (it’s been renewed).
Intelligent, compelling, and suspenseful, with crisp pacing and some unexpected turns, combined with a strong cast, make The Diplomat hugely entertaining.
#5 - Shōgun (FX, Hulu)
(Feb. 2024)
Epic historical fiction based on James Clavell’s 1975 novel of the same name (which was previously adapted into a popular 1980 miniseries). The story takes place in feudal Japan at the start of the 17th century, when events are unfolding that will lead to a potential civil war and the rise of a new Shōgun to rule the country.
Unlike the 1980 miniseries (which starred Richard Chamberlain, Toshiro Mifune, and Yoko Shimada), much of the drama here is from the perspective of the Japanese characters. While initially intended as a one-time miniseries, its critical acclaim, high viewership, and multiple awards, led to a renewal for a second and third season.
On his deathbed, Japan’s previous ruler created the Council of Regents, comprised of five powerful feudal lords, to rule until his heir, then only five-years-old, is able to become Shōgun. One of these Regents is the brilliant military and political strategist, Lord Yoshii Toranaga (the regal Hiroyuki Sanada), who has vowed to protect the heir to the throne until he comes of age.
Other members of the Council fear Toranaga (apparently his family has a claim to the throne) and betray him, threatening not only his life, but his family, his subjects, and his allies as well. This sets the plot in motion as the embattled Toranaga, with the help of some key allies, parries all the moves of his conspiring enemies.
Thrust into this turmoil, is John Blackthorne (Cosmo Jarvis), a Protestant English sailor, serving on a Dutch ship, seeking to establish trade with Japan. He and his crew are shipwrecked on the coast of Japan and captured by local samurai. Blackthorne must survive in a land whose culture is vastly different from his own and whose people see him as a “barbarian.”
Blackthorne also has to deal with the Portuguese traders and the Catholic Church’s Jesuit order, political and religious rivals of Protestants. They see Blackthorne as a heretic, feel threatened by his presence, and want him executed, claiming he’s a pirate. But Toranaga has other plans.
Blackthorne and Toranaga become unlikely allies – Toranaga realizes he can use Blackthorne’s knowledge of British military techniques, weapons, and strategy, and at the same time create discord among his enemies on the Council, while Blackthorne knows this is the only chance he has to free his crew and get his ship back so he can return to England. The other Regents and the Catholic Church want him dead or imprisoned, so this is his only option.
Finish dinner and put your smartphones down – much of the series has subtitles, so you need your eyes on the screen. It’s well worth it – a titanic combination of a superb casting, political intrigue, colliding ambitions, clashing cultures, and heroic sacrifice, make Shōgun one of the most distinctive (and best) series to come to linear television in years.
While Cosmo Jarvis is fine as John Blackthorne, it’s the Japanese actors who shine brightest. Anna Sawai gives a remarkable performance as Lady Toda Mariko, a highly skilled female samurai from a disgraced family. With just a glance or a curve of the lip, she can convey a wide spectrum of emotions and a whole world of subtext. Taken under Toranaga’s wing, she is fiercely loyal to him, and has been given the task of serving as translator between him and Blackthorne, with whom she develops a bond (much to the chagrin of her husband). A decision she makes in episode nine reverberates through both sides of the conflict.
Shinnosuke Abe is Toda “Buntaro” Hirokatsu, a skilled samurai who serves Toranaga – he is also Mariko’s husband, and is jealous of her relationship with the “barbarian” Blackthorne. But his loyalty to Toranaga takes priority.
Yuki Kura is Yoshii Nagakado, Toranaga’s inexperienced and dangerously compulsive son. His attempts to impress his father lead to near catastrophic results.
Tadanobu Asano is Kashigi Yabushige, a lord who has served Toranaga for many years – although he often seems to be playing both sides. We don’t know where his true loyalty lies until the penultimate episode.
Takeshiro Hira is the powerful Ishido Kazunari, one of the five Regents and Toranaga’s chief rival. He persuades the other Regents to turn against Toranaga. He is ruler of the fortress-like Osaka Castle.
Fumi Nikaido is Ochiba no Kata, the only consort of Japan’s late ruler, who bore him a male heir. She is now Ishido’s fiancé, and is the real power behind the plan to capture and kill Toranaga. She controls the young heir’s armies. Lady Mariko was her childhood friend, and her actions in episode nine have a profound effect on Ochiba. In the end, she makes a decision that changes everything.
Tokuma Nishioka is Toda “Iron Gist” Hiromatsu, Toranaga’s closest friend, conscience, advisor, and most trusted general. He makes a major sacrifice that helps Toranaga’s ultimate plan.
Moeka Hoshi is Usami Fuji, Hiromatsu’s proud granddaughter, with a strong sense of self, who overcomes tragedy – her husband spoke out of turn, offending the Council of Regents, and his punishment was the death of their baby son. Toranaga assures Hiromatsu that he will make sure his granddaughter lives, and orders her to become Blackthorne’s consort for six months. She eventually becomes a key ally of both Toranaga and Blackthorne.
As the Council of Regents pressures Toranaga to either surrender or face overwhelming forces that would destroy his army, his master strategy comes into focus. A major betrayal and a tragic sacrifice add to the chaos and uncertainty as the four Regents are amassing their armies preparing to battle Toranaga’s powerful but heavily outnumbered troops.
While some who are used to watching western Game of Thrones type epics might have been expecting a large scale final sequence with the two sides facing off in a bloody battle, Shōgun’s resolution to the conflict and its more contemplative and reflective ending seems far more fitting.
#4 - Fallout (Prime Video)
April 2024
Based on the popular role-playing video game, this is certainly not everyone’s cup of tea. But if you like post-apocalyptic TV series, movies, or video games, this might be just the right brew to satisfy your craving. It has a near-perfect mix of suspense and brilliant satire. I
Post-apocalyptic thriller based on the popular role-playing video game franchise. For those unfamiliar with the story, it involves an alternate history that emerges after World War II in which nuclear technology becomes prevalent, the Cold War/Communist paranoia of the 1950s never ends, computers never evolve beyond the most basic capabilities, and there is no internet or social media. So we have cold fusion, nuclear-powered cars and hi-tech weapons, alongside 1950s era pop-culture, televisions and computers. The 21st Century entertainment industry is also like our 1950s, with westerns being the most popular movie/TV genre.
On the geopolitical front, a resource war between the U.S. and China, leads to the Great War of 2077, when a two-hour nuclear exchange lays waste to much of the world, and creates a devastated and radiation-contaminated landscape. Most of the series takes place roughly 200 years later, when the surface is still largely a wasteland.
Many of the more wealthy and privileged took refuge in underground fallout bunkers known as Vaults, where generations of survivors have been living seemingly idyllic lives. Each vault is self-sustaining, with its own customs and laws. But most vault dwellers are unaware that the vaults were actually designed by the Vault-Tec corporation to conduct secret and unethical psychological and social experiments on their residents to help determine the best way to survive on the surface, and eventually re-populate a new United States of America.
Those not fortunate enough to afford a place in a vault, had to take their chances on the radiation-plagued surface above – with the contaminated food and water causing various kinds of mutations (which also tended to extend life spans). There are still remnants of civilization on the surface, and pockets not directly affected by the nuclear fallout. But unlike the peaceful and orderly 1950s-style facade below, the surface is a dangerous and unforgiving place, with potential predators everywhere.
The excellent cast includes:
Ella Purnell as Lucy MacLean, a young resident of Vault 33. Much of the series is seen through her eyes. She is naïve, having lived a sheltered life, but is also strong, resilient, and relentlessly optimistic. When surface-dwelling raiders manage to infiltrate and brutally attack Lucy’s vault, they kill many of the residents and kidnap her father. She escapes from the vault and ventures out into the wasteland, determined to find him and bring him back home.
Walter Goggins as Cooper Howard, a once-famous Hollywood actor, most notable for his cowboy roles. He was also a Vault-Tec spokesperson before the war – until he discovered his wife (Frances Turner) was one of the architects of the war and the vault experiments. He’s one of the few characters we see before and after the war. After the bombs dropped, he mutated into a legendary figure known as The Ghoul, roaming the Los Angeles wasteland as a gunslinger and bounty hunter. He has survived for more than 200 years.
Aaron Moten as Maximus, a squire and later knight of the Brotherhood of Steel, a cult-like organization operating in the wasteland, whose main purpose is to collect and preserve technology. They are a self-contained community and have no interest in helping anyone else. The knights don giant mechanical armor, enabling them to survive in extreme and hostile environments. Maximus becomes one of Lucy’s key allies.
Moises Arias as Norm MacLean, Lucy’s younger brother and a resident of Vault 33. He stays behind when Lucy escapes to the surface. Suspicious of the true purpose of the raid, he discovers one of the secret experiments and the hidden agenda of the council of Vault administrators. This puts him in severe danger.
Johnny Pemberton as Thaddeus, a Brotherhood of Steel squire, who crosses paths with Maximus while on a mission and eventually joins him as they encounter one dangerous situation after another.
Kyle MacLachlan as Hank MacLean, Lucy’s father and overseer of Vault 33. He is kidnaped by raiders for unknown reasons. Lucy is determined to do whatever it takes to find him. He harbors a secret beyond the experiments on Vault residents that shocks Lucy and changes her entire perspective on what she previously thought about her reality and her family’s history.
Sara Choudhury as Lee Moldaver, commander of the New California Republic military division, who leads the group that abducted Hank MacLean. She has a previous connection to him, which dates back to before the war, and reveals startling information to Lucy about his past.
Michael Emerson, in a brief but significant role as Dr. Siggi Wilzig, a mysterious wanderer who many are searching for – his head apparently carries the solution to Cold Fusion.
Leslie Uggams, Zach Cherry, and Rodrigo Luzzi as Vault 33 council members, in charge of setting policies for its Vault’s residents.
As with the other recent great video game adaptation, The Last of Us, you don’t need to be familiar with the franchise to enjoy this terrifically weird series (although fans of the game seem to love it). A unique post-apocalyptic comedy-drama, it’s at once witty and tense, funny and tragic, violent and tender, despairing and hopeful – none easy balancing acts to pull off. And you’re left wanting more. Fortunately, there will be a second season to look forward to.
#3 - Industry – season 3 (HBO, Max)
Nov. 2020, Aug. 2022, Aug. 2024
Sex, drugs, secret alliances, personality clashes, deceptions, and betrayals abound in this gripping, tension-filled British-American drama about ambitious young financial traders at the fictional Pierpoint & Co., one of London’s top investment banks. These highly competitive trainees (and their bosses) work too hard, play too hard, and are constantly one wrong move away from having their newfound lifestyle abruptly ripped away.
This stylish show about unpleasant people doing unpleasant (and sometimes pleasant) things to one another, while spewing out incomprehensible jargon in rapid-fire succession, is somehow fascinating and compelling to watch – a testament to the brilliant writing and great acting. If you haven’t seen it, you need to watch the first two seasons before the third.
Industry has a large, diverse, and attractive ensemble cast. Here are some of the major players.
Myha’la Dexter is riveting as the smart, driven, and ruthless Harper Stern, who joined Pierpoint’s London office from New York. She never actually graduated from college (she forged her college transcript), which eventually catches up to her. She benefits from initially being underestimated as she unscrupulously betrays some supposed allies to get ahead. Former colleagues have called her a psychopath.
Marisa Abela shines as Yasmin “Yas” Kara-Hanani, an ambitious Pierpoint trader from a privileged background and connected father, who is fluent in English, Spanish, French, German, Italian, and Arabic. She is constantly trying to live up to her wealthy family’s high expectations and prove to her company that she has value beyond her family connections. After her father’s financial fraud is exposed, Yasmin becomes a pseudo-celebrity, with negative stories and memes about her saturating social media. She is one of the show’s central figures, having complicated and often chaotic relationships, sexual and otherwise, with several key cast members.
Ken Leung is excellent as Eric Tao, an old-school managing director who initially mentors Harper until they have a falling out. He is Pierpoint’s number one sales producer, and has a very intense leadership style. He is promoted in season 3, which only adds to his intensity and stress level.
Harry Lawley is Robert Spearing, an Oxford graduate from a working-class Welsh background. He is level-headed and not quite as ruthless as some of his colleagues. He has several complex relationships with women, including one of his clients, the sexually inappropriate Nicole (Sarah Parish). He also has a complicated relationship with Yas – their “friendship” comes to a head in season 3.
Sagar Radia is Rishi Ramdani, an ambitious Pierpoint trader known for his arrogance, inappropriate language, and high-risk trades. He manages to survive because when a risky trade works, the payoff is tremendous. But he has a gambling problem and owes a lot of money to gangsters, which eventually leads to tragedy.
Season 3 sees three new major cast members join the show.
Miriam Petche is Sweetpea Golightly, a new and enthusiastic hire with TikTok and OnlyFans businesses on the side. Her sweet demeanor belies the fact that she can be ruthless and should not be underestimated.
Sarah Goldberg (Barry) is Petra a portfolio manager at FutureDawn, an ethical investment fund. She and Harper become partners and make a major move against Pierpoint as they try to get backing for their own investment fund. In the process, Petra persuades Harper to betray Yas.
Kit Harington (Game of Thrones) is Sir Henry Muck, wealthy member of the British elite and CEO of the green tech energy company Lumi, which becomes Pierpoint’s buzziest new client. They try to take his company public, with unplanned results and severe consequences for Pierpoint. He manipulates Robert, who’s assigned to help with the Lumi IPO, and has a sexual relationship with Yas, which causes a fair amount of chaos.
Season 1 focuses primarily on the new hires competing for a limited number of full-time positions. Some come from privileged families, while others have working-class roots – but they’re all on relatively equal footing here, where their potential to make money for the firm is the key factor in their survival. They have six months to prove themselves before half of them are fired.
Season 2 revs up the tension as the bold and brilliant (but reckless) Harper makes deals that benefit the company but undermine her mentor, Eric, who ultimately makes some devastating moves of his own, as they scheme to potentially break away from the firm. But who’s really on whose side isn’t revealed until the superb season finale.
In season 3, everyone’s gloves come off as deception, betrayal, and near catastrophe envelop all the major characters. It’s messy and chaotic, and more ambitious and compelling than ever. The presence of new characters, Henry Muck (Kit Harington) and Petra (Sarah Goldberg), provide season-long story arcs that highlight the strengths and weaknesses, as well as the fears and insecurities of virtually everyone in and around Pierpoint.
The already complicated relationship between Robert and Yas becomes even more complex as both get sucked into the black hole that is Henry Muck. The season finale scenes between them are brilliant.
As Harper and Petra’s plans take shape, the confrontation between Harper and Eric is intense and explosive. Rishi’s gambling debt leads to a sudden and shocking consequence. And the future of Pierpoint and several of its key employees are in flux. Prior to the season 3 finale, HBO announced there will be a fourth season.
#2 - Evil – season 4 (Paramount+)
Sept. 2019, June 2021, June 2022, May 2024
In this supernatural mystery thriller from Robert and Michelle King (The Good Wife, The Good Fight), three investigators with vastly different backgrounds work for the Catholic Church as assessors. They are assigned to determine whether seemingly unexplainable events have rational explanations, involve demonic possessions, or constitute actual miracles.
Combining supernatural, religious, and horror elements with procedural drama and sophisticated humor, makes for a uniquely entertaining series.
Katja Herbers gives an extraordinary performance as Dr. Kristen Bouchard, a retired forensic psychologist raising four daughters. Kristen is not religious and does not believe in the supernatural or demons, but her skepticism is constantly tested as she is confronted by numerous events that defy rational or scientific explanation.
Kristen is recruited by David Acosta (Mike Colter), a priest in training, to work with him for the Catholic Church. He is a true believer in the existence of both godly and demonic events. One of his roles for the Church is to investigate reports of demons and assess whether an exorcism is in order. In season 3, he completes his training and officially becomes a priest. Unbeknownst to the rest of his team or his church superiors, David is recruited by the Vatican secret service known as The Entity, to undertake mysterious covert missions.
Rounding out the investigative team is Ben Shakir (Aasif Mandvi), a contractor who works with David as a technical expert. He was raised a Muslim, but is now even more of a skeptic than Kristen. He is always looking for the scientific explanation for any unusual phenomena. Despite increasing evidence to the contrary, he steadfastly holds onto his belief that everything has a rational explanation.
Here’s a look at some of series’ other major players:
Michael Emerson (best known for his roles in Person of Interest and Lost) is at his creepiest best as Dr. Leland Townsend, a rival forensic psychologist of Kristen’s, and the biggest threat to our heroes. He is obsessed with trying to get others to commit evil acts. In addition to constantly trying to undermine Kristen and get into her head, he despises David, constantly taunting him and trying to get him to doubt the Catholic Church and its teachings. Whether he is a psychopath or actually demonic remains to be seen. Either way, he’s an ongoing danger to Kristen and her family.
Christine Lahti sizzles as Kristen’s mom, Sheryl, who may have her own involvement with the supernatural. Much to Kristen’s chagrin, she is courted by Leland and eventually works with him at a troll farm (run by a demon). Does she have her own secret agenda? Is she working with satanic forces or simply trying to protect her daughter and granddaughters?
Brooklyn Schuck, Skylar Gray, Maddy Crocco, and Dayla Knapp play Kristen’s daughters, one of whom may have a supernatural secret of her own. One of the ongoing comic-relief themes is that whenever they are together they talk at the same time over one another.
Kurt Fuller is Dr. Kurt Boggs, a psychiatrist and Kristen’s therapist. He is a voice of reason and sanity, but gradually becomes exposed to and involved with the supernatural as Leland tries to corrupt him and turn him against Kristen.
Andrea Martin steals every scene she’s in as Sister Andrea, a nun who sometimes gives David advice. She sees herself and David as two of the few who are equipped to fight the war against demonic forces. She tells him that they are among the rare one in a hundred million who are close enough to God that they can see demons as they walk among humanity. Her confrontations with Leland and various demons are delicious (especially when she does her best Warrior Nun imitation, battling a room full of demons armed only with a shovel).
Wallace Shawn is Father Frank Ignatius (seasons 3 and 4), a terminally ill priest, who briefly dies but then returns to life and health. After this experience, he finds that he no longer believes in the Church’s teachings. He is assigned to give David, Kristen, and Ben new cases to investigate.
For most of season 1, Kristen is trying to raise her four daughters and dealing with Leland’s attempts to disrupt her career and her life – all while helping David and Ben investigate increasingly bizarre events. She has unwavering confidence in her own insights and abilities, yet the circumstances she finds herself in, and the relentless psychological assaults from Leland, make her feel increasingly frustrated and vulnerable.
The first season provides enough logical explanations for seemingly supernatural occurrences, that Kristen, David, and Ben each find enough evidence (or lack thereof) to support their own world view. As the series progresses, however, all three have reasons to question what they are experiencing and seeing with their own eyes.
In season 2, the series shifts from a largely procedural drama with some supernatural elements to a more horror-type series (episode four’s Elevator Game episode is genuinely creepy). Switching from the ad-supported linear CBS network to Paramount+ gave the writers significantly more creative freedom to take the series well beyond what would have been acceptable on a broadcast network.
Season 3 is brilliant on every level. The first two seasons were good but uneven, as it seemed as though they hadn’t decided whether Evil was a dark comedy, an Exorcist-style horror show, a supernatural thriller, or a CBS procedural. The third season leans into all of these genres with equal relish.
The season 3 finale has a distinct Rosemary’s Baby vibe. Has one of Kristen’s frozen eggs been fertilized by a demon and used to create a new Antichrist?
Season 4 is as bizarre and engrossing as ever. Paramount+ made the surprise announcement rather late that this would be the final season, but then gave them four additional episodes so they could adequately conclude multiple storylines. While the four additional episodes seem rushed and not at the same pace as previous episodes, the near perfect ending makes up for it.
There’s a lot going on in the final season, including…
On the comedic front, after Sheryl complains about not being promoted at work, Leland and his misogynist demon manager have her moved into an office that literally has a low glass ceiling, where she has to crouch to enter, and her male colleagues can all look down on her.
On the sci-fi front, a particle accelerator may have opened either a gate to hell or an Earth-swallowing black hole. A mysterious visitor says she is one of Kristen’s daughters from 30 years in the future, and claims to have come here through a wormhole created by the particle accelerator.
On the horror front, There’s a sudden and shocking beheading that never could have happened prior to this season. It comes out of nowhere, and will surprise you even after you know it’s going to happen (you’ll never guess who or when). And, of course, Sister Andrea fights off numerous demons in multiple episodes.
On the procedural drama front, our heroes uncover a conspiracy between Leland and The 60 (a group of 60 demonic houses) to kill Kristen and bring evil to New York City. And then there’s still the mystery of whether or not Kristen’s biological son is evil. The ending will make you wish there was one more season.
#1 - Hacks – season 3 (Max)
May 2021, May 2022, May 2024
Jean Smart is masterful as Deborah Vance, a legendary, stand-up comic, who started her career at a time when comedy was almost exclusively a men’s club. She’s been through big ups and just as big downs in both her career and personal life, and now finds herself at a crossroad. Baby Boomers might recognize shades of groundbreaking female comedians Phyllis Diller and Joan Rivers in Deborah, but Jean Smart is so good that she stands on her own as a fresh and vibrant character.
The best comedy on television is also the best series of 2024. Before getting into the brilliant third season, here’s a brief recap of the first two brilliant seasons – which you should definitely watch first.
As season 1 gets underway, Deborah is performing her same aging act to her same aging audience at her Las Vegas residency. Her ex-husband Marty (Christopher McDonald), who is also CEO of the casino, is threatening to replace her with younger, more contemporary talent.
At the same time, Ava Daniels (Hannah Einbinder), an up-and-coming 25-year-old bi-sexual comedy writer, is suddenly an industry outcast due to a nasty social-media joke she posted about a right-wing Senator and his gay son. Ava is forced on Deborah by their mutual agent, Jimmy LuSaque (Paul W. Downs) to help modernize her “stale” material.
The two women’s vastly different comedy styles and perspectives immediately clash. Deborah has no interest in collaborating with the young writer who has substantially different comedic sensibilities. Ava needs a job, but has no interest punching up the material of a “past-her-prime” comic.
The writing is crisp and clever, as Jean Smart and Hannah Einbinder bring these characters to life. The generational back-and-forth pulls no punches, but also takes no sides, which is both uncommon and refreshing. It would have been easy to simply make Deborah seem old-fashioned, out-of-date, and foolish. Both women are arrogant and self-centered, and each thinks she knows comedy better than the other. This odd couple has a love-hate relationship throughout most of the first two seasons, but eventually each realizes how incredibly talented the other is, and how well they complement one another.
After her final Las Vegas show, Deborah decides to go on tour, taking Ava along to help develop some new material. The tour takes up the entire second season. As several of her tour dates bomb, they try to figure out how to re-invent in her act and re-brand her image.
One of the funnier sequences in season 2 is when Deborah’s manager Marcus (Carl Clemons-Hopkins) books her on a gay cruise (gay men are among her biggest fans). But the cruise turns out to be exclusively for lesbians, who she claims “do not get her.”
When Hannah is researching Deborah’s career, she starts to realize how groundbreaking she really was, and how the hardships and obstacles she overcame paved the way for future generations of female comedians.
Deborah records a special with her new material, which is a surprise hit, revitalizing not only her career, but Ava’s as well. But Deborah’s borderline abusive behavior leads to a rift that seems insurmountable, and Ava crosses a line that she might not be able to come back from.
The first two great seasons of this wonderfully addictive series is somehow topped by the third (my wife and I binged the entire nine-episode season in one late Friday night sitting – each episode is 26-35 minutes).
At the start of season 3, Deborah and Ava have separate careers and lives. Both have had big career boosts following Deborah’s comedy special – Deborah is again a major in-demand star and Ava is a writer and co-producer of a popular TV show.
While both women are successful, neither is happy. Deborah struggles to develop new material with her new writers who don’t understand her comedy, and Ava never got over being so easily dismissed and abandoned by Deborah, whom she had considered a friend (Deborah simply thought Ava was ready to go off on her own and spread her wings).
Deborah’s life-long dream has been to host her own network late-night talk show, which almost happened many years ago. She lost out because back then the network was not ready to take a chance on a woman. Suddenly the current host is retiring and she is determined to get the job. But she’s still a woman, and now she’s 70.
Two other potential candidates are much younger men. She reaches out to Ava, who is on hiatus from her show for the next three months, to help her prepare to pitch the job. More brilliant (and touching) comedy ensues as Deborah enters a charity golf tournament to get closer to the executives and sponsors who will decide on the new late-night host. The finale paves the way for a completely fresh fourth season (it’s been renewed).
Some of the key cast members and guest stars include:
Megan Stalter as Kayla, who is the airhead daughter of Jimmy’s boss, who forces him to take her on as his assistant; Mark Indelicato as Damien, Deborah’s personal assistant;
Kaitlin Olson as Deborah “DJ” Vance Jr., Deborah’s sometimes estranged daughter; Ming-Na Wen as a talent agent rival of Jimmy’s who tries to steal his clients (season 2); Laurie Metcalf as “Weed,” an eccentric tour manager who also drives the tour bus (season 2);
Christina Hendricks as a wealthy executive who tries to seduce Ava when she thinks she is just Deborah’s golf caddy (season 3); Helen Hunt as a network executive in charge of deciding who gets the open late-night gig (season 3); Diedre Hall as herself, and Jimmy’s mother (season 3); Wayne Newton, Margaret Cho, George Wallace, Carrot Top, and Mario Lopez have cameos as themselves.
That’s it for now. I’m sure there are shows you think I missed. There are a number of series I either didn’t get to or had no interest in watching. If there are any shows you’d think I should have included, drop me an email at [email protected] and I’ll consider including it in a future report (and will let you know if I already considered it but it didn’t make the cut).
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