The best shows of the year have been spread out among a variety of networks and streaming services. ABC is a network that has a steady output of great shows, both new and returning. These range from procedurals, to comedies, to dating shows, to game shows. As the year comes to an end and the network TV season is on hiatus, it is worth acknowledging the great ABC shows this year. These are the 10 best ABC shows of 2024, ranked.
10 'Dancing with the Stars'
Season 33
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33 seasons in, Dancing with the Starscontinues to be an ABC staple. The dance competition show pairs celebrities up with a team of professional dancers to compete together through a series of dance performances. Somehow, this far in, the show continues to be full of entertaining moments and really great dancing. Season 33 is an example of this, with some very strong pairings.
The highlight of the season was definitely the Halloween-themed episode, in which the pairings had to perform dances inspired by their fears, dressed up for Halloween. There were some really fantastic dancing pairs that stood out this season, but the two who really stood out were Chandler Kinney and Brandon Armstrong, who performed a fantastic freestyle dance to a mash-up of Eyal Vilner Big Band's "Hellzapoppin" and Curtis Mayfield's "Move on Up" in the season finale.
Release Date June 1, 2005
Cast Carrie Ann Inaba , Bruno Tonioli , Len Goodman , Tom Bergeron , Cheryl Burke , Tony Dovolani , Derek Hough , Mark Ballas , Karina Smirnoff , Maksim Chmerkovskiy , Kym Johnson , Sasha Farber , Val Chmerkovskiy , Emma Slater , Sharna Burgess
Main Genre Reality
Seasons
Studio
9 'The Bachelorette'
Season 21
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The Bachelor franchise shows are always going to be hits, showing a combination of romantic moments and entertaining drama as contestants compete for the heart of the lead. There were multiple strong shows within the franchise that shone this year, with enjoyable leads like Joey Graziadei and Joan Vassos. The Bachelor spin-off that really stood out this year, though, was The Bachelorette, led by Jenn Tran.
Although the season's ending was ultimately cruel and unfair to its leading lady, Jenn's season of The Bachelorette was a joy to watch. Jenn was a strong lead, and the season was full of sweet dates, fun moments (and eventual hilarious bloopers), and a lot of drama. The Bachelorette has a certain magic to it that somehow puts it just a little bit ahead of the rest of the Bachelor franchise shows, and that was evident this year.
Release Date January 8, 2003
Cast Chris Harrison , Tayshia Adams , Kaitlyn Bristowe , Jesse Palmer
Main Genre Reality
Seasons 20
Creator(s) Elan Gale
Story By Elan Gale
Writers Elan Gale
Network ABC
Streaming Service(s) Hulu , The Roku Channel
Franchise(s) The Bachelor
Directors Mike Fleiss
Showrunner Mike Fleiss
8 'Grey's Anatomy'
Seasons 20-21
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Some might be wondering: is Grey's Anatomy still airing? The answer is a resounding yes, and although the quality dipped for a handful of seasons, the medical drama is back and as entertaining as ever. This is due in large part to the latest class of interns who joined the show in Season 19: Simone Griffin (Alexis Floyd), Jules Millin (Adelaide Kane), Lucas Adams (Nico Terho), Blue Kwan (Harry Shum Jr.), and the recently-departed (but thankfully still alive) Mika Yasuda (Midori Francis).
After a certain point, many of the long-running characters' storylines have started to go in circles, and the new class of interns has added something fresh and exciting to the show in the last few seasons. It's a challenge to make Grey's Anatomy work without the titular Meredith Grey (Ellen Pompeo) appearing in every episode anymore, but the show is still worth watching, full of high-stakes medical cases and romantic drama, and with a memorable and devastatingly tragic death occurring in Season 21.
Release Date March 27, 2005
Cast Ellen Pompeo , Chandra Wilson , James Pickens Jr. , Justin Chambers , Kevin McKidd , Jesse Williams , Bokhee An , camilla luddington , Patrick Dempsey , Sara Ramirez , Jessica Capshaw , Sandra Oh , Caterina Scorsone , Sarah Drew , Kelly McCreary , Kim Raver , Jason George , Eric Dane , Giacomo Gianniotti , Jake Borelli , Katherine Heigl , Jerrika Hinton , Chyler Leigh , Chris Carmack , T.R. Knight , Debbie Allen , Jaicy Elliot , Anthony Hill , Kate Walsh , Greg Germann , Isaiah Washington , Aniela Gumbs , Martin Henderson , Payton Silver , Gaius Charles , Tessa Ferrer , Stefania Spampinato , Alex Landi , Scott Speedman , Mark Saul , Nicole Rubio , Richard Flood , Ryder Goodstadt , Steven W. Bailey , Adelaide Kane , Alexis Floyd , Harry Shum Jr. , Midori Francis , Niko Terho
Main Genre Drama
Seasons 21
WritersShonda Rhimes , Julie Wong , Jen Klein , Tameson Duffy , Meg Marinis
Network ABC
Directors Rob Corn , Kevin McKidd , Debbie Allen , Chandra Wilson , Allison Liddi-Brown , Jeannot Szwarc , Tony Phelan
Where To Watch Hulu
7 'Will Trent'
Season 2
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With two seasons down and a third on the way this upcoming January, Will Trent stands out as a crime procedural. Based on the book series by Karin Slaughter, the show follows Will Trent (Ramón Rodriguez), a Special Agent for the Georgia Bureau of Investigations. Will grew up in foster care, and he uses his past experiences to try to help people who he can relate to and understand better than his coworkers and higher-ups can.
In Season 2 of Will Trent, Will continues to solve crimes with his partner, Faith Mitchell (Iantha Richardson), and his chihuahua, Betty (played by a talented and adorable pup named Bluebell). The show's sophomore season ramps up the stakes of the show, both on a personal and professional level, as it builds up to an intense and emotional season finale. In a controversial twist, the show gives a montage of a happy life between Will and his main love interest, Angie (Erika Christensen), before then revealing a much more tragic reality.
Release Date January 3, 2023
Main Genre Drama
Seasons 2
Story By Karin Slaughter
Writers Daniel T. Thomsen , Liz Heldens , Karin Slaughter
Creator Karin Slaughter, Liz Heldens, Daniel T. Thomsen
Studio 3 Arts Entertainment, Selfish Mermaid, 20th Television
Franchise Will Trent
Distributor Disney Platform Distribution, ABC
6 'Doctor Odyssey'
Season 1
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Grey's Anatomy meets The Love Boat in ABC's newest medical drama, Doctor Odyssey. The series follows Dr. Max Bankman (Joshua Jackson), the new doctor on a luxury cruise ship called The Odyssey, who decides to uproot his entire life after a near-death experience. Each episode shows the ship hosting a different themed week, as Max tends to the guests' ailments alongside the ship's nurses, Avery Morgan (Phillipa Soo) and Tristan Silva (Sean Teale).
Doctor Odyssey is a lot of fun and drama, combining intentionally soapy romantic plotlines with bizarre and travel-themed medical cases for an extremely entertaining first half of its first season. Alongside the medical team are the ship's captain, Captain Robert Massey (Don Johnson), along with the recurring crew of the ship, and a rotation of guests aboard The Odyssey each week for vacation.
Release Date September 26, 2024
Main Genre Drama
Seasons 1
5 'Jeopardy!'
Seasons 40-41
Image via ABC/CBS Media Ventures
The best game show on television has just finished off another successful year with two new seasons, a lot of trivia, and many entertaining facts about the contestants in between rounds. What makes Jeopardy!so great? It's a combination of a timeless premise, and the delightful combination of former contestant and current host Ken Jennings, and announcer Johnny Gilbert.
This year of Jeopardy! has been full of creative and difficult questions (one even featuring a Collider article), as well as some great contestants, both new and returning. Ken Jennings continues to be a joy to watch as the host, building a rapport with the contestants about their fun facts, looking back on his own time as a contestant, and (hilariously though sometimes infuriatingly) never letting the contestants off the hook, even for minor technicalities.
Release Date September 10, 1984
Cast Johnny Gilbert , Alex Trebek , Ken Jennings , Mayim Bialik , Brad Rutter , Mike Richards , Mehmet Oz , Aaron Rodgers , anderson cooper , Katie Couric , Bill Whitaker , Savannah Guthrie , Sanjay Gupta , Buzzy Cohen , Iain Armitage
Main Genre Game Show
Creator(s) Merv Griffin
4 'The Rookie'
Season 6
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Six seasons in (with the seventh set to air this upcoming January), The Rookiecontinues to keep fans guessing with intense cases, shocking plot twists, and arguably the most heartbreaking television breakup of 2024. The season sees Monica (Bridget Regan) reach new heights as a villain, alongside some surprising accomplices. It also sees the return of the hilariously delightful original song "Cop Cuties," much to Nolan's (Nathan Fillion) annoyance.
Season 6 of The Rookie is a solid installment with an intense conclusion in which Lucy Chen (Melissa O'Neil) jumps out of one moving car and into another to save her ex-boyfriend, Tim Bradford (Eric Winter). The show has left some storylines open that could easily take the forefront of Season 7, although, sadly, the upcoming season will also see the exit of fan-favorite Aaron Thorsen (Tru Valentino).
Release Date October 16, 2018
Rating
Seasons 6
Story By alexi hawley
Writers Alexi Hawley
Network ABC
Streaming Service(s) Hulu
Directors Toa Fraser
Showrunner Alexi Hawley
3 'High Potential'
Season 1
Image via ABC
2024 saw the debut of ABC's best brand-new show this year, High Potential. Based on the French-Belgian series HIP, this comedic crime procedural follows Morgan Gillory (Kaitlin Olson), a former night cleaner for the LAPD who becomes a consultant for its Major Crimes department. Morgan uses her High Potential Intellectual condition to solve cases while also parenting her three children and trying to solve the mystery of her missing ex.
High Potential is such a fun show, combining traditional procedural elements with more emotionally grounded aspects for what is a fantastic first half of its first season. There is also a delightful will-they-won't they potential romance between Morgan and her partner, Detective Adam Karadec (Daniel Sunjata). High Potential has been a strong show from the start, but its nailbiting mid-season finale elevated the show to something truly incredible.
Release Date September 17, 2024
Cast Javicia Leslie , Kaitlin Olson , Deniz Akdeniz , Amirah J , Matthew Lamb , Judy Reyes , Daniel Sunjata , Garret Dillahunt , TJ Lee , Kayvon Esmaili , Ariella Amar , Michelle C. Bonilla , Kerry O'Malley , Graham Rogers , Maia Jae Bastidas , Pamela Roylance , Rosslyn Luke , Sebastien Roberts
Main Genre Drama
Seasons 1
Creator(s) Drew Goddard
2 '9-1-1'
Seasons 7-8
Fox's loss is ABC's gain, as evidenced by the monumental success of 9-1-1since the procedural shifted networks just ahead of its seventh season. 2024 saw the entirety of Season 7 of 9-1-1, as well as the first half of Season 8, and it has been an honor and a pleasure to watch the show continue to top itself over a hundred episodes in. There have been highlights like a sinking cruise ship carrying both Bobby (Peter Krause) and Athena (Angela Bassett), a bee-nado that nearly caused a plane to crash and forced Athena to land it, and Buck (Oliver Stark) coming out as bisexual.
This is what makes 9-1-1 stand out: it excels as a procedural with creative and high-stakes cases, but at its heart, it is a show about first responders coming together as a found family. As the show has just wrapped up the first half of its eighth season, it is clear that 9-1-1 has captured lightning in a bottle with its incredibly nuanced and lovable main characters, as well as their relationships with one another. All one can hope for in the second half of the season is the return of Christopher (Gavin McHugh) to his father, Eddie (Ryan Guzman), as well as for 9-1-1 to finally deliver on the slow-burn relationship that is Buck and Eddie.
Character(s) Athena Grant , Robert 'Bobby' Nash , Howard 'Chimney' Han , Maddie Kendall , Eddie Diaz , Christopher Diaz
Network ABC , FOX
Streaming Service(s) Hulu
Showrunner Tim Minear
1 'Abbott Elementary'
Seasons 3-4
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Abbott Elementarycontinued to soar in 2024, with absolutely fantastic and laugh-out-loud funny third and fourth seasons. Some of the highlights of these seasons include Janine (Quinta Brunson) working for the district for a while before returning to Abbott, Melissa (Lisa Ann Walter) and Jacob (Chris Perfetti) becoming roommates, Janine and Gregory (Tyler James Williams) finally becoming a couple, and most recently, Barbara (Sherly Lee Ralph) breaking tradition to make sure that everyone in her class feels included.
While Abbott Elementary continues to be funnier than ever, these last two seasons really stand out for their emotional depth. The episodes have gotten more emotional while still being hilarious, exploring elements like the characters' relationships with their families, and the continuing struggle to make real changes happen for their students. Abbott Elementary is ABC's shining gem of 2024, and it remains a joy to watch.
Release Date December 7, 2021
CastQuinta Brunson , Tyler James Williams , Sheryl Lee Ralph , Lisa Ann Walter , Chris Perfetti , Janelle James , William Stanford Davis , Zack Fox , Courtney Taylor , Nikea Gamby-Turner , Josh Segarra , Mason Renfro , Jerry Minor , Larry Owens , Nate' Jones , Lela Hoffmeister , Vince Staples , Kimia Behpoornia , Dillion Blake Allen , Reggie Conquest , Kate Peterman , Keyla Monterroso Mejia , Benjamin Norris , Aayden William , Ben Onyx Dowdy
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