Which of these 11 epic fantasy/sci-fi shows will emerge triumphant in 2024?

7. The Boys season 4 (2024, Amazon Prime Video)

The Boys has been gaining traction year after year. This is a superhero series for people who don't like superheroes, a gleefully vulgar and bloody show that asks the question, "What would superheroes be like if they were real?" and answers, "They would be the worst." In particularly, the character of Homelander -- who's what Superman would be like if he were he a violent narcicist -- has broken out and become something of an icon.

The Boys has enough momentum to go from being a popular show on Amazon Prime Video to an all-out phenomenon. The cast, crew and showrunner Eric Kripke just need to deliver a great season of TV. If the show has a weakness, it's that it tends to reset itself back to square one at the end of each season, a holdover from Kripke's years working in traditional TV. Season 4 needs to take some big swings if it wants to go to the next right now. Right now The Boys has a nice, dependable smolder going. It needs to catch fire.

8. Arcane season 2 (November 2024, Netflix)

This dystopian sci-fi drama based on the League of Legends video game series was a big hit when the first season premieres on Netflix in 2021. It may not be widely talked about among the greater public, but the people who liked it liked it a lot, and are happy to say so online. That makes the second season one to watch.

As with Fallout, I still have a lingering, nagging doubt that a video game adaptation can really go the distance, but in this case Arcane already has a fanbase and a proven track record, so the road ahead is clear. It needs to find a way to cross over to a wider audience. A second season full of excellent episodes would help a lot.