Over two decades ago, HBO boldly staked out its own corner of the television landscape with cinematic shows that quickly outshined network dramas. That’s why The Sopranos, The Wire, and The Larry Sanders Show are still fondly remembered today. In the present, HBO is still the high watermark for comedy and drama, with shows like House of the Dragon, The White Lotus, and more keeping the brand alive and well. And although only a few shows are offering new episodes this month, there’s never a bad time to get up to date with the best HBO series streaming right now.
Not finding what you’re looking for on HBO? We regularly update our lists of the best shows on Netflix, the best shows on Amazon Prime Video, the best shows on Disney+, and the best shows on Hulu as well.
Recently added to HBO
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The White Lotus2021 -
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Avenue 52020
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House of the Dragon2022
2 Seasons
Genre
Comedy, Drama, Mystery
Cast
Alexandra Daddario, Jake Lacy, Connie Britton, Steve Zahn, Jennifer Coolidge, Murray Bartlett, Sydney Sweeney, Brittany O'Grady
Created by
Mike White
The White Lotus is back for a second season, and the dead bodies are already piling up! This will surely not be good for the Yelp score. While the first season took place at a White Lotus resort in Maui, the second season moves the story to a hotel destination in Sicily. Valentina (Sabrina Impacciatore) is the unfortunate manager who has to deal with these fickle guests, including season 1 veterans Tanya McQuoid-Hunt (Jennifer Coolidge) and Greg Hunt (Jon Gries), a newly married couple. But there’s trouble in paradise and tension between Tanya and Greg when she drags her assistant, Portia (Haley Lu Richardson), along on their “romantic” getaway. Comedy, drama, and possibly murder will ensue.
17 Seasons
Genre
Documentary
Created by
Marty Callner
A new season of Hard Knocks already? Well, it is football season, so there’s no better time for it. This franchise series has been following NFL teams with behind-the-scenes access for over two decades. This season, the focus shifts to the Arizona Cardinals as they attempt to overcome the hurdles in front of them to get the team back to the post-season and in contention for a Super Bowl. It’s far from easy, but if anyone could do it, then there wouldn’t be much drama. Football is a high stakes game on the field and in the locker room. We wouldn’t have it any other way.
2 Seasons
Genre
Comedy, Sci-Fi & Fantasy
Cast
Hugh Laurie, Josh Gad, Zach Woods
Created by
Armando Iannucci
If you’re looking for Star Trek or serious sci-fi, this isn’t it. That said, Avenue 5 does quite a good job at mining science fiction for comedy. Captain Ryan Clark (Hugh Laurie) doesn’t actually know how to run his luxury liner spaceship, the Avenue 5. Instead, the ship is so automated that the captain and his crew are largely there as figureheads. But when disaster strikes, Clark and the crew are forced to deal with the fact that their ship has gone dangerously off-course. And the trip back to Earth will take years instead of weeks.
1 Season
Genre
Drama, Action & Adventure, Sci-Fi & Fantasy, Mystery
Cast
Paddy Considine, Matt Smith, Rhys Ifans
Created by
George R. R. Martin, Ryan Condal
Given the response to House of the Dragon, we can safely say that HBO’s new Game of Thrones is … a Game of Thrones prequel. Just don’t assume you know everything about the show or where it’s going. The first season has already demonstrated that there is more to this history lesson than what we read about Princess Rhaenyra Targaryen (Emma D’Arcy) and her stepmother, Queen Alicent (Olivia Cooke), in George R.R. Martin’s Fire & Blood. Rhaenyra and Alicent were once the closest of friends. Yet even their sisterly bonds have been tested by the battle of wills between them. Rhaenyra’s father and Alicent’s husband, King Viserys Targaryen (Paddy Considine), may rule for now, but a civil war is already brewing within House Targaryen.
7 Seasons
Genre
Sci-Fi & Fantasy, Drama, Mystery
Cast
Anna Paquin, Stephen Moyer, Alexander Skarsgård
Created by
Alan Ball
It’s worth taking a look back at HBO’s signature horror/fantasy series True Blood. The show exists in a world where vampires have “come out of the coffin,” so to speak. They’re real, and they’re living among humans who largely hate and fear them. And the allegory between vampires and LGBT people is completely intentional. Semi-psychic waitress Sookie Stackhouse (Anna Paquin) finds herself sucked into the vampire world when she is swept off her feet by a charming Southern bloodsucker, Bill Compton (Stephen Moyer). However, Sookie also finds herself drawn to the vampire sheriff, Eric Northman (Alexander Skarsgård). It’s a love triangle for the ages.
2 Seasons
Genre
Comedy
Cast
Bernardo Velasco, Julio Torres, Ana Fabrega
Created by
Fred Armisen, Julio Torres, Ana Fabrega
Horror is a way of life in Los Espookys, a Spanish-language HBO original that has a very novel premise. Renaldo (Bernardo Velasco) has a talent for replicating horror scenes in real life who decides to monetize his talent by founding Los Espookys. Alongside Andrés Valdez (Julio Torres), Úrsula (Cassandra Ciangherotti), and Tati (Ana Fabrega), Renaldo opens a business to bring horror to the people who need it. If that means staging a fake exorcism or an alien invasion, it’s all in a day’s work for them. After a three-year hiatus, the second season has finally arrived.
2 Seasons
Genre
Drama
Cast
Myha'la Herrold, Marisa Abela, Harry Lawtey
Created by
Mickey Down, Konrad Kay
You don’t need to go to the realm of fantasy to find dramatic conflict. Industry has its own kind of warfare at Pierpoint & Co,, which is perhaps one of the most prestigious investment banks in the United Kingdom. Candidates from all over the world, including Harper Stern (Myha’la Herrold), Yasmin Kara-Hanani (Marisa Abela), Augustus “Gus” Sackey (David Jonsson), and Robert Spearing (Harry Lawtey) have all come to compete for a position at the company. The personal stakes are high for each of them, and they aren’t afraid to stab each other in the back to get ahead.
1 Season
Genre
Comedy, Documentary
Cast
Nathan Fielder
Created by
Nathan Fielder
You can never be too prepared … or can you? In HBO’s The Rehearsal, Nathan Fielder essentially plays himself as a man who can help people get past the awkward moments in their lives through constant and elaborate rehearsals of how they want things to play out. Nathan is also unafraid to insert himself into his rehearsals, even if it veers away from the original goal of helping out his subjects. And not everyone is pleased when they discover the lengths that Nathan has gone to set up rehearsals for the big events in their lives, but he lacks the self-awareness to stop doing it.
4 Seasons
Genre
Sci-Fi & Fantasy, Western
Created by
Jonathan Nolan, Lisa Joy
We were admittedly skeptical that Westworld season 4 could regain the narrative momentum of the earlier seasons. Thankfully, we were wrong and the fourth season is shaping up to be another mind-bending twister. But it all started with Robert Ford (Anthony Hopkins) and his android hosts in the Westworld theme park. After enduring years of physical and sexual abuse at the hands of the human guests, two hosts, Dolores Abernathy (Evan Rachel Wood) and Maeve Millay (Thandiwe Newton), question the nature of their reality. What they find will send them on different paths towards redemption and vengeance.
8 Seasons
Genre
Sci-Fi & Fantasy, Drama, Action & Adventure
Cast
Emilia Clarke, Peter Dinklage, Lena Headey, Kit Harington, Sophie Turner, Maisie Williams
Created by
David Benioff, D. B. Weiss
If you’re upset about the way that Game of Thrones ended, then you’re not alone. But with House of the Dragon now streaming, it’s worth revisiting the original series because this was the show that defined the last decade of HBO originals. George R.R. Martin’s “A Song of Fire and Ice” novels were brought to life in such a thrilling manner that it is still the best fantasy TV series that we’ve ever seen. The early seasons in particular hold up extremely well to the passage of time, as disparate characters make their play to rule the seven kingdoms.
1 Season
Genre
Documentary
HBO is diving back into true crime this summer with a new documentary, Mind Over Murder. This six-part series dives into the 1985 murder of Helen Wilson, a 68-year-old grandmother who lived in Beatrice, Nebraska. Six people were ultimately charged with the murder that shocked a community, and five were compelled to confess. However, “the Beatrice Six” were exonerated in 2009 by DNA evidence, which once again divided the small town. Mind Over Murder attempts to find answers, but often raises more unsettling questions about criminal investigations and police procedures.
2 Seasons
Genre
Talk
Cast
Sam Jay
Created by
Sam Jay
There’s no shortage of talk shows on TV, even on HBO! But Pause with Sam Jay is unlike any of the other shows. Jay essentially hosts the program from her own apartment, where she and her guests use this makeshift forum to talk about the burning topics of the week. There are some more conventional touches as well, including interviews, sketches, and animated shorts that utilize Jay’s experience as a comedian. This show offers a fresh voice for late night, and it’s currently back for a second season on HBO.
1 Season
Genre
Documentary
You’ve probably heard of Comic-Con, Cinemacon, E3, and other specialized conferences. But did you know that anarchists have a con of their own? On July 10, HBO’s new six-part documentary The Anarchists will offer an unparalleled glimpse into Anarchapulco, the pro-anarchy event founded in 2015 by Jeff Berwick. This is where people gather to discuss and promote their own visions for a world without governments or banks to control their lives. They may not necessarily have realistic goals, but it is an interesting examination of the personalities and figureheads behind these movements.
1 Season
Genre
Action & Adventure, Documentary
At first glance, Edge of the Earth might look like HBO’s version of The Amazing Race. But this is more of a documentary than a reality show. This four-part miniseries follows four teams of adventurers, including snowboarders, skiers, kayakers, and climbers, to remote corners of the globe where they can pursue their passions in some of the most dangerous areas on Earth. The beauty captured in the footage is breathtaking, as are the places many of us will never get to see for ourselves. Regardless, the constant pressure and jeopardy will lead some of the team members to question whether the thrill is worth the risk to their lives.
1 Season
Genre
Comedy
Cast
Michelle de Swarte, Amira Ghazalla, Amber Grappy
Created by
Lucy Gaymer, Sian Robins-Grace
If you’re looking to start a family, it’s entirely possible that The Baby might put you off from wanting kids. Every child is demanding, but not like this one. Poor Natasha Williams (Michelle de Swarte) had everything she wanted until this demonic infant dropped into her life. And “demonic” is the right word for this little terror, as he uses his supernatural gifts to ensure that nearly everyone he comes in contact with meets a bad fate. Everyone except Natasha. No matter how hard she tries, Natasha just can’t get away from the kid for long.
1 Season
Genre
Comedy, Drama
Cast
Alicia Vikander, Jeanne Balibar, Vincent Macaigne
Created by
Olivier Assayas
Alicia Vikander is a well-known actress, but she’s playing Mira, a true movie star in every sense of the word, in HBO’s upcoming remake of Irma Vep. In this modern take on 1996 film, Mira is desperate for a fresh start in her career and something different than all of the Hollywood superhero roles. That’s why she agrees to star as Irma Vep in a remake of the silent film Les Vampires. But things start to get strange when Mira finds her life and Irma’s character to be increasingly intermingled. In some ways, she’s becoming more Irma than Mira. Now that’s taking method acting too far.
3 Seasons
Genre
Drama
Cast
Gaia Girace, Margherita Mazzucco, Ludovica Nasti
Created by
Saverio Costanzo
Adapted from Elena Ferrante’s novels about childhood friends Elenda and Lila growing up in 1950s Naples, this multi-generational series follows what happens when an elderly Elena discovers that Lila seems to have disappeared without a trace. To ensure Lila’s memory is never lost, Elena begins writing the story of their friendship, reliving her own life as she does it.
3 Seasons
Genre
Comedy, Crime
Cast
Bill Hader, Stephen Root, Henry Winkler
Created by
Bill Hader, Alec Berg
Iraq War veteran Barry Berkman (Bill Hader) is like many people in the 21st century: His work/life balance is out of whack. He travels for work, returns home, and kills time with video games before passing out. Barry is the portrait of Information Age ennui, with the one wrinkle being that his line of work is murder. As a hitman, Barry takes missions assigned to him by a man named Fuches (Stephen Root). It’s a career that makes use of Barry’s skills but doesn’t leave him satisfied. When he pursues his latest target to an acting class, however, Barry stumbles into a new world, one that ignites his passions. Pursuing the life of an actor, he encounters some problems in his day job and tension with his boss. Barry is a superb dark comedy, and Hader’s performance is full of subtle gestures that speak to his character’s inner turmoil.
1 Season
Genre
Drama
Cast
Christine Baranski, Cynthia Nixon, Carrie Coon
Created by
Julian Fellowes
An American spinoff of Downton Abbey, The Gilded Age takes place in 1882 New York City. It follows Marian Brook, the orphaned daughter of a Confederate general who moves in with her rigidly conventional aunts in the biggest Northern city. Marian soon gets caught up in the dazzling lives of her rich neighbors as she faces pressures to conform to the righteous path despite feeling compelled to find her own way.
1 Season
Genre
Drama
Cast
John C. Reilly, Quincy Isaiah, Jason Clarke
Created by
Max Borenstein, Jim Hecht
Real NBA fans may take umbrage with Winning Time‘s manufactured controversy and formulaic caricatures of league legends like Jerry West, Kareem Abdul-Jabar, Red Auerbach, and Larry Bird, but Adam McKay’s dramedy is not shy about who it’s drawing inspiration from: Dr. Jerry Buss. And Dr. Jerry Buss was a real-life caricature. Beginning with Buss’ extremely ambitious purchase of the Lakers in 1979, the series follows his overhaul of a once-proud organization that failed to accomplish much of anything more than losing to the Boston Celtics a whole lot after relocating from Minneapolis to Los Angeles. Buss aims to turn those L’s into W’s, starting with the selection of Earvin “Magic” Johnson in the NBA Draft.
4 Seasons
Genre
Comedy
Cast
Danny McBride, Steve Little, Katy Mixon
Created by
Ben Best, Jody Hill, Danny McBride
Danny McBride finally broke through to the HBO mainstream with The Righteous Gemstones, but Eastbound & Down remains some of the comedian’s best work. Kenny Powers (McBride) was a dominant relief pitcher in Major League Baseball, but his hard-partying lifestyle, gargantuan ego, and obnoxious behavior ultimately flame him out of the league. Now, he’s returned to his North Carolina hometown to teach middle school gym. But when he gets a chance at a comeback — by playing professional baseball “down Mexico way” — Kenny heads south of the border to get himself right and rediscover his fastball. Or to get drunker and higher than he’s ever been before. One or the other.
6 Seasons
Genre
Crime, Drama
Cast
Lee Tergesen, Harold Perrineau, Dean Winters
Created by
Tom Fontana
The Sopranos often gets the credit for being the first true prestige television series, but that’s a tremendous oversight on Oz, which predated Tony Soprano by two years. With truly shocking content, provocative stories, cavernous characters, and an extraordinary cast, Oz redefined what a TV show could be. The Oswald Correctional Facility — nicknamed “Oz” — is an explosive cauldron where inmates and officers fight for survival and power. Emerald City, run by Tim McManus (Terry Kinney), is an experimental unit within the facility that aims at emphasizing rehabilitation and learning accountability during incarceration. The experiment doesn’t always work.
1 Season
Genre
Comedy
Cast
Bridget Everett, Mike Hagerty, Jeff Hiller
Created by
Hannah Bos, Paul Thureen
Bridget Everett stars in this “coming of middle age” story about a Kansan who’s struggling to fit into the mold of her hometown. As Sam (Everett) grapples with loss, she finds refuge in singing. Her explosive talent soon leads her beyond her borders and into a community of outsiders who don’t fit in anywhere either.
2 Seasons
Genre
Sci-Fi & Fantasy, Drama
Cast
Amanda Collin, Abubakar Salim, Winta McGrath
Created by
Aaron Guzikowski
Ridley Scott leans into his Prometheus instincts in the first HBO Max Original. After a great religious war destroys Earth, an atheistic android sends two creations to start a peaceful, godless colony on the planet Kepler-22b. But when a deeply devout religious order of humans arrives from Earth, they’re once again hellbent on manifesting their version of God on Kepler-22b, risking everything the androids have sought to create.
Genre
Comedy
Cast
John Goodman, Danny McBride, Adam Devine
Created by
Danny McBride
You know all those things you’ve ever suspected about mega churches and televangelists? They’re all true on The Righteous Gemstones, which is back for a second season on HBO this month. Eli Gemstone (John Goodman) has created a moneymaking religious empire with his children, Jesse (Danny McBride), Judy (Edi Patterson), and Kelvin (Adam Devine), But they’re not exactly men and women of the cloth. Jesse’s debauchery has already invited unwanted attention and a blackmail attempt that could bring down everything the family has worked for. If you can call the con “working.”
1 Season
Genre
Drama
Cast
Zendaya, Hunter Schafer, Sydney Sweeney, Maude Apatow, Jacob Elordi, Algee Smith
Created by
Sam Levinson
Euphoria may be a teen drama, but it’s the kind that could only be made at HBO. It’s steamier, darker, and deeply, deeply provocative. An adaptation of the Israeli show of the same name, Euphoria follows 17-year-old Rue (Zendaya), a drug addict fresh from rehab with no plans to stay clean and an upsetting amount of responsibility. Around her are Jules, Nate, Chris, Cassie, and Kat, each with their own identity crises and high school crosses to bear. As they struggle to make sense of their present and future, the series takes a deep dive into teenage substance abuse, sexual tension, and the anxiety-ridden life of modern high school. At times, Euphoria swings for the shock value fences, but it generally deals with serious issues with empathy and openness. Season 2 is currently airing on HBO and HBO Max.
5 Seasons
Genre
Comedy, Drama
Cast
Issa Rae, Yvonne Orji, Jay Ellis
Created by
Larry Wilmore, Issa Rae
Insecure is a very old school-style HBO series with a fresh perspective. As envisioned by Issa Rae and Larry Wilmore, Insecure takes the opportunity to explore the lives of two Black women: Issa (Rae) and Molly (Yvonne Orji). Issa and Molly are best friends, but sometimes their fortunes are drastically different. Now in its final season, Insecure has been a satisfying journey for both women as they experience heartache, love, failure, and triumph in South Los Angeles. This is one of HBO’s trailblazing originals, and it may prove to be very influential on a new generation of writers and performers.
3 Seasons
Genre
Drama, Comedy
Cast
Hiam Abbass, Nicholas Braun, Brian Cox, Kieran Culkin, Peter Friedman, Natalie Gold, Matthew Macfadyen
Created by
Jesse Armstrong
Over two years have passed since the end of season 2, but Succession is back for a third season on HBO Max. And any resemblance to a real life family of media moguls is probably not a coincidence. Logan Roy (Brian Cox) built a media empire beyond compare, and he’s trying to determine which of his children have the guts to take his place at the head of the table. Kendall (Jeremy Strong), Roman (Kieran Culkin), and Shiv (Sarah Snook) will do almost anything to win, even if they have to strain or break the tenuous family ties between them.
11 Seasons
Genre
Comedy
Cast
Larry David, Jeff Garlin, Cheryl Hines, Richard Lewis, Kathy Griffin, Sofia Milos, Ted Danson, Mary Steenburgen
Created by
Larry David
Larry David spent most of Seinfeld’s run behind-the-camera, but he takes the spotlight for himself in Curb Your Enthusiasm. Amazingly, the spiritual successor of the show about nothing has already celebrated its 21st anniversary as it heads into season 11. David essentially plays himself, an easily annoyed misanthrop who has an uncanny knack for making new enemies and alienating the few friends that he has. This show also invites its stars to improvise their own dialogue and scenes as David inevitably falls into awkward situations with a healthy dose of humiliation.
1 Season
Genre
Drama
Cast
Jessica Chastain, Oscar Isaac, Nicole Beharie, Corey Stoll, Tovah Feldshuh
Created by
Hagai Levi
Oscar Isaac and Jessica Chastain star in this modern, American adaptation of Ingmar Bergman’s seminal 1973 Swedish TV miniseries about a marriage slowly falling apart. It’s not for everyone as it truly is an actor’s piece with very subtle, very slow drama. But that’s the point. Things like broken marriages don’t happen overnight, and this series intends to make you feel every slow, painful turn of the knife from all angles.
Digital Trends Streaming Roundup
2 Seasons
Genre
Comedy, Drama
Cast
Dede Lovelace, Nina Moran, Rachelle Vinberg, Kabrina Adams
Created by
Lesley Arfin, Crystal Moselle
In 2018, critics were impressed with the film Skate Kitchen about a tight-knit group of girl skateboarders in New York City. Two years later, the film’s director brought most of the cast along with her to portray the same group of friends in the HBO original series Betty. Named after the derogatory term that male skaters use while gatekeeping their hobby, Betty is a teen dramedy focusing on the friendships between this diverse band of girls thumbing their noses at what society expects of them. Betty‘s second season premiered on June 11.
1 Season
Genre
Sci-Fi & Fantasy, Drama
Cast
Laura Donnelly, Ann Skelly, Olivia Williams
Created by
Joss Whedon
What if Marvel’s X-Men started their story in 19th-century London? That’s not exactly a complete description of The Nevers, but it’s a good start. HBO’s exciting new sci-fi drama transports us to a steampunk world where a group of women known as “the Touched” exhibit extraordinary abilities. Leading the gang of Touched heroes is the no-nonsense psychic Amelia True (Laura Donnelly), and she has a lot to contend with in this exciting new series. As is to be expected, Victorian England isn’t exactly ready for superpowers, and some of its citizens want to rid themselves of the Touched, some want to “cleanse” them, and still others seek to use them for their own twisted ends.
1 Season
Genre
Drama
Cast
Miriam Ingrid, Aliette Opheim, Tyler Shamy, Ulf Stenberg, Tobias Zilliacus
Created by
Fredrik Backman (based on story by), Linn Gottfridsson, Antonia Pyk, Peter Grönlund, Anders Weidemann
Based on Fredrik Backman’s 2017 novel of the same name, this limited series comes to an end on March 22. Powerful and dark, Beartown tells a sadly familiar story. In a small Scandinavian town that revolves around ice hockey, the young Maya (Miriam Ingrid) is sexually assaulted by the star of the local junior team, forcing the community to face its demons. One of the surprising strengths of this gripping drama is that while you’re likely to find so much of the story predictable, the familiarity doesn’t take away from your experience. If anything, the fact that the tale is so familiar is part of the point.
1 Season
Genre
Crime, Drama
Cast
Søren Malling, Pilou Asbæk, Pernilla August
Created by
Tobias Lindholm
In 2017, Swedish journalist Kim Wall boarded Nautilus — a submarine privately owned by Danish entrepreneur Peter Madsen. She never made it out alive. In February the Danish limited series The Investigation premiered on HBO Max, based on the real-life investigation to unearth the truth of what happened to Wall. The Investigation is an engrossing slow-burn that ignores most of the more familiar conventions of the murder mystery and brings to light many of the difficult truths of trying to find justice.
1 Season
Genre
Crime, Mystery, Drama
Cast
Eduard Fernández, Megan Montaner, Pepón Nieto
Created by
Jorge Guerricaechevarría, Álex de la Iglesia
Initially released in November 2020, 30 Coins has proven to be one of HBO Max’s best-kept secrets. The Spanish language mystery horror series stars Eduard Fernández as Padre Vergara, a priest with a troubled past. Hoping to find shelter from that past, Vergara retreats to the small town of Pedraza. Unfortunately, along with shelter, Vergara finds troubling supernatural occurrences, which may or may not have something to do with the 30 silver coins paid to Judas for betraying Jesus. With a stellar lead cast, 30 Coins has been compared to the fiction of H.P Lovecraft and artifact quest stories like the National Treasure and Indiana Jones films.
1 Season
Genre
Drama, Mystery, Sci-Fi & Fantasy
Cast
Jonathan Majors, Jurnee Smollett, Wunmi Mosaku
Created by
Misha Green
History and supernatural horror merge in Lovecraft Country, which follows a Black soldier who returns home from World War II and then sets off on a journey through 1950s America to find his missing father. Jonathan Majors plays series protagonist Atticus Freeman, who’s joined on his rescue mission by childhood friend Letitia “Leti” Lewis (Jurnee Smollett) and his uncle, George Freeman (Courtney B. Vance). Series showrunner Misha Green expertly blends the real-world racial terrors of the Jim Crow era for Black people in the U.S. with the dark, eldritch horrors of H.P. Lovecraft in a story that continually surprises its audience with one shocking twist after another.
1 Season
Genre
Drama, Mystery, Crime
Cast
Matthew Rhys, Juliet Rylance, Chris Chalk
Created by
Rolin Jones, Ron Fitzgerald
This limited series brings the world’s most renowned fictional lawyer back to the small screen. Perry Mason is an origin story of the criminal defense attorney set in 1932 Los Angeles. The series takes an edgy, noir-ish tone and gives Perry Mason a new spin, with Matthew Rhys portraying him as a low-rent private investigator digging into the influential and enormously powerful evangelical preacher Sister Alice.
1 Season
Genre
Mystery, Drama, Crime
Cast
Ben Mendelsohn, Cynthia Erivo, Bill Camp
Created by
Richard Price
Based on Stephen King’s bestselling novel of the same name, this slow-burn series starts with a seemingly straightforward, cut-and-dried murder investigation. However, things spiral out of control as investigators encounter an insidious supernatural force that makes everything look different than it seemed before. Soon, the investigators begin to question everything they thought they knew. Featuring a first-rate cast of Jason Bateman, Ben Mendelsohn, and Cynthia Erivo, The Outsider is a truly gripping, supernatural crime drama that measures up to King’s novel.
1 Season
Genre
Drama
Cast
Michaela Coel, Weruche Opia, Paapa Essiedu
Created by
Michaela Coel
Michaela Coel’s co-production for BBC One and HBO has established her as one of the most innovative and thoughtful new creators in television. Coel created, writes, co-directs, executive produces, and stars as Arabella, a young London woman who must rebuild her life after being sexually assaulted in a nightclub. Publicly feted as a millennial icon after the success of her debut novel “Chronicles of a Fed-Up Millennial,” Arabella is struggling under the pressure of meeting the deadline for her second book. To de-stress, she meets up with friends for a night out in London, which becomes a complete blur. The next morning, she pieces together the events of the previous night, challenging social norms and the meaning of consent.
1 Season
Genre
Crime, Drama, Action & Adventure, Sci-Fi & Fantasy
Cast
Regina King, Yahya Abdul-Mateen II, Jeremy Irons
Created by
Damon Lindelof
What could be more daunting than adapting Alan Moore’s iconic comic series Watchmen for TV? How about making a sequel? That’s what Damon Lindelof (Lost, The Leftovers) has done with Watchmen, which picks up decades after Moore’s story ended, following a new group of characters whose lives intertwine with the old cast. Set in Tulsa, Oklahoma, 34 years after the comic, Watchmen follows Angela Abar (Regina King), a cop who takes on the masked identity of Sister Night. The Tulsa police have been decimated by a white supremacist group called the Seventh Kavalry, forcing the remainder to adopt superhero personae for safety. After the police chief is murdered, Angela searches for the killer, uncovering a sinister conspiracy. In its willingness to challenge expectations for a sequel, Lindelof’s Watchmen proves a worthy successor to the original.
2 Seasons
Genre
Drama
Cast
Nicole Kidman, Reese Witherspoon, Shailene Woodley
Created by
David E. Kelley
Based on the novel of the same name by Liane Moriarty, Big Little Lies is set in a small, affluent town where Madeline Martha Mackenzie (Reese Witherspoon) and her friend Celeste Wright (Nicole Kidman) live in seeming bliss with their families. When Jane Chapman (Shailene Woodley) moves to town with her son, Ziggy, Madeline and Celeste take her under their wings, but an accusation against Ziggy — and a murder — threaten to upend their lives. Despite the mystery that opens the show, what really drives Big Little Lies is its portrayal of the lives — domestic and social — of women, the friendships they form, and the aggressions they endure. The central characters are complex, driven as much by competitiveness and arrogance as by friendship and family; Witherspoon is particularly great as the domineering Madeline.
1 Season
Genre
Crime, Drama, Mystery
Cast
Riz Ahmed, John Turturro, Bill Camp
Created by
Steven Zaillian, Richard Price
Writer Steven Zaillian (Gangs of New York, Schindler’s List) delivers some of his most poignant material in this 2016 miniseries starring British actor and rapper Riz Ahmed, who portrays a Pakistani-American student who quickly finds himself in prison after a blurry one-night stand turns into a mysterious and brutal murder. The show chronicles his descent from innocent youth to hardened inmate, with the help of Michael K. Williams (The Wire). The latter plays prison kingpin Freddy, who’s more than willing to provide his young protégé with some protection from his violent neighbors — for a price. John Turturro also delivers an excellent performance as embattled defense lawyer John Stone. Turturro’s presence provides a small sense of levity to help balance the all-too-serious subject matter.
4 Seasons
Genre
Drama
Cast
Khandi Alexander, Rob Brown, Chris Coy
Created by
Eric Overmyer, David Simon
David Simon is no stranger to the HBO network, having worked on The Wire, Generation Kill, The Corner, Show Me a Hero, and this New Orleans-themed drama, Treme. Set just three months after the events of Hurricane Katrina, Treme follows the eclectic mix of people living in New Orleans who attempt to repair and rebuild their lives after the catastrophic storm. Featuring some familiar faces from Simon’s other works, the show received most of its critical praise for accurately portraying the storm-torn Louisiana city and for capturing the region’s unique culture. Like The Wire, the excellent narrative pulls the viewer in and makes it incredibly hard to look away.
2 Seasons
Genre
Sci-Fi & Fantasy, Animation, Crime, Action & Adventure, Comedy
Cast
Kaley Cuoco, Lake Bell
Created by
Dean Lorey, Patrick Schumacker, Justin Halpern
There’s been a glut of Harley Quinn-related media over the past few years. Along with video games and comics, since 2016, Margot Robbie has played the ruthless Joker spin-off in two live-action films, and the character has made appearances in plenty of DC’s animated features. The animated Harley Quinn series is, believe it or not, the best of them. The series opens with a final, decisive break between her and the Joker, and what remains deals with her learning to be her own woman and villain in the aftermath. Supported by her best friend Poison Ivy, Harley forms a crew composed of the hopeless theater geek Clayface, the psychic Professor Psycho (who’s persona non-grata among DC’s villains for using the wrong sexist slur too often), and King Shark, who initially just wants to do tech support. As both an animated series and one free of content restrictions in terms of language or violence, Harley Quinn is the best send-up of the superhero world since The Tick. It’s hilarious, bloody, sometimes heartbreaking, and regularly features an alcoholic Commissioner Gordon who doesn’t understand why Batman won’t hang out socially.
1 Season
Genre
Drama
Cast
Frances McDormand, Richard Jenkins, Zoe Kazan
Created by
Jane Anderson (teleplay), Elizabeth Strout (based on the novel by)
Few people outside of diehard HBO fans knew what Olive Kitteridge was before it swept the 67th Primetime Emmy’s with eight awards. Taking place over the course of four hour-long episodes, this miniseries concerns the life of retired schoolteacher Olive Kitteridge (Frances McDormand) and her husband, Henry (Richard Jenkins). As each episode of the show focuses on a different period of their lives, viewers get an up-close and personal look at the depression, jealousy, and family tension that comes to shape Olive and those around her. Fantastic acting from everyone billed, along with an incredibly tight narrative, make this one of the best four hours of TV available on all of HBO.
5 Seasons
Genre
Crime, Drama
Cast
Dominic West, Lance Reddick, Sonja Sohn
Created by
David Simon
Chances are incredibly high you’ve heard of the David Simon-produced crime drama The Wire and need little to sway you to watch an episode of what many call the greatest television show of all time. However, if you’ve yet to introduce yourself to the likes of Jimmy McNulty and Avon Barksdale, now is the perfect time. Set in Baltimore, The Wire is a fictionalized and highly realistic take on the relationship between the city’s drug culture, the law enforcement details tasked with cleaning it up, and everybody caught in the middle. Few shows feature such tight dialogue and storytelling as Simon’s opus, making The Wire must-watch television for anyone.
3 Seasons
Genre
Drama
Cast
Mahershala Ali, Stephen Dorff, Carmen Ejogo
Created by
Nic Pizzolatto
HBO’s crime anthology True Detective burst on the television scene in 2014, taking viewers on an especially dark and twisted ride with Matthew McConaughey and Woody Harrelson as the leads. Throughout eight hour-long episodes, writer Nic Pizzolatto and director Cary Fukunaga tell a harrowing tale of murder, deception, and the polarity of religion and logic. This certainly isn’t the first show to play with these thematic elements, but few programs consistently hit on all cylinders as True Detective did during its first season. Although season 2 didn’t quite live up to the first, Mahershala Ali (Moonlight) is a tour de force in the third season.
6 Seasons
Genre
Drama
Cast
James Gandolfini, Edie Falco, Jamie-Lynn Sigler
Created by
David Chase
Few television series have garnered as much critical buzz as David Chase’s The Sopranos, which aired on HBO from 1999 to 2007. During its impressive six-season run, the show consistently saw stage time during award shows, bagging 21 Primetime Emmy Awards, five Golden Globes, and two Peabody Awards. Needless to say, Chase and his crew knew a thing or two about producing high-quality television. The late James Gandolfini stars as Tony Soprano, an underboss for a notorious New Jersey-based crime family who consistently battles managing his home life and his workload. Edie Falco, Michael Imperioli, and Lorraine Bracco costar in this gritty series that somehow managed to humanize the mafia.
5 Seasons
Genre
Crime, Drama
Cast
Steve Buscemi, Stephen Graham, Vincent Piazza
Created by
Terence Winter
Created and produced by Terence Winter (The Sopranos, The Wolf of Wall Street), Boardwalk Empire tells the story of Prohibition-era Atlantic City, New Jersey, and the crooks who came to power during this time. Starring Steve Buscemi as Nucky Thompson (based on real-life politician Enoch L. Johnson), the show depicts Thompson’s rise and his dealings with the city’s mobsters and criminal underbelly, as well as government agents and townsfolk. The show, based on the Nelson Johnson book of the same name, features several real-life historical figures during each of its five seasons (Al Capone, Lucky Luciano, Arnold Rothstein, etc.), and paints a near-accurate portrait of what New Jersey was like in the 1920s and ’30s.
1 Season
Genre
Drama, Mystery, Crime
Cast
Amy Adams, Patricia Clarkson, Chris Messina, Eliza Scanlen, Matt Craven
Created by
Marti Noxon
Sharp Objects, a miniseries based on Gillian Flynn’s best-selling novel of the same name, is the best kind of slow burn. The eight-episode drama stars Amy Adams (Arrival, Enchanted) as Camille Parker, a distraught reporter who has recently been discharged from a psychiatric hospital and sent to her hometown of Wind Gap, Missouri, to cover the murder of two young girls. She is welcomed back with less-than-open arms by her mother, Adora (Patricia Clarkson), who forces her to confront some of her personal demons. As Camille searches for answers to these brutal murders, she uncovers things from her past that she had tried to forget, resulting in a narrative that’s as grim as it is mesmerizing.
2 Seasons
Genre
Comedy, Sci-Fi & Fantasy
Cast
Terence Nance, Dominique Fishback, Tonya Pinkins
Created by
Terence Nance
Created by the daring Terence Nance, Random Acts of Flyness is a show that tackles issues of sexuality, white supremacy, and the patriarchy through short, thought-provoking sketches. “We definitely try and not to have creative no-go zones,” said Nance. “What I’m most excited about in the show is how much we engage with the irresolute.” The series is a visual and audio experience unlike anything before, which, given Nance’s avant-garde approach to Sundance hit An Oversimplification of Her Beauty, isn’t particularly surprising.
2 Seasons
Genre
Comedy, Drama
Cast
Jonathan Groff, Frankie J. Alvarez, Murray Bartlett
Created by
Michael Lannan
Although it ran for only two seasons (there was also a subsequent movie), Looking burned brightly, garnering praise from critics and love from a small but enthusiastic audience. Looking is a slice-of-life series about three gay men living in San Francisco: Game designer Patrick (Jonathan Groff), artist’s assistant Agustín (Frankie J. Alvarez), and waiter Dom (Murray Bartlett). Each of the protagonists — all of them in their late 20s or 30s — struggles with the fact that their lives haven’t turned out quite how they’ve expected. They’re disappointed with their sputtering careers and their love lives (or lack thereof), and that sense of millennial ennui runs through the show. That doesn’t mean Looking is dreary, however. As in real life, drama and laughter go hand in hand, and the characters have plenty of heartwarming moments to balance out the melancholy.
6 Seasons
Genre
Comedy
Cast
Thomas Middleditch, Zach Woods, Kumail Nanjiani
Created by
Mike Judge, Alec Berg, John Altschuler, Dave Krinsky
From the brilliant mind of Mike Judge — of Beavis and Butthead and King of the Hill fame — comes Silicon Valley, a comedic take on the startup culture taking place in the show’s namesake region. According to Judge, the series is pseudo-inspired by events that occurred in his own life during the late ’80s while he was an engineer in Silicon Valley. The show itself follows a motley crew of programmers and entrepreneurs struggling (albeit comically) to make it in the competitive world of tech startups. Perhaps most hilarious is just how unfit for success many of the main characters seem, which gives the show a rather humanizing angle not often achieved with modern sitcoms. Even though it ended its run at the end of 2019, Silicon Valley’s sharp writing still holds up, and the acting is witty and well-timed, making this not just one of HBO’s best comedies, but one of the best shows the network has to offer.
2 Seasons
Genre
Comedy
Cast
Jemaine Clement, Bret McKenzie, Rhys Darby, Kristen Schaal
Created by
James Bobin, Jemaine Clement, Bret McKenzie
Bret McKenzie and Jemaine Clement’s comedy troupe first began when the duo roomed together in 1998 at the Victoria University of Wellington in New Zealand, but it didn’t officially burst onto the scene until the mid-2000s. After developing a bit of a following in their native country in the early aughts, Bret and Jemaine caught the attention of HBO, which signed them up to bring their comedy band schtick to premium cable. After creating Flight of the Conchords — Bret and Jemaine’s fictional folk band — the duo moves to New York City intent on finding fame and fortune. Much to their chagrin, fame and fortune always seem just outside their reach. The Conchords play original “folk” songs throughout each episode, which, in turn, incite some of the show’s best laughs. After watching these bumbling New Zealanders try to make it big, you can’t help but hum their tunes in your head.
6 Seasons
Genre
Comedy, Drama
Cast
Lena Dunham, Allison Williams, Zosia Mamet
Created by
Lena Dunham
Girls, a dramedy created by and starring Lena Dunham, delves into the daily experiences of a group of twenty-something young women living in New York City. Culled from actual experiences in Dunham’s own life, the show often deals with humiliating and disastrous events centering on becoming an adult, relationships, and sexuality. In addition to Dunham, Girls features outstanding performances from Adam Driver, Allison Williams, Jemima Kirk, and Zosia Mamet, each of whom battle being young (and dumb) while trying to figure out just what the hell being an adult means. You’d be hard-pressed to find many other shows that provide as real — and funny — a portrayal of human interaction and emerging adulthood as Girls.
4 Seasons
Genre
Comedy
Cast
Ben Sinclair
Created by
Ben Sinclair, Katja Blichfeld
This free-form web series was so successful and hilarious that HBO picked it up in 2016 and ordered six episodes, while also adding the first six seasons to its streaming platforms. Co-creators (and married couple) Katja Blichfeld and Ben Sinclair provide pre-episode commentary, often alongside guest actors who appeared in the episode. Sinclair stars as The Guy, a New York City-based bicycle messenger who delivers marijuana all over the boroughs. The real star of the show, though, is the rotating cast of customers who call The Guy looking for some pot. High Maintenance doesn’t always conform to the typical 30-minute episode format, either, though each story is crafted with a beginning, middle, and end, even if it takes as few as six minutes. The well-crafted set includes tons of little details that you might miss on the first watch, but you’ll notice more and more with each viewing. The show also takes an objective stance toward the drug that drives its storylines, avoiding stereotypes while simultaneously creating memorable characters that you can’t help but love (and hate).
7 Seasons
Genre
Comedy
Cast
Julia Louis-Dreyfus, Anna Chlumsky, Tony Hale
Created by
Armando Iannucci
Seinfeld alum Julia Louis-Dreyfus stars in this political satire about a female vice president and her attempts to make a lasting impression on the United States without getting swept up by politics. Joining Louis-Dreyfus on screen is the hilarious Tony Hale, who plays the VP’s ultra-obedient personal assistant, Gary. With sharp, witty writing, brilliant acting, and handfuls of laugh-out-loud moments during each episode, Veep is one of the best comedies HBO has to offer. We recommend hopping on board with this show sooner rather than later, as this is political comedy at its finest.
1 Season
Genre
Documentary
Cast
Robert Durst, Andrew Jarecki, Marc Smerling
Created by
Andrew Jarecki
For more than 30 years, real estate icon Robert Durst systematically dodged a series of murder allegations and pointed fingers for the disappearances of his wife, his best friend, and one of his neighbors. After seeing a Ryan Gosling-starring movie loosely based on his life reach the silver screen (All Good Things), the defiant Durst decided to reach out to the film’s director (Andrew Jarecki) and offer an exclusive interview. Over several sit-downs and multiple years of cooperation with Jarecki and HBO’s production crew, a six-episode miniseries was commissioned to tell Durst’s side of the story. For fans of the podcast Serial and murder mysteries in general, The Jinx is a terrific piece of storytelling and filmmaking that is sure to leave your jaw on the ground once the credits roll on its final episode.
8 Seasons
Genre
Talk, Comedy, News
Cast
John Oliver, David Kaye
Created by
John Oliver
Though classified as a satirical news show, Last Week Tonight with John Oliver airs some of the most honest and hard-hitting satirical journalism of any network television program. Each week, comedian and former The Daily Show correspondent John Oliver tackles the prior week’s most newsworthy or political happenings and deconstructs them with his signature wit (and British accent). Chock full of hilarious analogies, spot-on critique, and tight, fluid writing, Oliver’s weekly program consistently feels fresh and is, oftentimes, incredibly informative. Whether it’s the bribery scandal that rocked FIFA or the troubled system of standardized tests, there’s no topic Oliver won’t cover and subsequently shred to pieces.
1 Season
Genre
Drama
Cast
Jared Harris, Stellan Skarsgård, Emily Watson
Created by
Craig Mazin
It’s commonplace to hear something along the lines of “the first step to solving a problem is acknowledging it exists.” To see this proven true on a scale that costs still untold numbers of lives, watch HBO’s Chernobyl. Three decades after the events that some say marked the beginning of the end for the Soviet Union, this chilling mini-series unveils not only the science behind the chain of events leading to the Chernobyl disaster but the lengths to which the USSR went to keep the accident a secret and the monstrous scope of the cost. With a worthy cast including Stellan Skarsgård and Jared Harris, Chernobyl is a revealing picture of hell on Earth and the criminal neglect that creates it.
5 Seasons
Genre
Drama
Cast
Peter Krause, Michael C. Hall, Frances Conroy
Created by
Alan Ball
One of HBO’s very first original series remains one of its best. Premiering in 2001, Six Feet Under opens with the death of the Fisher family patriarch, Nathaniel (Richard Jenkins), prompting the return of his wayward son Nate (Peter Krause). Running a funeral home, the Fisher family is both uniquely capable and incapable of weathering the death of Nathaniel, and he continues to appear throughout the series in visions. Often funny, sometimes sexy, and always confronting difficult truths, Six Feet Under is a brilliant drama dealing with the one place we’re all going, and simultaneously the one place we’re unwilling to talk about.
3 Seasons
Genre
Western, Crime
Cast
Timothy Olyphant, Ian McShane, Molly Parker
Created by
David Milch
It will be a freezing day in a hot place before another Western series comes along equal to HBO’s Deadwood. David Milch’s frontier drama about a lawless camp that grows to become a part of the annexed South Dakota territory has its shoot-outs, but its focus is the lives of the townsfolk — from prostitute to doctor, from sheriff to petty crook. While in the beginning, you might think it will be the adventures of the noble Seth Bullock (Timothy Olyphant) that will occupy most of the show, the true beacon is Ian McShane as the poetically profane saloon owner and crime boss Al Swearengen. There is an intense Shakespearean quality to Swearengen, whose sometimes feverish monologues make him appear as much a Hamlet as he is a Tony Soprano. The rest of the ensemble shouldn’t be forgotten, including the alcoholic doctor played by Brad Dourif, William Sanderson as the hilariously treacherous E.B. Farnum, and Paula Malcomson as the fiery prostitute Trixie.
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