These Are The Best HBO Shows Ever Made

HBO has been the home of many stand out TV series over the years and is often seen as central to the Golden Age of Television. Some of the best HBO shows ever made include Game Of Thrones, True Detective and Westworld. 

How many of the best HBO shows ever made have you seen before?

Curb Your Enthusiasm

Where to watch: HBO
Created by: Larry David
Genre: Improvisational Dark Comedy
Release Date (UK): 15th October 2000

The sitcom Curb Your Enthusiasm was created by Larry David, who also stars in it as a fictionalised version of himself. It tracks David's life in Los Angeles and, for one season, New York City as a semi-retired TV writer and producer. Also starring are Cheryl Hines as his wife Cheryl, Jeff Garlin as his manager and best friend Jeff Greene, Susie Essman as Jeff's wife Susie, and J.B. Smoove as his house mate Leon Black.

It regularly has celebrity cameos, including Ted Danson, Richard Lewis, Wanda Sykes, Rosie O'Donnell, and Jon Hamm, each of whom play fictionalised versions of themselves.

David co-created Seinfeld, and his humour frequently hinges on the inanities of everyday life.

The Wire

Where to watch: HBO
Created by: David Simon
Genre: Crime Drama
Release Date (UK): 2nd June 2002 – 9th March 2008

Author and former police reporter David Simon is the creator and main writer of The Wire. The Wire had 60 episodes over five seasons when it finished on 9th March 9, 2008. The original concept for the show was a police drama that was partially based on Ed Burns' experiences as a former murder investigator and public school teacher.

Each season of The Wire, which is set and produced in Baltimore, Maryland, introduces a new institution of the city and how it relates to law enforcement while maintaining characters and moving the plot along.

Numerous real-life individuals from Baltimore and Maryland appear in guest and recurrent roles along with actors who, at the time, were not well recognised for their other roles. Nevertheless cast members have gone on to become well known names including Dominic West, Idris Elba, John Doman and Larry Gillard. Jr. 

Succession

Where to watch: HBO
Created by: Jesse Armstrong
Genre: Black Comedy Drama
Release Date (UK): 3rd June 2018

Jesse Armstrong is the creator of Succession. The fourth season of the show has been ordered, and it will premiere in the spring of 2023. Cast members include Hiam Abbass, Nicholas Braun, Brian Cox, Kieran Culkin, Alan Ruck, Sarah Snook, Jeremy Strong and Peter Freidman.

Succession focusses on The Roy family, who run the media company Waystar RoyCo. Logan Roy (Cox), the patriarch of the family, is getting less well. His four children, who have varying degrees of connection to the business, include his estranged eldest son Connor (Ruck), Kendall (Strong), Roman (Culkin), and Shiv (Snook). They start to get ready for life without their father and begin competing for positions of authority within the company.

The Sopranos

Where to watch: HBO
Created by: David Chase
Genre: Crime Drama
Release Date (UK): 10th January 1999 - 10th June 2007

David Chase is the creator of the American criminal drama television series The Sopranos. The main protagonist of the story is New Jersey-based Italian-American mobster Tony Soprano (James Gandolfini), who struggles to strike a balance between his family life and his position as the head of a criminal organisation. This is discussed I n his counselling sessions with psychologist Jennifer Melfi (Lorraine Bracco). The series prominently involves members of Tony's family, mafia associates, and rivals—most notably his wife Carmela (Edie Falco) and his protégé and cousin Christopher Moltisanti (Michael Imperioli).

The pilot for The Sopranos was ordered in 1997 and the series began on the 10th January 1999. Finishing on the 10th of June 10 2007, the show had 86 episodes in six seasons.

Chernobyl

Where to watch: HBO/Sky Atlantic
Created by: Craig Mazin
Genre: Historical Drama
Release Date (UK): 7th May 2019

Craig Mazin is the creator and screenwriter of Chernobyl. Stellan Skarsgrd, Emily Watson, Paul Ritter, and Jared Harris are among the ensemble cast.

Dramatising the April 1986 nuclear plant disaster, Chernobyl tells the stories of those who were involved in the catastrophe and those who contributed in its relief. The show highlights some of the less well-known events surrounding the tragedy, such as the efforts of the firefighters who arrived on the scene immediately, volunteers, and groups of miners who excavated a crucial tunnel beneath Reactor 4.

The miniseries is mostly based on the memories of Pripyat locals as described in the book Voices from Chernobyl by Belarusian Nobel laureate Svetlana Alexievich.

Rome

Where to watch: HBO/BBC Two
Created by: John Milius, William J. MacDonald. Bruno Heller
Genre: Historical Drama
Release Date (UK): 28th August 2005

Bruno Heller, William J. MacDonald, and John Milius are the writers of the historical drama Rome.  The main characters are two soldiers named Lucius Vorenus and Titus Pullo (fictionalised versions of a pair of Roman soldiers referenced in Caesar's Commentarii de Bello Gallico), whose lives become intertwined with significant events in history. Other characters are based on actual individuals from historical records.

The first season follows Julius Caesar's rise to power as dictator of Rome until his assassination on 15 March 44 BC. We also see the early years of the young Octavian, who will eventually become Augustus, the first Emperor of Rome.

True Detective

Where to watch: HBO
Created by: Nic Pizzolatto
Genre: Crime Drama
Release Date (UK): 12th January 2004

Nic Pizzolatto is the creator and writer of True Detective. The show is organised into 3 seasons, each of which follows a different cast and characters in a different setting.

The first season is set in Louisiana and follows two investigators from the Louisiana State Police as they spend 17 years hunting for a serial killer with occult connections. The second season, which debuted in 2015, is set in California and focuses on three investigators from three cooperating police departments and a former criminal-turned-entrepreneur as they look into a string of crimes they think are connected to the murder of a dishonest politician.

Television critics praised the first season of True Detective extensively, with some listing it among the best drama of the year. Cast members include Matthew McConaughey, Woody Harrelson, Colin Farrell, Rachel McAdams, Mahershala Ali and Vince Vaughn.

Game Of Thrones

Where to watch: HBO
Created by: George R. R. Martin, David Benioff. D. B. Weiss
Genre: Fantasy
Release Date (UK): 17th April 2011

American fantasy series Game of Thrones was developed by David Benioff and D. B. Weiss for HBO. It is an adaptation of George R. R. Martin's epic novel series A Song of Ice and Fire, the first of which is A Game of Thrones. The show was filmed in Spain, Malta, Morocco, Croatia, Iceland, Canada, and the UK.

Game of Thrones boasts a large ensemble cast and follows numerous narrative arcs. It is set on the mythical continents of Westeros and Essos. The first major arc focuses on the Seven Kingdoms of Westeros' Iron Crown through a tangle of political disputes amongst the noble houses that are either seeking for the throne or for independence.

According to estimates, Game of Thrones has the largest television cast. By the show's final season, five of the main cast members were among the best paid television actors, earning $1 million per episode. Cast members include Sean Bean, Sophie Turner, Maisie Williams, Lena Headey, Aiden Gillen, Peter Dinklage and Kit Harrington.

Westworld

Where to watch: HBO
Created by: Jonathan Nolan, Lisa Joy and Michael Crichton
Genre: Dystopian Drama
Release Date (UK): 2nd October 2016

Jonathan Nolan and Lisa Joy are the creators of the HBO television series Westworld, a dystopian science fiction western. It is based on Michael Crichton's 1973 film of the same name, which he wrote and directed, and to a lesser extent, on Futureworld, its 1976 sequel.

The story is set in Westworld, a fictional amusement park with a Wild West theme that uses cutting-edge technology and is populated by artificial "hosts." High-paying visitors can engage in their wildest desires without worrying about punishment from the hosts, who are forbidden from injuring people by their programming. As the series continues, the setting is expanded to the real world in the middle of the twenty-first century, where Rehoboam, a potent artificial intelligence, governs and directs people's lives.

Evan Rachel Wood, Thandiwe Newton, Jeffrey Wright, James Marsden, and Luke Hemsworth are among the cast members.

Deadwood

Where to watch: HBO
Created by: David Milch
Genre: Period Western
Release Date (UK): 21st March 2004

Over the course of three seasons and 36 episodes, HBO broadcast the American Western series Deadwood from March 2004 to August 2006. The series follows the development of Deadwood from a camp to a town in the 1870s in Deadwood, South Dakota, both before and after the region was annexed by the Dakota Territory.

Timothy Olyphant and Ian McShane, who play the real-life Deadwood residents Seth Bullock and Al Swearengen, respectively, are among the show's large ensemble cast. George Crook, Wyatt Earp, E. B. Farnum, George Hearst, Wild Bill Hickok, Calamity Jane, Sol Star, A. W. Merrick, Jack McCall, and Charlie Utter are just a few of the other historical individuals who play characters.

These characters' stories contain both significant fictional elements and historical truths. Milch based the show's plot, characters, and aesthetic decisions on the genuine journals and newspapers kept by Deadwood residents in the 1870s.

HBO has set the bar high for television programming with their exceptional original series. From the crime-ridden streets of Baltimore in The Wire to the mythical land of Westeros in Game of Thrones, HBO has consistently delivered ground-breaking shows that captivate audiences with their compelling storytelling and remarkable performances. The top picks for the best HBO shows ever made are a testament to the platform's commitment to producing exceptional content that not only entertains but also challenges viewers. 

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