The Top 20 HBO Shows Of All Time, Ranked

Sure, maybe the streaming service is officially called Max now, but we are always going to call it HBO, and there is nothing you can do to stop us. Simply put, HBO has dominated Sunday nights for decades—it is the definition of water cooler TV. There was truly no better way to fend off the Sunday scaries than by impatiently waiting all day for that new episode of Game of Thrones or Succession. A lot is changing at HBO right now with the merger between WarnerMedia and Discovery Inc., we've seen projects such at Batgirl get scrapped and 20 HBO original programs that were made exclusively for HBO Max have been removed from the streaming service. While some are worried about how this might impact HBO's legacy going forward, that still doesn't change its over 50 years of history.

HBO initially launched in November 1972 across the United States, airing an NHL game to a mere 365 subscribers. It wasn’t until 1983 that the platform aired its first piece of original content, with programs like Not Necessarily the News, a satirical news show that isn’t too different from one of HBO’s modern staples, Last Week Tonight with John Oliver, and films like The Terry Fox Story. Since then, HBO has taken over entertainment television, creating a bevy of hit series that many consider to be the best of all time. If you really want to start a fun argument in the bullpen at your office or at the dinner table on a night out, ask the group which show is better, The Sopranos or The Wire. Each of these programs has a legitimate case for being the greatest TV series of all time and an equally passionate fan base that will argue why their respective favorite is the best until they are blue in the face. 

That is just a taste of what’s to follow, as the Complex staff attempted to do the impossible, and rank the top 20 HBO series of all time. There might not be a totally “right” answer here, but check out our entire ranking below. (Editor's Note: mini-series such as Chernoybl and Mare of Easttown were excluded from this list).

Seasons: 8

Entourage is so memorable because it made us all feel like we were a part of Hollywood, or at least it gave us a glimpse at what being one of the biggest movie stars in the world is like. We spend the show's entirety following Adrian Grenier, who plays Vincent Chase, and his closest friends from Queens who have made it big in Los Angeles. Chase and his core group of four friends (his half-brother, fellow actor Johnny Chase; his manager, Eric Murphy; and his assistant, Salvatore "Turtle" Assante) get the full Hollywood experience throughout Entourage's eight-season run, going through the highest of highs and the lowest of lows.

Vinny Chase stars in the highest-grossing movie of all time, Aquaman, he works in passion projects like Queens Boulevard, he gets kicked off sets, he dates movie stars, and he has his fair share of substance abuse issues. Simply put, Entourage probably could not be made (at least the same way) in 2023. I mean a lot of people's favorite character in the show, Jeremy Piven's Ari Gold, is racist and homophobic, and treats women terribly. But the Mark Wahlberg–created comedy-drama series had an enormous impact on pop culture. The cameo list was a mile long, from the likes of Kanye West and Bob Saget to Matt Damon and Scarlett Johansson. Each cameo played themselves in their own hilarious way and proved the power that Entourage had, pulling the biggest names in the industry to represent themselves in a show about the industry. Not to mention, there's also an Entourage movie with a laundry list of cameos — crammed into an hour and 45 minutes — almost as long as in the entire show's eight seasons. —Ben Felderstein 

Seasons: 6

Girls is a refreshing take on the “group of friends take on young adulthood” trope. Lena Dunham plays the main character, Hannah, who has a gritty determination to flail through life, and who is hard not to root for in most instances. The enduring power of Girls’ relevance is through the characters’ relatable malaise, confusion, and challenges of living out their 20s in a big city. Sex and the City this is not. In Episode 1, we hear Hannah tell her parents that she can’t see them anymore after getting cut off, with a simple explanation: “I’m busy trying to become who I am.” Girls is an intimate portrait of four women — friends Hannah, Marnie, Jess, and Shoshanna. 

With an indie sleaze soundtrack fit for the most hip hipsters in Williamsburg, we watch them go through weird relationships, hazardous career moves, searing heartbreaks, and lots of bad decision-making. The majority of the self-inflicted suffering comes with the girl’s inability to see all the ways they bend over backward for the men in their lives, how they abuse their friendships, and how they ignore the signs that point them to becoming healthy, actualized people. When you watch this with the context of having lived through your early and mid-20s, you realize how relatable it all actually is. Overall, Girls does a superb job at giving a rare insight into women with smart, raw, funny, and at times uncomfortably real dialogue and acting choices, and it wholly deserves a spot in the top HBO shows of all time. —Viviane Feldman

Seasons: 1

Traditionally, video game adaptations completely suck. And while it has only given us one season thus far, The Last of Us, based on the 2013 PlayStation 3 game, certainly bucks that trend in a big way. The first season follows Joel (Pedro Pascal) and Ellie (Bella Ramsey) as they journey across a post-apocalyptic United States, steering clear of clickers and bloaters, coping with the loss of loved ones, and forming a heartwarming father-daughter bond in the process. The zombie encounters are kept to a minimum, at least less than you may expect, but always deliver an adrenaline boost when they do occur. 

The suspense this creates is enough to keep you invested week after week, but the heart-wrenching moments weaved in between, like the stand-alone episode “Long, Long Time” and the fate of brothers Sam and Henry in Episode 5, are the show at its most captivating. There are some low points, like the flashback episode “Left Behind,” which seems like unnecessary filler so late into the season, but they are few and far between. If the show can keep delivering television on par with the first season, there’s a chance it climbs our ranking in the future. For now, it has to stay near the bottom, but this is a great watch, whether you’ve played through the classic video game or not. —Mike DeStefano

Seasons: 2

Writing about Euphoria just days after the passing of one of its most promising stars, Angus Cloud, feels unfair. There’s no telling whether the Sam Levinson–created show will continue without the young actor, but one thing will remain true — in just two seasons Euphoria has managed to define a generation and has portrayed the dangers and heaviness that come with addiction, which millions of teenagers are dealing with today. When Season 1 began, it was hard for me to find it believable because these characters' high school experiences were so dramatic and unlike my own, but after a few conversations I learned the show accurately represents what it is like for many. 

The show is also perhaps an exaggeration of that reality (and lightly inspired by its creator’s life), but that makes for incredibly provocative, over-the-top, and wildly entertaining television. The show became ratings gold for HBO; each episode had people plugged in every Sunday, and the series saw the most activity any show has ever had in the history of Twitter (now X). 

Euphoria also showed us a new layer to Zendaya’s talent. She became an Emmy winner thanks to her portrayal of Rue, which helped her shed her Disney Channel image and firmly planted her as someone who is on her way to becoming one of the most talented actors in the business. There’s no telling now what Cloud’s future would’ve been on the show and after it. An HBO casting director discovered Cloud in the streets of New York and recognized his natural ability to act. He seemed like he was well on his way to make his mark on Hollywood, and his character, Fez, became an instant favorite for Euphoria fans. The show now carries a hint of bitter sweetness for me: it is incredible TV, but if it continues it will be difficult to ignore the void Cloud will leave behind. —Karla Rodriguez

Seasons: 4

Danny McBride first hit the radar of fans on the big screen with memorable roles in movies like Pineapple Express and Tropic Thunder. It’s his trio of HBO series that have left the biggest mark on his career though. 

Vice Principals and, most recently, The Righteous Gemstones have introduced elements like suspense and humility to McBride’s shows, but Eastbound & Down — the one that started it all — would have none of that. It was pure, unabashed, unapologetic foolishness that shocked at times at the lengths it would go for a laugh. 

McBride starred as Kenny Powers, a former pro-baseball player with delusions of returning to prominence despite his current position as a substitute phys ed teacher at his hometown middle school. Powers speaks to the students as if they’re in a big league locker room, doesn’t know the gender of his niece (with whom he lives), and bullies his fellow staff members, most notably Steve Little’s role as Stevie Janowski. All the while Powers is trying to rekindle a past relationship with April Buchanon (Katy Mixon), who’s currently dating the school’s principal (Andy Daly as Terrence Cutler). 

Eastbound & Down featured many jokes that likely wouldn’t go over well in 2023, but they weren’t intended to be OK in 2009 either. No, Kenny Powers was not a good guy, and there was no pretense that he was supposed to be. But he sure was funny. —Zac Dubasik

Seasons: 5

Who knew that a show about death and loss could be so life affirming? Six Feet Under goes big by going small. This is not an epic drama like Game of Thrones, nor a globally impactful dystopian tale like The Last of Us, nor a Shakespearean study of a single, tragic antihero, like The Sopranos or Breaking Bad. This is an ensemble piece about the Fisher family, who runs a family-owned funeral home in Los Angeles, and the drama comes not from gutting plot twists or the blood-soaked narrative stakes, but from the painful, personal struggles and humiliations of everyday life.

The family patriarch dies in a car accident, and it leaves his family — wife, two sons, and one daughter — in an emotional lurch. They are all uniquely unprepared to deal with the loss — the wife, because she's been emotionally damaged since childhood, the eldest son, because he's been trying to avoid his family for years, and so on down the line. For five seasons, we watch how these characters deal with the fallout, and how it tangentially affects other key decisions in their lives. We learn that death is indifferent and inconvenient. It leaves unanswered questions and unresolved plotlines, and the survivors are left to pick up the pieces.

And so, it's a small irony that Six Feet Under's ending is so definitive. If you haven't watched this series, that's a key selling point to get you started: This show sticks the landing, and it nails what is widely considered one of the greatest series finales of all time. (Spoiler: You see numerous flash-forward scenes of all the major characters' deaths, and you see how all their lives ultimately turn out.) No subversions. No tricks. Just something beautiful, sad, and sweet, like the best eulogy a loved one could hope for.—Kevin Wong

Seasons: 2

Stop me when you’ve heard this before: an HBO series set in a stunning locale, centered around affluent characters and a mysterious death that unfolds throughout the season, leaving viewers speculating wildly on the internet each week. While The White Lotus shares similarities with unsatisfying HBO fodder like Big Little Lies, what separates Mike White’s show is it captivates not just with its mystery, but with its incisive, satirical examination of class and privilege.

Few shows had ever had such a nuanced take on inequality, mainly of wealth but also occasionally of gender and race. The show subtly underlines the social dynamics at play as it chastises an affluent airhead like Tanya McQuoid (Jennifer Coolidge) who manipulates a spa manager and her assistant. The romantic relationships on the show feel entirely predicated on who is the breadwinner and who comes from wealth. It’s not just the old and wealthy in the crosshairs either; characters like Season 1’s Olivia Mossbacher (Sydney Sweeney) and Season 2’s Albie Di Grasso (Adam DiMarco) represent the hollowness of performative activism among Gen Z. All the while, service workers clean up the mess after.

While the performances have garnered much acclaim, the true mastermind behind The White Lotus is Mike White. Not only did he create the show, but he also wrote and directed every episode, making it a true testament to his creative vision. —Insanul Ahmed

Seasons: 4

The premise of Barry lures you in with its perspective — a depressed veteran-turned-hitman wants to join an acting class. Bill Hader creates a shocking performance as the titular character splitting his worlds of sudden, merciless violence and the banality of a normal life. The irony of it all unfolds for viewers as Barry struggles through onstage. He is, of course, truly the best actor of his peers. Against the backdrop of sunny L.A., the supporting cast is filled with the characters that make this show a comedy with the blackest heart: struggling misfits, try-hards, and quirky bad guys. 

Anthony Carrigan particularly stands out as NoHo Hank, a people-pleasing gangster in the Chechen mafia and one of the antagonists in the series. Overall, Barry tells the story of a man who just wants to be seen as more than an assassin. He just wants to be seen, period. The critical acclaim of Barry cannot be discounted; the nominations went crazy, and for good reason. Stick with Barry because you won’t believe the path this show takes. This dark comedy becomes somehow bleaker in the fourth season, making the full scope of the twisted villain-with-a-hero-complex journey fold into itself. —Viviane Feldman

Seasons: 3

During its debut season, True Detective proved to be an unequivocal force, excelling in every possible way. Nic Pizzolatto’s anthology crime series brought Matthew McConaughey and Woody Harrelson together, weaving an intricately haunting narrative that transcended the boundaries of your traditional detective show.

Their onscreen chemistry (blessed by being real-life besties) paired with intense character dynamics elevated the show to extraordinary heights, leaving an indelible impact on viewers. At its peak, True Detective was the best television on offer: a complex framework and highly literary dialogue, moody and dark visuals that complemented the brooding tone of the series, an anthology format that lends itself to constant reinvention, and a killer title sequence.

This expectation of excellence and its succeeding seasons’ failure to meet that of the first is why this series isn’t higher up on the list, to my chagrin. Season 2 is forgettable and Season 3, while attempting to turn things around, falls short. 

Fortunately, not all hope is lost. This year, the long wait for a highly anticipated fourth season comes to an end. Promising a fresh new direction and a return to the glory of Season 1, the upcoming installment featuring Jodie Foster, and Kali Reis is poised to reignite the intrigue and excitement that made the series a true TV masterpiece. —Aia Adriano

Seasons: 6

Oz is an exploration of American masculinity, a critique of our broken prison system, and our nation's most effective anti-crime PSA, all rolled into one. 

The main common takeaway, throughout the entire series, is this: You do not, under any circumstances, want to serve time in Oz, the nickname for the Oswald State Correctional Facility. And you definitely don't want to spend time in Emerald City, an experimental unit of the prison that promises rehabilitation but inadvertently leads to more murders, rapes, and stabbings, thanks to the psychopaths behind bars, along with the psychopaths who are supposed to be watching them. The Oz guards are part and parcel to the prison's problem, and are either sympathetic to particular gangs or are gang members themselves.

The show's coolest, most interesting conceit is that whenever we meet a new character, we see a stylized flashback to the crime they committed, and we learn the length of their prison term and how long they must serve before their first parole hearing. This prison has every type of criminal — from the political prisoner, to the aging mob boss, to the petty gangbanger, to the professional safecracker, to the drunk driver who killed someone, to the serial killer who ate his victims.

The show eventually descended into a sort of self-parody; there was a prison riot at the end of Season 1, and for the next five seasons, the show's writers kept trying to top it, to diminishing results. And when Simon Adebisi died in Season 4, the show lost one of its best, most terrifying villains. But before its eventual, downward slide, Oz was groundbreaking, and it tested people's stomachs for unchecked violence and amoral behavior. —Kevin Wong

Seasons: 3

Imagine for just a minute that on one random morning 2 percent of the entire world just up and vanishes. You’re in your car and your baby disappears from their carseat, and drivers disappear from their cars on the highway. No one knows why — they just disappear. That is the story behind Damon Lindelof’s The Leftovers. But the most fascinating part of the show is that it is really about the 98 percent of people still left on Earth and how they continue on after the disappearance of what they call “the departed.” Much like another Lindelof-created show, Lost, The Leftovers leaves you with more questions than it does answers. If you’re looking to watch a show that presents you with a question or a problem and, by the time things wrap up, gives you a concrete answer and ties things up in a perfect bow, then The Leftovers is almost certainly not for you.

The series is anchored by its brilliant acting performances; Justin Theroux, Liv Tyler, and Ann Dowd shine, but Carrie Coon (who plays Nora Durst, someone whose husband and children departed) sits head and shoulders above the rest. The emotion, strength, and trauma she’s able to portray are both impressive and necessary for a character with as important of a story arc as she has. It might have a bit of a slow start, but once The Leftovers gets going, it never stops — and honestly, it is worth the ride for the “International Assassin'' episode alone. While the event in The Leftovers didn’t actually happen in our world, it is hard not to see ourselves in these humanly flawed characters, dealing with something that we simply cannot explain. In our post-pandemic reality, this show certainly carries more weight than it did at the time of its release. —Ben Felderstein

Seasons: 5

Issa Rae went from playing an awkward Black girl on YouTube to President Barbie in Barbie in record time. In between, she delivered Insecure, one of HBO’s most groundbreaking and generationally defining comedies. The show follows Issa Dee and her best friend Molly’s adventures as they deal with the realities of life as college-educated women in their late 20s and early 30s. The pilot started off with the main character rapping about Molly’s “Broken Pussy.” By Season 5, fans got to witness Issa and her circle of friends attempt to figure life out as well as a bevy of other cultural moments that were born out of the show — including and not limited to countless Mirror Bitch GIFs and memes of Issa holding a napkin over her eye after a particular sexual encounter went left. 

The show represented Black women in different facets of their personal and professional lives in ways that other HBO shows like Sex and the City and Girls didn’t. Everything from the music on the show to the fashion, the friendship struggles, and the cultural references made sense and fit authentically in the series. In one scene from Season 1, Issa’s fling Daniel gets her a bottle of Moscato because it’s something “Drake would drink.” She asks why he assumed she likes Drake and he says, “Every Black girl that went to college likes Drake,” to which she quickly replies, “He just really gets us.” Rae gave young Black women a voice through the easily relatable, multidimensional characters she created. They were all flawed and insecure in different ways, and Rae also gave them sexy, realistic, hilarious, normal, and aspirational lives that would not only entertain viewers, but that they could dissect and see themselves in week after week. 

Part of the appeal of Insecure is also that it wasn’t exclusively a show for women. While shows like Sex and the City and Girlfriends were reserved for women and men who may have occasionally watched with their girlfriends, Insecure was for everyone. So much so that it sparked a sort of battle of the sexes on Twitter. Men watched it unabashedly, proudly declaring they were Team Lawrence (Jay Ellis) and defending their brother-in-arms, who was down on his luck with his career putting a strain on his relationship with Issa. 

The final season of the series may have felt rushed, and fans (me) would not have been mad at an additional season. But during its short run the show made a massive impact, and the finale gave the characters the perfect ending they all deserved. The supporting cast is also outstanding, and the show introduced us to then-new talents like Natasha Rothwell, Yvonne Orji, and Kendrick Sampson — and we're all the better for it. The HBO series is (for some reason) now also available to stream on Netflix. So if you haven’t watched yet and don’t have Max, do yourself a favor and hit play. —Karla Rodriguez

Seasons: 7

HBO comedies always have a kernel of truth in the punchline, and Veep delivered the political humor we all needed. Julia Louis-Dreyfus’ character, Selina Meyer, was perfectly believable in modern politics, with her wild narcissism and her inept, self-centered staff. Constantly being ignored or falling flat on her face, Meyer embodied a “fake it till you make it” politician at a time when the U.S. government was heavily scrutinized 24/7 thanks to the rise of social media. 

And Meyer’s staff each brought another silly trope to her office, from Tony Hale as Gary, the walking doormat/bag carrier for Selena, to Matt Walsh as the career political failure Mike McLintock and Timothy Simons as the human punching bag Jonah. Louis-Dreyfus deservedly won six consecutive Emmy Awards for her portrayal of Selina Meyer and cemented this role right next to her other iconic character, Elaine from Seinfeld. Political satire rarely aligns with modern politics in such a succinct way, and Veep just kept getting better, almost as if the writers had the political script a year in advance. —Patrick Smith

Seasons: 7

True Blood, based on Charlaine Harris’ The Southern Vampire Mysteries novels, dropped in the fall of 2008. Capitalizing on the public’s fascination with vampires and the popularity of multiple book franchises, the HBO show “upstreamed” (to use a Curb Your Enthusiasm term) Twilight’s theatrical debut by roughly two months. But unlike the teen-friendly melodrama of that series, True Blood got the full HBO treatment with all the violence, nudity, and crude language that we pay extra for.

The show initially centered around the relationship of Sookie Stackhouse (Anna Paquin), a human with telepathic powers, and vampire Bill Compton (Stephen Moyer). It found depth, though, with a strong supporting cast, including fan-favorite Lafayette Reynolds (Nelsan Ellis), a relatively unknown Joe Manganiello as Alcide Herveaux, and breakout star Alexander Skarsgård (most recently featured in the later seasons of Succession) as Eric Northman. 

This wasn’t your average vampire tale though. Sure, many of the standard tropes of undead lore were there, but it was made more approachable with a healthy dose of humor and even politics. The public acceptance of “out” vampires was often used as a parallel to the gay rights issues of the time. It offered an unexpected dose of reality and allowed a show that was at times silly and shocking to also be poignant. 

As the series went on and more genres of supernatural creatures were introduced, True Blood failed to hold up to the high standards it set in the early days, but the fun almost always remained. —Zac Dubasik

Seasons: 11

Not many series could boast a successful 22-year run, but this sitcom is looking to surpass that with its forthcoming 12th season. From the mind of Larry David, Curb Your Enthusiasm follows a rather fictionalized version of its creator’s life. Each episode is laced with wacky, well-improvised scenarios that unfold onscreen in the most bizarre ways possible. 

The show’s essence lives within Larry’s whimsical personality and sense of humor. It doesn’t seek to teach the audience some profound life lesson but more-so serve as a masterclass on comedic timing and creative writing. With a long-time supporting cast that includes the likes of J.B. Smoove, Cheryl Hines, and Jeff Garlin, the chemistry between Larry David and his counterparts is something that’s been perfected throughout the years. 

Notable figures such as Melissa McCarthy, Wanda Sykes, and the cast of Seinfeld have appeared on the show. Even with its fair share of celebrity cameos (like many other HBO series), Curb Your Enthusiasm has never relied on star power to shine bright amongst its competition. The best things about this show are the exchanges its main character has with virtually everyone. Over 50 Emmy nominations prove this show’s formula to consistently produce top-tier television. It’s one of HBO’s best and absolutely deserves to be held in such high regard. As Larry would say, “It’s pretty, pretty, pretty good.” —Jermaine Dyson

Seasons: 6

Sex and the City simply stands in a class of its own. Similar to The Sopranos, SATC is the kind of show that withstands the test of time and gets better with every rewatch. The series debuted in 1998 and introduced four of the most recognizable characters in TV history — Carrie Bradshaw, Samantha Jones, Miranda Hobbes, and Charlotte York — and they began a trend of people identifying with each character to see which one they related to most. Carrie Bradshaw (Sarah Jessica Parker) became an icon and the inspiration for millions of girls, self included, to move to NYC to pursue a writing career. But she wasn’t the only one: Samantha, played perfectly by Kim Cattrall, became one of the best, most sex-positive, and daring TV characters of all time. 

The series was inspired by a column and series of books written by Candace Bushnell, and after six successful seasons, two movies followed as well as a 2022 spinoff, And Just Like That. The spinoff, with all its imperfections, has cemented the show’s impact and influence as it continues to have multiple generations tuned in nearly 20 years later to follow these women on their journeys in different facets of their lives. While Cattrall’s absence in the new show is deeply felt, they are also now attempting to correct the mistakes of the past by making this cast more diverse to reflect the real New York. Much of what was shown in SATC was unattainable for a lot of women, but that’s what made the show so rich and aspirational. 

Whether you loved or hated Carrie, or if you were Team Aidan or Team Mr. Big, a Charlotte or a Miranda, it all depended on where you were in your life when you watched it. Your experience of the show will continue to alter based on your age and your position at the time of each rewatch. The show is more of a window (and a mirror) into the minds of women than any show before it and since, and even if it largely targets straight women of a certain age, the show is a treat to anyone watching across all ages and genders. Regardless of its shortcomings, Sex and the City will go down in history as a feminist, fashion-forward, New York–loving show that united women far and wide, no matter their backgrounds, and inspired us all to dream big. —Karla Rodriguez

Seasons: 4

Succession is a show about a filthy-rich family’s fight for power and all of the lengths, no matter how terrible, they will go to get (or keep) it. It’s an incredible satire of the ultra wealthy that many people believe is a reference to News Corp founder Rupert Murdoch and his family. What makes Succession all the more interesting is that there really isn’t a protagonist to speak of. Sure, a lot of people felt for Kendall Roy as he clawed his way back from rock bottom. Others took a liking to Greg and Tom’s bromance. Logan Roy is such a dirtbag hell-bent on power and money that you almost start to cheer for it. We keep watching to see who will ultimately take Logan Roy’s spot. But when it comes down to it, all of these people are really shitty. 

But “shitty” certainly doesn’t describe Jesse Armstrong’s Succession, which was able to captivate us week after week for four seasons, thanks to this aforementioned power struggle for control of one of this fictional world’s most powerful media companies, Waystar Royco. The series is full of comedic moments that stick with you long after watching — Kendall’s “L to the OG” rap or an ATN campaign analyst screaming in pain when he gets lemon LaCroix in his eye during one of the series’ most tense moments. But the drama is what keeps Succession going and makes it must-watch TV. Every single season ends in the perfect crescendo (well, perfect for the viewer anyway — someone is always getting royally screwed over). That includes the series finale, a feat that many a beloved television series cannot say it’s done.

Even more impressive, Succession never relied on the usual nudity and violence that many of HBO’s programs are full of to keep us entertained. To some people, it’s just a boring show about the upper crust talking to each other in suits. And yes, I guess it is a lot of that, but what a disservice it is to boil it down to that. There is a reason that Season 4 resulted in 27 Emmy nominations and has people thinking it could sweep the big seven categories. While it has nothing to do with the show itself, we’d also be remiss not to shoutout Nicholas Britell’s incredible opening music (the best theme ever). Long live Logan Roy. —Mike DeStefano

Seasons: 8

Look, it is no secret that Game of Thrones had one of the most disappointing endings in the history of television. Seasons 7 and 8 felt rushed, David Benioff and D.B. Weiss abandoned what made GoT so great for so long, and frankly they pissed a whole hell of a lot of people (myself included) off in the process. But the sour taste that we’re left with does not undo the utter brilliance of the show’s first few seasons. It checks (and arguably heroes) all of HBO’s signature boxes, with an abundance of sex, violence, and captivating dialogue between its fascinating cast of characters. 

Adapted from George R.R. Martin’s A Song of Ice and Fire, Game of Thrones was ripe with everything that makes for a nearly perfect spectacle in the fantasy genre. The pop culture significance of the show is not to be scoffed at either, as we’ve seen Game of Thrones x Adidas Ultraboosts, a special edition Monopoly, Johnnie Walker in limited-edition packaging, and much more. And who can forget when HBO placed a number of actual thrones around the globe to celebrate the series’ final season? Thrones was water cooler television at its peak; if you missed Sunday night’s episode, you basically had to walk around the whole day with headphones on just to avoid spoilers. 

Thrones has the second-most Emmy wins of all time (59, behind Saturday Night Live’s 82) for a reason. On top of the actual show itself, its cast won a number of awards as well, highlighted by Peter Dinklage taking home the hardware for Outstanding Supporting Actor in a Drama Series four times between 2011 and 2019. Dinklage’s portrayal of the beloved Tyrion Lannister will certainly go down as one of the best in HBO’s history. —Ben Felderstein

Seasons: 5

Depending on the day, The Wire could’ve easily topped this list, and in general, most lists about the greatest TV shows of all time. Whether it’s the writing of the show, the cast of actors and Baltimore natives that played these iconic characters, or the cultural impact not only of the subject matter of the show, but also the countless quotes and memes that The Wire created, it goes without saying that this show was a masterpiece. The longevity of its story and cultural impact cemented it as number two on this list, and no one will fight you if you have it as number one on your own list. There’s not much more I can say that hasn’t already been written on the show, but if you haven’t seen it already, you should put it at the top of your list. I’ll leave you with my favorite quote and scene, both of which came from the late, great Michael K. Williams. Omar’s testimony in court perfectly encapsulates the beauty of the show, and he was never short on iconic quotes: “You come at the king, you best not miss.” —Patrick Smith

Seasons: 6

Sunday nights on HBO haven’t been the same since the screen went blank. And that’s saying a lot because the network has put together a string of hits (you scrolled through, didn’t you?) since The Sopranos went off the air. The legend of that fade-to-black final scene and what actually went down, and if it was effective, is still highly debated, but The Sopranos had no letdown seasons and minimal skips in its 86-episode tenure. 

Great shows are usually anchored by great characters, and James Gandolfini as Tony Soprano is the anti-hero anomaly that mixed brutally violent mob boss one minute with therapy-going, empathetic animal lover the next. Gandolfini ran point but the stellar award-winning supporting cast all had their moments: Carmella’s loyalty, Christopher and Paulie in the “Pine Barrens” episode, and even Artie Bucco was a sleeper favorite. 

Writer and creator David Chase flawlessly mixed dark comedy and hilarious wise-guy wit with ample twists and turns and the perfect amount of mafioso DNA that often included hard-to-watch, but can’t-look-away death scenes. The Sopranos is as binge-able as ever in 2023, but there was something special about families reheating the gravy and huddling around the TV at 9 p.m. on Sundays. The show set the standard for the coveted HBO primetime spot where iconic shows like The Wire, Game of Thrones, and, more recently, Succession all followed. You can argue its place on this list, but just remember that without The Sopranos there is no list. —Joe La Puma