Best HBO Original Series

Created by Alec Berg and comedian Bill Hader, “Barry” stars Hader as a Midwestern hit man who takes up acting while in California. The series first season holds a 99% freshness rating on Rotten Tomatoes, and its second season currently has a perfect 100%. The dark comedy was renewed for a third season this past April.

“Big Little Lies” tells the story of three women who find themselves wrapped up in a murder investigation. The show — which features talent such as Reese Witherspoon, Nicole Kidman, and Laura Dern — has won four Golden Globe awards and eight Primetime Emmys, despite only airing for one season thus far.

Musical comedy “Flight of the Conchords” stars Jemaine Clement and Bret McKenzie as a two-man band from New Zealand seeking success in New York City. The two-season series has a perfect audience score on Rotten Tomatoes.

A miniseries co-produced by the BBC and HBO, “Extras” ran for two seasons and won one Emmy Award in 2007 for Ricky Gervais for Outstanding Lead Actor in a Comedy Series. Gervais plays an ambitious actor who can only manage roles as an extra and is repeatedly thwarted in his attempts to boost his career.

This heart-pounding documentary miniseries explores the life of real estate heir and murder suspect Robert Durst. The show — which consisted of only six episodes — won two Primetime Emmy awards, including Outstanding Documentary or Nonfiction Series.

Created by Oscar-winner Alan Ball, “Six Feet Under” follows a Los Angeles family who operates a funeral home. Among the many awards the show won are nine Emmys and three Golden Globes.

“Westworld,” not to be confused with the 1973 movie of the same name, is a futuristic miniseries about a world where all indulgences are experienced without consequence, no matter what they are, as they are experienced in a robot environment. The series has been renewed for a third season in 2020. The star-studded cast includes Anthony Hopkins, Evan Rachel Wood, and Ed Harris

This series that takes a look at the seedier side of ’70s and’ 80s New York City has found much critical success in its mere two seasons with a 96% freshness rating on Rotten Tomatoes. The drama, created by the duo responsible for “The Wire,” will air for a third and final season.

“Boardwalk Empire” is the story of how Prohibition accelerated the blood-soaked rise of criminal empires in America. The show is set in Atlantic City during the 1920s. Steve Buscemi plays “Nucky” Thompson, the city’s treasurer and a gangster in his own right. In five seasons, the series won 20 Emmy Awards and was nominated 57 times.

This four-hour miniseries from 2014 is based on the Pulitzer Prize-winning novel “Olive Kitteridge” by Elizabeth Strout. Starring actress Frances McDormand, the show won eight Emmy Awards, including Outstanding Lead Actress for McDormand.

“John Adams” was based on historian David McCullough’s Pulitzer Prize-winning book of the same name about the nation’s second president. The series won 13 Emmy Awards in its only season in 2008, more than any other miniseries in history. Paul Giamatti plays Adams, one of America’s more overlooked chief executives, who played an important role in America’s first 50 years.

This eight-episode miniseries follows the trials of Nasir ‘Naz’ Khan — played by Riz Ahmed — after waking up next to the woman he partied with to find her stabbed to death. The show won eight Emmy Awards, including one for Outstanding Lead Actor for Ahmed’s performance.

A winner of eight Emmy Awards, “The Pacific” is an oftentimes harrowing 10-episode series that aired in 2010 about the true stories of three Marines fighting the Japanese in the Pacific theater during World War II. Jon Seda plays Sgt. John Basilone, who won the Medal of Honor during the battle for Guadalcanal. The series is based on Stephen E. Ambrose’s best-seller and was executive-produced by Steven Spielberg and Tom Hanks.

Western drama “Deadwood” ran for three seasons beginning in 2004. While the series had a rather unceremonious ending, a two-hour movie revival is scheduled for this year.

“Last Week Tonight with John Oliver” is a late night satire news show hosted by former “Daily Show” correspondent John Oliver. Oliver’s original contract with HBO was for two years and offered him “complete creative freedom.” The show has since aired for six seasons and won 12 Emmy Awards.

Set in the final days of the Roman Republic, “Rome” includes portrayals of historical figures such as Mark Antony, Cicero, and Julius Caesar. The show received seven Emmy Awards over its two-year run and was nominated for a Golden Globe for Best Drama Television Series.

“Treme” is another popular series co-created by David Simon of “The Wire” fame. The show follows the lives of New Orleans residents in the aftermath of Hurricane Katrina, including numerous musicians. It currently holds a 96% freshness rating on Rotten Tomatoes.

An adaptation of author George R.R. Martin’s “A Song of Ice and Fire” book series, “Game of Thrones” is the latest major smash hit from HBO. The fantasy series won an impressive 47 Emmy Awards over its eight seasons, for elements ranging from acting to costumes to visual effects. The show has had such a cultural impact that thousands of people have named their children after its characters, such as Arya and Khaleesi.

“Generation Kill,” which aired in 2008 for seven episodes, won three Emmy Awards. The series tells the story of the first 40 days of the war in Iraq through the eyes of an elite team of Marines as they grapple with inadequate supplies and poor communication. Swedish actor Alexander Skarsgård (“Big Little Lies”) plays a Marine sergeant, and the role boosted his career.

Investigations take their toll on police officers in “True Detective.” The series, created by Nic Pizzolatto, premiered in 2014 and is in its third season. Each season has eight episodes, and each season has a new investigation and cast. Among those appearing in the series are Matthew McConaughey, Woody Harrelson, Vince Vaughn, Colin Farrell, and Mahershala Ali. McConaughey and Ali have won Academy Awards.

Aired in 2003, the miniseries is based on Tony Kushner’s Pulitzer Prize-winning play on Broadway that tells the stories of New Yorkers impacted by the AIDS scourge in the 1980s. The series was directed by Mike Nichols (“The Graduate”) and starred such acting luminaries as Meryl Streep, Emma Thompson, and Al Pacino. The series would win 11 Emmy Awards in 2004, at the time the most for any series in one year.

Creator and star Larry David’s whine fest — about an oafish East Coast transplant who has decamped to Los Angeles — has run for nine seasons and has been renewed for a 10th. Cheryl Hines, Jeff Garlin, and J.B. Smoove will all return.

The sometimes-searing war drama that ran in 2001 follows the experiences of Easy Company as they fight their way across France, liberating villages and eventually death camps. The series was based on the book of the same name by noted historian Stephen E. Ambrose. Among those appearing in the series were Damian Lewis (“Homeland”), Michael Fassbender (“Steve Jobs”), and Donnie Wahlberg (“Blue Bloods”).

The gritty 60-episode series that ran from 2002 to 2008 tells the story of the mean streets of West Baltimore through the lives of drug sellers, police, government bureaucrats, and the news media. Entertainment news site Vulture called “The Wire” the “greatest drama of the past 25 years.”

The drama that ran for six seasons, centering around the home and “business” life of a fictional New Jersey organized crime boss (James Gandolfini), is considered among the greatest television series in history. “The Sopranos” won 21 Primetime Emmy Awards out of 111 nominations. In 2004, it became the first cable network show to win an Emmy for outstanding drama.