HBO Max may not have the shine it once did, but the streaming service (previously just Max) is still home to some of the best TV shows of the past 25 years, from The Sopranos and The Wire to Game of Thrones and The Leftovers.
Whether you’re a longtime fan of the “it’s not TV” cable network or an HBO Max newbie trying to figure out where to start, the shows below should give you plenty upon which to feast your eyes.
Looking for more recommendations? Head to WIRED’s guide to the best TV shows on Netflix, the best TV shows on Amazon Prime, the best TV shows on Disney+, and the best TV shows on Hulu.
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Mad Men
Nearly 20 years after its original premiere, Mad Men is making headlines all over again with its arrival on HBO Max. While it’s likely you’ve already seen and loved the series, which is regularly cited as one of the best TV shows of all time, all seven seasons of the 1960s-set show have been remastered in 4K for the first time ever. This actually turned out to be a bit of a bad thing, as viewers began noticing a number of visible production errors that had slipped past the editing phase, including an on-screen vomit machine. Even so, Matthew Weiner’s Emmy-winning ode to the men and (perhaps more importantly) women who turned advertising into an art form continues to dazzle. Sexism and puke machines be damned.
Heated Rivalry
If the title of this Canadian sports drama doesn’t ring a bell, maybe this will: Gay Hockey Show. Letterkenny cocreator Jacob Tierney is the man behind this adaptation of Rachel Reid’s Game Changers book series. It follows the lives and careers of two star hockey players who, since the start of their careers, have also been painted as arch rivals. In reality, Ottawa-born Shane Hollander (Hudson Williams) and Russian star Ilya Rozanov (Connor Storrie) have been carrying on a passionate romance for several years. While it would be easy to make a surface-level series based on the now-viral storyline, Heated Rivalry’s popularity is well deserved. Between the superb performances of its lead actors, and the nuanced treatment of its subject matter, the series scores on all levels.
I Love LA
It has been just five years since Rachel Sennott broke out in Emma Seligman’s dark comedy Shiva Baby, and she is not squandering any opportunity. With I Love LA, Sennott is in charge as the creator, writer, and star of this LA-set Hollywood comedy. Maia (Sennott) is an aspiring talent manager who, on her 27th birthday, manages to gather the courage to ask her boss Alyssa (Leighton Meester) for a promotion. While the answer is no, Maia tells her friends and boyfriend (Josh Hutcherson) otherwise, then hatches a plan to take her career to the next level.
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