The top 7 best HBO Max shows
by John CallahamYour guide
HBO Max is launching today on various platforms. The streaming service will not only have the many award-winning TV series from HBO with a number of other shows available just for the service. But which of the HBO Max shows are the best ones to stream and watch today?
Here are our picks for the best HBO Max shows that are currently available on the streaming service. We have combined the shows that are available on HBO with the ones available exclusively on HBO Max. You can sign up for the new streaming service at the link below:
Best HBO Max shows
1. Doctor Who (2005)
The BBC took a huge risk by reviving its once-popular sci-fi TV show in 2005. In retrospect, it wasn’t that big of a risk after all. Russel T Davies took the best from the original show, about a time and space traveling alien who fights evil, and added a ton of humanity and pathos. It’s a worthy addition to the exclusive HBO Max TV shows, and US audiences can finally stream the most recent seasons starring the current Doctor, played by Jodie Whittaker. It’s definitely one of the best HBO Max shows.
2. Friends
What can be said about this 1990s sitcom that hasn’t been said already? Well, we can try. Friends remains on top of the pop culture zeitgeist for one main reason; it’s still funny to watch. The misadventures of Joey, Chandler, Ross, Pheobe, Rachel, and Monica in New York City may not be realistic, but they are highly entertaining. Stay tuned as HBO Max plans to drop a Friends reunion special at some point.
3. The Big Bang Theory
It’s hard to believe that this show has not appeared on a premium streaming service before it became part of the HBO Max TV series library. The sitcom is supposed to be about four highly smart, and highly nerdy, scientists who get some lessons in life from their very un-nerdy new female addition. In fact, it’s really about how nerd culture slowly but surely turned into mainstream comedy entertainment. We suspect that The Big Bang Theory could get a big boost with its inclusion among the HBO Max shows.
4. Fresh Prince of Bel-Air
Here’s another show that hasn’t gotten a ton of streaming video love before HBO Max. Will Smith was already a huge music star when he got the lead in this sitcom. It follows his character, also named Will, who is sent from the tough Philidephia streets to the safe, and rich, Bel-Air neighborhood of LA. While there are some dated bits in this 1990s series, it’s still fun to watch Smith and the show’s other cast of characters have some fun.
5. The Sopranos
There’s no way we are going to leave out perhaps the best HBO TV series from this HBO Max shows list. David Chase’s mob crime drama rises above the typical cliches as we see how the leader of a crime organization has to balance his work with his family life. There are twists and turns in this show you won’t see coming, and that includes one of the most controversial endings of a TV series ever.
6. Watchmen
Source: HBO
When it was announced that HBO was going to do a Watchmen TV series and that it would be a sequel to the classic superhero comic book, many believed it was dead on arrival. Leave it to Damon Lindelof, the developer of the show, to prove them wrong. Not only is this series a worthy successor to the comic by writer Alan Moore and artist Dave Gibbons, but also an excellent look at the past and current state of race relations. It only lasted for one season (for now) but it’s definitely one of the best HBO Max series.
7. Barry
Hitmen in fiction are a dime a dozen. Barry is the story of a hitman, played by co-creator Bill Hader, who is tired of his line of work. The twist in this series is that Barry decides he wants to become an actor, through sheer accident. This show is both funny and dramatic, sometimes in the same scene. Does Barry try to get away from being a great hitman to live life as an OK actor? That’s the main theme in this terrific series.
That’s our look at the best HBO Max shows. Which one will you be streaming tonight on the service?