Entertainment
10 Perfect HBO Shows With 20 Episodes or Less
HBO is one of the few networks that has valued quantity over quality, which may explain why its output as a distributor has been so consistently strong. While rival streamers attempt to pack their libraries with as much content as possible, HBO has given time to its showrunners to develop the best stories possible. While it can sometimes be irritating to wait several years for a new season of a highly anticipated show, the benefit is that there aren’t as many significant disappointments.
HBO has only a few long-running shows that expanded for too many seasons, as many of its best programs were either short-lived series or miniseries limited events. The fact that they were able to do so much in a small amount of time speaks to the economics of storytelling and how avoiding bloat can be an effective storytelling decision.
10
‘Band of Brothers’ (2001)
Band of Brothers is perhaps the greatest miniseries ever made, and definitely the most immersive and well-rounded exploration of World War II. Although trying to fit the greatest conflict in the history of the human race into a single, ten-episode series would have been a challenge, Band of Brothers made the smart decision to follow the perspective of the men in “Easy Company” from their early days in training camp to Japan’s surrender in 1945.
Band of Brothers featured a terrific ensemble that felt particularly realistic because the cast went to a real boot camp in order to prepare for their roles and develop the type of friendships that could be seen on screen. It’s a stunning achievement that is both informative and inspirational and will be remembered many years down the line as a perfect embodiment of American history.
9
‘The Pacific’ (2010)
The Pacific is a sequel of sorts to Band of Brothers that is also set in World War II but is focused on the Pacific theater of combat, which tended to be even more brutal. Unlike Band of Brothers, which began with the characters in boot camp, The Pacific follows the soldiers during their lives before the war, and even goes beyond to see how they struggle in the aftermath to deal with adjusting to normal life and coping with post-traumatic stress disorder.
The Pacific is a more well-rounded depiction of the heartlessness and senselessness of war that shows the brutal techniques used on both sides of the conflict. While not an easy series to watch, it does offer an important insight into what the “Greatest Generation” actually looked like and why the past might be doomed to repeat itself.
8
‘The Sympthazier’ (2024)
The Sympathizer is a wildly inventive spy thriller based on the Pulitzer Prize-winning novel of the same name, and was created by the legendary South Korean filmmaker Park Chan-wook. Park is known for many provocative, dark films that use non-linear and experimental techniques to show human frailty, and The Sympathizer offers a complex portrayal of a North Vietnamese spy who goes undercover in the United States as the war escalates, leading to the fall of Saigon.
The Sympathizer looked at the terrifying code of silence within Communist regimes, but it also satirized American indulgence through a great performance by Robert Downey Jr., who plays multiple characters that represent different areas of corruption and intellectual fascism. Although there are some moments of dark humor, The Sympathizer is a sobering story about sacrificing oneself for the platonic ideal of a movement that might not actually exist.
7
‘DTF St. Louis’ (2026)
DTF St. Louis is a relatively new entry into HBO’s catalog of great miniseries, but it is already proving to have significant lasting power. While HBO has always done a great job at generating shows that offer a frank depiction of sexuality and human nature, DTF St. Louis is particularly clever in how it uses a murder mystery and flashback structure to explore a deteriorating marriage and one man’s quest to reach even the slightest degree of self-confidence.
DTF St. Louis features Emmy-worthy performances from its entire cast, with David Harbour having the standout role as Floyd, a sign language translator for a weather station who discovers that his wife (Linda Cardellini) is having an affair with his best friend (Jason Bateman). Although the show has a very unique sense of humor, Harbour is able to ensure that Floyd himself is never treated as the butt of the joke.
6
‘Angels in America’ (2003)
Angels in America is the definitive portrayal of the AIDS crisis in media, as it adapted the Tony-award-winning play from the great Tony Kushner into a heartbreaking six-part series that explored the perspective of victims, artists, parents, politicians, and activists during the tragic era of the 1980s. Although the density of the material would have made it impossible to turn into a traditional cinematic adaptation, legendary film director Mike Nichols was able to ensure that the series attained a high degree of artistry.
Angels in America is a profound work of tonal balancing that combines grounded moments of intimacy with religious imagery and metaphorical content. It’s an achievement that was made to ensure that the memories of this lost generation would not be discounted or forgotten and remains an empathetic work of art that should continue to be celebrated.
5
‘The Night Of’ (2016)
The Night Of is a brilliant legal thriller that shows a nightmarish situation for a young Muslim man, played by Riz Ahmed, who is falsely accused of murdering a woman and sentenced to imprisonment as his trial lawyer (John Turturro) attempts to fight for his rights. It’s not only a compelling mystery in which the stakes can’t be higher but also a deeply disturbing exploration of the realities of xenophobia and police brutality within New York City.
Ahmed has rarely been better than he is in The Night Of as a relatively normal man who has his life transformed overnight, forcing him to air out his secrets as he pleads to be treated without bias. There haven’t been many recent legal dramas that have explored the realities of a court case in such a grounded way, as The Night Of is elevated beyond a procedural approach.
4
‘John Adams’ (2008)
John Adams is an outstanding biopic of the second President of the United States that features Paul Giamatti in one of his best performances ever. Although John Adams has a complex reputation among America’s commanders-in-chief, he was an important leader in the Continental Congress who pushed for the Thirteen Colonies to declare independence from Great Britain and was instrumental in preserving democracy during America’s early days as a nation.
John Adams is able to explore a remarkable amount of time without ever feeling rushed, as it begins by showing the titular figure’s relationship with Sam Adams (Danny Huston) during the Boston Massacre and follows through until the aftermath of his one term as President when he was ousted in the 1800 election. It’s not just a pitch-perfect series for history buffs but a great character study about ambition, justice, and the pursuit of the American dream.
3
‘Watchmen’ (2019)
Watchmen was a radical reinvention of one of the most famous graphic novels of all-time because it was not a straight adaptation. Instead, Damon Lindelof chose to create an original story that treated the original Alan Moore Watchmen as history and explored the aftermath of the devastating attack on New York City that sent all the former superheroes into hiding.
Watchmen is able to begin with an abstract mystery about murders linked to a mysterious cult that claims to follow in the footsteps of the vigilante Rorschach, but ends up tying in many of the classic characters in exciting ways. Although it is exciting to see these iconic superheroes reintroduced in such compelling ways, Watchmen is also able to make important political commentary on corruption and racism, and even succeeds in shedding light on the infamous Tulsa Race Massacre in the 1920s.
2
‘The Rehearsal’ (2022–2025)
The Reshearsal is one of the most complex and challenging endeavors that Nathan Fielder has ever embarked upon, which is saying something when considering how many lines he has crossed in the name of comedy. It would be insincere to describe The Rehearsal as just a comedy, as Fielder clearly has greater ambitions in mind; the first season of the show analyzes the art of performance as Fielder attempts to simulate what it would be like to be part of a family, and the second tackles a real issue regarding plane crashes by analyzing the behavior of pilots that could be cause for concern.
The Rehearsal is never willing to state outright when it is being satirical and how much of Fielder’s professed truthfulness should be believed, but it does feature some of the wildest and most unpredictable social experiments ever seen on television.
1
‘The Young Pope’ (2016)
The Young Pope is a show that has become even more relevant in recent months because it was made when the idea of an American becoming Pope of the Catholic Church was still unheard of. The fictional story by the legendary Italian filmmaker Paolo Sorrentino tells the story of an American cardinal (Jude Law) who is elected to the highest office in the Church due to infighting amongst the passions, and starts a radical new regime that could cause the entire faith to implode.
The Young Pope is a taut political drama that isn’t afraid to get genuinely surrealist and metaphorical, making it one of the rare works of television that actually feels like an arthouse film. While the first season tells a self-contained story, Sorrentino continued with his sequel series, The New Pope, starring John Malkovich and Law, four years later.
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