“What’s it about?” Every television recommendation has been met with those three words. With so much great TV, audiences want to make sure they are investing their time (and money) in a show that’s worth it. Is the premise similar enough to something they already like, or is it just out-there enough to intrigue them? Understandably, a familiar or easily understood premise can comfort the audience and pre-assure them of what they are getting into. However, an original and unexpected premise can be bold enough to arrest the audience’s attention and deliver surprising twists and turns.
HBO, which has made a reputation for deliveringsome of the best television showsin recent years, has often embraced bold and daring premises. From comedic spins or reimaginations of boilerplate premises, the network has an enviable collection of excellent television with completely out-there descriptions. However, not all premises are successfully executed and even from those that are, not all are created equal. Here,we rank the HBO shows with the most original premisesbased on how attention-grabbing they are and how effectively the show paid off on its hook.
10’The Comeback' (2005–2014)
Created by Lisa Kudrow and Michael Patrick King
InLisa Kudrow’s live-action return to television afterFriends, shejoined forces withSex and the Cityexecutive producerMichael Patrick Kingto createThe Comeback.Initially intended as a satirical depiction of the television industry, the show became, either intentionally or not, a prophetic and satirical look at the rise and prevalence of Reality Television. In an incredibly underrated performance,Lisa Kudrow stars as Valerie Cherish, a washed-up sitcom actress approaching a potential career comeback on a new network sitcom.
The first season (which debuted before the explosion of reality TV) was presented in a found footage format, with the idea being that it was footage for the in-show reality television show Valerie agreed to star in. The second season, which premiered nine years after the first and after the dominance of reality TV, is also presented as found footage, but this time commissioned by Valerie as part of a potential reality television pilot forAndy Cohen. Over the season, the footage morphs into behind-the-scenes web content and, eventually, a documentary on her resurgence. Whileskewering and satirizing the scripted and reality television industries,The Comebackalsodelicately engages with the ideas of aging in the industry, the relationship between the professional and the personal, and much more.
The Comeback
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9’In Treatment' (2008–2021)
Created by Rodrigo Garcia
The show’s format providesa more intimate look at the mental health journeysof the patient characters while also carrying the audience along on their successes and failures. This approach helped to provide a deeper understanding of the highs and lows of talk therapy, as opposed to the sanitized, easy-solution portrayals that had populated film and television. The added investigations of Paul and Brooke’s mental health and addiction recovery helped to highlight the relatable infallibility of even professional therapists.
8’Westworld' (2016–2022)
Created by Jonathan Nolan and Lisa Joy
Based onMichael Crichton’s feature film of the same name,Jonathan NolanandLisa Joy’sWestworldis set in a futuristic Wild-West-themed amusement park. In the park, humans have free rein over the almost indistinguishable android population, with the androids unable to harm any living organism. However, thanks to a recent update, several of the androids begin to gain sentience and, with that, the ability to harm human guests. While initially based on Crichton’s film,Westworldimpressively expands on the 1973 film’s premise.
Apart from the obviousthemes of artificial intelligence and human autonomy,Westworldalso interrogates themes along the lines ofhumans' propensity for violence, consciousness and the idea of the split mind, memory, and, as is common for Nolan, the co-writer ofInterstellar, the power of familial love. Due to its multiple storylines and large ambitions,Westworldfeatured an impressive ensemble cast, including two-time Oscar winnerAnthony Hopkins, Oscar nomineesEd HarrisandJeffrey Wright,Evan Rachel Wood, Emmy winnerThandiwe Newton, and many more.
7’Barry' (2018–2023)
Created by Bill Hader and Alec Berg
“What if a hitman stumbled into an acting class…and stayed?“Bill HaderandAlce Berf’s HBO dark comedy took the basic premise of “hitman joins an acting class” and turned it intoan examination of terrible people and the nature of evilwhile touching on themes of narcissism, PTSD and ambition. The fact thatBarrycould simultaneously skewer the military-industrial complex, the entertainment industry and the people that inhabit both industries remains a great testament to its range and the high quality of its writing.
Shepherded by Bill Hader, who directed 18 out of the show’s 32 episodes, the show never spared in its unrelenting examination of its roster of terrible and selfish characters. Arguabky dropping the “comedy” angle as it went on,Barryquickly became as harrowing anddark as some of its HBO contemporaries. With Emmy wins for Bill Hader andHenry Winkler(for Best Supporting Actor) and further nominations for Best Comedy Series, Best Writing, Best Directing and Acting nominations forSarah GoldbergandAnthony Carrigan,Barryis not onlyone of the best HBO shows, it is one of the best in recent memory!
6’Lovecraft Country' (2020)
Created by Misha Green
Executive Produced byJordan PeeleandJ. J. Abrams,Misha Green’sLovecraft Countrywas an adaptationanda continuation ofMatt Ruff’s novel of the same name. The novel and the HBO adaptation use the works of notorious racist andwhite supremacistH.P. Lovecrafttodissect historical race relations in America and the racial themes of his horror writings. The HBO show adapts various aspects of the novel’s eight interconnected stories to create a time-hopping, genre-bending ten-episode series.
Lovecraft Countrybegins with Atticus Freeman (Jonathan Majors), his childhood friend, Letitia (Jurnee Smollett), and Uncle George (Courtney B. Vance) on a road trip across 1950s America to find his father. After finding an ancient occult secret society at the end of the road trip, their lives and the show itself are thrown into unexpected paths.Misha Green excellently uses Lovecraftian horror, science-fiction, and genre storytelling to engage with Jim Crow-era policies, American racism, female empowerment and wider cultural attitudes.Lovecraft Countryproves the most evil things exist in the real world and not in fiction.
Lovecraft Country
5’Room 104' (2017–2020)
Created by Mark Duplass and Jay Duplass
Anthology television shows are not a novel idea. FromBlack MirrortoTrue Detective, audiences are well versed in the idea of a different episode or season of a television show featuring new actors telling a new story. However,Room 104, hailing from mumblecore pioneersMarkandJay Duplass, took the idea in an excitingly different direction. Set in a single room in a roadside motel, each episode told the stories of the guests occupying the room.
Like thebest anthology shows,Room 104expertly morphs its genre across episodes, sometimes within the same episode. The showefficiently modulated between horror, comedy, thriller and drama. Through its premise,Room 104provides a brief glimpse into the lives of many different characters, thereby painting a rich tapestry of human behavior. Its anthology format also allows it to enlist top acting and directing talent, with Oscar-winnerMahershali Ali, Oscar nomineeMichael Shannon,andDave Bautistaas some of the actors who lent their talents to the impressive anthology show.
4’The Third Day' (2020)
Created by Felix Barrett and Dennis Kelly
Peculiarly split into three parts, HBO’sThe Third Dayfollows the individual journeys of a man and woman who arrive at a mysterious island. Unable to leave the island during high tide, both characters are forced to stay and experience the island’s unsettling and suspicious citizenry.Jude LawandNaomie Harrislead Parts 1 and 2, respectively, with supporting performances fromKatherine Waterston,Emily WatsonandPaddy Considine. The first part, “Summer,” comprises the first three episodes and focuses on the man’s journey on the island and his first encounters with the unnerving islanders and their strange customs.Jude Law’s disorienting and grief-stricken performance helps to sell thegeneral confusion ofTheThird Dayand draw the audience in.
The third part, “Winter,” picks up nine months after the events of the first part and follows a woman (Harris) and her two daughters visiting the island for her daughter’s birthday. Audiences are quickly assured that in the nine months between both stories, the island has not become any less disconcerting. The second part, “Autumn,” covers the island’s festival celebrating the transition from childhood to adulthood. The special was broadcast in between both parts as a 12-hour live event showcasing the full festival,shot in one continuous take to provide a fully immersive experience. Along with Jude Law and the regular supporting actors from part 1, it also featuredFlorence Welch. Luckily for viewers who may not be able to commit to watching a 12-hour one-take special, watching it is not essential for one’s understanding of the events in part 3 or the overall story.
The Third Day
3’The Outsider' (2020)
Created by Richard Price
A young boy is found dead in a small town with suspicious human bite marks. While upsetting for the small town, all the facts indicate a straightforward case. However, there is video evidence placing the main suspect at both the scene of the crime and at an out-of-town conference at the same time. Adapted byRichard Pricefrom a 2018Stephen Kingnovel,The Outsideris a thrilling, twisty, supernatural murder mystery.
The Outsideris first presented as a crime procedural before fully leaning into its supernatural elements, evoking some startling imagery and haunting backstory. Like the best crime procedurals, it keeps the audiences guessing anduses its horror iconography to investigate some upsetting questions about human natureand the battle between good and evil.Ben MendelsohnandCynthia Erivodeliver standout performances and are supported by reliably excellent performances fromBill Camp,Jason Bateman,Julianne Nicholsonand Paddy Considine, makingThe Outsiderone of HBO’s best miniseriesin recent years.
The Outsider
2’The Rehearsal' (2022–Present)
Created by Nathan Fielder
Do you have an awkward conversation coming up that you’re dreading? Do you keep re-living that encounter that you wish you had thoroughly prepared for? Well, that’s exactly whatNathan Fielder’s wildly absurdistThe Rehearsalis for, with Fielder’s character helping ordinary people rehearse upcoming difficult discussions or life events. The show was inspired by his work developingNathan For Youand how he and the creative team would act out incorrect scenarios for how the interactions would go. The rehearsals are aided by hilariously detailed sets and extremely prepared and committed actors.
As is par for the course with Fielder, he takes the objectively funny premise of “helping people prepare for a tough conversation in their lives” and turns it into an exploration of basic human principles.The Rehearsalasks many questions, including how much we can ever really know or predict about another person. Similarly, ithighlights the idea that everyone is always acting at all points. Its ability to transcend its innately absurd idea and reach for genuine human introspection is what makesThe Rehearsalso good.
The Rehearsal
1’The Leftovers' (2014–2017)
Created by Damon Lindelof and Tom Perrotta
What would happen if 2% of the world’s population just disappeared? Beforethe third-biggest movie of all timeflirted with analyzing that question, HBO’s incredibleThe Leftoversattacked it head-on. Created byDamon LindelofandTom Perrottaand based on Perrotta’s 2011 novel of the same name, the HBO adaptation begins three years after a global “Sudden Departure” in which 2% (140 million) of the world’s population mysteriously disappeared. Using its three lead protagonists — police chief Kevin Garvey (Justin Theroux),grieving widow Nora Durst (Carrie Coon), and her brother, Reverend Matt Jamison (Christoper Eccleston) — the show examined both the intimate and wider aftereffects of the sudden disappearances.
Admirably unafraid to go to some truly dark places,The Leftoversboldly examines human nature through its unique premise. The show employs logical developments of such a disappearance to analyze our human nature, grief, and the lengths people can go to at the end of the world. One such logical development is the emergence of several religious-based cults in the face of conventional organized religion’s decline. Supported by an outstanding ensemble cast that includedAmy Brenneman,Regina King,Margaret QualleyandAnn Dowd,The Leftoversquickly became a critical and cult favorite. Sadly,The Leftoverswas repeatedly snubbed by the Emmys, an egregious snub the Academy will never live down.
