It really couldn't be anyone else could it? HBO have been the leaders in high quality American cable programming since they pioneered the concept with the likes of the Larry Sanders Show, a sitcom about a late-night talk show, and Oz, the shockingly brutal depiction of life within an experimental prison unit. Following their debuts in 1998 and 1999 respectively, however, two shows changed everything - Sex and the City and the Sopranos. Though aimed at radically different audiences, the two were instrumental in attracting viewers to the premium network, with The Sopranos in particular quickly becoming regarded as one of the greatest shows of all time. Set in the New Jersey underworld, it depicts the life of middle-aged mobster Tony Soprano (James Gandolfini) as he tries to balance the conflicting needs of his two 'families' - his wife and children and home and his criminal associates within the Mafia. Never one to shy away from sensitive subjects, it reaped award after award during its eight year run, earning praise for almost every aspect of its production. Not one to rest on their laurels, HBO greenlit The Wire three years after the premiere of The Sopranos. Another crime drama, though largely different in tone, it too is regarded as one of the greatest shows of all time, even if it struggled to attract a comparable amount of viewers with its dark portrayal of contemporary Baltimore, with interweaving storylines involving the city's police, street criminals, politicians, dockworkers, journalists and schoolchildren. Around the same time, viewers were spoilt for choice as the likes of Six Feet Under, a black-comedy-drama about the funeral business, Deadwood, a western depicting the growth of a town following the Civil War, and Entourage, an insight into the life of a fictional A-list movie star and his associates, made the rounds. These aired in tandem with BBC co-productions such as Ricky Gervais' Extras and the historical drama Rome, truly establishing HBO as a major player in the modern television industry. In more recent years, the network has had quite a few misses, but has made up for these with a continuing string of hits, including Boardwalk Empire, Veep, Girls, Silicon Valley, True Detective and Last Week Tonight with John Oliver, the network's first talk show in some time. It has also maintained a strong commitment to miniseries since the success of Band of Brothers in 2001. Its major heavyweight has been and remains Game of Thrones, however. Based on George R.R. Martin's A Song of Ice and Fire series of novels, the series, about to air its fifth season, has become a worldwide sensation with its tales of war and political scheming in the fictional seven kingdoms of Westeros. Long may it (and HBO's commitment to producing high quality programming in its vein) continue.
