Ranking Every HBO Miniseries From Worst To Best
28. Years And Years
Russell T Davies’ fascinating TV career took another sharp turn with this bizarre, ideas-packed, mostly successful dystopian drama, a BBC/HBO co-production from 2019. Years And Years is a frightening and prescient look at an all-too-possible future of uncertainty with great characters, quality acting, and the usual flair present in everything Davies touches.
The casting coup is Emma Thompson as Viv Rook, deliciously devilish as a Trumpian businesswoman turned politician. Like her obvious inspiration, she says what’s on her mind without concern for the consequences, and somehow things work out great for her.
As Viv ascends, the world falls into chaos. Between the increasingly totalitarian Britain and frighteningly believable jumps in cloud-based technology, Davies presents a convincing horror show that feels simultaneously imaginative and all too possible.
Davies is a maximalist and at times Years And Years is blighted by his decision to hurl every single idea about what a crazy future might look like against the wall. Not all of it sticks, and its general lack of subtlety and nuance keeps this from being a truly great show, but it’s a blast of a series by a creator with vision.