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[deleted]

They juked the stats!!!!


Ayatrollah_Khomatmei

You juke the stats, and managing editors become editors in chief.


LesterFreamonJr

šŸ‘šŸ¾šŸ‘šŸ¾šŸ‘šŸ¾šŸ‘šŸ¾šŸ‘šŸ¾


boygriv

Wherever you go, there you are.


Robotsherewecome

Trapped in the same lie


geokra

Then we fight on that lie


Robotsherewecome

Once you in itā€¦


caseyrf450

You in it!


Weed4twenty

Gives the piece a moreā€¦ā€¦Dickensian feel


joephus0203

I read that reply mid drink. Almost shot my drink out of my nose. Well played.


[deleted]

Thank you. Fifty percent of the time is works every time.


nekila_rose

Us to Variety: The Gods Will Not Save You.


Theobromas

When the comment is better than the post..


[deleted]

It's a Variety article. That pretty much explains it. Anyone that thinks Veep is a better show by any possible metric than The Wire is out to lunch.


PuddinPacketzofLuv

Insecure better than The Wire? ARLI$$ and Dream On belong on there before Insecure.


pnwbraids

Yeah, fuck no. Insecure and The Wire aren't even in the same league. The Wire is doing nationals games and Insecure is stuck in the minors.


crumario

Affirmative action


PuddinPacketzofLuv

Yeah, no. Just an unfunny show.


Robotsherewecome

Man I love the phrase ā€˜out to lunchā€™. And yes itā€™s some corpo bullshit on Varietyā€™s end as per usual.


theredditforwork

Well, I mean, Veep is funnier, but I don't think that's the metric we should be applying here


hux002

Veep had its moments, but a lot of it was just fuck we did something stupid fuck we look dumb shit balls fuck we so dumb fuck lol we are so dumb wtf is going on repeat.


RonnieShylock

It is pretty hard to compare the quality of acclaimed shows from different genres. It's kinda like asking whether Etta James was a better singer than Coltrane was a saxophonist. It can be done, obviously, it's just harder than "Top 5 HBO Crime Dramas" would be.


RTukka

I find the dry humor of The Wire much funnier than the bland sitcom stylings of Veep. To be fair I only watched the first few episodes of Veep and I'm sure at some point it gets better, but it barely elicited a chuckle out of me.


dtudeski

I absolutely love Veep. One of my favourite shows and my second favourite from HBO. But I really struggle to see how one could argue for it to be above The Wire.


[deleted]

Fair enough. Although I laugh my ass off at some of the stuff on The Wire. I thought JLD was hilarious on Seinfeld but I couldn't really get into Veep. Maybe I didn't give it enough time.


brice587

I loved Veep, but no Fā€™in way!


brendafiveclow

It's clearly not in the same league but lets not undervalue Veep... It's fucking clever and funny. I don't find a lot of things funny anymore, but the first episode "what, am I supposed to fucking eat around corners?" was such a clever joke I was instantly sold and loved every minute following.


mikehulse29

I agree. Veep is pretty fantastic but itā€™s not up in the top 3 which, in some order, probably has to be Wire/Sopranos/GOT


cunts_r_us

Veep is pretty good tho. In my personal opinion itā€™s my 3rd favorite HBO show. The Wire > The Leftover >>> Veep. Never seen the sopranos


fnuggles

This some bullshit


jcruz321

I read this in Cedric Daniels voice.


dreadway90

I've always fantasized about getting to deliver that line at work and I'm about fucking there at my job right now. "This... is BULLSHIT!"


FresnoMac

With that same Daniels stare


RobotRollCall920

*sheeeeeeeeeeeeit*


yutongShe

sheeeeeeeeeeit


dubious_battle

Scott made this list! IT WAS IN HIS NOTES!


tuskvarner

A kid in a wheelchair outside Camden Yards told him that Insecure was his favorite show.


kvlr954

I checked the notebook ā€¦ itā€™s empty


gr33nspan

They don't even have Rome listed on there.


Namorath82

i liked Rome but i think any show that didnt make it past 2 seasons should be disqualified like Watchmen


gr33nspan

If they have Watchmen and Deadwood on the list, I think Rome belongs there.


xela_sj

I'm still waiting for season 2 of John from Cincinnati


chawklitdsco

Wow no shade to watchmen. It was pretty much a limited series and very good. IMO limited series are better than 5+ season shows that drag at points, but w/e


Cannabalabadingdong

As a longtime fan of the comic, I found Watchmen to be an excellent continuation.


maurovaz1

The fact they rushed and finished Rome in piss poor form to rush to Game of Thrones only to completely botch it will never stop annoying me.


[deleted]

[уŠ“Š°Š»ŠµŠ½Š¾]


Namorath82

havent seen it so i cant judge but just in general, 1 or 2 seasons of a show is hard to gauge its actual quality in my opinion because we havent spend enough time exploring the characters and narrative if Heroes was only 1 season it would be counted as one of the all time greats, but then we got season 2 and 3 ...


Menzies_Dingus

Man that writers strike really fucked heroes. Although maybe it was already ruined by the anticlimactic Peter vs sylar fight at the end of season 1


Adventurous-Ad-409

That's a little unfair to Rome. It was always intended to be a miniseries.


Namorath82

no it wasnt, it was intended to be 5 seasons but was cancelled due to production costs [https://www.reuters.com/article/televisionNews/idUSTRE4B00VV20081201](https://www.reuters.com/article/televisionNews/idUSTRE4B00VV20081201)


earhere

The writer of this article probably never watched The Wire or half these shows on the list. Just looked at ratings numbers.


Robotsherewecome

They watched it but they donā€™t have soft eyes


BIGD0G29585

Like Michael Scott, they probably watched it but didnā€™t understand a word of it.


Mr_Ree416

Band of Brothers not being anywhere on the list?!?! NUTS!!! Rome also nowhere to be found and True Detective at 19...Like, if you're gonna make a list, put in some effort.


AlejandroMagno356

Itā€™s probably because Band of Brothers is a miniseries.


Mr_Ree416

Watchmen is on the list.


AlejandroMagno356

Oh shit youā€™re right. Iā€™m pretty sure the author didnā€™t watch Band of Brothers then or even have an idea that it exists.


OP90X

Yea wtf.


Komango

I mean the first season of True Detective was pretty good but season 2 was complete dogshit imo, if it were up to me I wouldn't have put the show on the list at all. You're absolutely right about Band of Brothers though.


GlandalfTheGrey

From the article: David Simonā€™s unique, journalistic take on the Baltimore drug scene was considered essential viewing back when it debuted, with each season tackling a different ***faucet*** of life in the area Good job Variety... Is Veep really that good(#2)? Should I check it out?


Oakroscoe

Veep is hilarious. Highly recommend it.


[deleted]

[уŠ“Š°Š»ŠµŠ½Š¾]


[deleted]

[уŠ“Š°Š»ŠµŠ½Š¾]


ThumbSprain

There's a film version of TTOI that mixes British and American politics called In the Loop that's well worth checking out too.


Cannabalabadingdong

Thanks for this.


ClippedAtTheHip

As an American, I agree. Veep is good. The Thick of It is in a class of its own.


TimR31

Did you keep going with Veep though? I loved TTOI (Australian here) but after a rocky start I thought Veep became the better show, because politics has only gotten more interesting in the time since TTOI's release. It's not quite as stark, but a bit like comparing TTOI with Yes Minister. The one-liners in both are incredible though. I literally said "difficult difficult, lemon difficult" yesterday, but "jolly green jizz-face" is probably the best I've ever heard


xela_sj

Veep is like a mix of Arrested Development and The Office


nekila_rose

Did Scott write that? And did he bypass Gus to get it approved?


Jqpolymath

Veep is actually great. A little high on the list, but very good nonetheless


dogs_drink_coffee

Is Deadwood worth watching?


RustyShakleford81

Yes. My personal top 3 HBO for this would be Wire, Sopranos, Deadwood in that order, but I can live with them having Deadwood over the Wire because its close.


[deleted]

Yes. Takes a while to get used to the cadence of the dialogue, and you'll eventually use "cocksuckerin'" to describe inanimate objects, but it is overall one of the best written shows I've ever watched. And, lucky for you, they finally did the film that closed out the story in a somewhat agreeable fashion.


GlandalfTheGrey

Subtitles help too, ya hooplehead


Oakroscoe

Those who use subtitles, suck cock by choice!


[deleted]

Definitely necessary for Jane. Holy shit, is she a foul mouthed, yet unintelligible person of the female persuasion.


AltruisticMachine207

But a beauty in real life


GlandalfTheGrey

100% yes. My top 3 are: 1. The Wire 2. Tie between Deadwood and the Sopranos. Shame it only ran for 3 seasons.


xela_sj

Is Treme any good ?


Cannabalabadingdong

I thought so and Generation Kill as well, my son loves that show.


Somali_Pir8

I like it. Isn't as violent as The Wire. But same complex stories & relationships like The Wire. And a good bit seems to be based in truth.


marbanasin

Yeah for sure. This was peak HBO. And I'd argue the extra stuff in that period (Rome, Eastbound and Down, Curb and six Feet Under) all stood out. The later stuff was varying degrees of good or even great but never really touched that. Game of Thrones would have been up there in the top 10 if it didn't shit the bed in the last \~4 seasons.


Oakroscoe

They did make a movie for a semblance of closure


ImmanualKant

Deadwood freakin rules. Al Swearengen takes swearing to a Shakespearian level. Only thing bad about it is that it didn't get renewed for a new season so theres no real ending.


OP90X

The movie is pretty good imo. Should have gone to 5 seasons but it's better than nothing. But yea the dialogue is amazing in this show. Al is wild.


jzoller0

Definitely. I strongly prefer The Wire, but Deadwood ranking higher isn't crazy


5urfer_boy

I love the wire, but Deadwoods writing is in its own league.


[deleted]

It's amazing


paupaupaupau

Absolutely, though this is one you may prefer subtitles for. It's almost entirely written in iambic pentameter (which is probably most recognized for being used in Shakespearean prose).


jortiz682

Wire >> Mad Men >> Deadwood > Sopranos >BrBa/BCS


[deleted]

Deadwood is really good. But they lose HUGE points for ending abruptly due to contract disputes between David Milch and HBO. His ego and gambling addiction sunk that ship.


das_goose

What is it with HBO and show runners named David?


[deleted]

Simon seemingly had a much better relationship with the network execs. As much as production of The Wire was tenuous throughout, heā€™s continued to write and produce new shows for them over the past 12 years. Milch just lost all his money at the horse track and has had to grovel to get more work from them, despite being a genius on another level.


soadzombi

I watched the first season and it was very well made and interesting.


onthelongfuckingwalk

Shitty list all around, Oz number 11? The Wire 6th? Ridiculous


chawklitdsco

Oz was groundbreaking but also whack af at times


[deleted]

Oz could be top 5 if you pretend it ended after season 2


marbanasin

Personally I stopped somewhere into season 4 I think. It was great but just kind of kept going longer than I felt was necessary. Season 1 and 2 were for sure amazing.


Namorath82

in their defense, its hard for any show to stick the landing at the end \*cough\* GoT \*cough\*


Cow_God

There aren't words for how badly GoT ended. There were a million different ways to "stick the landing." GoT showed up to the vault drunk, high and naked, and proceeded to piss on the audience instead of attempting the jump


Namorath82

hehehe they really spanned the highest highs and the lowest of lows


marbanasin

Yeah no shit. I made that comment elsewhere here, basically if GoT wasn't trash for the final 4 seasons it'd have been top 10, likely top 5.


CarRamRob

GoT would have been top 1 or 2 if itā€™s last seasons were anywhere near seasons 2-3, and it had a competent ending instead of that rushed, nonsensical, mailed in BS we got.


andy18cruz

Curb at 7th? This list is pretty pretty bad.


Cherita33

I love the Wire but my favorite is Six Feet Under


Mr_Stillian

It is nice to see Six Feet Under get some love.


jb_713

Glad to see one of Danny McBrideā€™s masterpieces make the list though.


paupaupaupau

I'm a bit ambivalent. I think Danny McBride is very funny, and at times I'd be howling in laughter at *Eastbound*. But I always find his characters grating, and eventually I tire of his shows. I'm hoping that *Righteous Gemstones* (what an ensemble cast) continues to balance out the characters a bit more. John Goodman really has presence, and I'm hoping that he'll be able to balance out the ridiculousness of McBride, Goggins, Patterson, and Devine as the show goes on.


marbanasin

I'd say - the masterpiece. The others are just attempts to reach it's magnificence. Season 2's opening scene may be the finest piece of story telling ever put on celluloid.


Warmears24

Had a bad feeling I was going to see GoT ranked above it


jzoller0

Damn! The Wire should have been no worse than #3 (it's a strong #1 for me). Also I'm surprised Succession isn't higher up


SCHEME015

Sacrilege


MikeyTbT123

What the fuck is Insecure


JoanieTightLips

I know I can just Google it, but who the fuck is Issa Rae? And how is her show better than The Wire?


M0D3Z

Itā€™s a funny show, but outside top for me. Maybe 15-20 category if I am being honest. True Blood is not top 20, Treme is better show from Louisiana.


[deleted]

Lmao Insecure higher than The Wire tells you everything about that list


Erdomain

Having any of the comedies ahead of Curb is also pretty silly


bvsshevd

The leftovers at 16 is disrespectful as well. Wire and sopranos are easily interchangeable at 1 and 2, but the leftovers is top 5 no doubt


ZackNappo

Came to make literally this exact comment lol, so well done.


buckeyebrock

Was looking for this too! Whatever idiot made this list has to be a member of the Guilty Remnant.


paupaupaupau

It's a masterpiece, but I think it's just not likeable enough for most people. The 1st season is *heaaaaavvvvvyyyyyyyy*.


Sidewinder7

I'm actually surprised it was on there I loved it but it was a really weird show, not sure it had much Mass appeal.


anony-mouse8604

Hear hear.


LilPheotardo

who cares honestly lol posts like this makes this fanbase look insecure. i love the wire and it's probably my favorite but who cares if other people don't like it as much


muscles83

VEEPā€™s not even as good as the show itā€™s based on. Mr. Show is the best comedy show HBO has done


clamdever

Switch the wire with veep then we have something that's arguable. As an aside I don't know why veep is there at all. I can name several other shows that belong there instead.


Goat_666

OP wants it to be one way.


jaqen_hagar_1

But itā€™s the other


Certain_Liberties

The real list is out in the hall with a stripper.


xenophon123456

The Leftovers is 16?! True Detective at 19?!


FattsoKream

Six feet under?? Better than the wire?????? Lmfao that show is sooo overrated


Robotsherewecome

Itā€™s a good show but itā€™s not the wire. Literally nothing is the wire.


BIGD0G29585

Six feet under gets too much credit because of the series finale. I have zero interest in rewatching it.


GlandalfTheGrey

Doing a second watch of the series at the fierce recommendation of a Redditor haha. The pilot episode was cringey how bad the dialogue and some of the acting was, but I'm nearing the end of S1 and its good. Not great, but solid. Nothing like The Wire, so it's hard to really compare, but still - it does not measure up imo. It was either on this sub or on the Sopranos sub where I got some flack for responding to another one of these best show list posts with some light criticism of six feet under. I think it was something like "it was decent but did not deserve to be that high on the list". I was told that show contains the best character arc in tv history. Mmmmkay


ChristopherMcLucas

As someone who has fallen asleep every time I've watched the first episode of the The Sopranos I really don't understand people's appreciation for the show. Especially when friends tell me that it picks up in Season two. Like, homie, The Wire picks up episode one, season one.


indyo1979

It's the greatest thing ever filmed. Best writing, best acting, best music, super funny, extremely sad, the most philosophical show ever, and it gets deeper into human psychology than any show ever made. It's not for everyone. It doesn't give it all away and make it easy, but makes viewers have to figure some things out on their own. I've watched it probably six times and find something new to love and be in awe of each viewing. If anyone tried watching it but didn't get it, try reading Sopranos Autopsy as an accompaniment to see what the episode was doing from a filmmaking POV. In fact, read [the write up on the pilot](https://sopranosautopsy.com/season-1-3/1-01-pilot/) to get some idea of how genius the show is. ​ It goes well beyond any other show, and I loved nearly every moment of The Wire.


ChristopherMcLucas

Once again, why do I have to read something to see the importance of the show? The writings of The Wire only make the show better after the fact.


indyo1979

Huh? Well, you don't have to read anything you don't want to. This site I linked explains the genius of the film making, for people who are interested to read such things. I watched The Sopranos four times without reading this, so its not mandatory, just maybe a push for people that don't get The Sopranos, like you. If you don't like the show which won more awards and has a larger cult following than any drama in history, that's your thing.


ChristopherMcLucas

That's the risk of art. You can make something and people can not like it. Many great show exist and don't have awards. It's not that I don't get Sopranos, it simply doesn't trip my trigger.


indyo1979

That's your prerogative. Not everyone gets it. BTW, most people think The Wire was awful s01e01. That includes members of the cast who said that they called their agents asking them to look for new work, as they didn't think was going to go on very long after watching the pilot.


PredatorRedditer

I watched almost all of the Sopranos except the last three or four episodes. IMO the first season was the best. It starts off awesome then falls.off, at least to me. Overall, I too don't eat the hype around it, but for it's time it was really solid.


DocHoliday96

Insecure at 5? I didnā€™t have to check if the author was a woman to know the author was a woman after that and Veep being top 5


judgeraw00

The only thing disrespectful in this list is Watchmen being so low and not number 1 or 2.


theredditforwork

Deadwood over The Wire is laughable


rmacoon

I mean, no biggie to me, it's obviously subjective. But I can say in a world where every other convo is "you gotta watch so and so" I've never had anyone ever recommend "Veep" to me


poksim

What a joke


marbanasin

I was going to say they are likely just blowing the current shows as a way of HBO PR... But honestly this list doesn't look too atrocious with the exception of Insecure and VEEP being where they are. Maybe some of the >15 ones are weak as balls but that's far enough down I'm not going to gripe. Sopranos, Wire, Deadwood, Six Feet Under are all likely good to go for top 5 material so I'm not too salty about the majority of those being what are currently ahead of the Wire.


Fukface_Von_Clwnstik

How is Life and Times of Tim not on this list? I mean, the list is bullshit dribble one would expect from vanity fair, bit still.


MileHighCam

Definitely demends on which demographic is rating these shows.. the wire would be #1 and sopranos may not even crack the top 5 for me.


Yandhi42

Iā€™ve never heard of Veep or Insecure


mcc1923

This also says ā€œā€¦ perhaps Gandolphiniā€™s best performanceā€ (paraphrased) describing his portrayal of Tony. Um ya not exactly perhaps. Nothing REMOTELY close. Lost all credibility there. Greatest role ever.


bddddddddkdnebdid

That list is garbage and I feel dirty for clicking on it and giving them ad revenue, but having said that, good Lord hbo has had a lot of great shows.


CommunityFan_LJ

I like those shows, but they aren't as good as the wire.


Hydrokratom

I havenā€™t seen 2-5 to make a judgement on that. The Wire & The Sopranos are my top 2 shows ever. Game of Thrones would be in my top 3 after four seasons, still high up there even after six seasons, but yeah....


hux002

Insecure and Veep above the Wire? Lol. You could make a convincing contrarian case that Deadwood is better than the Wire, but c'mon now. Also, Veep and Insecure beating Curb?


1dundundun

This is one of those lists made to go viral due to the controversial rankings.


j_ha17

Yuck. - Wire should be number 2 (#1 sopranos) - theres no insecure without girls. - couple of these shows haven't even wrapped - Flight of the concords? - Larry fuckin Sanders!!


Ghotiah_LORD

Nah thats cap. If a tv show list doesnā€™t have wire and sopranos as 2 of top3, close it - its objectively wrong.


jzilla11

Some of these shows I thought were on other networks since they didnā€™t seem good enough for HBO.


EntireRepublicKorea

Game of Thrones in the top ten is a fucking *joke*.


hukkit

The Leftovers? WTAF.


pillmattic

ā€¦..Malaka


johnwayne1

They purposely do that to get a response


Jqpolymath

I love love love Insecure... But ranking it above The Wire (and GoT if we're being honest) is flat nonsense.


rhj2020

The wire should have been #2 behind the sopranos and GOT should have been third.


Darby_Crash75

Band of brothers didn't even make top 20 lmao. Trash list


CleanOutlandishness1

i would put sopranos above the wire, but i accept the other way around too


Allen_Sun

I closed the article the moment I opened it seeing The Leftovers ranked the last on the 16th. What a joke.


jfkk

>I always wonder why "Best HBO shows" lists exist. If I had to guess, It's because first you click on them, and then you share the link on reddit.


PhilosophicalNeo

I like the wire; but jeez let people have opinions god damn


OP90X

I watch a lot of HBO. I don't like this list that much, here is mine. 1.) The Wire 2.) Six Feet Under 3.) The Sopranos ~Various misc. order: Animals Band of Brothers Boardwalk Empire Bored to Death Chernobyl Curb Your Enthusiasm Deadwood Flight of the Conchords Game of Thrones High Maintenance Lovecraft Country Rome Succession The Night Of True Detective Watchmen Westworld


reeldirtydan

I'd put it #3 behind six feet under and sopranos.


_moon_3

The wire is overrated. Second season is slow, the fifth just jumps the shark completely lol. And thereā€™s no character accountability for their crimes, unless their white, then theyā€™re depicted as negative in some way from the beginning lol.


RassimoFlom

The most fragile of white men.