Game of Thrones, The Last of Us, and the 15 best HBO shows ever, ranked
7. House of the Dragon
It’s a little difficult to judge new shows with only just one season down in this list, but that’s exactly what we’re doing with this slide. House of the Dragon is the first Game of Thrones spinoff series, following House Targaryen hundreds of years before the birth of Daenerys Targaryen. The show debuted in 2022 and is based on Fire & Blood by George R.R. Martin. Created by Ryan Condal and Miguel Sapochnik, House of the Dragon was an immediate success when it came to HBO last summer.
House of the Dragon follows the Targaryen family in the years leading up to the Dance of the Dragons, a civil war that resulted in the deaths of nearly all the dragons. The first season of the show is incredible, introducing us to new characters that we are immediately captivated by. Like Game of Thrones, the show follows morally ambiguous characters that you both love and hate.
The series was not eligible for the 2022 Emmy awards but did just scoop up nine nominations for the 2023 ceremony, including Outstanding Drama Series. It also won the award for Best Television Series – Drama at the Golden Globes, a huge feat for a new show.
6. The Last of Us
Based on the 2013 video game of the same name by Naughty Dog, writer Neil Druckmann had been trying to get an adaptation of The Last of Us made for a long time. Originally planned as a movie in 2014, it wasn’t until 2019 that he met with Chernobyl creator Craig Mazin and they turned it into a show for HBO. And thank goodness it turned out that way because the series is phenomenal. Again, we’re only one season down, but that one season is so impactful.
The Last of Us takes place in a post-apocalyptic world where an infection turns people into zombie-like creatures. We follow protagonist Joel, a smuggler who must transport a teenager named Ellie across the United States. As it turns out, Ellie is immune to the infection and might just be the cure to the whole thing.
Pedro Pascal and Bella Ramsey give fantastic performances as Joel and Bella, respectively, and despite the series being based on a video game, it’s way more about the emotional journey of the characters than it is about action or zombies. I was excited for the show, but it absolutely blew me out of the water.
At the 2023 Emmys, The Last of Us is up for a whopping 25 awards, including Outstanding Drama Series and Pascal and Ramsey for the lead acting categories.