HBO is home to a number of the greatest TV dramas of all time, from The Sopranos, to The Wire, to Succession. HBO’s drama series stand out for their unique premises that draw viewers in immediately, as well as strong and compellingly flawed characters that have captivating arcs over the course of their shows. From workplace dramas, to crime dramas, to fantasy and sci-fi series, HBO’s drama series are all different from each other, yet they’re each gripping and emotionally resonant.
Amongst its phenomenal drama shows, HBO boasts a number of excellent mystery series. While many of these are miniseries, a select handful of HBO’s mystery series have multiple seasons that are each truly fantastic. These shows set up compelling mysteries early on and slowly expand on them throughout the course of each season, ultimately delivering a phenomenal payoff in every season finale. These shows also have a solid balance between their central mysteries and their focus on their characters and their core dynamics. These are HBO mystery shows with no bad seasons, ranked.
5
‘True Detective’ (2014–Present)
Each season of HBO’s hit crime anthology series, True Detective, is vastly different. All of its seasons see its main detectives grappling with their own painful pasts while trying to catch a mysterious killer. The murder or series of murders at the center of the season is always particularly horrifying, and has a unique twist to it. This framework stays the same with each season, but they all have their own separate cast of characters, and they’re each set in a different part of the United States.
True Detective now has four seasons under its belt, and its fifth is set to be released next year. True Detective had a very strong start with its gritty and captivating Southern Gothic-style first season, but each of the seasons that has followed continues to tell a compelling and shocking main story. Every season of True Detective tackles its own separate themes related to its specific setting, keeping the series feeling fresh while still keeping consistent with its core structure.
4
‘The White Lotus’ (2021–Present)
With three seasons under its belt and another already confirmed to be on the way, The White Lotus is one of HBO’s best currently ongoing series. Each season of the anthology-style drama series follows a group of guests during their stay at a White Lotus hotel, a fictionalized luxury hotel chain. At the start of each season, a flash-forward reveals that at least one person was killed during this stay. The show then jumps back in time to the very start of the visit, following an ensemble cast of guests and staff. Each season takes place at a White Lotus in a different location, following a completely new group of people, with occasional minimal overlap between seasons.
The White Lotus is primarily a slowburn dark comedy, setting up compelling dynamics full of tension that builds up throughout the course of the season. All the conflict is character-driven, and these tense and occasionally hostile interactions build a sense of dread in viewers before ultimately boiling over at the end of the season. The show uses its murder mystery framing to set up the stakes at the start of each season, so that viewers know that at least one of these characters will ultimately lose their lives as a result of these conflicts that would otherwise seem low-stakes at the beginning. Every season of The White Lotus honors this framing and embraces the show’s unique tone while also standing out on their own due to a new setting and cast of characters, and they’re all fantastic.
3
‘True Blood’ (2008–2014)
Based on Charlaine Harris‘ The Southern Vampire Mysteries series, True Blood is a dark fantasy series set in a version of the modern real world where the existence of vampires is widely known. Due to the invention of a synthetic blood called Tru Blood, vampires can finally come out of hiding and exist as a part of society — in theory. In reality, vampires are still being ostracized by most humans, who want nothing to do with them. At worst, there are humans who actively want vampires dead, as well as some who are interested in acquiring their blood, which is a highly addictive drug to humans. Some vampires just want to blend in and be treated like anyone else, while others still want to kill and drink human blood like usual.
The series is set in the small town of Bon Temps, Louisiana, and it follows a human waitress named Sookie Stackhouse (Anna Paquin), who can read the minds of everyone around her. Because of this, Sookie has never really fit in, and she empathizes with the vampires. The series kicks off when Sookie meets and quickly falls in love with a 173-year-old vampire named Bill Compton (Stephen Moyer), despite the judgment that they both receive from nearly everyone around them. Each season of True Blood also has a compelling central mystery around which the season is framed. In the first season, someone is murdering local women who have been associated with vampires, which puts Sookie at risk as well. True Blood is a captivating and riveting series all the way through the course of its seven seasons, and its mysteries keep viewers guessing until the very end of each season.
2
‘Big Little Lies’ (2017–Present)
Based on the novel of the same name by Liane Moriarty, Big Little Lies follows a group of women living in Monterey, California who are all mothers to first-graders at the same elementary school: Madeline Mackenzie (Reese Witherspoon), Celeste Wright (Nicole Kidman), Jane Chapman (Shailene Woodley), Bonnie Carlson (Zoë Kravitz), and Renata Klein (Laura Dern). A flash-forward at the start of the series reveals that someone was murdered at a fundraising event for the elementary school. The series then goes back to earlier in the school year, starting on Orientation Day, where Madeline and Celeste become friends with Jane, who’s new in town.
At the same time, a violent incident occurs in the first-grade class on Orientation Day, and it’s unclear which child perpetrated the act. As tensions rise amongst the mothers, they all deal with the issues occurring in their own lives, both public and private. All the while, the events of the present day are framed by a narration from the night of the fundraiser, as other parents attending that night give their own perspectives on these five women and their families. The second season is a big switch-up, moving away from the central murder mystery to deal with the falling out of that night. Both seasons of Big Little Lies are absolutely fantastic, and it will be exciting to see what direction the drama series takes when it returns for Season 3.
1
‘The Leftovers’ (2014–2017)
Based on the novel of the same name by Tom Perrotta, The Leftovers is a deeply captivating mystery box show set three years after a mysterious event where 2% of the world’s population suddenly disappeared without a trace. In the wake of this tragedy, the entire world struggles to move forward from this massive loss despite not having any answers as to what happened. The series centers on Kevin Garvey (Justin Theroux), who, at the start of the show, is the police chief of the small town of Mapleton, New York.
Every season of The Leftovers is wildly different but equally fantastic. They all follow a group of core characters, while also adding in new characters and leaving others behind with each new season. Season 2 jumps forward in time to the days ahead of the fourth anniversary of the Departure, and it is set in Jarden, Texas, the only place that wasn’t affected by it. Season 3 is set primarily in Australia, just before the seventh anniversary of the Departure. Over the course of its three seasons, The Leftovers sets up a number of mysteries that all connect back to the Departure, brilliantly choosing when to answer these questions and when not to.
The Leftovers
- Release Date
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2014 – 2017-00-00
- Showrunner
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Damon Lindelof