Why Winning Time Is HBO’s Next Great Drama Show

Now that Succession is over, HBO is facing some challenges finding its next hit series that will turn Sunday nights into events.

“It’s not television, it’s HBO,” has been the moniker of the prestigious television cable network for generations, and for a long time it seemed like a justified proclamation. HBO offered up dramas and comedy shows that contained better filmmaking and more interesting performances than a majority of what was in movie theaters; there were few early-21st Century dramas as riveting as The Sopranos or The Wire, and few comedies that were as relevant and uproarious as Curb Your Enthusiasm or Veep. It seemed like those looking for genuine quality entertainment were better suited to networks like HBO than they were movie theaters, which had become dominated by franchise films.

After one great show ends, HBO is always on the lookout for what could be the next potential hit. Game of Thrones was HBO’s most popular show for a long time thanks to its blockbuster qualities, and it’s no surprise that HBO aired a few shows in the midst of their George R.R. Martin adaptation that potentially could take its place. While Westworld may have failed to start an equally loyal following and His Dark Materials landed with little fanfare, HBO surprisingly found that audiences were interested in dramas that resembled real events like Succession.

Now that Succession is over, HBO is facing some challenges finding its next hit series that will turn Sunday nights into “events.” It appears that both House of the Dragon and The Last of Us, despite their positive reviews, will only run for a limited amount of time because of the stories they are based on. Reviews for The Idol do not suggest that Sam Levinson’s pop star series will take that “prestigious” mantle either, but that doesn’t mean that HBO doesn’t have another terrific show on its hands. Here’s why Winning Time: The Rise of the Lakers Dynasty is HBO’s next great drama show.

The Filmmaking Talent And Style

Similar to prior HBO successes like Boardwalk Empire and Deadwood, Winning Time: The Rise of the Lakers Dynasty is based on a series of true events. The difference between the sports series and those crime epics is that the events of Winning Time are likely familiar to the audience who watched them when they occurred. Nostalgia itself isn’t a reason to watch in case the show could provide insight on why these events are worth covering, but that insight has been provided thanks to Adam McKay. Although he was once known as of the comedy titans of Hollywood thanks to his collaborations with Will Ferrell, McKay has become one of the great nonfiction storytellers in mainstream Hollywood.

Both The Big Short and Vice examined real historical events through a layered perspective; similar to Winning Time, they intercut music, news footage, fourth wall breaking dialogue, and humorous beats to explain how key political changes affected the development of the United States. McKay applied all these same skills when he became the executive producer of Succession, which became a window into reality in its later seasons. Storylines in Succession about the presidential election, the consolidation of news and entertainment media, the scandals that rocked the most powerful families in business, and the economic upheaval felt very close to true events. This prepared McKay for taking on a series like Winning Time.

Winning Time is not based on events as consequential to the future of the country as the rise of Dick Cheney or the economic crisis, but it is interesting to see how the rise and fall of the Los Angeles Lakers in the 1980s affected the future of the NBA. Basketball and sports media changed significantly during this era, and McKay has provided interesting insights on the relevance that the season has on today’s sports coverage. It helps that the show has also recruited several other great film directors, including Jonah Hill and Tanya Hamilton, to direct key episodes.

The Excellent Performances

Any time a “historical series” tries to replicate real events, internet critics tend to focus more on physical resemblance than whether someone actually represents the person they are playing. While John C. Reilly may not look exactly like Jerry Buss, he still serves as an excellent narrator for the series. It’s important to understand that a show like Winning Time is not a documentary, but a translation of true events for dramatic purposes. Its goal is to entertain the viewer, so it makes sense that some of the historical facts may be fudged in some instances.

Unsurprisingly, the true breakout stars of the first season of Winning Time have been the actors playing their key basketball players. Quincy Isiah’s performance as Magic Johnson is a “star making” one in many ways; not only does he show how the underdog player rises to become the face of a generation, but Isiah may have just become an overnight sensation in his own right!

It was somewhat odd to see that the first season of Winning Time was not showered with as much attention from the Primetime Emmy Awards as previous HBO show; certainly, the network has a lot on its hands right now with the last season of Succession and new seasons of The Last of Us, House of the Dragon, and The White Lotus all vying for trophies. However, the next Emmy cycle may bring Winning Time better results; not only will there be less show due to the writers’ strike, but some recurring drama shows will have ended their run.

A Set End Date

An issue that many drama shows face is constructing a conclusion. Many argued that the reason Game of Thrones felt so unsatisfying was that it didn’t plan things out in advance, but having a set ending can also reduce the tension surrounding a series’ stories. Winning Time has the advantage of being based on history. Even if the show concludes the stories of the main characters in the next season, there is potential for it to follow some of the other players into their later years in subsequent installments.