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Comment by TMWNN | Hacker News Reader

I find interesting that HBO, a US TV network, has become a worldwide brand name in a way that CBS,[1] NBC, and ABC didn't; only BBC has also transcended its home country this way, and did so with a 50-year head start. To global audiences HBO is associated with Game of Thrones, The Sopranos, and other top-quality TV; The Last of Us seems to be on its way to adding to the list.

Outside TV networks, I would count Disney, Netflix, Apple, and Amazon as also having global heft as brand names. None except Netflix has yet gained worldwide recognition for their shows and brands, yet, though (not even Disney and The Mandalorian).

[1] Cf. the rebranding of CBS All Access to Paramount Plus

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> I find interesting that HBO, a US TV network, has become a worldwide brand name in a way that CBS,[1] NBC, and ABC didn't;

That's because CBS, NBC and ABC are national broadcast networks while HBO is a cable network, like CNN. CNN is broadcast internationlly.

> only BBC has also transcended its home country this way,

That's only because of the british empire. Who but their former slave colonies watches BBC?

> None except Netflix has yet gained worldwide recognition for their shows and brands, yet, though (not even Disney and The Mandalorian).

Isn't Friends the most popular tv show worldwide? People may watch it on Netflix but it was originally broadcast on NBC as part of the "Must see tv" thursdays.

> Isn't Friends the most popular tv show worldwide?

No. There are many lists of "top TV shows" or "most watched TV shows", some of which focus on the now, some try to be of all time. Regardless, Friends doesn't really crack the top 5 on any list that I can find (and isn't on most top 20 lists either).

While Friends is a favorite rewatch show, the overwhelming majority of people want to see the latest, they want to be part of the zeitgeist.

Some lists:

- https://bgr.com/entertainment/netflix-top-10/

- https://flixpatrol.com

ABC doesn’t need to be a name brand. It’s owned by Disney - which is a worldwide name brand

NBC also doesn’t need to be a name brand. It’s own by Comcast/Universal Studios which while it isn’t itself a name brand, its products have a worldwide reach.

Also Silicon Valley!

ATT fired all the old HBO leadership, so I have doubts if they maintain the quality of shows they used to.

Also, the new leaders at Discovery have a track record of saturating their viewers with shitty, low quality reality style shows.

The Wire, Tales from the Crypt

Network TV makes bad shows. They have a very different business model that basically boils down to ease of access where HBO is trying to differentiate their content.

I think Apple is on the right track. A lot of good shows, a few great ones. Severance is probably the one that might be their Sopranos.

> The Last of Us

I watched an episode and a half of that and gave up. Had enough of zombie movies. They're all the same.

You miss out a lot. There is barely any zombies in the show. It deals mostly with things that would occur between human in the context of apocalypse. Distrust and love, losing a loved one in an instant and the following despair, not giving up and loneliness when no one can afford to care, and revenge and other stuff. It’s mostly a character story, and there are barely action scenes.

I'm just sick of apocalypses, zombie or otherwise.

I like the show but

> deals mostly with things that would occur between human in the context of apocalypse

Is a trope that has been played out. The walking dead (a show I did not like) had a dozen seasons of it.

I felt the same after episode one. That changed by end of episode 2. I too am zombied out, but this show is fantastic.

I'd estimate there's been a total of about 5 minutes of scenes with zombies in the last... 3 episodes?

Don't need the zombie trope. Try Stephen Baxter's "Flood", for a refreshing different one.

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