The launch of Sky Atlantic brings the unrivalled HBO back catalogue to the UK.
But is it the next big thing in television that it’s being billed as?
Can we do it on HBO?
Louis-Dreyfus asks him.Iwant to be able to say fuck!
Curb Your Enthusiasm,of course,is one of HBOs flagship comedy shows.
If nothing else, it highlights the contrasting attitudes of the two pay TV giants towards its programming.
The very existence ofOzdemonstrated one of HBOs unique selling points, both to audiences and to programme makers.
As Louis-Dreyfus memorably put it, you get to say fuck!
It was also around this time that HBO adopted the ingenious marketing slogan Its Not TV.
Funny, violent, introspective, frustrating and exhilarating, the impact ofThe Sopranoson television was seismic.
The most important thing aboutThe Sopranos, however, is how uncompromising it was in its vision.
Importantly, and pretty staggeringly, Chase was given complete freedom to do so.
The viewing figures almost didnt matter, however.
HBO became the byword for quality in television circles.
Long-time competitor, Showtime, is scoring hits, too, with its multi-award-winningDexter.
Its not done yet, however, having heavily invested in two huge projects inBoardwalk EmpireandGame Of Thrones.
Which brings us back to Sky Atlantic.
Ive seen the entirety ofBoardwalk Empire(my review archive can be foundhere) and make no mistake.
Its an excellent TV show, and one that I would recommend watching without hesitation.
This is an accusation that is often levelled at Sky.
However, the timing of Skys executives is traditionally poor.
(Id disagree, but the viewing figures dont lie.)
Sky have the money to invest the way HBO did.
Its easy to see why Sky bought the HBO back catalogue.
Welcome to Sky Atlantic, then.
But its not HBO either.
Article updated 2 February.
