HBO (and by extension its streaming platform HBO Max) is home to some serious television heavyweights. We're talking "The Sopranos," "Sex and the City," "Game of Thrones," "Succession" and countless more. And one of the network's defining Sunday night dramas is celebrating a pretty big anniversary this summer: "Six Feet Under" is officially 25 years old.
Following the dysfunctional Fisher clan, a family that runs a funeral home in Los Angeles, the award-winning series debuted on HBO on June 3, 2001, and collected nine Emmys, three Screen Actors Guild Awards, three Golden Globes and a Peabody during its acclaimed five-season run.
And in the decades that have followed, "Six Feet Under" has endured as one of the medium's greatest series, with one of the best finales in television history (seriously, we haven't been able to listen to Sia the same since). In honor of the show's silver jubilee, here's why you should rewatch "Six Feet Under" on HBO Max now.
What is 'Six Feet Under' about?
Life, death and everything in between — literally. Created by Alan Ball ("True Blood"), "Six Feet Under" is a family drama about a not-so-ordinary family. It begins with the unexpected death of patriarch Nathaniel Fisher (Richard Jenkins) and its impact on the rest of his family: widow Ruth (Frances Conroy) and adult children Nate (Peter Krause), David (Michael C. Hall) and Claire (Lauren Ambrose).
They must deal not only with the messiness of their own mortality and grief but also that of their clients at the family's Fisher & Sons funeral home in Los Angeles, California.
Every episode begins with a death, ranging from the natural (heart attack) to the horrific (murder), a framework that allows each character to explore larger existential questions while they deal with their everyday family dynamics, relationship troubles and the like. Freddy Rodriguez, Rachel Griffiths, Mathew St. Patrick, Jeremy Sisto, James Cromwell and Justina Machado also star.
Why this is the perfect time to stream 'Six Feet Under' on HBO Max
Sure, a show that kicks off with a death each and every week might not sound like the most enjoyable watch, but "Six Feet Under" always managed to balance that brooding emotionality with a good deal of dark humor and familial relatability.
Barry Garron of The Hollywood Reporter praised the show's "examination of family life through the prism of a mortuary business" and its combination of "sardonic humor with poignant drama," making for a tone and style completely its own. "It is fearless in its approach to storytelling and, far more often than not, succeeds in the risks it takes."
Many subsequent character-driven dramas would later aim for that fine line between irony and sincerity, from "Pushing Daisies" to "Dead Like Me" to "Succession." But few have been as existentially thought-provoking and emotionally moving as "Six Feet Under," even 25 years later. Once you meet the Fishers, you'll fall for each of them, flaws and all, so much so that you won't mind going to a funeral each week just to be able to hang out with them.
Stream "Six Feet Under" on HBO Max now
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