Television shows don’t have to be warm and cuddly to capture the hearts and minds of viewers. Some of the most beloved programs of all time center on darker aspects of humanity.

Over the years, HBO has produced some of the most “downbeat” series, where despair and hopelessness are a feature, not a bug. Collider’s Jeremy Urquhart recently ranked the 10 most “hopeless” television shows ever , with several HBO programs making the cut.

The No. 1 most hopeless show? Oz , which debuted in 1997 as the inaugural hour-long television drama in HBO history, setting the stage for several iconic series to come.

What makes Oz ‘hopeless’?

Created, written and produced by Tom Fontana, Oz ran for six seasons and 56 episodes on the premium cable network from 1997-2003.…