HBO’s 5-Hour Historical Masterpiece Deserves To Be Recommended, But Not Rewatched

Published Sep 26, 2026, 9:30 PM EDT

Dhruv is a Lead Writer in Screen Rant's New TV division. He has been consistently contributing to the website for over two years and has written thousands of articles covering streaming trends, movie/TV analysis, and pop culture breakdowns.
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After high school, he was on his way to become a Civil Engineer. However, he soon realized that writing was his true calling. As a result, he took a leap and never looked back.

One of the greatest shows in HBO's catalog is so good that it is hard not to recommend it again and again. At the same time, though, the show in question is also so disturbing and hard hitting that watching it once just feels enough.

The HBO series, Chernobyl, can fairly be touted as a historical masterpiece that closely follows one of the most devastating real-life events. It needs to be watched at least once, but watching it twice can be incredibly challenging. Like most shows and movies based on true stories, Chernobyl, too, takes quite a few creative liberties.

Its visual and period accuracy are top-notch and play a key role in immersing viewers in its harrowing drama. Even its portrayal of the root cause of the Chernobyl disaster and the bureaucratic climate surrounding it is filled with realism. However, when it comes to scientific elements and chronology, the show takes some dramatic liberties.

Despite being a combination of realism and some fiction, Chernobyl feels remarkably authentic and bone-chilling. It is one show everyone should watch at least once.

HBO’s Chernobyl Is So Good, It Deserves To Be Recommended Again & Again

HBO's Chernobyl feels immediate and immersive because it turns "radiation" into an ominous looming presence. Using clever sound design, especially with the ticking of Geiger counters, the show builds constant dread. The HBO series even defies streaming conventions and does not bother to last for more than five episodes.

It keeps its writing taut and gripping, leaving viewers with no time to breathe. Written by Craig Mazin, the five-episode arc of the series remains fixated on one theme which is established through an opening line: "What is the cost of lies?" This approach ensures that viewers feel the same level of tension and urgency as its characters.

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Even the show's eerie score, composed by Hildur Guðnadóttir, has the ability to send chills down a viewer's spine. It works so well because Guðnadóttir created it by recording ambient audio inside an actual decommissioned nuclear power plant.

The HBO TV show is further elevated by the incredible performances of its cast, which includes Jared Harris, Stellan Skarsgård, and Emily Watson. Chernobyl's portrayal of complex nuclear engineering concepts, reactor physics, and control rod mechanics is also conveyed in a simple way that allows most viewers to understand its scientific aspects.

All in all, HBO's Chernobyl is as perfect as a historical drama can be, which is why one can never recommend it enough.

Chernobyl Is A Masterpiece, But It’s Hard To Rewatch It

As perfect as Chernobyl may seem, unfortunately, watching it more than once can be challenging. It never compromises on realism when it comes to the horrific depiction of how acute radiation syndrome physically impacts individuals. During the first watch, the show keeps one hooked because there is suspense in learning how bad things will get.

During a rewatch, though, it becomes agonizing to sit through the show after knowing the tragic fate of the liquidators, miners, and residents. HBO's Chernobyl is undoubtedly a masterpiece and will go down in history as one of the greatest shows of all time. However, because it is so good, it ends up taking a heavy emotional toll on a viewer, which makes it less re-watchable.

Chernobyl

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Chernobyl is the Emmy award-winning mini-series by Craig Mazin created for HBO that retells the dramatic story of the Ukrainian nuclear disaster in the 80s. The show follows the true story closely with some dramatizations but still follows the fallout of the atomic event and tells stories from those closely involved to the efforts of first responders and other teams who helped with the cleanup efforts.