HBO Max has been one of the biggest streaming services to be released this year and with good reason. It has all of the HBO originals TV shows and movies, as well as a massive catalog from Warner Brothers.
However, despite having some of my favorite TV shows such as “The Big Bang Theory,” “Doctor Who” and “Rick and Morty,” it is still unable to bring me in as a full-time subscriber.
Like I said, I’m a huge fan of “The Big Bang Theory.” But when you’re as big of a fan of the show as I am, you tend to buy the DVDs.
In December 2019, I purchased the final season of the series, making it so I would have it all on DVD.
“Doctor Who” is another show that I have been a fan of over the years, specifically seasons 1-10. HBO Max has seasons 1-11 on it at this time, and while that may sound great to some, once again, I have a different arrangement.
Last summer, I ended up finding some sales for Doctors 9-12 DVDs through Best Buy and Target and purchased them. Granted, not all at once, but it did not take me too long to get them all.
I also like the TV series “Rick and Morty” and do not own anything from that series on DVD. I do have Hulu, which still has the series on it and I can watch it on Sling TV on-demand. It will have ads, but it is better than nothing.
I have watched a couple of HBO originals over the last several years, which are “Silicon Valley” and “The Newsroom.” They’re both great shows, but again, I already own both shows on DVD, so it takes away the purpose of having HBO Max.
Even with the addition of “Young Sheldon,” which is supposed to be coming to HBO Max this year, I own the first two seasons on DVD, which creates another reason to not have the streaming service.
As for having access to movies like “Joker” or all of the “Harry Potter” films, the truth is that I am not much of a movie guy. I can’t sit still long enough to watch movies most of the time, which is why I am more heavily reliant on 20-30-minute sitcoms.
I should point out that I already have ad-free Hulu with its bundle that comes with Disney+ and ESPN+ for $18.99 a month, which provides me with enough entertainment for myself.
It’s nothing against HBO Max. I actually think it’s going to be a great service for a lot of people, and make the TV streaming industry a lot better. Once it becomes available on the Amazon Fire TV and Roku, I believe that is when the service will really take off.
The cost of HBO Max at $14.99 a month is one I cannot justify right now. I just would not see myself getting enough usage of it after a while, and it would just be another unnecessary subscription to have.
You can read our review of HBO Max here. It is available on the iPhone, iPod Touch, iPad, Apple TV and Mac.
