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Boardwalk Empire poster

Shows that feel likeBoardwalk Empire (2010–2014)

Atlantic City at the dawn of Prohibition is a place where the rules don't apply. And the man who runs things -- legally and otherwise -- is the town's treasurer, Enoch "Nucky" Thompson, who is equal parts politician and gangster.

If you loved Boardwalk Empire, the closest series we have are Godfather of Harlem (2019), Power (2014) and The Americans (2013). All three share Boardwalk Empire's gritty and contemplative feel, which is what we rank on before quality.

Seen the big three already? The under-the-radar pick below is Justified (2010).

★ 8.5 IMDb ↗TMDB ↗5 seasons · HBOcreated by Terence Wintergrittycontemplative
11 of 12 streaming nowNetflix · HBO Max · Hulu
Stream it:HBO Max ↗
Buy seasons:Amazon see price ↗Apple TV$29.99 buyBoardwalk Empire, The Complete Series · Apple price as of 2026-10-13

If Boardwalk Empire hit the spot, these will too

Godfather of Harlem poster
Godfather of Harlem
2019–2025 · 4 seasons · Epix
★ 8.1drama · crimeHulu

A crime boss working the seam between politics and the street

The difference: 1960s Harlem swagger — pulpier, and looser with its history

Loosely based on infamous crime boss Bumpy Johnson, who in the early 1960s returned from ten years in prison to find the neighborhood he once ruled in shambles. With the streets controlled by the Italian mob, Bumpy attempts to regain his piece of Harlem.

Power poster
Power
2014–2020 · 6 seasons · STARZ
★ 8.1crime · dramaHuluStarz

An empire builder telling himself the legitimate life is close

The difference: Modern soap momentum — style and twists over period texture

A successful New York entrepreneur lives a double life as the head of a drug empire that serves only the rich and influential, all while wanting to escape the underworld and keep his family safe.

The Americans poster
The Americans
2013–2018 · 6 seasons · FX
★ 8.4crime · dramaHulu

Period-perfect tension where every relationship is also a strategy

The difference: Cold War espionage — an intimate marriage drama, not empire building

Set during the Cold War period in the 1980s, The Americans is the story of Elizabeth and Philip Jennings, two Soviet KGB officers posing as an American married couple in the suburbs of Washington D.C. and their neighbor, Stan Beeman, an FBI Counterintelligence agent.

La Reina del Sur poster
La Reina del Sur
2011– · 3 seasons · Telemundo
★ 7.8drama · crimeNetflix

A ruthless climb through the drug trade told at saga length

The difference: Telenovela heightening in place of HBO restraint

After years of blood, sweat and tears, a woman of humble origin ends up becoming a drug trafficking legend, with all that that means...

Justified poster
Justified
2010–2015 · 6 seasons · FX
★ 8.6crime · dramaHulu

Both land grit and stillness at once

A character drama based on the 2001 Elmore Leonard short story "Fire in the Hole." Leonard's tale centers around U.S. Marshal Raylan Givens of Kentucky, a quiet but strong-willed official of the law. The tale covers his high-stakes job, as well as his strained relationships with his ex-wife and father.

The Penguin poster
The Penguin
2024 · 1 season · HBO
★ 8.6drama · crimeMax

A grasping underboss scheming his way into a power vacuum

The difference: One eight-episode Gotham story — comic-book world, real menace

With the city in peril following the seawall's collapse, Oswald "Oz" Cobb seeks to fill the power vacuum left by the death of Carmine Falcone and finally give his mother Francis the life he's always promised. But first, Oz must confront his enemies and his own demoralizing reputation as "the Penguin."

MobLand poster
MobLand
2025– · 2 seasons · Paramount+
★ 8.3crime · dramaParamount+

Warring crime families where loyalty is the deadliest currency

The difference: Present-day London — brutality without the historical sweep

Two mob families clash in a war that threatens to topple empires and lives.

The Sopranos poster
The Sopranos
1999–2007 · 6 seasons · HBO
★ 9.2crime · dramaMax

New Jersey crime royalty weighed down by their own appetites

The difference: Contemporary and domestic — therapy sessions, not Prohibition

The story of New Jersey-based Italian-American mobster Tony Soprano and the difficulties he faces as he tries to balance the conflicting requirements of his home life and the criminal organization he heads. Those difficulties are often highlighted through his ongoing professional relationship with psychiatrist Jennifer Melfi. The show features Tony's family members and Mafia associates in prominent roles and story arcs, most notably his wife Carmela and his cousin and protégé Christopher Moltisanti.

Peaky Blinders poster
Peaky Blinders
2013–2022 · 6 seasons · BBC One
★ 8.7drama · crimeNetflix

A gangster clawing into respectable power in a lawless postwar age

The difference: Flashier and faster — style over slow-burn political detail

A gangster family epic set in 1919 Birmingham, England and centered on a gang who sew razor blades in the peaks of their caps, and their fierce boss Tommy Shelby, who means to move up in the world.

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Banshee
2013–2016 · 4 seasons · Cinemax
★ 8.4crime · dramaMax

Small-town crime where violence arrives suddenly and hits hard

The difference: Pulpy Cinemax action — momentum first, period craft nowhere

Banshee is an American drama television series set in a small town in Pennsylvania Amish country and features an enigmatic ex-con posing as a murdered sheriff who imposes his own brand of justice while also cooking up plans that serve his own interests.

American Crime Story poster
American Crime Story
2016–2021 · 3 seasons · FX
★ 8.4crime · dramaHulu

True crime treated with prestige-drama weight and craft

The difference: Anthology seasons — new case, new cast, no slow-built empire

An anthology series centered around some of history's most famous criminal investigations.

El Capo poster
El Capo
2009–2014 · 3 seasons · RCN
★ 7.2crime · drama

Crime built on grit, twice over

El Capo, the most wanted drug dealer in Mexico, has been intercepted while hiding with his trusted men, his wife and his lover. During his escape, he declares war on the government and his own past.

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The best-reviewed series that share Boardwalk Empire’s defining feeling.