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Season 1 – Oz

Play trailer Poster for Season 1 – Oz Jul 1997 Drama Crime Mystery & Thriller Play Trailer Watchlist
Watchlist Tomatometer Popcornmeter
80% Tomatometer 25 Reviews 94% Popcornmeter 100+ Ratings
Inmates and correctional officers inside the Oswald State Correctional Facility, nicknamed "Oz," battle for power and survival amid warring factions and explosive acts of retribution. Much of the show takes place in Emerald City, an experimental unit in the facility that tries to emphasize rehabilitation and learning responsibility while being incarcerated. Tim McManus is the unit manager of Emerald City.
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Oz — Season 1

Oz — Season 1

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Critics Consensus

The patient zero of HBO dramas pushes the envelope in graphic content and storytelling ambition, but its relentless provocations dangerously teeter toward schlock.

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Critics Reviews

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Greg Hassall Sydney Morning Herald Feb 5, 2021
It's grueling stuff, with only occasional relief provided by the narrator -- a black inmate in a wheelchair who provides flowing, jail-spun philosophy. But it's great TV and if you're looking for an excuse to get cable, this could be it. Go to Full Review
Mark Simpson Guardian Feb 5, 2021
The campest thing to hit the small screen since Prisoner Cell Block H. This camp is all the more satisfying because it's unintentional. Go to Full Review
Frederic M. Biddle Boston Globe Feb 4, 2021
Oz morally flatlines from the start, leaving no opportunity for ambiguity or introspection. Its claustrophobic style instead zeroes in on graphic acts, until the whole exercise begins to resemble a well-acted slasher film. Go to Full Review
Rich Heldenfels Akron Beacon Journal Feb 4, 2021
Oz is a distinguished effort, one that after two episodes left me wanting more. Rich in storytelling, the series promised still more riches with a complicated landscape within which even the peripheral characters have stories to tell. Go to Full Review
Mike Boone Montreal Gazette Jan 30, 2021
Oz is a spellbinder Viewers will find themselves completely engrossed in the power politics and elaborate rituals of penitentiary life. Go to Full Review
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Audience Reviews

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Thomas D @Thom1967 Mar 8, 2026 Probably the best prison series l have watched ! Originally presented on each episode, funny at some moments, dark and violent sometimes… You should try it ! I wouldn’t call it unforgettable but IT DOES THE TRICK quite brilliantly. See more
Seth K @RT03219903 Oct 21, 2025 Let me start with what I liked: the acting, directing and production values. There were a number of superb performances by the regulars and guest stars. I found "Oz" to be entertaining and fast-moving. That said, I also found it to be unrealistic, exaggerated and with many character and plot lapses and jumps - in short, pure soap opera. Now, that's not a bad thing. Arguably, most series are soaps intended to keep you moving from episode to episode. But ultimately, for me, the inconsistencies and wildly implausible plot twists and turns made me give it 4, and not 5 stars. See more
Mar•Garet W @FilmVersusMovie Jun 22, 2025 A Near perfect Television Series, OZ is up there with the BEST of The Golden Age of TV, such as TRUE DETECTIVE (Season 1), LAW & ORDER, DEXTER (Season 1-7 only) and many more. A Perfect Storm of Production, Writing, Directing, Acting, & even the ominous Music, OZ is among the very best the Crime Drama Genre has to offer. Suffice to say: the "VIEWER DISCRETION ADVISED" Warning was made for shows like this.....and OZ pulls exactly ZERO Punches in that vein. 🤔⚖ Does it have it's Problems: Sure......is the Last Season nowhere near as good as previous Seasons (?) Like so many other popular/successful shows: YES. But as a Cohesive WHOLE: it is a Dramatic Juggernaut and the "Good does not Wash Out The Bad...(but) ...Nor the Bad the Good." See more
Jerad W @JeraBear Jun 8, 2025 Easily in the TOP 5 of Home Box Office's Greatest Shows Of All Time - a Real Life look behind the PG-13 Curtain of Shows like 'Criminal Minds' -&- 'Law & Order'. Can't recommend it enough ( Be warned: "Viewer Discretion is Strongly Advised" indeed....and Then Some. ) See more
Nancy W @RT03606168 May 9, 2025 No-miss TV's 1st incarnation, Hbo's OZ seldom ever disappoints! A+ See more
S G @Sean123456789 Oct 30, 2024 One of the best TV shows of its time, all the cast have gone on to bigger and better things, first 2 episodes are the best in this season and the riot .10/10 See more
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Oz — Season 1

My Rating

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Cast & Crew

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Darnell Martin

Director

Nick Gomez

Director

Jean de Segonzac

Director

Alan Taylor

Director

Leslie Libman

Director

Larry Williams

Director

Episodes

Episode 1 Aired Jul 12, 1997 The Routine A correctional facility stresses the rehabilitation of its inmates. Details Episode 2 Aired Jul 14, 1997 Visits, Conjugal and Otherwise The search for a convict's killer begins; the inmates of Emerald City react differently to visits from loved ones. Details Episode 3 Aired Jul 21, 1997 God's Chillin Inmates' rowdiness prompts the warden to threaten a lockdown. Details Episode 4 Aired Jul 28, 1997 Capital P Tensions flare when the governor's reinstatement of the death penalty directly affects an Oz prisoner. Details Episode 5 Aired Aug 4, 1997 Straight Life Drugs are smuggled into the prison, and officials are implicated. Details Episode 6 Aired Aug 11, 1997 To Your Health Numerous prisoner complaints keep the prison health ward in constant demand. Details Episode 7 Aired Aug 18, 1997 Plan B A recovered Said has the Muslims shun Hussein Mershah; Groves commits murder in honor of Said's power; Beecher gets revenge on Schillinger. Details Episode 8 Aired Aug 25, 1997 A Game of Checkers A fight over a checkers game leads to a massive riot in which several officers are taken hostage; the SORT team arrives to battle the inmates. Details

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Oz — Season 1

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Season Info

Director
Darnell Martin, Nick Gomez, Jean de Segonzac, Alan Taylor, Leslie Libman, Larry Williams
Executive Producer
Barry Levinson, Tom Fontana
Network
HBO
Rating
TV-MA (S|L|V)
Genre
Drama, Crime, Mystery & Thriller
Original Language
English
Release Date
Jul 12, 1997
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