HBO Max has been the home of several animated shows, striking deals with prominent players and airing content from Adult Swim, the DC roster, and Cartoon Network’s classics. The platform hosts a variety of genres within the animated space, be it classic superhero affairs like Batman: TAS or more left-field and weirdly creative shows of Adult Swim.
Below are ten standout series currently streaming on HBO Max, spanning long-running favorites and newer breakout hits, each picked for consistent quality, critical acclaim, and staying power with audiences. Here’s where to start if you’re diving into the platform’s animated offerings this year.
1. Rick and Morty
The sci-fi buddy comedy is more than what meets the eye. It is no secret that Rick and Morty is one of the best adult animated shows out there, and despite some lows in its run, it has maintained a nearly perfect record in terms of quality. The Adult Swim show follows Rick Sanchez, a scientist with hubris, and his grandson, Morty, who go on adventures across space and time.
Its influence on modern adult animation is hard to overstate, having popularized a loose, improvisational style of joke writing. Despite behind-the-scenes changes over the years, the series has kept its edge, continuing to rank among Max’s most-watched original series with new seasons still arriving.
2. Smiling Friends
Smiling Friends is one of the best visually distinctive animated shows out there. Following the surreal adventures of a group of employees at a charity, the show explores many animation styles and blends absurdist comedy with existential dread. Genres like cosmic horror, thriller, and more are explored in the show.
The show’s rapid-fire absurdist humor and willingness to swing wildly in tone, from lowbrow gross-out gags to genuine pathos, has made it one of the most acclaimed adult animated comedies of the decade. Season 2 expanded on the world of the show.
3. Genndy Tartakovsky’s Primal
Genndy Tartakovsky is known for creating some incredible animated shows, the most popular of which is Samurai Jack. However, Primal comes a close second in his filmography. The series follows the revenge story of a caveman and a T-rex, both of whom lose a close one on the same night. The unlikely pair form a brutal, wordless alliance to survive a savage world.
There is barely any dialogue in this epic story, and it relies entirely on visuals. It does not shy away from showing brutal violence, and its beautiful hand-drawn animation calls back to an era of amazing art. It is one of the most ambitious animated shows, especially on HBO Max.
4. Common Side Effects
Common Side Effects is another visually ambitious show that takes full advantage of the animation form. Following Marshall, an ethnobotanist who discovers a blue mushroom that can cure any ailment, the show treads between a tense thriller between the DEA and Marshall, and a hallucinatory visual experience.
Co-created by King of the Hill veterans Mike Judge and Greg Daniels alongside Joe Bennett and Steve Hely, the series pairs a tense conspiracy-thriller plot with hallucinatory, rotoscope-inspired visuals during its psychedelic mushroom sequences. A second season is set to premiere in 2027.
5. Creature Commandos
James Gunn officially kickstarted the DCU with Creature Commandos. Building from his Peacemaker and The Suicide Squad universe, the show sees Amanda Waller assemble another ragtag team of prisoners tasked with a terrifying mission in exchange for a lesser sentence. Gunn wrote all episodes of the first season.
Unlike lighter DC animated fare, this series is unapologetically R-rated, blending gory action with dark comedy and surprisingly tender character backstories delivered through flashback episodes. As the canonical launchpad for the new DC film and TV continuity, it directly sets up characters and plot threads that carry into live-action projects.
6. Harley Quinn
This raunchy, R-rated spinoff follows Harley Quinn as she finally breaks free from the Joker and builds her own crew of Gotham City villains, including a slow-burn romance with Poison Ivy that became one of the show’s defining storylines. Blending crude humor with genuine relationship drama, the series reinvented Harley as a fully realized protagonist.
Across its seasons, the show has taken satisfying swings at DC’s broader mythology, turning C-list villains into scene-stealing regulars and letting its ensemble cast, including Kite Man and Bane, drive entire subplots. Its confident tonal balance of slapstick and sincerity keeps it one of the platform’s most purely fun watches.
7. My Adventures with Superman
While Superman: The Animated Series has been the definitive version of the hero for quite some time, My Adventures with Superman sees another angle of the hero. The show is currently on its third season and sees Clark Kent’s early years as the superhero. Its anime-inspired visual style and the focus on Kent, Lois, and Jimmy Olsen as a trio are what set it apart.
8. Adventure Time
Pendleton Ward’s genre-defying classic follows Finn, the last human boy, and his best friend Jake, a dog with magical shapeshifting powers, as they explore the whimsical, post-apocalyptic Land of Ooo. Beneath its colorful surface, the show shows a richly layered mythology involving the Mushroom War, the Ice King’s tragic backstory, and complex arcs.
Its willingness to tackle grief, identity, and mortality within a kids’ show format earned it lasting critical acclaim. The spinoff continuations, including Distant Lands and Fionna and Cake, further expanded Ooo’s lore and are also available to stream alongside the original series.
9. The Boondocks
The Boondocks follows the lives of two Black American brothers from Chicago, Huey and Riley Freeman, after their relocation to the predominantly white, fictional suburb of Woodcrest.
Its willingness to court controversy, including pointed episodes satirizing real public figures and institutions, made it one of the most talked-about adult animated shows of its run. It was set to be rebooted multiple times, once even by HBO Max, but all plans seem to be shelved as of now.
10. Batman: The Animated Series
The classic remains at the top. Batman: The Animated Series redefined children’s shows and superhero shows for a new generation. It tackled the psychology of Batman like never before and dealt with popular villains like Mr. Freeze, Scarecrow, Harvey Dent, and more with a level of empathy that none had shown before it.
While there have been many Batman shows after its acclaimed run, BTAS remains the benchmark for all animated shows based on the character.
| HBO Max Show Name | Rotten Tomatoes – Tomatometer | Popcornmeter (as of July 24, 2026) |
| Rick and Morty | 91% | 82% |
| Smiling Friends | 94% |
| Genndy Tartakovsky’s Primal | 100% | 89% |
| Common Side Effects | 100% | 91% |
| Creature Commandos | 95% | 79% |
| Harley Quinn | 96% | 72% |
| My Adventures with Superman | 100% | 80% |
| Adventure Time | 100% | 93% |
| The Boondocks | 48% | 81% |
| Batman: The Animated Series | 94% |
Which HBO Max show will you tune into this week? Comment below.
