Cord cutters, get ready to binge. HBO Now, available starting Wednesday, allows Apple subscribers to get unlimited access to the network's series, movies and comedy specials, all at the very reasonable price of $14.99 a month.

It's a streaming model pioneered by Netflix, one that opens the door to a whole new world of great TV for those who couldn't afford to shell out well over $100 a month for a full cable package.

Not all HBO programming will be on the menu. The network has lost the rights to some classics, most notably "The Larry Sanders Show," but there are still plenty of tantalizing shows — and not just "The Sopranos" and "Game of Thrones," but ones that might not be on your radar. Here are 10 of them:

"Band of Brothers" (2001): Tom Hanks and Steven Spielberg produced this sweeping World War II miniseries that follows members of the "Easy" Company from jump training to Japan's surrender, with powerful performances from Damian Lewis and Ron Livingston.

"Carnivale" (2003-05): This moody, quasi-religious drama about a traveling circus troupe during the Great Depression is often hard to follow, but the dusty, smoky setting is haunting and remarkable. A warning: The show was canceled after two seasons, leaving several questions unanswered.

"Flight of the Conchords" (2007-09): Two struggling musicians — Bret McKenzie and Jemaine Clement — tackle every genre from rap to polka with songs that rival the best from Monty Python. Standouts include Rhys Darby as their hilariously inept manager and Kristen Schaal as the duo's only groupie.

"Getting On" (2013-): A hospital ward where most patients come to die may sound like an odd setting for a comedy, but the sad-sack staff, which includes Laurie Metcalf and Alex Borstein, has compelling characters who remind us that maybe our own jobs aren't so bad after all.

"Life's Too Short" (2012-13): Ricky Gervais and Stephen Merchant, the team behind BBC's "The Office," send up the Hollywood culture with the help of Warwick Davis, who is short in stature, big in ego. Johnny Depp and Liam Neeson are among the celebrities who offer heightened versions of themselves.

"Lucky Louie" (2006): Louis C.K.'s first series was considered a disaster when it came out, but give it a chance. His bawdy breakdown of the classic sitcom format is inspired and set the stage for his much more successful follow-up, FX's "Louie."

"Oz" (1997-2003): If you thought J.K. Simmons was daunting in "Whiplash," wait until you see him as neo-Nazi inmate in a hard-core prison. The graphic violence and language are disturbing — which is exactly the point.

"Rome" (2005-07): With its grand storytelling, colorful villains and epic look, HBO's most underappreciated drama should have lasted as long as the Roman Empire. Instead it was axed after two seasons. Diehard fans still hope that a movie is in the works.

"Silicon Valley" (2014-): No one does office politics better than Mike Judge ("Office Space," "King of the Hill"), who has scored again with this knowing examination of start-up companies and the nerds who run them. The second season starts April 12.

"The Wire" (2002-08): When someone says this is the best show they've ever seen, be skeptical. Not because it doesn't live up the hype, but because so few people watched it when it was on the air. The best thing about HBO Now is that so many more viewers can check out this masterpiece.

neal.justin@startribune.com • 612-673-7431