Cultureshark's Emmy Ballot

Here is who I would vote for, not who I think will win, in this year's Emmys. I'll try to make this quick because the Emmy nominators and I watch quite different shows. Oh, and let me get this out of the way: Yes, The Wire was the best show on TV last year, and its fourth season was in fact one of the best seasons of TV ever. So all that bitching and moaning you're reading as critics discuss its omission is justified. You can just assume that if I had the option, I'd vote for The Wire in just about all these categories--including comedy, because it was maybe the funniest show on TV, too.


BEST DRAMA: Forget The Wire for a moment. Friday Night Lights was superior to any of these shows. As for the Chosen Ones, The Sopranos had a comeback season for me, but a lot of it was a retread of earlier ground the show had covered, and it didn't really make its short season seem special apart from being the Final. Episodes. Ever. I vote for Heroes. NBC's freshman sensation had a solid year and felt fresh, and it deserves credit for sustaining momentum over a couple of dozen episodes while reminding the creative team of Lost it's possible to move stories along in a satisfying manner while still hinting at larger stories. Years from now, Heroes may not hold up so well, and it could well flame out as early as this season, but so what? Entertainment Weekly can look back and mock me for picking this one Best Drama.


BEST COMEDY: These are the funniest shows on TV? Let's go back to the Best Drama category, where Boston legal's nomination is more rib-tickling than anything to be seen here. If Extras, with its HBO run, could get a nom for Ricky Gervais, it should have received one here. These shows just don't do it for me. I would vote for Ugly Betty, which isn't my cup of tea but at least seems to do what it aims for. Plus that lets me irritate Chuck Lorre by snubbing Two and a Half Man, and I can't reward the Media Elite Darlings trio of Entourage, The Office, and 30 Rock--all flawed shows the media thinks we should all care about.


BEST ACTOR, DRAMA: No problems with Hugh Laurie and Denis Leary, and Keifer Sutherland is always great in the Jack Bauer Power Hour. But this year, the JBPH often had too little JB for my taste, and it was a wayyyy down year for the show. I pick James Gandolfini, who throughout The Sopranos' run was consistently memerizing even when the series wasn't.


BEST ACTRESS, DRAMA: Edie Falco's character was as annoying as ever, but I don't think it's because of her performance. When in doubt, vote for The Sopranos. It sounds lazy, but I didn't care for Minnie Driver in The Riches, and I don't really watch the other shows.


BEST ACTOR, COMEDY: Ricky Gervais on Extras makes me laugh many times, enough that even in 6 episodes, he provides plenty of aggregate comedy value. Easy pick here.


BEST ACTRESS, COMEDY: Oh, how about Felicity Huffman, who had enough good moments to make up for the stupid things her character did this year.


AND THE REST: The only other category that interests me is Supporting Actor, Comedy Series, where Neil Patrick Harris would be the most deserving winner of the night if he takes the prize. His Barney on How I Met Your Mother is maybe the funniest character on TV week in and week out, and I'd really like to see the performance rewarded.