End-Of-Year: Favorite 2014 TV Shows, Part 2

Happy Monday! So, I already picked my favorite TV performances as well as listed Part 1 of my TV rankings. As we head into the second month of 2015, I can now present to you...

My Top Fifteen TV Shows of 2014

15. The Americans - Everything I loved about the show in its freshman season--the cool Cold War spy stuff, the subtle period stylings, the interplay between work and family--was still around in its sophomore season. But this time around the actors are even better with even crazier, more emotionally hefty storylines that revolved around family and what that actually entails when lies and secrets take over. I would also be remiss if I didn't praise the phenomenal work that Keri Russell and Matthew Rhys are both doing, in and out of their ridiculous wigs.

14. The Leftovers - This unique post-apocalyptic tale based on the novel of the same name seemed like a tough sell. It dealt with a world suffering from the effects of the disappearance of 2% of the world's population. It's a tough sell, because it's undeniably bleak and its initial focus on one small town created the added sense of claustrophobia. Weirdly, all of that worked for me and while it wasn't a perfect show by any means I was still awestruck by the imaginative storytelling and the commitment of the cast to bring this world alive in their small ways. This show wasn't for everyone, but I couldn't stop thinking about it.

13. In the Flesh - Its first season was a top 10 pick for me last year and while this second season didn't reach the emotional high of the previous season, it still packed a wallop. The ebb and flow of the town's feelings to the PDS (or rotters) among them was still a great source of drama as we continue to see this world through Kieran's eyes. A little bit of romance and a little bit of a tragic end makes me even more disappointed that we're not getting a third season.

12. Faking It - This MTV show was a pleasant discovery via Tumblr and I'm so glad I tuned in. It revolves around two girls who are best, best friends who pretend to be lesbians to gain popularity at their super liberal high school only for one of the girls to realize she actually is a lesbian and is in love with her best friend. The concept is ridiculous befitting the show's mostly irreverent, sarcastic tone and yet most of its storylines, including the complicated relationship between the two leads, are handled with surprising deft and heart.

11. Parks and Recreation - I'm writing this in the midst of the series' final season (spoiler alert: they are killing it), so I may be biased but I still thought the latter half of season six was damn good. Maybe it's because no matter what I just enjoy hanging out so much with this show and its cast so even a weak episode or plot line here or there doesn't matter much. Plus the two-part finale was one for the ages with the Unity Concert, Ben and Leslie's trip to San Francisco, the Michelle Obama cameo, and of course the now infamous time.

10. Fargo - The movie is an all-time best so it was pretty brave of them to try and adapt it for television. Thankfully they just took the feel of the place and the characters and made it work for television to fantastic results. The technical stuff like directing/writing/cinematography are all top-notch, but I think it's the cast that really made this show work anchored by Billy Bob Thornton, Allison Tolman, and Martin Freeman making all of its quirky characters and dark comedy quite accessible.

9. The Comeback - Even though I'm a HUGE Lisa Kudrow fan, I admit that I didn't watch the first iteration of The Comeback a decade ago until this past year in preparation to see, well... its comeback. And both seasons are truly remarkable in chronicling every cringe-worthy misadventures of an older actress trying to get her mojo back. Kudrow and company don't miss a beat in the most recent season keeping the tone consistent with the first, but also displaying different and evolving stakes. The finale was a thing of beauty and, if we don't get any more of Valerie Cherish, a perfect series finale.

8. Brooklyn Nine-Nine - One of my favorite new shows last season maintained its high quality through the end of its freshman season and into this new season. The cast is still wonderful together and separately and it was enjoyable seeing some of the evolving characters and relationships. The handle on Boyle's character is especially inspired taking his early obsession with Rosa and segueing it with a thing with Gina. They also are giving Andre Braugher more to do as befitting his awesomeness. "BOOM! Did it both ways! No regrets!"

7. Veep - This group of potty-mouthed misfits continues to make me howl with laughter headlined by the always wonderful and game Julia-Louis Dreyfus. That bathroom scene alone with Tony Hale was one of the funniest things on TV all year. How this show does what it does in ten half-hour episodes per season is amazing to me and its brand of political satire is just going to be that much more needed in the years to come. I can't even imagine what they have in store next.

6. Shameless - I'm fine with this show changing its categorization to comedy especially if it means people are paying more attention to this lovely gem of a show. I do find it amusing that they did this during the emotionally bleakest season they ever had with Frank suffering from liver disease, Fiona going to jail, Lip struggling at college, and Ian spiraling. There are darkly comedic moments throughout, but drama/comedy really doesn't matter. This underrated show is simply great TV filled with a superbly talented cast. Everyone should watch it.

5. The Good Wife - Oh boy, all of us thinking that this show was just going to rest on its laurels had a shock coming in early 2014 when they unexpectedly (understatement) killed one its lead actors in dramatic fashion sending not only fans reeling but the characters as well--a harder Alicia, a lonelier Diane, a lost Kalinda, etc. This most recent season isn't kidding around either with Alicia running for state's attorney, Cary in jail, Diane leaving her own firm, and Kalinda... well it's the beginning of the end for her sadly. Perhaps the show is biting more than it can chew, but it's still been a thrilling ride.

4. Game of Thrones - I was excited to see what the post-Red Wedding season of this show would look like and it's pretty much more drama and more death! From Joffrey's Purple Wedding death to the epic battle on the Wall, it was a season of chess pieces moving and getting their heads smashed in, literally. Like every season of this show, there are new characters and new plot threads which could feel overwhelming. Taken as a whole though, it's still one of the most beautiful and ambitious shows on the small screens today. It helps that the actors are just as great as the locales they shoot in.

3. Hannibal - *BEST DRAMA* I respected, more than love, this show's first season, but something just clicked for me in the second season. Perhaps it was Hugh Dancy's Will going toe to toe with Mads Mikkelsen's brilliant portrayal of the title character and it all finally feeling like a fair (and bloody) fight. The deadly chess game these two played on each other as well as on the mostly oblivious people around them was a joy to witness and this isn't even mentioning the strong supporting characters and superb technical aspects of the show. With regards to the latter, no show has displayed food and crimes scenes in a more beautiful, grotesque way.

2. Jane the Virgin - *BEST NEW SHOW* There's always one show every season that just pleasantly surprises and for me this was it. I just didn't have any high hopes about a telenovela-inspired show on the CW about a virgin who gets accidentally pregnant. Its strong pilot sold me. It's hard to put into words my love for this small show. It's like someone mashed up everything that is wonderful about Ugly Betty, Pushing Daisies, and Gilmore Girls and cast an amazing leading lady surrounded by a talented cast who can handle both the sudsy overdramatics and the sweet, quiet human moments. It also has, hands down, the best voice-over narrator in the history of television.

1. Orange is the New Black - *BEST COMEDY* It's hard to argue that this show broke ground when it debut in 2013 and last year it took advantage of all of that buzz to deliver an excellent sophomore season making my previously favorite new show to my favorite show overall. The diverse and large predominantly female ensemble was a continued highlight including a lead character who felt more at home, a new villain that really rocked the boat and added real stakes, and the many, many supporting and background characters that were duly given plenty of moments to shine and grow.

Final Note: In terms of the tally of my top 35, HBO comes out ahead with 6 shows including 4 in my top 15. Showtime and ABC tie with 4 a piece while FOX and FX has 3 each. Also in my list are shows from the following networks: Comedy Central, the CW, BBC America, History, PBS, AMC, and NBC. New shows, not including The Comeback, number at 12 while 2 shows have been canceled (Enlisted, In the Flesh) and another 2 will be ending their runs this year (Mad Men, Parks and Recreation).

Golden Globes: TV Nominations

Like last year, the Hollywood Foreign Press' penchant for honoring the newest, shiniest things actually paid off with some much needed new shows and faces appearing in their TV nominations. Let's take a look...

Best TV Series, Drama

• The Affair
• Downton Abbey
• Game of Thrones
• The Good Wife
• House of Cards

It's a bit sad to see last year's nominee Masters of Sex not make it back, but I guess it's somewhat fitting that fellow extra marital affair Showtime show took its place. I probably would ditch Downton Abbey to get The Americans some damn recognition or Mad Men... has everyone forgotten about Mad Men? At least The Good Wife makes it in here after being snubbed by the SAGs yesterday.

Best Actor, Drama

• Clive Owen, The Knick
• Liev Schreiber, Ray Donovan
• Kevin Spacey, House of Cards
• James Spader, The Blacklist
• Dominic West, The Affair

With last year's winner Bryan Cranston out of the competition, this is a wide open race. Though again, I grieve for Jon Hamm whose show seem to have fallen out of award bodies' graces or something just when they could all be winning acting awards finally! I'd think Spacey, as an Oscar winner, is the favorite here but I don't really know.

Best Actress, Drama

• Claire Danes, Homeland
• Viola Davis, How To Get Away With Murder
• Julianna Margulies, The Good Wife
• Ruth Wilson, The Affair
• Robin Wright, House of Cards

Nice to see Wilson, who was just fabulous in Luther, get some kudos. It also makes total sense for them to nominate Davis and I'm just shocked her show didn't go more love from the HFPA. The other nominees are solid, but it's a bit hard to accept it totally when just last year they nominated Tatiana Maslany! Maybe, she can only be nominated for one major award every year (GG last year, SAG this year).

Best TV Series, Comedy

• Girls
• Jane the Virgin
• Orange Is The New Black
• Silicon Valley
• Transparent

Yup, hell has finally frozen over. I mean this is a major awards show and neither Big Bang Theory nor Modern Family is nominated... anywhere! Not even in the acting categories. I honestly never thought I'd see the day. It's also fantastic that this category is mostly made up of new shows including my favorite one this season Jane the Virgin, which is also the very first show from the CW honored with a Golden Globe nod. Transparent, meanwhile, is the first show from Amazon to get a nod. It's all very cool, but I am still lighting a candle for the non-nomination of Parks and Recreation and last year's surprise champ Brooklyn Nine-Nine.

Best Actor, Comedy

• Louis C.K., Louie
• Don Cheadle, House of Lies
• Ricky Gervais, Derek
• William H. Macy, Shameless
• Jeffrey Tambor, Transparent

Cheadle is the only repeat nominee here so even though this category is usually my least favorite at least the HFPA is mixing it up. Shameless' genre switch to comedy is paying dividends for Macy and I hear nothing but praise for Tambor (my pick to win). Last year's winner Andy Samberg was curiously left out.

Best Actress, Comedy

• Lena Dunham, Girls
• Edie Falco, Nurse Jackie
• Julia Louis-Dreyfus, Veep
• Gina Rodriguez, Jane the Virgin
• Taylor Schilling, Orange Is The New Black

I can't even be mad that last year's winner (see a pattern here?) Amy Poehler is not nominated, because GINA FUCKING RODRIGUEZ got nominated. She and her show are absolutely delightful and I know people say that the Golden Globes don't really matter, but tell that to someone like Gina who's breaking through right now on a new show from a little seen network. This is everything to her right now and I'm so happy for her.

Best Mini-Series Or TV Movie

• Fargo
• The Missing
• The Normal Heart
• True Detective
• Olive Kitteridge

Other than those new and fresh nominees up above, one of the reasons why I was happy with the HFPA today was because they corrected what the Emmys and the SAG got so very wrong i.e. placed True Detective under Miniseries rather than a Drama Series. NOW I'm interested by the competition amongst it, The Normal Heart, and Fargo. The latter leads all TV shows with 5 nods and I think I'm rooting for it. It's going to be a real race though.

Best Actor, Mini-Series or TV Movie

• Martin Freeman, Fargo
• Mark Ruffalo, The Normal Heart
• Billy Bob Thornton, Fargo
• Matthew McConaughey, True Detective
• Woody Harrelson, True Detective

Weird that Sherlock (and thus Benedict Cumberbatch) wasn't nominated, but maybe it wasn't eligible? That said, this is a fun category. McConaughey and Harrelson may be the frontrunner, but I would count out any of the others at all.

Best Actress, Mini-Series or TV Movie

• Maggie Gyllenhaal, The Honorable Woman
• Jessica Lange, American Horror Story: Freak Show
• Frances McDormand, Olive Kitteridge
• Frances O'Connor, The Missing
• Allison Tolman, Fargo

Though I've seen all of them in other roles, the only nominated role I've actually seen is Tolman's and she's fabulous in it so I hope she wins. And she's finally in the right category as well! How some people thought she was a supporting character on the show confuses me.

Best Supporting Actor

• Matt Bomer, The Normal Heart
• Alan Cumming, The Good Wife
• Colin Hanks, Fargo
• Bill Murray, Olive Kitteridge
• Jon Voight, Ray Donovan

Nice to see Bomer and Hanks nominated and of course they would fine a way to nominate Murray. Cumming is fantastic of course, but I actually think his co-star Matt Czuchry would have been a better choice. Of course this category should be split or at least expand to ten nominees because combining genres is just plain ridiculous.

Best Supporting Actress

• Uzo Aduba, Orange Is The New Black
• Kathy Bates, American Horror Story: Freak Show
• Joanne Froggatt, Downton Abbey
• Allison Janney, Mom
• Michelle Monaghan, True Detective

Yeah, I guess this is fine. I mean I'm actually SUPER HAPPY that Aduba picks up her first Golden Globe nod and Janney is unstoppable, but again this category could've been expanded to ten and it would still not be enough room!

My thoughts on the film nominations to come tomorrow once I've slept on them. They weren't nearly as exciting as the TV ones though.

Kalinda Goes, NPH Hosts

Today was a busy pop culture day wasn't it? Stand-alone streaming service from HBO! Every Friends episode available on Netflix next year! Superhero films through the year 2020! Yet none of those made the cut for me tweeting about them. These two news report did though...

As sad as I am to see Archie Panjabi leave, I'm also excited to see how the Kings have written her out. They don't mess around. #TheGoodWife
— Ryan (@sortathatboy) October 15, 2014

Yup, everyone's favorite leather-bound in-house investigator is leaving The Good Wife filling me with much sadness. Apparently Archie Panjabi recently signed a talent deal with 20th Century TV and will be headlining a drama pilot for them so at least we won't be without her talents for long. I, however, can still mourn the end of Kalinda and contemplate why the show's first breakout character and Emmy-winning role has been so wasted the past few seasons. Severing her ties to Alicia in the third season hurt, but it was the abusive husband storyline in the fourth season that seemed like the point of no return for the character as the writers then decided to stop any character development at all for her perhaps out of making the same mistake again. For the best drama in broadcast TV the past few years, it's the rare blind spot for them and I truly hope that at least with the end in sight they're able to craft an ending as brilliant as the character was in the first season. At the very least, they could have her share a scene with the Alicia, which apparently hasn't happened since season 4!

Would it be too much to ask for Neil Patrick Harris to host the Oscars as Hedwig throughout?
— Ryan (@sortathatboy) October 15, 2014

And finally, Neil Patrick Harris is finally hosting the Oscars! He'll emcee the upcoming telecast and it really is about damn time. I knew that as soon as How I Met Your Mother ended, it wouldn't take long for him to get asked and for him to accept. Apparently, they first asked Julia-Louis Dreyfus (which would've been fantastic also), but she turned them down. So instead, Harris will be just one Grammy hosting duty away from claiming the EGOT of hosting as he has already hosted the Tony Awards (to much critical acclaim) numerous times as well as the Emmy Awards. Mind you, he just won the Tony for headlining Hedwig and the Angry Inch (I saw him in it and LOVED it) *and* in the midst of a book tour to promote his autobiography. Where the hell does he find the time? It will be interesting that he'll be hosting the Oscars with his latest film, Gone Girl, already one of the front-runners for the award.

Emmy Nominations and Predictions: Drama

Yesterday, I took a look at the comedy categories and talked about who the favorites are and who should've been nominated. With one day left until the Emmys, here are my thoughts and predictions for the drama categories.

BEST DRAMA SERIES
Breaking Bad
Downton Abbey
Game of Thrones
House of Cards
Mad Men
True Detective

Last year, I was fine with The Good Wife not being nominated, but this year I'm just ANGRY. There's just no excuse for that show to have been left off the list this year after its mind-blowing fifth season. I guess I should be satisfied that there aren't any real dogs among the nominees (maybe Downton Abbey a little?), but how great would it have been to see something like Masters of Sex or The Americans (this show in particular was largely ignored by the TV Academy as well as Hannibal) in the lineup. Breaking Bad is the slight frontrunner here after snatching the reins from Mad Men last year and delivering a nearly flawless final final season, but True Detective (in the wrong fucking category by the way) is the buzzy new kid on the block starring the McConnaisance so it's not a lock by any means.

Prediction: Breaking Bad
Alternate: True Detective
Should Win: Breaking Bad
Should've Been Nominated: The Good Wife, Masters of Sex, The Americans, Hannibal

BEST DRAMA ACTOR
Bryan Cranston, Breaking Bad
Jeff Daniels, The Newsroom
Jon Hamm, Mad Men
Woody Harrelson, True Detective
Matthew McConaughey, True Detective
Kevin Spacey, House of Cards

The Oscars should beat the Tonys at this year's Emmys. I mean, I've made my peace that Oscar winner McConaughey will win and not undeservedly so especially since Tony winner Cranston already has won three times prior, so it's all good. And to be brutally honest, I'm pretty much just anti-Daniels this year whose win last year still confounds and angers me (over Cranston? over Spacey? over Hamm?). So everyone else can literally win as long as it's not Daniels. With that said, did the TV Academy not watch Hannibal with its stunning season-long two-man standoff between Mads Mikkelsen and Hugh Dancy? Because wow.

Prediction: Matthew McConaughey
Alternate: Bryan Cranston
Should Win: Bryan Cranston
Should've Been Nominated: Mads Mikkelsen, Hugh Dancy, Matthew Rhys

BEST DRAMA ACTRESS
Lizzy Caplan, Masters of Sex
Claire Danes, Homeland
Michelle Dockery, Downton Abbey
Julianna Margulies, The Good Wife
Kerry Washington, Scandal
Robin Wright, House of Cards

The sheer happiness I felt when Caplan's name was called on nomination morning was tempered a bit when I realized that Elisabeth Moss was left out. Out of all last year's nominees, I would've pegged Moss to be the safest based on what she did on her show this season. Her non-nomination was one of those things that you didn't think about until it happened and then everything hurt. I am happy that Margulies came back after being left out last year, especially after such a brilliant season. I have no idea who the favorite is. Danes has won the past two years, but Caplan could surprise as could Golden Globe winner Wright. Write-in vote for Moss? Write-in vote for Tatiana Maslany! Who am I kidding? It'll probably be Jeff Daniels and I'll get angry all over again.

Prediction: Julianna Margulies
Alternate: Robin Wright
Should Win: Lizzy Caplan
Should've Been Nominated: Elisabeth Moss, Tatiana Maslany, Keri Russell

BEST DRAMA SUPPORTING ACTOR
Jim Carter, Downton Abbey
Josh Charles, The Good Wife
Peter Dinklage, Game of Thrones
Mandy Patinkin, Homeland
Aaron Paul, Breaking Bad
Jon Voight, Ray Donovan

I actually still like Downton Abbey and Carson is a hoot, but Carter's nomination is just ridiculous especially in such a seriously competitive and stacked category already. Very happy to see Charles nominated here and it does lessen the sting of his character's loss in the show (and the show's snub... yes, still not over it). Previous winners Dinklage and Paul upped their level making it really easy to see and want either one in the winner's circle again. Voight is the wildcard as he could swoop in as the veteran Hollywood actor to get his first Emmy win. Dean Norris probably should've gotten nominated as well as a couple of my genre picks Jordan Gavaris and Dylan O'Brien.

Prediction: Aaron Paul
Alternate: Peter Dinklage
Should Win: Josh Charles
Should've Been Nominated: Dean Norris, Jordan Gavaris, Dylan O'Brien

BEST DRAMA SUPPORTING ACTRESS
Christine Baranski, The Good Wife
Joanne Froggat, Downton Abbey
Anna Gunn, Breaking Bad
Lena Headey, Game of Thrones
Christina Hendricks, Mad Men
Maggie Smith, Downton Abbey

The good news is that I heart all of these actresses so even if I think a couple of nominations are lazy (Smith, Hendricks), the TV Academy couldn't really do much wrong here. I'm rooting for Gunn and Baranski in equal measure as I want the former to win for delivering just an outstanding tour-de-force performance and the latter to win to continue the awesome Good Wife streak to five years of kick-ass actresses winning the Emmy from that show. With regards to who should've been nominated, there are a few names, but most are from genre shows so I didn't expect them too much. Though what does Maisie Williams have to go to get in on the Emmy love for Game of Thrones? Pay attention, people!

Prediction: Anna Gunn
Alternate: Maggie Smith
Should Win: Anna Gunn
Should've Been Nominated: Maisie Williams, Lana Parrilla, Katheryn Winnick

And if you're still reading here are just my predictions for the Miniseries/TV Movies categories:

BEST TV MINISERIES: Fargo
BEST TV MOVIE: The Normal Heart
BEST ACTOR, MINISERIES/MOVIE: Billy Bob Thornton
BEST ACTRESS, MINISERIES/MOVIE: Cicely Tyson
BEST SUPP. ACTOR, MINI/MOVIE: Matt Bomer
BEST SUPP. ACTRESS, MINI/MOVIE: Julia Roberts

Predicting Guest Acting at Creative Arts Emmy Awards

I keep forgetting that the Emmy Awards are being held a whole month earlier than usual this year, which means the Creative Arts Emmys is happening this weekend, tonight specifically. It's their way of trying to handle the approximately 100 or so awards they have to give out. The only acting awards being given out tonight are those for Guest Acting, so here are my thoughts and predictions on those...

BEST DRAMA GUEST ACTOR
Dylan Baker, The Good Wife
Beau Bridges, Masters of Sex
Reg E. Cathey, House of Cards
Paul Giamatti, Downton Abbey
Robert Morse, Mad Men
Joe Morton, Scandal

I expected stronger showings for Mad Men and The Good Wife (and it's insane both shows don't even make it into Guest Actress). For the past two years, I kept wrongly predicting Michael J. Fox and I don't even think he submitted his name this year. That said I'm rooting for Bridges for his heartbreaking storyline, but they might give it to Morse or Giamatti. I wished Pedro Pascal had been nominated though for his fantastic work in Game of Thrones.

Prediction: Paul Giamatti
Alternate: Robert Morse
Should Win: Beau Bridges
Should've Been Nominated: Pedro Pascal, John Noble

BEST DRAMA GUEST ACTRESS
Kate Burton, Scandal
Jane Fonda, The Newsroom
Allison Janney, Masters of Sex
Kate Mara, House of Cards
Margo Martindale, The Americans
Diana Rigg, Game of Thrones

A bit annoyed that last year's winner (yay!) Carrie Preston didn't repeat especially in a category with the a few repeats (Fonda, Martindale, Rigg), but I actually don't care because this category is ALL ABOUT Allison Janney for me. Her character and her performance is my everything. I might hurt somebody if she doesn't win this. Spoiler alert: I have similar feelings in the comedy category. Also to all voters, did you watch Hannibal? I count four women easy on that show who you should've nominated.

Prediction: Allison Janney
Alternate: Jane Fonda
Should Win: Allison Janney
Should've Been Nominated: Gina Torres, Gillian Anderson

BEST COMEDY GUEST ACTOR
Steve Buscemi, Portlandia
Louis C.K., Saturday Night Live
Gary Cole, Veep
Jimmy Fallon, Saturday Night Live
Nathan Lane, Modern Family
Bob Newhart, Big Bang Theory

This category is pretty boring, which is why I really wished they had gone nuts and nominated Prince for his bit role in New Girl. It's also boring because I think everyone knows that Bob Newhart could very well repeat his (deserved) win last year. I don't even have anyone I'm really rooting for among the nominees. Maybe Cole just because he's in the show I like the most from the options.

Prediction: Bob Newhart
Alternate: Steve Buscemi
Should Win: Gary Cole
Should've Been Nominated: Prince, Andrew Rannells

BEST COMEDY GUEST ACTRESS
Uzo Aduba, Orange is the New Black
Laverne Cox, Orange is the New Black
Joan Cusack, Shameless
Tina Fey, Saturday Night Live
Natasha Lyonne, Orange is the New Black
Melissa McCarthy, Saturday Night Live

I do love the TV Academy's love for Orange is the New Black and these specific nominations are pretty flawless. I would've even added Taryn Manning, but maybe that's a bit overkill. Of course even though her show change from Drama to Comedy, Cusack is still inexplicably in this category so whatever. But who cares because I'm putting ALL OF MY ENERGIES to making sure Aduba wins. Janney and Aduba are MUST wins. I will cry if they don't. I will throw pies. (If Laverne Cox wins, I'll be upset for like a second and then really happy though.)

Prediction: Uzo Aduba
Alternate: Laverne Cox
Should Win: Uzo Aduba
Should've Been Nominated: Taryn Manning, Romy Rosemont

Why I even make predictions in these categories is beyond me since year in, year out I've done horribly. I hope that doesn't jinx my picks. And just for kicks, three more random categories that will be decided tonight...

BEST ORIGINAL SONG
"No Trouble," A Christmas Carol - The Concert
"Les Mis," Key & Peele
"Home For the Holiday," Saturday Night Live
"Merroway Cove," Sofia The First: The Floating Palace
"Day Is Gone," Sons of Anarchy
"Bigger!" 67th Annual Tony Awards

Even though I haven't heard of any of the other songs, I don't really care because "Bigger!" from last year's Tony Awards really needs to win. The song is great, but the performance by Neil Patrick Harris is EPIC. Just watch:


BEST MAIN TITLE DESIGN
Black Sails
COSMOS: A SpaceTime Odyssey
Masters of Sex
Silicon Valley
True Detective

I would refer you to this post over at The Film Experience if you want to view all of these. I'm rooting for Masters of Sex, because it's just so fun (and to be honest I'm kinda over these deep, brooding title sequences that a lot of shows prefer to do now). And while it's not high art, I do love the fun and retro title sequence for Brooklyn Nine-Nine.

BEST SPECIAL CLASS PROGRAM
The 71st Annual Golden Globe Award
The Oscars
Sochi 2014 Olympic Winter Games Opening
The Sound of Music Live!
The 67th Annual Tony Awards

This will be interesting, because I think it's a fight of the Award Shows with Cool Hosts (who get the Emmys if their show wins). On the one hand, NPH's Tony show was great (see above clip) but Ellen's Oscar was a viral hit. On the other hand, Fey and Poehler made the Golden Globes a must watch. Of course, I'm also assuming that while The Olympics is always a threat, Sochi being Sochi will make them not likely to win and The Sound of Music Live! was a joke nomination, right?

Anyways, those are just a small percentage of the awards being given out tonight. I'm sure the pundits are hoping to see which shows win those technical categories to figure out which way the TV Academy is going. The Normal Heart should be a big winner, but the regular series race is actually up in the air. Last year, Breaking Bad had this race sewn up, but True Detective is a tough challenger. And could this finally, FINALLY be the year Modern Family loses (to Orange is the New Black)? We'll all find out next week for sure!

End-Of-Year: Favorite 2013 TV Shows, Part 2

Sensing a pattern here as I posted Part 1 of my TV rankings more than two weeks ago, which I posted more than two weeks after I picked my acting winners. And it's already the middle of February, so without further a due...

My Top Fifteen TV Shows of 2013

15. Trophy Wife - Like Cougar Town, the title of this little-seen sitcom hides the gem within. Malin Akerman plays Kate, the titular wife to Bradley Whitford's Pete, his third wife to be exact. His relationship with his previous two ex-wives (with kids) are friendly enough that he still keeps in constant contact with them and it's this hilarious and awkward family unit that is on full display. The cast is uniformly wonderful from little show-stealing Albert Tsai to the deadpan genius of Marcia Gay Harden.

14. Doctor Who - I'm probably ranking this show a bit higher than I really think it deserves as a whole mostly because I was quite impressed by the 50th Anniversary episode, which really was the moment the show has been working towards for the past couple of years. The rest of the episodes, including the Christmas finale, ranged from meh to good to no fault of the departing Matt Smith who was game for so many things in his last few episodes.

13. Shameless - The last season aired more than a year ago and I still can't get certain scenes out of my head such as Fiona fighting to get legal guardianship of her siblings in court or Kevin having sex with Veronica's mother in an attempt to get a baby or Mickey's dad finding his son making out with Ian and the violence that follows. But it less about these unforgettable moments, which the show has in spades, and more about this talented ensemble of mostly young actors led by an exquisite Emmy Rossum that I find most worthy of praise.

12. Broadchurch - This is a perfect example of a show that was a slow and steady burn with a tight script, wonderful cast, and breathtaking production values. The whodunnit aspect  may have been the hook for the show, but it's the deft way the show handled the complexity of its grisly plot (a young boy's murder in a tight-knit small community) that impressed me. The emotionally gratifying resolution was simultaneously shocking and organic, a rare combination. It's no wonder a US remake is on the way.

11. Masters of Sex - Who knew adapting the real life work and personal lives of famed sex researchers William Masters and Virginia Johnson would make for some compelling TV? It certainly helps that Michael Sheen and Lizzy Caplan are both so good as leads with the latter doing some career-best work. But as great as they both are, the show's supporting characters really does elevate the show from the heartbreaking story arcs of the elder Scullys to the more lighthearted situations with Teddy or Jane.

10. Orphan Black - Tatiana Maslany was the breakout TV star of last year for me and she is the main reason why this BBC America sci-fi show became a crossover hit. The obvious hook was seeing one actress playing multiple characters, which Maslany deftly handles, but the show also goes deeper forcing viewers to examine their notions and preconceptions of identity, family, privacy, individuality, free will, and spirituality. Oh, plus lots of bonus ass kicking.

9. In the Flesh - This three-episode British miniseries about a post-zombie apocalypse world is definitely one of the smartest and most affecting show of its kind that I've seen. Newcomer Luke Newberry is brilliant as Kieren Walker, one of the millions of former "undead" who've been rehabilitated and allowed to resume their "normal" lives. Seeing the world, in this case Kieren's family as well as everyone in his small village, react to his return was something to behold. Plus I truly loved all of the various emotional twists and turns the story took leading up to a engrossing finale I couldn't have even imagined.

8. Parks and Recreation - If the entire year just consisted of Leslie and Ben getting married, it probably would've still been in my top 10, but thankfully the show is still doling out great episodes after another featuring one of the least celebrated ensembles on TV. I've quite enjoyed seeing Leslie go through the wringer this year--fighting with her fellow representatives, going through a recall vote, working with Eagletonians, accepting the fact that Ann is leaving--as well as seeing all of the other characters grow and evolve.

7. The Americans - I thought the pilot was quite good and it just got better and better as we got more entrenched in the lives of these two KGB agents, played magnificently by Keri Russell and Matthew Rhys, living in secret as a married couple with kids in the height of the Cold War. There's much to love about the show such as its superb cast, its subtle period stylings, and its rocking musical score. But it's its ability to balance the cool spy stuff with its fake wigs, assassination attempts, and crazy gadgets, with the family/personal lives of the characters that really elevate the show for me.

6. Veep - My pick for my favorite new show of last year moves up the ranking delivering a sophomore season that was just as funny and crazy, if not funnier and crazier, as its first brilliant outing. This time around I wasn't as shocked at the insane things the show would have the cast, especially a game Julia-Louis Dreyfus, do but I still couldn't help but laugh. I'm just really looking forward to seeing what off-the-wall stuff they try to do next season.

5. Game of Thrones - With its sophomore season, I feared the show was already spreading itself too thin. Thankfully, the show came roaring back with its strongest season yet last year doing a much better job of juggling and mixing its myriad characters, locales, and stories. It wasn't perfect (Theon's unending torture), but a season that brought us the infamous Red Wedding with its jaw-dropping development is something to be celebrated. And that's just one of a dozen or so plot developments the show unveiled this past season that made me so excited to know what's to come that I *almost* considered starting to read the books!

4. Brooklyn Nine-Nine - A sitcom about cops on FOX starring Andy Samberg? What in the hell? Thankfully, I listened to the critics on this one and gave it a shot, because if I didn't I would've definitely missed out on such a hilarious show. Samberg plays a cocky detective who butts up against the new gay captain with a penchant of deadpans reactions played by Andre Braugher. They work SO well together, but the genius of this show is how every character and every relationship/interaction seem fully realized and most importantly for a sitcom, funny.

3. Orange is the New Black - *BEST COMEDY* *BEST NEW SHOW* I went back and forth on this and Brooklyn Nine-Nine for my top new show/comedy, but I had to give this show the edge both for breaking new ground (along side House of Cards) with its Netflix debut and for its predominantly large female ensemble. And what an ensemble it is (my favorite of the year) consisting of mostly unknowns or newcomers brimming with talent and charm. The actors and the writers together make it nearly impossible to pick a favorite character, which is a sign that you're doing something good.

2. The Good Wife - Everything I love about the show is still present--the interesting court cases, the superb ensemble, the envious roster of guest stars, the interplay between work and home--but their decision to pit Alicia and Cary against Will and Diane catapulted the show to whole new levels of awesome shifting everyone's relationships and allegiances and giving new energy to many of the characters and thus the show. The episode when Will found out about Alicia leaving the firm is one of the best, and most tense, hours of TV all of last year.

1. Breaking Bad - *BEST DRAMA* This was almost too easy. How could I not give one of my favorite shows the top spot especially after it delivered an almost pitch perfect final season? From the get go with Walter threatening Hank, you knew the last eight episodes would take no prisoners and thankfully it all lived up to the deafening hype and buzz. I watched the final season finding myself holding my breath or on the edge of my seat as Walter's and everyone else's situations got worse and worse. And yet the ending was pretty much what it should have been and I still can't believe the cast and crew of the show pulled it all off in the end. TV will have big shoes to fill.

Final Note: Netflix has 3 shows in my top 35 including one in my top 3 while other new networks on my list include FX, History, MTV, and Pivot. The network with my most shows is CBS with 5, but it only has one show in my top 15 while BBC America is second with 4 shows, all of them in my top 15, but in terms of British shows there are a whopping 6 in my list. The big winner, however, are freshman shows with a tally of 15 overall and 8 in my top 15. The future looks good!

Golden Globes: TV Nominations

The Hollywood Foreign Press finally used their penchant for the newest and shiniest thing for good picking up where the Emmy Awards and Screen Actors Guild couldn't in honoring some of the new shows and faces of TV. In fact, House of Cards, a new show from Netflix, leads with 4 nods alongside HBO's Beyond the Candelabra.

Best TV Series, Drama

• Breaking Bad
• Downton Abbey
• The Good Wife
• House of Cards
• Masters of Sex

Only Breaking Bad and Downton Abbey repeated their SAG nominations from yesterday while both of those alongside House of Cards repeated their Emmy nods. That's all well and good, but I just want to celebrate the return of The Good Wife (after a two-year absence) as well as the HFPA recognizing new show Masters of Sex. There are other new shows they could've obviously honored (Orange is the New Black, The Americans, Orphan Black), but this is more than what other groups have done so far.

Best Actor, Drama

• Bryan Cranston, Breaking Bad
• Liev Schreiber, Ray Donovan
• Michael Sheen, Masters of Sex
• Kevin Spacey, House of Cards
• James Spader, The Blacklist

Can we take a moment to light a candle for Jon Hamm and Mad Men? The show was shut out of the nominations through no apparent faults of its own. Also weird to see last year's winner Damien Lewis or this year's Emmy winner Jeff Daniels missing, but this is Cranston's award to lose. Not to mention he's in a category with four guy from NEW shows. Talk about in with the new.

Best Actress, Drama

• Taylor Schilling, Orange Is The New Black
• Robin Wright, House of Cards
• Tatiana Maslany, Orphan Black
• Julianna Margulies, The Good Wife
• Kerry Washington, Scandal

Like the men, there's a lot of new blood here most notably for the awesome breakthrough of both Taylor Schilling and Tatiana Maslany, their show's lone, but monumental nomination. Maslany especially has been a critic/internet favorite ever since her BBC America show aired so to see here here with all the big names is a delight. Just really didn't expect last year's winner Claire Danes to be out of the running though.

Best TV Series, Comedy

• The Big Bang Theory
• Brooklyn Nine-Nine
• Girls
• Modern Family
• Parks and Recreation

It was a very, very good day for Michael Schur. Not only does his show Parks and Recreation finally get a series nod for the first time, but his new show (also my favorite NEW show of the fall) Brooklyn Nine-Nine makes it in. Those nominations alone make this category the best it's been in years. Hey, remember last year when they nominated Smash? Though I did think Veep or the final season of 30 Rock was going to make it in.

Best Actor, Comedy

• Jason Bateman, Arrested Development
• Don Cheadle, House of Lies
• Michael J. Fox, The Michael J. Fox Show
• Jim Parsons, The Big Bang Theory
• Andy Samberg, Brooklyn Nine-Nine

Bateman, Cheadle, and Parsons all repeat their Emmy/SAG nominations so that's whatever. But it's Fox and not Robin Williams who won the "veteran in a new comedy show" slot. And I didn't expect Samberg to be cited here, but any love for his show is fine by me. I'd probably trade any of these men with Adam Scott or Jake Johnson though.

Best Actress, Comedy

• Zooey Deschanel, New Girl
• Lena Dunham, Girls
• Edie Falco, Nurse Jackie
• Julia Louis-Dreyfus, Veep
• Amy Poehler, Parks and Recreation

This is pretty much the same nominations as last year except Falco replaces host Tina Fey (HFPA just really didn't care to say goodbye to 30 Rock at all). It's a solid list, but I hope reigning winner Louis-Dreyfus would be okay if I beg and plead for Poehler to win one. I mean come on now!

Best Mini-Series or TV Movie

• American Horror Story: Coven
• Behind the Candelabra
• Dancing on the Edge
• Top of the Lake
• White Queen

Behind the Candelabra leads and is probably the frontrunner. That said, I still need to see Top of the Lake and Dancing on the Edge which I hear are pretty good.

Best Actor, Mini-Series or TV Movie

• Matt Damon, Behind the Candelabra
• Michael Douglas, Behind the Candelabra
• Chiwetel Ejiofor, Dancing on the Edge
• Idris Elba, Luther
• Al Pacino, Phil Spector

Just a couple of movie stars slumming it on TV. I'm talking of course about Ejiofor and Elba who are both nominated in the film categories as well this year. Realistically they don't have a chance against Emmy winner Douglas.

Best Actress, Mini-Series or TV Movie

• Helena Bonham Carter, Burton and Taylor
• Rebecca Ferguson, White Queen
• Jessica Lange, American Horror Story: Coven
• Helen Mirren, Phil Spector
• Elisabeth Moss, Top of the Lake

A few crossovers with SAG and the Emmy, but I'm hoping Moss avenges Mad Men's impromptu fall from grace to win here.

Best Supporting Actor

• Josh Charles, The Good Wife
• Rob Lowe, Behind the Candelabra
• Aaron Paul, Breaking Bad
• Corey Stoll, House of Cards
• Jon Voight, Ray Donovan

Year in, year out, I just find it so ridiculous that the HFPA combines supporting roles in this way, but at least they made some excellent choices with Paul, Stoll, and Charles especially which surprised me.

Best Supporting Actress

• Jacqueline Bisset, Dancing on the Edge
• Janet McTeer, White Queen
• Hayden Panettiere, Nashville
• Monica Potter, Parenthood
• Sofia Vergara, Modern Family

See SAG and other award shows, the HFPA was okay not nominating Maggie Smith. You can do that also! Pretty incredible for Panettiere to repeat her nomination from last year. I'd probably give it to any of the ladies from Orange is the New Black or newly SAG-nominated Mayim Bialik, but really the one snub that absolutely pains me is Anna Gunn. That nomination really should've been a no-brainer. Oh well, you win some, you lose some.

My thoughts on the film nominations to come later today!

AFI Top Ten Films/TV Programs of 2013

Yesterday, the American Film Institute announced their picks for the best films/TV shows of the past year. And they are...

MOVIES OF THE YEAR

• 12 Years A Slave
• American Hustle
• Captain Phillips
• Fruitvale Station
• Gravity
• Her
• Inside Llewyn Davis
• Nebraska
• Saving Mr. Banks
• The Wolf of Wall Street

As early as we are into awards season, it still seems like the consensus is already taking shape as the same films keep getting all the love and it's no exception here. I at least thought we would get a random film like last year's The Dark Knight Rises or Bridesmaids from the year before, but here we are. The films that could be labeled as snubbed include Lee Daniels' The Butler and August: Osage County, but I was more hoping this group could've given a boost to smaller films like Before Midnight, Much Ado About Nothing, and Short Term 12. It's also hard for me to be super excited about this list since I've only seen four films out of the ten. Gotta catch up!

TV PROGRAMS OF THE YEAR

• The Americans
• Breaking Bad
• Game of Thrones
• The Good Wife
• House of Cards
• Mad Men
• Masters of Sex
• Orange is the New Black
• Scandal
• Veep

Unlike the film category, I've actually seen almost all of these shows with the exception of Scandal, which I will need to make time for soon. I don't really have any complaints about any of the others as I'm a big fan of all of them. I'm especially heartened to see the list citing news shows like Masters of Sex, Orange is the New Black, House of Cards, and The Americans. Then there's Breaking Bad with its phenomenal final season and The Good Wife with such a game-changer season--TV is so full of good! I would've probably cited Broadchuch and Orphan Black to this list as well, but I'll just tell myself they weren't eligible for this "American" honor.

The 2013 Emmys: The Winners

So... that was a weird Emmy ceremony, wasn't it? I mean we all know how fantastic Neil Patrick Harris is as awards host, but he never really got it going after a lackluster opening that relied more on other people (especially consummate awards show saviors Tina Fey and Amy Poehler) to make entertaining. Yes, he did a fun song-and-dance number in the middle of the ceremony about singing and dancing in the middle of the ceremony and the skit he had with his How I Met Your Mother cast was pretty good, but this was one of his lesser hosting turns I think.

Harris certainly wasn't helped by the (unintentional?) depressing theme of the night: dead people. They were everywhere. The idea behind the separate In Memoriam tributes for a few choice people was ill-conceived from the start, but the execution (them being spread out throughout the show and featuring no clips) left much to be desired and really brought a solemn mood to the ceremony. Though I'd be remiss if I didn't mention how affective Edie Falco's tribute was for the late James Gandolfini. We even had a 1963 tribute that began with Dr. King's death and ended with Carrie Underwood murdering a Beatles song. And if that weren't enough, we had someone's spouse accepting an award on behalf of her late husband and Claire Danes dedicating her award to a writer on her show who had also died. Oh and there was also the most random Liberace tribute in the middle of the show even though the man died more than two decades ago.

The awards themselves were fairly unpredictable in a night that saw quite a lot of first-time winners and upsets in key categories. Modern Family took home the Comedy Series award again (as well as Directing), but for the first time since they've been eligible, they were shut out from the acting awards with first-time winners Tony Hale and Merritt Wever taking the Supporting categories. Wever was the night's first winner and memorably left the stage without really making an acceptance speech while Hale came back on stage to hilariously assist his co-star Julia Louis-Dreyfus during her acceptance speech for Actress. Jim Parsons took home Actor while the Emmys gave some love to 30 Rock in the form of a Writing award for Tina Fey.

There were plenty of drama in the Drama categories with all six of its acting awards going to six different shows. Danes was the only repeat winner for Actress while Jeff Daniels, Anna Gunn, and Bobby Cannavale all upset (though Gunn's win actually made me happy while Daniels' just caused me to shake my head). Last year's powerhouse Homeland picked up a second prize tonight for its Writing while Netflix picks up its first ever Primetime Emmy win for David Fincher's Direction for House of Cards. The night ended on a high note with Breaking Bad winning Best Drama Series and from the looks of it, it should be seen as the favorite for next year as well.

The top winner of the night is Behind the Candelabra picking up kudos for Actor, Directing, and Miniseries. Oddly enough I predicted all of the acting winners in Miniseries putting my tally at 10 of 19 which is a personal best. If we're counting alternates, I'm at 12 of 19. Other award highlights include The Colbert Report finally winning over The Daily Show and the surreal/visually fun Choreography performances, which I really hope they do every year.

Here is a complete list of winners from tonight...

DRAMA
SERIES: Breaking Bad (AMC)
ACTOR: Jeff Daniels, The Newsroom (HBO)
ACTRESS: Claire Danes, Homeland (SHO)
SUPP. ACTOR: Bobby Cannavale, Boardwalk Empire (HBO)
SUPP. ACTRESS: Anna Gunn, Breaking Bad (AMC)
DIRECTING: David Fincher, House of Cards (Netflix)
WRITING: Henry Bromell, Homeland (SHO)
GUEST ACTOR: Dan Bucatinsky, Scandal (ABC)
GUEST ACTRESS: Carrie Preston, The Good Wife (CBS)

COMEDY
SERIES: Modern Family (ABC)
ACTOR: Jim Parsons, Big Bang Theory (CBS)
ACTRESS: Julia Louis-Dreyfus, Veep (HBO)
SUPP. ACTOR: Tony Hale, Veep (HBO)
SUPP. ACTRESS: Merritt Wever, Nurse Jackie (SHO)
DIRECTING: Gail Mancuso, Modern Family (ABC)
WRITING: Tina Fey and Tracey Wigfield, 30 Rock (NBC)
GUEST ACTOR: Bob Newhart, Big Bang Theory (CBS)
GUEST ACTRESS: Melissa Leo, Louie (FX)

MINISERIES, MOVIE OR DRAMATIC SPECIALS
MINISERIES OR MOVIE: Behind the Candelabra (HBO)
ACTOR: Michael Douglas, Behind the Candelabra (HBO)
ACTRESS: Laura Linney, The Big C: Hereafter (HBO)
SUPP. ACTOR: James Cromwell, American Horror Story: Asylum (FX)
SUPP. ACTRESS: Ellen Burstyn, Political Animals (USA)
DIRECTING: Steven Soderbergh, Behind the Candelabra (HBO)
WRITING: Abi Morgan, The Hour (BBC America)

VARIETY, MUSIC OR COMEDY PROGRAM
SERIES: The Colbert Report (Comedy Central)
SPECIAL: Louis C.K.: Oh My God (HBO)
DIRECTING: Saturday Night Live (NBC)
WRITING: The Colbert Report (Comedy Central)

REALITY
COMPETITION PROGRAM: The Voice (NBC)
PROGRAM: Undercover Boss (CBS)
HOST: Heidi Klum and Tim Gunn, Project Runway (Lifetime)

Creative Arts Emmy Winners

Over the weekend, the first Emmy awards were given out at the Creative Arts Emmy ceremony including those for guest performances, which is as good a place to start.

My predictions were pretty off, but I did get one right with TV legend Bob Newhart winning his first Emmy Award after being nominated and losing 6 times prior in his five-decade long career. for his role as Professor Proton in Big Bang Theory garnering that show's first acting win other than Jim Parsons. The other categories were slightly more surprising with first-time Emmy nominees winning over more popular, veteran names such as Jane Fonda, Michael J. Fox, Nathan Lane, and Elaine Stritch. Probably the least surprise among the shockers is the win for Oscar winner Melissa Leo (Louie), because they do love their Hollywood movie stars (is that what Leo is now?). I'm tickled pink to see Lisa Kudrow BFF and fellow Vassar College alum Dan Bucatinsky (Scandal) win as well and even more happy to see Carrie Preston continue the fab streak of a kick-ass actress from The Good Wife winning an Emmy every year. Seriously, Preston's win is the single highlight of the Emmy Awards so far for me this year.

People do use these early awards to predict what will happen during the Primetime Emmys and if that's the case, then it's going to be very difficult for anything to beat Behind the Candelabra in the TV Movie/Mini-Series categories. It picked up 8 wins out of the 9 it was gunning for and really should be seen as the favorite. Its wins gave HBO its usual early lead with 20 awards which also includes 4 wins for Boardwalk Empire. The 66th Annual Tony Awards also picked up 4 wins including one for Special Class Program and Music/Lyrics for Neil Patrick Harris' performance of "If I Had Time." I would have to think that those two will repeat again next year. Emmy network CBS was second place overall with 15 wins while NBC took third with 8.

Among its wins, Behind the Candelabra picked up awards for Casting and Editing. 30 Rock and House of Cards won for their casting as well giving 30 Rock its first Emmy win since 2009 and Netflix its first Emmy ever. Netflix picked up its second Emmy when House of Cards also won for its Cinematography. Breaking Bad, the final season of The Office, and How I Met Your Mother picked up the other series Editing awards. Finally, just a couple of other noteworthy results with Heidi Klum and Tim Gunn jointly winning Best Reality Host for the first time and Bear McCreary (composer of Battlestar Galactica, The Walking Dead, and new series Agents of SHIELD) picking up his first Emmy win for his Main Title Theme Music work for Da Vinci's Demons.

Bring on the big night!

Predicting Guest Acting at Creative Arts Emmy Awards

The Emmy Awards are next week, but since there are approximately over 100 awards to be given out, most of the awards will actually be handed out tonight at the Creative Arts Emmys including the four Guest Acting categories. So before that takes place, a few of my thoughts and predictions of the nominees:

BEST DRAMA GUEST ACTOR
Dan Bucatinsky, Scandal
Rupert Friend, Homeland
Michael J. Fox, The Good Wife
Harry Hamlin, Mad Men
Nathan Lane, The Good Wife
Robert Morse, Mad Men

It's no surprise for Mad Men and The Good Wife to take up the majority of nominations, but it's also a good sign for Scandal and Homeland since the two actors cited from those two shows are newcomers showing solid love among the industry. Looking at the nominees, this should be Fox's category to lose, but I said the exact same thing last year and he lost. Lane is probably his closest competition (and Lane is also nominated in Comedy). And all respect to Morse, but I'd have easily traded him for Eddie Izzard's turn in Hannibal.

Prediction: Michael J. Fox
Alternate: Nathan Lane
Should Win: Michael J. Fox
Should've Been Nominated: Eddie Izzard, Dallas Roberts

BEST DRAMA GUEST ACTRESS
Linda Cardellini, Mad Men
Joan Cusack, Shameless
Jane Fonda, The Newsroom
Margo Martindale, The Americans
Carrie Preston, The Good Wife
Diana Rigg, Game of Thrones

Last year, Martha Plimpton won this category and I'm rooting so hard for fellow Good Wife guest star Preston to repeat. But man this nomination was a long time coming, wasn't it? This is a pretty solid list though and I don't think there's an actual frontrunner. Perhaps Fonda since she's a beloved movie star. But I can honestly see any of these women win. Why not give it to recent Emmy winner Martindale especially with the show's sole acting nomination? A couple of Alison (Brie and Wright) should've been nominated for their memorable roles on Mad Men and The Americans respectively.

Prediction: Jane Fonda
Alternate: Margo Martindale
Should Win: Carrie Preston
Should've Been Nominated: Alison Brie, Alison Wright

BEST COMEDY GUEST ACTOR
Louis C.K., Saturday Night Live
Bobby Cannavale, Nurse Jackie
Will Forte, 30 Rock
Nathan Lane, Modern Family
Bob Newhart, Big Bang Theory
Justin Timberlake, Saturday Night Live

It would be very difficult to see a way legendary Newhart wouldn't win his first Emmy Award (out of seven nominations!) especially for a show that Emmy seems to love. His biggest competition are the two Saturday Night Live hosts that Emmys definitely love (C.K. has NINE nominations this year alone and Timberlake has won FOUR). The rest should just be lucky to be nominated, but I wished Patton Oswalt and Andrew Rannells were nominated from Parks and Rec and Girls respectively.

Prediction: Bob Newhart
Alternate: Justin Timberlake
Should Win: Justin Timberlake
Should've Been Nominated: Patton Oswalt, Andrew Rannells

BEST COMEDY GUEST ACTRESS
Dot-Marie Jones, Glee
Melissa Leo, Louis C.K.
Melissa McCarthy, Saturday Night Live
Molly Shannon, Enlightened
Elaine Stritch, 30 Rock
Kristen Wiig, Saturday Night Live

Even when I was making my own ballot for this category, I was left mostly uninspired so I don't have much to say about the nominees here. I wouldn't even know who is the frontrunner here. Maybe Oscar winner Leo or 3-time Emmy winner Stritch? Everyone still loves McCarthy and/or Wiig right? Your guess is as good (or better) as mine.

Prediction: Kristen Wiig
Alternate: Elaine Stritch
Should Win: Kristen Wiig
Should've Been Nominated: Kate Hudson, Octavia Spencer

So there are my guest acting predictions. And below are three more categories that will be decided tonight that I'm randomly going to say a few words on, just because.

BEST REALITY TV HOST
Tom Bergeron, Dancing With the Stars
Anthony Bourdain, The Taste
Cat Deeley, So You Think You Can Dance
Heidi Klum & Tim Gunn, Project Runway
Ryan Seacrest, American Idol
Betty White, Betty White's Off Their Rockers

I don't understand how Phil Keoghan was left off this list, but I'm rooting for Cat Deeley or Heidi Klum/Tim Gunn. I still don't get how Bergeron won last year.

BEST ORIGINAL SONG
"Nothing In This World Will Ever Break My Heart Again," Nashville
"More Or Less The Kind Of Thing You May Or May Not Possibly See On Broadway," The Neighbors
"Hang The Moon," Smash
"I Hear Your Voice In A Dream," Smash
"Rural Juror," 30 Rock
"If I Had Time," 66th Annual Tony Awards

Other than the song from The Neighbors, I've heard and like all of the other songs so I'll be fine if any of them wins. I'm rooting for "Rural Juror" (for the hilarity) and "I Hear Your Voice In A Dream" (only song I've listened to more than 5x). I would root for Neil Patrick's Tony Awards song from last year, but I'd rather he win NEXT year for his epic opening song from the Tony Awards this year.

BEST MAIN TITLE DESIGN
American Horror Story: Asylum
Da Vinci's Demons
Elementary
Halo 4: Forward Unto Dawn
The Newsroom
Vikings

Rooting for Elementary just because I just love their Rube-Goldberg-esque main title, but I also like the dark and pretty one for The Vikings. Haven't seen any of the others!

There's way more awards than these to be given out tonight, but I can't cover them all! Though after tonight, it should tells us which shows the Emmy voters are loving. Though last year the results where mixed with Homeland and Game Change translating their early wins with dominating on the big night while Girls and Game of Thrones didn't.

Quick TV Thoughts...

It's difficult to get my head to remember the past week's TV especially with my mind focused on tonight's Academy Awards. Nonetheless, just some brief thoughts on some of the shows...

A Firm Divided in The Good Wife

The Good Wife returns after its brief hiatus with a predictably excellent episode that features not only the welcome end of the debt storyline, but also a storyline that put Elsbeth and Eli together. For the latter, seeing these two breakout characters teaming up to fix Eli's problems was something to behold and I just think the show should find a way to make Elsbeth a series regular already. As for the debt storyline, the firm is all of a sudden in the black and in fact showing profits which makes the existing partners re-think their previous partnership offers to Alicia, Cary, and their fellow fourth-year associates. This creates a fun and tense episode pitting Alicia and Cary against Will and Diane and coloring their mock trial. I love it when Alicia and Cary partner up, but of course in the end the partners decide to offer partnership to just one person: Alicia. Thankfully she accepted showing great growth for her character, but what does this mean for her relationship with Cary? She also kissed Will... drama!

Sad, But Tense Revenge

I've been more frustrated than in love with some of the story beats and character work on this show this season, but I thought last Sunday's episode was quite spectacular especially with regards to anything dealing with Emily-Amanda. Knowing someone was going to die by the end of the episode made every scene in the boat tense and in the end I'm just very saddened to see Margarita Levieva leave the show, since her character, compared to most, was the one that grew the most and I'm really going to miss her. With her death and Helen Crowley's, it's certainly a turning point for the show this season which I'm hoping gets better in the second half. Give Nolan more to do and can we just stop humoring this whole Aiden deal?

Once Upon A Time Expands Family Tree

Everyone probably should've expected this from the very beginning, but this all important pivotal episode of the show finally confirmed it: Henry's family tree is FUCKED UP. We all finally found out that his long-lost father is also Gold's long-lost son! We all predicted this, but to finally see the all of the characters realized this as well was a fun moment for the show and I think everyone involved handled it well. It'll be very interesting to see what this means especially once they're back to Storybrooke. Certainly Regina will be pissed that yet again someone she loathes is blood-related to her adopted son.

I Love You and I Like You Parks & Rec

The wedding episode of Ben and Leslie was everything I could have hoped for. It even seems silly to write about what I loved about it, because it would pretty much just be EVERYTHING. From everyone working together to Leslie's amazing wedding dress to Ron giving Leslie awar to those wedding vows with those black & white flashback scenes... it was glorious. I heard this was written as a series finale if need be and though I would've been depressed if it was, it would've let the show go out with one of its best episodes. They then followed that episode with another one that takes place after the honeymoon is over and it was pretty much an episode to make everything go back to normal again. It was a good and funny episode with Leslie dealing with surviving a correspondent's lunch and Ben getting used to his new job at Sweetums. Renew this show, NBC, or face my wrath!

Miscellaneous TV Thoughts

No time to talk about any more TV, but just want to say quickly that I think How I Met Your Mother has been slightly on fire this month with a strong episode this past week that highlights the show's unreliable narrators. Castle also began its usual sweeps two-parter this time putting Alexis in danger. I just wish the threat was actually real, you know? I also liked this week's Girls episode though a step down from two weeks of really great episode, but I liked putting Ray and Adam together and that Marnie/Hannah phone scene in the end was genius. And finally, how could I not love Community's Inspector Spacetime convention episode?