Lost and Heroes up for Golden Globes!!
One thing genre fans are really good at doing is expecting very little from awards shows. Not that we've given up, but year after year, when Buffy went completely unnoticed, I'd get my hopes up, wait with bated breath, and then... nothing. Sigh... back to waiting and hoping for next year.

But now that the big boys like ABC and NBC are in the game with their genre shows, suddenly really good television is getting noticed. The Golden Globe noms just came in this morning, and while they cover both TV and movies, I'll just focus on the TV one, and the categories that interest me. :)

So, first up, Best Drama! The nominees are:
24
Big Love
Grey's Anatomy
Heroes
Lost

Wow... what a great category. Grey's Anatomy is that one show (ok, one of two if you count House) that everybody except me seems to watch, but I've heard great things about it, and I love Sandra Oh, so one of these days... 24 used to be one of my favourite shows, until season 3 seemed so much like seasons 1 and 2, and I stopped watching it. This year my husband picked it up again and watched the latest season, and loved it, so it's nice to see it on here. Big Love is the HBO series about polygamy, and it was a PVR'd show while I was working on Finding Lost, and is now recorded onto DVDs waiting for me to watch them. As soon as I'm finished Battlestar Galactica, I will. But Heroes and Lost?! Oh wow, not one but TWO of my favourite shows are competing against one another. How can I possibly pick a favourite? It's like choosing a favourite child... I'll have to think about this one.

Best Actor in a Drama:
Patrick Dempsey, Grey's Anatomy
Michael C. Hall, Dexter
Hugh Laurie, House
Bill Paxton, Big Love
Kiefer Sutherland, 24

Well, I've already filled you in on where I stand on the others, so the only one left is Dexter. And while I know the sort of work the other four actors have done, I hope Michael C. Hall takes this one. I've come back to Dexter and I LOVE THIS SHOW. It's phenomenal. As a massive fan of Six Feet Under, I wondered how the guy who played David -- the emotionally tortured, gay, quiet, difficult brother -- would ever crawl out from typecasting. And he's done it like I never could have imagined. As Dexter, the lovable sociopath who kills people and has no emotions, he's the polar opposite of David, who sometimes felt too much for his own good. Michael C. Hall even manages to LOOK different in this role, and when I'm watching this show, I never think of him as David. There's a good chance the creep factor of this series will hurt his chances, but the Hollywood Foreign Press Association doesn't seem to get the oogies the way the Emmy Award people do, so he might be able to take this.

Best Dramatic Actress:
Patricia Arquette, Medium
Edie Falco, The Sopranos
Evangeline Lilly, Lost
Ellen Pompeo, Grey's Anatomy
Kyra Sedgwick, The Closer

Grey's Anatomy yadda yadda, haven't watched Medium (though I'd heard great things about it) or The Closer (ditto), love Edie Falco but she really didn't carry this past season the way she's done before, with the exception of that fabulous episode where she goes to Paris and breaks down, so, SHOCKINGLY, my vote goes to Evangeline. Go Kate!!

Best Musical or Comedy Series (musical??):
Desperate Housewives
Entourage
The Office
Ugly Betty
Weeds

I've never thought of myself as someone who watches a lot of comedies, but I watch 4 of these 5 regularly. (Desperate Housewives has never been on my must-watch list.) Entourage is brilliance. The Office, well, you know what I think of The Office. Ugly Betty is awesome, and Weeds is good, though I thought season 2 faltered compared to season 1. The tie for me comes down to Entourage and The Office... and they're like Lost and Heroes. I don't think I can choose a favourite.

Best Actor in a Comedy:
Alec Baldwin, 30 Rock
Zach Braff, Scrubs
Steve Carrell, The Office
Jason Lee, My Name Is Earl
Tony Shalhoub, Monk

Zach, you are funny. Jason, ditto. Tony... um... couldn't tell you. But once again, it comes down to two (HFPA, you are KILLING ME). Steve Carell has the ability to deliver lines like, "You have very exotic features. Was your father a G.I.?" in such a way that makes you feel uncomfortable and laughing out loud all at the same time, and he does it week after week. Alec Baldwin is newer to the game, but his character makes me howl every time he appears on the screen, before he's even uttered a word. So I'm torn... but I'm actually going to give the edge to Baldwin on this one. Sorry, Steve (maybe tomorrow I'll have switched back to you).

Best Comedy Actress:
Marcia Cross, Desperate Housewives
America Ferrera, Ugly Betty
Felicity Huffman, Desperate Housewives
Julia Louis-Dreyfus, The New Adventures of Old Christine
Mary-Louise Parker, Weeds

Housewife...housewife... does ANYONE watch the New Adventures of Old Christine? I have never seen this on, I've never seen a commercial for it... Mary-Louis Parker is very funny, but sort of a one-trick pony on the show. I love America Ferrera with all my heart, and I would be THRILLED if she took this one.

Best Supporting Actor in a series:
Thomas Haden Church, Broken Trails
Jeremy Irons, Elizabeth I
Justin Kirk, Weeds
Masi Oka, Heroes
Jeremy Piven, Entourage

GROAN. Skip the first 3 (I heart Justin Kirk, though... he's the highlight of Weeds for me) and just look at those last 2. How can I not vote for Masi Oka, the guy I've totally fallen in love with over the last couple of months, who plays Hiro with such a lovableness that makes you want to reach out and hug him? Who else could answer the phone when Isaac calls and say, "Mystery sock?" so adorably?? (TWoP came up with that one, not me, sadly.) But then there's Jeremy Piven. Ari. What can I say about Ari that hasn't already been said? Funniest character on television, period. It's Ari who makes me unable to choose between Entourage or The Office. It's Ari who has me not just laughing, not howling, but doubled over screaming whenever he's on the screen. I've loved Jeremy Piven since his Ellen days... so, Hiro, I love you. But I have to go with Jeremy on this one. Please don't hate me, Hiro... wait, stop scrunching your face up like that, I didn't me--