Tuesday, April 14, 2009

Best of the '00s?

Every now and then, I'm asked to participate in a poll of TV critics, and I always like to use you guys to help brainstorm and make sure I haven't missed something obvious. This time, somebody wants me to pick the best TV of the '00s, picking my six favorites in six categories:
Comedy series
Drama series
Drama lead actor
Drama lead actress
Comedy lead actor
Comedy lead actress
Only eligibility requirements is that the series needs to have aired original episodes during the '00s, not that it had to debut then. "Freaks and Geeks" and "The West Wing," for instance, both debuted in the fall of '99 but aired the majority of their episodes after January 2000.

I'm not sure where I'm going to place a hybrid show like "Freaks and Geeks" -- right now, I'm leaning comedy, simply because I'm going to have a hard enough time as it is picking the final three spots in the Drama series category (the first three go to HBO's holy trinity of "The Wire," "The Sopranos" and "Deadwood") -- but I'm also told that if a show like that splits votes in multiple categories, its votes would go to the category where it got the most.

So fire away with your own thoughts on any and all of the categories -- and make sure to limit yourselves to six so you can understand my own dilemma -- and maybe you'll jog my memory on something I wasn't thinking of. And even if you don't, lists are always fun to argue about, aren't they?

128 comments:

renton said...

Comedy Series:
Arrested Development
Curb Your Enthusiasm
The Office (U.K.)
The Office (U.S.)
Extras


Drama:
Totally with you on Sopranos and the Wire. Although I liked Deadwood, I wouldn't be as quick to give it an automatic top 3 spot over, say, Mad Men, Breaking Bad, Lost, Freaks and Geeks, Battlestar Galactica or Friday Night Lights (just to name some off the top of my head)

Anonymous said...

Comedy series
The Office (UK). Would have said Arrested Development (first season arc was incredible), but the tone of The Office was more consistent throughout the entire series.

Drama series
The Wire, no question

Drama lead actor
Jon Hamm

Drama lead actress
Edie Falco

Comedy lead actor
Ricky Gervais

Comedy lead actress
Surprisingly difficult to think of a female comedic lead from any of the breakout shows of the last decade, besides Tina Fey, who seems to do too much of the Seinfeld-style mugging. Does Kristen Wiig count?

Anonymous said...

Comedy actress: Lauren Graham, Gilmore Girls.

Anonymous said...

Comedy Series
Gilmore Girls
Sex and the City
The Office (US)
HIMYM

Drama Series
Veronica Mars
Lost
House

Drama Lead Actor
Hugh Laurie
Matthew Fox

Comedy Lead Actress
Lauren Graham

Drama Lead Actress
Kristen Bell

Unknown said...

Oooh I do love lists Alan. Hmmm, sketching them out off the top of my head...

Drama:
The Sopranos
The Wire
Deadwood
Lost!
Mad Men
Six Feet Under?
(pretty sure about 1-5...#6 I'm not positive.)


Comedy:
ArrDev
The Office UK
Curb Yr Enthusiasm
Freaks & Geeks (definitely comedy)
30 Rock?
Yeah, OK, The Office US
Gilmore Girls (probably leans more toward comedy)

Oof, that is a tough one.

PokerFool said...

Comedy Series:Chuck
How I Met Your Mother
Family Guy

Drama Series:The Shield
The Wire
The Sopranos
24
Lost

Drama Actor:Michael Chiklis <-- Winner
Kiefer Sutherland

Drama Actress:CCH Pounder

Comedy Actor:Zachary Levi
Steve Carrell
Neil Patrick Harris

Comedy Actress:Yvonne Strahovski

Anonymous said...

I've always associated Freaks and Geeks with the 90s.

Drama Series:
Sopranos
The Wire
Friday Night Lights (Seasons 1 & 3)
LOST
Battlestar Galactica
Mad Men

Comedy Series:
Arrested Development
The Office
30 Rock
South Park
Flight of the Conchords
Curb Your Enthusiasm

Drama Actor
James Gandolfini
Jon Hamm
Ian McShane
Michael C. Hall (Dexter, not 6FU)
Bryan Cranston
Hugh Laurie
Honorable Mention: Nathan Fillion, Kiefer Sutherland

Drama Actress:
Edie Falco
Glenn Close
Frances Conroy
Mary McDonnell
Kristen Bell

Comedy Actor:
Jason Bateman
Steve Carell
Rainn Wilson
Alec Baldwin
Jon Stewart/Stephen Colbert

Comedy Actress:
Tina Fey
Jenna Fischer
Jane Kaczmarek
Amy Sedaris

Amy said...

I wish polls and awards would get away from labeling things drama and comedy. The best shows are usually BOTH (you know, like real life). West Wing, Gilmore Girls, The Office would be in my top five of the 00s, and they certainly all make /made me laugh and cry (or at least "feel things") consistently.

I guess Arrested Development is straight comedy, so I'd vote for that, and Mad Men, while it does make me laugh a lot definitely seems more of a drama than a mix.

Sonia said...

Comedy series
The Office
Curb Your Enthusiasm
Sex and the City
I can't believe I'm saying this, but Boston Legal -- it really made me laugh out loud a lot.

Drama series
The Sopranos
Dexter
Friday Night Lights
CSI (Vegas version)
In Treatment
Grey's Anatomy (not recently...)

Drama lead actor
James Gandolfini
Michael C Hall
Kyle Chandler
Gabriel Byrne

Drama lead actress
Connie Britton
Sandra Oh
Edie Falco (I wonder if her new show will be good...)

Comedy lead actor
Steve Carrell
Larry David

Comedy lead actress
Sarah Jessica Parker

Adam said...

Sometimes, the obvious answers are the right ones:

Comedy series: The Office
Drama series: The Sopranos
Drama lead actor: James Gandolfini
Drama lead actress: Edie Falco
Comedy lead actor: Alec Baldwin -- if you count it as a lead; else, Steve Carell
Comedy lead actress: Sarah Jessica Parker > Tina Fey, I guess.

David Clarke said...

I don't believe nobody's mentioned Connie Britton for her work in Friday Night Lights for best dramatic actress

Drama: The Wire, Mad Men, Veronica Mars?, and Lost.
Comedy: Freaks and Geeks, Arrested Development, Futurama or Mr. Show

Man, I don't envy your task. 3 each is painful.

HBO2003 said...

This is gonna be tough considering the 2000s had some of the best dramas ever on TV.

Drama Series:
Sopranos
Wire
Shield

Comedy Series:
Curb Your Enthusiasm ( Seasons 1-3)

Drama Lead Actor/Actress
Michael Chicklis/ Eddie Falco
Hugh Laurie, James Gandolfini/na

Brandy said...

Drama:
The West Wing
BSG

Comedy:
Arrested Development


Freaks and Geeks if as you say it was in the 00s. It feels like a 90s show to me.

Andrew said...

And we can say goodbye to my productivity for the morning.

Comedy series:
Arrested Development, Chuck, The Office, The Daily Show, 30 Rock, Andy Richter Controls the Universe.

Drama series:
The Wire, The Sopranos, Deadwood, Lost, BSG, Friday Night Lights

Drama Lead Actor:
Ian McShane (Deadwood), Kyle Chandler (FNL), James Gandolfini (The Sopranos), Hugh Laurie (House)

Drama Lead Actress:
Mary McDonnell (BSG), Edie Falco (The Sopranos), Connie Britton (FNL)

Comedy Lead Actor:
Steve Carell (The Office), Alec Baldwin (30 Rock), Stephen Colbert (The Colbert Report), Ricky Gervais (The Office), Bret & Jermaine (Flight of the Conchords)

Comedy Lead Actress:
Jenna Fischer (The Office), Tina Fey (30 Rock), Jessica Walter (Arrested Development)

I think that it's harder to come up with Lead actor/actress nods than actors/actresses whose performances deserve recognition, despite being less than lead roles (e.g. everyone from The Wire, Susie Essman on Curb, NPH on HIMYM, Adam Baldwin on Chuck.) And comedy lead actresses?

James Morgan said...

Very tough! An Anglo view here...(listed them roughly in descending order of how much I like each show)

Comedy series - Britain miles in front here (top 4 all British).
1. The Office (U.K)
2. The Thick of It
3. Peep Show
4. Spaced
5. Arrested Development
6. It's Always Sunny In Philadelphia

30 Rock, Curb, Garth Marenghi's Darkplace, Freaks and Geeks, Chuck, South Park, The Office (U.S.), all came close.

Drama series - can't think of anything from 2000s from Britain that ranks even close to these (Dr. Who and Life on Mars maybe?)
1. The Wire (by a mile)
2. The Shield
3. The West Wing
4. Battlestar Galactica - if not for the dire finale might have been higher
5. The Sopranos - I do love it, but the whole Italian-American gangster thing just doesn't grabe me as much as the subjects in the dramas listed above. I accept that most would place it above my top 5!

Drama lead actor
Michael Sheen - The West Wing (if you can call that a lead role? Probably not to be honest).

Drama lead actress
Allison Janey - The West Wing - struggled here, still a lack of great roles in great dramas I think.

Comedy lead actor
Ricky Gervais - The Office (U.K.)

Comedy lead actress
Tina Fey - 30 Rock

Joel said...

Comedy series
Arrested Development
Black Books
Wonderfalls
30 Rock
Sugar Rush
The Book Group

Drama series
Carnivàle
Bleak House
Battlestar Galactica
Lost
Dead Like Me
OZ

Drama lead actor
Michael Emerson - Lost
Clancy Brown - Carnivàle

Drama lead actress
Mary McDonnell - BSG (For the win, no actress has given me THAT many chills)
Gillian Anderson - Bleak House
Amy Madigan - Carnivàle
Edie Falco - Sopranos

Comedy lead actor
Dylan Moran - Black Books
Bill Bailey - Black Books
Jason Bateman - AD

Comedy lead actress
Anne Dudek - The Book Group
Tamsin Greig - Black Books
Katie Finneran - Wonderfalls
Jessica Walter - AD
Portia De Rossi - AD
Sara Stewart - Sugar Rush

Anonymous said...

Comedy Series:
The Office (U.K)
30 Rock
Arrested Development
The Office (U.S.)
Curb Your Enthusiasm
The Big Bang Theory

Drama Series:
The Shield
The Sopranos
Lost
Battlestar Galactica
Friday Night Lights
Mad Men or Breaking Bad

CConnors said...

I'm a sucker for lists!
Comedy Series:
Arrested Development
Curb Your Enthusiasm
Freaks & Geeks
The Office (UK)
The Office (US)
Sex & The City

Comedy Actor:
Alec Baldwin
Jason Bateman
Zach Braff
Steve Carell
Larry David
Ricky Gervais

Comedy Actress:
Tina Fey
Lauren Graham
Cheryl Hines
Jane Kaczmarek
Mary Louise Parker
Sarah Jessica Parker

Drama Series:
Battlestar Galactica
Deadwood
Lost
The Sopranos
The West Wing
The Wire

Drama Actor (this is the hard one):
James Gandolfini
Jon Hamm
Hugh Laurie
Ian McShane
Edward James Olmos
Martin Sheen

Drama Actress:
Connie Britton
Frances Conroy
Edie Falco
Alison Janney
Mary McDonnell
CCH Pounder

Joel said...

Oh man, I'd add Six Feet Under (with Frances Conroy in it), The Shield (and CCH Pounder) and Veronica Mars (Kristen Bell).

Alan Sepinwall said...

Man, I don't envy your task. 3 each is painful.6 each, not 3.

Anonymous said...

No offense to whoever came up with this idea, but it seems a little foolish to try to do the best of a decade. Even the best of shows tend to overstay their welcome and run out of steam by the end. For example, I loved the first two seasons of Nip/Tuck, but it's been unwatchable ever since. I would have put it in a top 10 list the first two seasons, but since then? No way. It's even more complicated with a show like, say, Ally McBeal. It aired plenty of episodes in the '00s, but the show was really only good in its first two seasons, which aired between '97 and '99. So where does that fit in?

And the fact that we've had this many replies and not one person has mentioned Buffy, which ended back in '03, just shows how difficult this actually is.

Brian said...

As long as Arrested Development gets the credit it deserves.

tpy said...

Comedy Series:
Freaks & Geeks
Arrested Development
The Office (UK)
30 Rock
The Office (US)
The Daily Show

Drama series:
The Wire
Veronica Mars
Mad Men
Battlestar Galactica
Lost
The West Wing

Drama lead actor:
Bryan Cranston, Breaking Bad
Kyle Chandler, Friday Night Lights
Jon Hamm, Mad Men
Terry O'Quinn, Lost
Hugh Laurie, House
Vincent D'Onofrio, L&O: Criminal Intent

Drama lead actress:
Connie Britton, Friday Night Lights
Kristen Bell, Veronica Mars
Edie Falco, The Sopranos
Elizabeth Mitchell, Lost
Katee Sackhoff, BSG
Christina Hendricks, Mad Men

Comedy lead actor:
Alec Baldwin, 30 Rock
Ricky Gervais, The Office (UK)
Justin Bateman, Arrested Development
Stephen Colbert, The Colbert Report
Nathan Fillion, Firefly
Andy Richter, Andy Barker, P.I.

Comedy lead actress:
Lauren Graham, Gilmore Girls
Tina Fey, 30 Rock
Kristin Wiig, SNL
Jenna Fischer, The Office (US)
Jessica Walter, Arrested Development
Alyson Hannigan, How I Met Your Mother

todmod said...

The actors are too hard to sort out for now:

Comedy:
Arrested Development
The Office (UK)
The Office (US)
Freaks and Geeks
Futurama
South Park
(narrow miss for Curb, and Futurama needs more love here)



Drama:
The Wire
Sopranos
LOST
The Shield
Friday Night Lights
Mad Men

Q Ball said...

I just want to say you have an incredibly difficult task and hope that somehow Arrested Development, Buffy and Lost get the respect they deserve for their novel approaches to television.

Tyroc said...

I'm gonna go over, but here are some obvious ones and ones I hope you don't forget.

DRAMA
The Sopranos (with best dramatic actor James Gandolfini and best dramatic actress Edie Falco.)
The Wire
Lost
Battlestar Galactica
Mad Men
Rescue Me
Freaks and Geeks (funny moments for sure but most definitely a drama.)

COMEDY
The Office (BBC, with best comedic actor Ricky Gervais)
The Office (NBC)
The Daily Show with Jon Stewart
The Colbert Report (close runner up with Ricky Gervais)
South Park (debuted in the 90s but consistently funny.)
Malcolm in the Middle
30 Rock
Curb Your Enthusiasm
King of the Hill
Coupling (BBC)
Peep Show
Andy Richter Controls the Universe
That '70s Show
Sex and the City
The Sarah Silverman Program (with best comedic actress Sarah Silverman)
It's Always Sunny in Philadelphia
Arrested Development

Jeff said...

Best Comedies of the 2000s:
Arrested Development
The Office (US)
South Park
30 Rock
Flight of the Conchords
Curb Your Enthusiasm

Best Dramas of the 2000s:
Freaks and Geeks
The Wire
Sopranos
Friday Night Lights
Mad Men
Six Feet Under

Best Dramatic Actor:
Ian McShane (Al Swearengen, "Deadwood")
Idris Elba (Stringer Bell, "The Wire")
James Gandolfini (Tony Soprano, "The Sopranos")
Bradley Whitford (Josh, "West Wing")
Jon Hamm (Don Draper, "Mad Men")
Kyle Chandler (Coach Taylor, "Friday Night Lights")

Best Dramatic Actress:
Connie Britton (Mrs. Coach, "Friday Night Lights")
Sonja Sohn (Shakima Greggs, "The Wire")
Edie Falco (Carmela Soprano , "The Sopranos")
Glenn Close (Patty Hewes, "Damages")
Frances Conroy (Ruth Fisher, "Six Feet Under")

Best Comedic Actor:
Alec Baldwin (Jack Donaghy, "30 Rock")
Jeffrey Tambor (George Sr., "Arrested Development")
David Cross (Tobias Funke, "Arrested Development")
Steve Carrell (Michael Scott, "The Office")
Hugh Laurie (Dr. House, "House")

Best Comedic Actress:
Jessica Walters ("Arrested Development")
Portia di Rossi ("Arrested Development")
Tina Fey (Liz Lemon, "30 Rock")
Sarah Silverman (Sarah Silverman, "The Sarah Silverman Program")

christy said...

Comedy series
Freaks and Geeks
Arrested Development
Weeds
How I Met Your Mother
30 Rock
The Office

Drama series
West Wing
The Wire
Six Feet Under
Mad Men
Lost
House

Drama lead actor
Jon Hamm
Michael C. Hall (he has had a serious one-two punch in the aughts)
Jorge Garcia
Hugh Laurie
Michael K. Williams
Jon Spencer

Drama lead actress
Christina Hendricks
Elisabeth Moss
Alison Janney
Lauren Ambrose
Frances Conroy
Rachel Griffiths

Comedy lead actor
Romany Malco
Neil Patrick Harris
Steve Carrel
Rainn Wilson
Alec Baldwin
Martin Starr (because I can't choose between the men of AD, but I can choose between the men of F&G)

Comedy lead actress
Tina Fey
Portia de Rossi
Jessica Walter
Alison Hannigan
America Ferrera
Becky Ann Baker (Amy Sedaris probably belongs here, but I haven't watched enough Strangers with Candy to give an informed opinion).

You know, it really bugs me that I was struggling to fill in all six for the women but struggling to cut it down to six for the men. I was always in awe of the women of SFU, and of course I adore the women of Mad Men. And Allison Janney is second only to Jon Spencer in a cast of many very talented men and women. But hello, Lost, Wire, House...I mean, I'm in love with Snoop but I was already stretching the definition of "lead" in both the male and female categories. For the most part we have actresses doing brilliant work in smaller parts, or bigger parts that are outshone by their male counterparts. Annoying.

Dave S said...

Comedy Series:
1 Arrested Development
2 Chuck
3 Freaks & Geeks
4 The Venture Bros.
5 The Office (US)
6 Scrubs

Drama Series
1 The Wire
2 Lost
3 The Sopranos
4 Buffy the Vampire Slayer
5 Deadwood
6 The West Wing

Comedy Actors - Neil Patrick Harris, Steve Carrell, Zachary Levi, Alec Baldwin, Jeffrey Tambor, Ricky Gervais

Comedy Actresses - Jenna Fischer, Tina Fey, Yvonne Strahovski, Jennifer Aniston, Jessica Walter, Lauren Graham

Drama Actors - Kyle Chandler, Michael Emerson, James Gandolfini, Michael Chiklis, Jonn Hamm, Terry O'Quinn

Drama Actress - Mary McDonnell, Connie Britton, Edie Falco, CCH Pounder, Sara Michelle Gellar, Allison Janney

par3182 said...

i decided to make it even harder on myself and pick just one of each...


Drama series: Freaks and Geeks
Drama lead actor: Michael Chiklis (The Shield)
Drama lead actress: Frances Conroy (Six Feet Under)

Comedy series: Arrested Development
Comedy lead actor: Ricky Gervais (The Office)
Comedy lead actress: Jaime Pressly (My Name Is Earl)

Steve said...

** denotes winner/favorite

Comedy Series:
**Curb Your Enthusiasm
Extras
How I Met Your Mother
Arrested Development
South Park
The Office (US)

Drama
**The Wire
The Sopranos
Friday Night Lights
LOST
Freaks & Geeks
Veronica Mars

Drama Lead:
**Kyle Chandler
James Gandolfini
Hugh Laurie
was there a lead on The Wire?

Drama Lead
**Kristen Bell
Edie Falco
Connie Britton
Lauren Conrad- The Hills... she carried the show and was captivating

Comedy Lead
**Ricky Gervais (Extras)
Larry David
Alec Baldwin
Steve Carrell
Tony Shalhoub
Jason Bateman

Comedy Lead
**Tina Fey
Portia de Rossi
Wanda Sykes
Julia Louis Dreyfus

Unfortunately, I tried to stay accurate to the acting categories, as my favorite acting performances were mostly in supporting roles.

Supporting Drama
**Michael Emerson (LOST)
Idris Elba (Wire)
Andre Royo (Wire)
Terry O'Quinn (LOST)
Zach Gilford (FNL)
Robert Sean Leonard (House)

Supporting Comedy
**Stephen Merchant- Extras
Neil Patrick Harris- HIMYM
Will Arnett- Arrested Devolopment
Rainn Wilson- The Office
Jeremy Piven- Entourage
Jason Segel- HIMYM

barefootjim said...

This was more difficult than I thought, because the first half of this decade was probably the greatest era of TV ever.

Drama Series:Battlestar Galactica
The Wire
The Sopranos
Deadwood
Mad Men
Lost

Drama Lead Actor:James Gandolfini
Edward James Olmos
Ian McShane
John Simm
Jon Hamm
Kyle Chandler

Drama Lead ActressConnie Britton
Sarah Michelle Gellar
Mary McDonnell
Billie Piper
Kristen Bell
Allison Janney

Comedy SeriesThe Office (U.S.)
Freaks and Geeks
30 Rock
The Daily Show with John Stewart
Arrested Development
Spaced

Comedy Lead ActressLauren Graham
Portia DeRossi
Tina Fey
Jamie Pressley
Jenna Fischer
Cheryl Hines

Comedy Lead ActorAlec Baldwin
Rickey Gervais
Steve Carell
Zachary Levi
Simon Pegg
Neil Patrick Harris

belinda said...

I'm a little surprised there's no category for reality tv shows. I know, most reality tv shows are really, really bad, but at the same time, hard not to acknowledge something that's taken up a large percentage of on air time and has been a huge impact in this TV decade.

Comedy series:
Arrested Development
The Office (UK)
Scrubs
Coupling (UK)
Flight of the Conchords
Freaks and Geeks

Drama series
Firefly
The Sopranos
Lost
Battlestar Galactica
Mad Men
Friday Night Lights

Drama lead actor
Michael Hogan (if he's considered a lead; if not, then EJO)
Michael C Hall
Hugh Laurie
Kyle Chandler
James Gandolfini
Ian McShane

Drama lead actress
Edie Falco
Connie Britton
Kristen Bell
Sarah Michelle Gellar
Mary McDonnell
Katie Sackhoff

Comedy lead actor
Jason Bateman
Ricky Gervais (in The Office)
Larry David
Zach Braff
Simon Pegg
Steve Carrell

Comedy lead actress
Lauren Graham
Sarah Jessica Parker
Tina Fey
America Ferrera
Jessica Walter (in AD)
Ashley Jenson (in Extras)

Charles said...

Comedy Series:
Arrested Development
The Office (UK)
The Office (US)
Curb Your Enthusiasm
Flight of the Conchords
Daily Show/Colbert Report

Drama Series:
The Wire
The Sopranos
Battlestar Galactica
Mad Men
Lost
Veronica Mars

Drama Actor:
James Gandolfini
Edward James Olmos
Jon Hamm
Michael C Hall
Larry Gilliard Jr.
Idris Elba

Drama Actress:
Mary McDonnell
Edie Falco
Kristen Bell
Glenn Close

Comedy Actor:
Alec Baldwin
Ricky Gervais
Steve Carrell
Jason Bateman
Zachary Levi
Charlie Day

Comedy Actress:
Tina Fey
Jane Kaczmarek
Jenna Fisher
Jessica Walter
Yvonne Strahovski

Hatfield said...

I'm with you on your drama series votes, and let's throw The Shield, Mad Men, and one more of your choice in there.

Comedy Series: I don't watch much, but Arrested Development and Curb Your Enthusiasm have to be on there.

Drama Lead Actor: I say Ian McShane is first, then Hamm, Gandolfini, Chiklis, Hugh Laurie, and let's throw in Idris Elba for good measure (I know, there are no leads on that show, but too bad)

Comedy Lead Actor: Jason Bateman, Larry David, Steve Carell...

Drama Lead Actress: Edie Falco, Gillian Anderson, Mary McDonnell (drawing a blank on the rest here, can only think of supporting)

Comedy Lead Actress: All the women of Arrested Development

Will you be sharing your choices?

Anonymous said...

comedy:
Arrested Development
the Office (U.K.)
Chappelle's Show
Curb Your Enthusiasm
South Park
Futurama

Drama:
The Wire
Mad Men
Rome
Sopranos
FNL

Comedy actor:
Jason Bateman (AD)
Jeffrey Tambor (AD)
David Cross (AD)
Will Arnett (AD)
Rainn Wilson (the Office US)

Comedy actress:
Jessica Walter (AD)
Portia de Rossi (AD)
Jenna Fischer (the Office US)

Drama actor:
Jon Hamm (Mad Men)
Kyle Chandler (FNL)
Gandolfini (Sopranos)
Ian Mcshane (Deadwood)
Taylor Kitsch (FNL)
(throw a rock and pick someone from The Wire)

Drama actress:
Connie Britton (FNL)
Christina Hendricks (Mad Men)
Elisabeth Moss (Mad Men)

Cameron Hughes said...

Comedy series: Scrubs. I almost went with Arrested Development, but Scrubs had heart while still bringingthe funny.

Drama series: The Wire.

Drama lead actor: Michael Chicklis

Drama lead actress: Connie Britton, no question.

Comedy lead actor: Jason Bateman, Arrested Development

Comedy lead actress: Jenna Fischer

Anonymous said...

After looking over the lists real quick, I agree with the ones most mentioned, but also want to throw in a good word for the more overlooked comedies: Malcolm in the Middle, along with its many emmy nods, and Scrubs, who may not be loved by emmy, but is very beloved by me.

Stef said...

Two of my all-time faves were mostly 90's shows, but continued to air in the 00's so I'll count them. :-)

Drama:
Lost
X-Files (through May 2002)
Mad Men
Veronica Mars
Buffy The Vampire Slayer
Dexter

Comedy:
Arrested Development
Sex and the City
Freaks and Geeks
Sports Night (through May 2000)
How I Met Your Mother
The Office (US)

Drama Actors: Jon Hamm, Michael Emerson, Terry O'Quinn, Michael C. Hall (Dexter), Hugh Laurie, Victor Garber (Alias)

Drama Actresses: Allison Janney, Kristen Bell, Mary Louise Parker (Weeds), Gillian Anderson (X-Files), Sarah Michelle Gellar, Jennifer Garner (Alias)

Comedy Actors: Steve Carell, Jason Bateman, Alec Baldwin, Neil Patrick Harris, Rainn Wilson, Geoffrey Tambor

Comedy Actresses: Sarah Jessica Parker, Jenna Fischer, Felicity Huffman, Jessica Walters, Portia di Rossi, Lauren Graham

Kat said...

Comedy series: The Office, Freaks and Geeks, 30 Rock, Arrested Development, Curb Your Enthusiasm

Drama series: Mad Men, 24

Drama lead actor: Jon Hamm

Comedy lead actor: Jason Bateman, Alec Baldwin, NPH

Comedy lead actress: Lauren Graham

Billiam said...

I wish it was "actor" instead of "lead actor" because the supporting players on shows are often funnier/more talented than the leads.
For example, John C. McGinley on Scrubs, and most everyone (except Bateman) on Arrested Development.

Also, while I find the comedy category to be especially difficult (especially with dramadies like Chuck and Freaks and Geeks thrown in). Otherwise I'd be tempted to include some animated fare like South Park or Futurama. And I'm not especially a fan of Britcoms (could not sit through more than 2 episodes of Extras): if you are, then that complicates it further.

Jay said...

My 2 cents:

Comedy Series: Arrested Development, 30 Rock, The Office (US), Chuck, HIMYM, Sports Night
Drama Series: The Wire, Sopranos, Deadwood, The Shield, West Wing, Six Feet Under
Drama Lead Actor: Ian Mcshane, James Gandolfini, Michael Chiklis, Kyle Chandler, Idris Elba, Peter Krause
Drama Lead Actress: Edie Falco, Allison Janney, Connie Britton, CCH Pounder, Kyra Sedgwick, Rachel Griffiths
Comedy Lead Actor: Alec Baldwin, Jason Bateman, Steve Carell, Ricky Gervais, Jeremy Piven, Jason Lee
Comedy Lead Actress: Jane Kaczmarek, Felicity Huffman (Sports Night), Sarah Jessica Parker, Cheryl Hines, Julia Louis Dreyfus, America Ferrera

NumberSix said...

Comedy Series:
*Arrested Development
The Office (UK)
The Venture Bros.
Peep Show (UK)
Extras
It's Always Sunny In Philadelphia

I included Venture Bros. in the comedy column. You thankfully don't have an animation ghetto and anyone who's followed the show knows that it's remained an incredibly funny show while being oddly touching. AD wins, though.

Drama:
*The Wire
Mad Men
The West Wing
Deadwood
Battlestar Galactica
Friday Night Lights

No explanation needed. The Wire is probably the most complete drama ever made for television.

Actor, Drama
Idris Elba (The Wire)
Jon Hamm (Mad Men)
Ian McShane (Deadwood)
Michael C. Hall (Dexter)
James Purefoy (Rome)
*John Simm (Life on Mars)

All great. Elba was the Wire pick, but Hector, Peters or even Tristan Wilds could have gone there. Purefoy was the best thing about an uneven period drama, but Simm was the center of one of the all-time great sci-fi shows.

Actress, Drama
Edie Falco (Sopranos)
Glenn Close (Damages)
Kristen Bell (Veronica Mars)
*Mary McDonnell (BSG)
Connie Britton (Friday Night Lights)
Jennifer Garner (Alias)

So little love for Garner here! Alias was a mess of a show, but her performance at its center deserves some recognition. But I'll still vote for Roslin every time.

Actor, Comedy
*David Chappelle (Chappelle's Show)
Alec Baldwin (30 Rock)
Steve Carell (The Office US)
Ricky Gervais (The Office UK)
Jason Bateman (AD)
David Mitchell (Peep Show)
Even if it's a sketch show, even if he's 'playing himself', Chappelle put together some of the funniest moments of the decade. There's a reason his quotes were run into the ground - they're really good.

Actress, Comedy
*Tina Fey (30 Rock)
Mary Louise Parker (Weeds)
Alia Shawkat (AD)
Jessica Walter (AD)
Sarah Silverman (Sarah Silverman Program)
Gina Bellman (Coupling UK)
Cera gets all the attention, but I still think Alia did more at a young age on AD. Most of these actresses worked on ensemble shows, but Tina Fey gets the win.

Mike C said...

Not a whole lot of crazy choices on my end...

Drama:
The Wire
West Wing
Sopranos
Lost
Friday Night Lights
Mad Men

Comedy:
The Office (US)
Arrested Development
Freaks and Geeks
How I Met Your Mother
30 Rock
Curb Your Enthusiasm

Actor - Drama:
Jon Hamm
James Gandolfini
Kyle Chandler
Hugh Laurie
Andre Royo
Martin Sheen

Actress - Drama:
Connie Britton
Edie Falco
Elisabeth Moss
Kyra Sedgwick
Elizabeth Mitchell
Allison Janney

Actor - Comedy:
Neil Patrick Harris
Steve Carell
Alec Baldwin
Will Arnett
Rainn Wilson
Martin Starr

Actress - Comedy:
Linda Cardellini
Jenna Fischer
Cobie Smulders
Julia Louis-Dreyfus
Lauren Graham
Marcia Cross

So Cal said...

I have one drama i do not think anyone has mentioned: "Oz" which i would argue should be part of the Holy Triniry of HBO shows.

An incredible cast and one of the most gritty and real shows ever to be on TV. I wish Tom Fontana would come back to TV!

Top Dramas:
The Wire
Oz
The Sopranos
Six Feet Under
24


Comedy:
Arrested Development
30 Rock
How I Met Your Mother
Family Guy
Chapelle's Show
Flight of the Conchords

Anonymous said...

comedy
---------------
how i met your mother
chuck
the office
dead like me
family guy
2.5 men
friends
arrested development
sex and the city




drama series
------------------
the wire
lost
battlestar galactica
deadwood
friday night lights
mad men
six feet under
carnivale
the sopranos
veronica mars
in treatment
life
dexter
life on mars
24


drama lead actor
-------------------
hugh laurie
idris elba
ian mcshane
john hamm
michael c. hall
kyle chandler
james gandolfini
michael chiklis
nathan fillion
eddie olmos
andre royo
zach gilford
robert sean leonard
gabriel bryne
terry o'quinn
vincent d'onofrio


drama lead actress
-------------------
kristen bell
mary mcdonnell
connie britton
christina hendricks
sonja sohn
cch pounder
glenn close
frances conroy
edie falco
elizabeth moss


comedy lead actor
--------------------
stephen colbert
zachary levi
steve carrell
neil patrick harris
jason bateman
alec bladwin
rainn wilson
jeffrey tambor
david cross
alec baldwin
jon stewart
will arnett
jeremy piven


comedy lead actress
--------------------
alyson hannigan
jenna fischer
sarah jessica parker
jessica walters
portia di rossi
julia louis dreyfus
yvonne strahovski

Anonymous said...

Comedy: Pushing Daisies
Drama: Rome

Lead Actor Comedy: David Boreanaz "Bones" (not technically a comedy, but he provides comic and visiual relief!)

Lead actress Comedy: Jenna Fisher "The Office"

Lead Actor Drama: Still loyal to Mulder! David Duchovny "X-files"

Lead actress Drama: Toni Collete "United States of Tara"

El Marpla said...

Comedy series
Arrested Development
Curb your Enthusiasm
The Office
Spaced
The Flight of the Conchords
Entourage?

Drama series

Battlestar Galactica
The Sopranos
Six Feet Under
Deadwood
Mad Men
Lost

Unknown said...

You're absolutely right on the holy trinity. Top six in order-
Sopranos
The Wire
Deadwood
Mad Men
In Treatment (I think it's that good)
BSG or Lost depending on my mood.

Comedy-
Curb your Enthusiasm
The Office UK
Freaks and Geeks
30 Rock
The Office US
Extras

And Gandolfini, Falco, Gervais and Fey in their respective categories.

Nicole said...

I would throw in Slings and Arrows in the comedy category. And I think Doctor Who needs to be included, but I am not sure whether it's a comedy or drama.

Philip Glenister should also be included in the drama category for his iconic Gene Hunt.

Omagus said...

My own thoughts...

DRAMA SERIES:
The Wire
Lost
Friday Night Lights
Battlestar Galactica
The Sopranos
Boomtown (great show that did not get the patience it deserved)

COMEDY SERIES:
The Office
Scrubs
Weeds

DRAMA LEAD ACTOR:
(The Wire gets hurt here because Dominic West is ostensibly the lead actor of that series but that would leave out the fantastic performances of SO many talented actors in that ensumble)
James Gandolfini
Kyle Chandler
Kiefer Sutherland
Matthew Fox
Edward James Olmos

DRAMA LEAD ACTRESS
Connie Britton (personally, I would just stop right there)

COMEDY LEAD ACTOR
Steve Carrell
Zach Braff


COMEDY LEAD ACTRESS
Mary-Louis Parker
Jenna Fischer

Anonymous said...

BEST DRAMA SERIES
"Alias"
"Battlestar Galactica"
"The Sopranos"
"24"
"The West Wing"
"The Wire"

BEST ACTOR (DRAMA)
Kyle Chandler "Friday Night Lights"
James Gandolfini "The Sopranos"
Michael C. Hall "Dexter" & "Six Feet Under"
Jon Hamm "Mad Men"
Hugh Laurie "House"
Martin Sheen "The West Wing"

BEST ACTRESS (DRAMA)
Connie Britton "Friday Night Lights"
Edie Falco "The Sopranos"
Jennifer Garner "Alias"
Allison Janney "The West Wing"
Mary McDonnell "Battlestar Galactica"
Sela Ward "Once & Again"

BEST COMEDY SERIES
"Arrested Development"
"Curb Your Enthusiasm"
"The Office" (UK)
"The Office" (US)
"Sex and the City"
"South Park"

BEST ACTOR (COMEDY)
Alec Baldwin "30 Rock"
Jason Bateman "Arrested Development"
Steve Carrell "The Office"
Larry David "Curb Your Enthusiasm"
Ricky Gervais "The Office" & "Extras"
Jeremy Piven "Entourage"

BEST ACTRESS (COMEDY)
Marcia Cross "Desperate Housewives"
Lauren Graham "Gilmore Girls"
Lisa Kudrow "The Comeback" & "Friends"
Megan Mullaly "Will & Grace"
Cynthia Nixon "Sex and the City"
Sarah Jessica Parker "Sex and the City"

Anonymous said...

Comedy series:
Arrested Development
30 Rock
The Office (US)
Chuck
Andy Richter Controls the Universe.
Futurama

Drama series
Lost
24
House

Andrew said...

Looking over some of the other comments, I can amend my previous comment to fill in some of the blanks:

Comedy Series: Chappelle's Show.

Comedy Actor: Zachary Levi (Chuck)

Comedy Actress: Jane Kaczmarek (Malcolm in the Middle), Yvonne Strahovski (Chuck)

I suppose you could make a case for Brian Cranston as best actor in either drama (Breaking Bad) or comedy (Malcom in the MIddle), even though his Emmy nods for Malcolm all came as supporting characters. I suppose with ensemble casting, the supporting actor/actress area is actually the more interesting poll than the leads.

Anonymous said...

Drama Series:
Deadwood (Wins over Wire because of dialogue and immersion in larger themes)

Comedy Series:
Freaks and Geeks

Drama Lead Actor:
James Gandolfini

Comedy Lead Actor:
Hugh Laurie

Unknown said...

drama: 1) sopranos; 2) the wire; 3) 24; 4)dexter; 5) house (until this season; 6) big love

comedy: 1) sex and the city; 2) curb your enthusiasm; 3)30 rock 4) flight of conchords; 5)colbert report/daily show

drama actor: 1)gandolfini; 2) ensemble -- wire cast (e.g., Idris Elba, Marlow, Jimmy McNulty); 3)michael c. hall; 4) hugh laurie; 5)Michael Imperioli;

drama actress: 1) falco; 2) glenn close; 3) mariska hargitay

comedy actor: 1) alec baldwin;2)colbert/jon stewart; 3) larry david

comedy actress: 1) SJ Parker 2) Tina Fey

BigTed said...

Comedy Series:
"Undeclared." Not quite as great as "Freaks & Geeks," but it was easier to take (and I would argue was even more responsible for the development of the Judd Apatow acting and writing company).

Drama Series:
"Mad Men." (As good as "The Sopranos," but subtler.)

Drama Lead Actor: Michael C. Hall in "Dexter," Kyle Chandler in "Friday Night Lights," James Gandolfini in "The Sopranos," Ian McShane in "Deadwood"... too hard to decide.


Drama Lead Actress: Carla Gugino, "Karen Sisco." Just... yowza.

Comedy Lead Actor: Alec Baldwin, "30 Rock." You just have to.

Comedy Lead Actress: Linda Cardellini, "Freaks and Geeks." The guys on "F&G" were great, but she may have had the best-realized teen character on TV ever. (Too bad she ended up wasting so much time on that hospital show.)

Oaktown Girl said...

and I always like to use you guys to help brainstorm and make sure I haven't missed something obvious. In the category of something truly outstanding that might fall off the radar simply because it did not last long, for best comedy, I propose The Job with Denis Leary and an amazing cast.

This show was so funny and original it's a TV tragedy that cable networks like FX or TBS/TNT hadn't yet gotten into the full swing of doing original TV shows yet. I have no doubt that if The Job had been on FX, it would have been a big hit.

It's available on DVD now. I highly recommend it to everyone who loves comedy with a little bit of edge and a ton of originality. And yes, even if you don't like Denis Leary, because it's that good.

Brandy said...

I'd toss Sports Night onto a 90s list since only a very select few of it's episodes ran in this decade.

But it's worth a consideration.

m said...

Only one mention so far (reuben, above)of Big Love? Even if it can't nudge out any of the HBO trinity, Lost, BSG, or other lead contenders for top drama series, I'd say Chloe Sevigny deserves a top spot on the list of best lead actresses in a drama. She's the standout, but her female castmates could just about all make the cut: Jeanne Tripplehorn and Ginnifer Goodwin are both very very good; and Amanda Seyfried and Grace Zabriskie are also great, though it's probably too much of a stretch to call them leads. Yay for the women on Big Love!

Count me as another voice for Mary Louise Parker on the lead actress list, comedy I guess, though her work in Weeds seems really more about tragedy to me.

And in fact, I liked Lauren Graham best in the heavier Gilmore Girls scenes, but that has to fall under comedy, and anyway she is fantastic comedically as well.

Benjamin Standig said...

Comedy Series:

Scrubs
30 Rock
Curb Your Enthusiasm
Entourage (the first two seasons)
How I Met Your Mother
The Office

Drama Series:

The West Wing
Lost
The Sopranos
Mad Men
Law and Order
Deadwood

Drama Lead Actor:

Bradley Whitford - West Wing (not really a lead, but...)
Terry O'Quinn - Lost
Jon Hamm - Mad Men
James Gandolfini - Sopranos
Martin Sheen - West Wing
Josh Holloway - Lost

Drama Lead Actress:

Mary-Lousie Parker - West Wing
Edie Falco - Sopranos
Allison Janney - West Wing
Elizabeth Moss - Mad Men
Elizabeth Mitchell - Lost
Yunjin Kim - Lost

Comedy Lead Actor:

Alec Baldwin - 30 Rock
Neil Patrick Harris - HIMYM
Denis Leary - Rescue Me
John C. McGinley - Scrubs(again, not a lead, but Dr. Cox has been the most unsung character on TV this decade)
Jim Parsons - Big Bang Theory
Bernie Mac - Bernie Mac Show

Comedy Lead Actress:

Tina Fey - 30 Rock
Mary-Louise Parker - Weeds
Sarah Jessica Parker - Sex and the City
Jamie Pressly - My Name is Earl
Yvonne Strahovski - Chuck (not really sure she is delivering comedy, but...)
Cynthia Nixon - Sex and the City

wow, that was a lot harder than I thought!

Brian said...

I think that shows that should not be overlooked for Comedy Series are;

Arrested Development (obviously), Undeclared (on the F&G ticket), and South Park (even though it started in the 90's, the best episodes have been in the 00's)

Brian said...

oh and I forgot Futurama. That show doesnt get nearly enough credit

robhemphill said...

Comedy series: HIMYM
Drama series: Battlestar Galactica
Drama lead actor: Kyle Chandler
Drama lead actress: Mary McDonnel
Comedy lead actor: John Krasinski
Comedy lead actress: ?

Cameron Hughes said...

Wow, I didn't realize we could do 6 each.

Comedy series
Scrubs
Arrested Development
The Office(U.S.)
How I Met Your Mother
Spaced
Middleman

Drama series
The Wire
Friday Night Lights
Angel
Burn Notice
Veronica Mars
Dexter

Drama lead actor
Michael Chicklis
Michael C. Hall (Dexter)
Jeffrey Donovan
James Spader(He did the serious and somber moments just as well as comedy)
Brian Cranston
Kyle Chandler

Drama lead actress
Connie Britton(By a mile)
Edie Falco
Kristen Bell
CCH Pounder
Linda Cardellini(Freaks and Geeks)
Sarah Michelle Gellar(Why? Go watch The Body in season 5 of Buffy)

Comedy lead actor
Zachary Levi
Zach Braff
Neil Patrick Harris
John Krasinski
Jason Bateman
James Roday

Comedy lead actress
Jenna Fischer
Sarah Chalke
Jaime Pressly(My Name Is Earl is terrible, but she is always funny)
Mary Louise-Parker
Jessica Walter

Grunt said...

Comedy series
How I Met Your Mother
The Office
Pushing Daisies (I view it as comedy)
Chuck (I also view this as comedy)

Drama series
The West Wing
Veronica Mars

Computo said...

Sarah Chalke of Scrubs for best female comedic performance of the decade.

Anonymous said...

Comedy Series:
Chuck
Arrested Development
The Office, US
30 Rock
Scrubs
Reaper

Drama Series
The Wire
Mad Men
The Sopranos
Rescue Me
T:SCC
Freaks and Geeks

Comedy-Actor
Zachary Levi
Alec Baldin
Steve Carell
Jason Bateman
Will Arnett
Neil Patrick Harris

Drama-Actor
Denis Leary
Hugh Laurie
James Gandolfini
Idris Elba
Jamie Hector
Gbenga Akinnagbe

Drama-Actress
Edie Falco
Lisa Edelstein
Connie Britton
Sonja Sohn
Linda Cardellini(F & G)

Comedy-Actress
Tina Fey
Jenna Fischer
Yvonne Strahovski(weird label, because she isn't "funny", but the show is a comedy)
Jessica Walter
Sarah Chalke

Anonymous said...

Comedy series
Freaks and Geeks
Arrested Development
Gilmore Girls
Futurama
Aliens in America
The Office UK

Drama series
The Wire
Mad Men
Deadwood
The Shield
Battlestar Galactica
Farscape

Drama lead actor
Michael Hogan, BSG
Idris Elba, The Wire
Bryan Cranston, Breaking Bad
William Peterson, CSI
Michael C. Hall, Dexter
Jeffrey Donovan, Touching Evil

Drama lead actress
Connie Britton, FNL
CCH Pounder, The Shield
Claudia Black, Farscape
Vera Farmiga, Touching Evil
Mary McDonnell, BSG
Amber Tamblyn, Joan of Arcadia

Comedy lead actor
Alec Baldwin,30 Rock
Jason Bateman, Arrested Development
Donald Faison, Scrubs (I don't care! He's the lead.)
Steve Carrell, The Office US
Dan Byrd/ Adhir Kalyan, Aliens in America (I think they share in this, but if I had to choose one, it would be Adhir).
Lee Pace, Pushing Daisies

Comedy lead actress
Lauren Graham, Gilmore Girls
Jenna Fischer, the office
Portia de Rossi, Arrested Development
Jaime Pressly, My Name is Earl
Mary Louise Parker, Weeds
Sarah Chalke, Scrubs

Six was very difficult!

James Kang said...

Alan, I hope you like these picks. I came up with a handful that nobody else did so far.

Drama Series
I love The Wire, The Sopranos and The Shield but you probably thought of those already. Here are some more unconventional suggestions.

Firefly
Band of Brothers
The Corner

I know the last two were miniseries, but a miniseries is a kind of series.

Comedy Series
Arrested Development
Da Ali G. Show
The Office (UK)
Curb Your Enthusiasm
Weeds
Undeclared

Drama Lead Actor
I don't like how these acting categories are restricted to leads. Many of the most interesting performances are supporting ones. It also makes for more conventional lists. Having said that, here are my picks.

Bryan Cranston (Breaking Bad)
Gabriel Byrne (In Treatment)
Denis Leary (Rescue Me)
James Gandolfini (The Sopranos)
Ian McShane (Deadwood)
Paul Giamatti (John Adams)

Because it's restricted only to leads, you can't make more interesting choices like Forest Whitaker of The Shield, Michael Emerson or Terry O'Quinn of Lost, Michael Kenneth Williams or Robert Wisdom of The Wire or Blair Underwood of In Treatment. But that's not a knock against my six picks, though. They were all phenomenal.

Drama Lead Actress
Khandi Alexander (The Corner (I hope people don't forget her. She gave one of the most startlingly emotional performances I've ever seen))
Edie Falco (The Sopranos)
Kristen Bell (Veronica Mars)
Glenn Close (Damages)
Billie Piper (Secret Diary of a Call Girl)
Calista Flockheart (Brothers & Sisters)

Comedy Lead Actor
Sacha Baron Cohen (Da Ali G Show)
Ricky Gervais (The Office)
Jason Bateman (Arrested Development)
Larry David (Curb Your Enthusiasm)
Matt Keeslar (The Middleman (was that a lead role?))
Adhir Kalyan (Aliens in America (again, was this a lead role?)

Comedy Lead Actress
Mary-Louise Parker (Weeds)
Tina Fey (30 Rock)
Sarah Silverman (The Sarah Silverman Program)
Natalie Morales (The Middleman)
America Ferrera (Ugly Betty)
Julia-Louis Dreyfuss (The New Adventures of Old Christine)

Anonymous said...

That´s a real challenge...

Comedy series
- How I Met Your Mother
- Gilmore Girls

Drama Series
- Battlestar Galactica
- Friday Night Lights
- LOST
- Veronica Mars (Honorable mention)

Drama lead actor
- Kyle Chandler
- Edward J. Olmos
- Hugh Laurie

Drama lead actress
- Connie Britton
- Mary McDonnell
- Rachel Griffiths
- Kristen Bell

Comedy lead actor
- Neil Patrick Harris
- Steve Carrell

Comedy Lead Actress
- Lauren Graham

BF said...

Comedy:
Pardon the Interruption (You know it's true)

Comedy Actor:
The Ox from Amazing Race 5

Clevelle said...

Comedy series

ARRESTED DEVELOPMENT
THE OFFICE (US)
30 ROCK
IT'S ALWAYS SUNNY IN PHILADELPHIA
CURB YOUR ENTHUSIASM
EXTRAS

Drama series

THE WIRE
THE SHIELD
MAD MEN
FRIDAY NIGHT LIGHTS
LOST
BREAKING BAD

Drama lead actor

IAN MCSHANE (Deadwood)
MICHAEL CHIKLIS (The Shield)
BRYAN CRANSTON (Breaking Bad)
KYLE CHANDLER (Friday Night Lights)
JON HAMM (Mad Men)
MICHAEL C. HALL (Dexter)

Drama lead actress

CCH POUNDER (The Shield)
CONNIE BRITTON (Friday Night Lights)
SANDRA OH (Grey's Anatomy)
KYRA SEDGWICK (The Closer)
MARY McDONNELL (Battlestar Galactica)
CHLOE SEVIGNY (Big Love)

Comedy lead actor

RICKY GERVAIS (Extras, The Office UK)
STEVE CARELL (The Office US)
ALEC BALDWIN (30 Rock)
LARRY DAVID (Curb Your Enthusiasm)
JACK McBRAYER (30 Rock)
RAINN WILSON (The Office US)

Comedy lead actress

TINA FEY (30 Rock)
JANE KRAKOWSKI (30 Rock)
VANESSA WILLIAMS (Ugly Betty)
PORTIA DI ROSSI (Arrested Development, Better Off Ted)
JEAN SMART (Samantha Who)
JENNA FISCHER (The Office US)

Nicole said...

BF, I believe you mean the "broken" ox from TAR.

The Waitress said...

Ooh can I play?

Comedy series:
Arrested Development
30 Rock
Flight of the Conchords
The Venture Bros.
Freaks and Geeks
Extras

Drama series:
The Wire (no contest really)
Mad Men
Six Feet Under
The Shield
Lost
West Wing

Drama lead actor:
Jon Hamm
Michael C. Hall
Idris Elba (or really anyone from The Wire)
Terry O'Quinn
Michael Chiklis

Drama lead actress:
Chloe Sevigny
CCH Pounder
Elisabeth Moss
Rachel Griffiths
Lauren Ambrose
Deirdre Lovejoy

Comedy lead actor
Jason Bateman
Alec Baldwin
Will Arnett
Jason Segel
David Chappelle
Neil Patrick Harris

Comedy lead actress
Portia De Rossi
Jessica Walter
Tina Fey
Lauren Graham
Kaitlin Olson
Ashley Jenson

Whew! That was incredibly difficult. I'm sure I left a few things out.

Nevada Smith said...

Taking the Wire out of the equation since it stands on its own and is probably in the top 10 series of all time and after seeing all the posts here-limit to 3 noms or less in each
Drama
Lost (might go up there with best of all time)
Deadwood (def in the best of all time category)
West Wing

Comedy
Office (UK)
Office (US)

Actor-Drama
Ian McShane
Actor-Comedy
Ricky Gervais

Never got bitten by the 30 Rock or Arrested Development bug but like most of the actors in those 2. Loved Freaks and Geeks and disliked a lot of the actors (Seth Rogen one of the most overrated in my opinion. How does that happen?)

Good luck

Steve Wirzba said...

Comedy Series:
ARRESTED DEVELOPMENT- this is the funniest show ever made, in my books. It's simply brilliant, and despite grabbing an audience a little too late, its aftershocks have changed the kinds of comedies being produced right now. Pure Gold.
FREAKS AND GEEKS- shows like this come around so rarely, and its a shame. Such a warm and lovely show.
30 ROCK- all though its still a fairly new show, it is easily the funniest show currently on tv; mulit-layered and clever, its the closest any show has come to the brilliance of A.D.

Drama Series:
THE WIRE- the funny thing is, I have only seen the most recent, and last, season of the Wire, but it hit me so deeply. I have all the DVDs now, and I'm looking forward to starting from the beginning!
MAD MEN- absolutely brilliant acting and writing. The characters i this show are definitely some of the best of the '00s.
FRIDAY NIGHT LIGHTS- along with Mad Men, FNL has the best characters to come around in a long time. Writing and directing are also stellar. Also, this show just hits you really, really hard. I've spent many hours after watching an ep in deep melancholy, joy, anger, and often a bit of each.
BREAKING BAD- again, a young show, but the frist season was unbelieveable, and the second season has managed to somehow be significantly better. Cranston is unbelieveable, and this is such a unique idea for a show.
LOST- this show is an absolute behemoth, and unlike anything thats ever been on TV. It is followed religiously not simply because it is created to induce that kind of reaction, but because it is simply one of the best stories ever told on tv.

Comedy Actor:
The entire lead male cast of A.D.
Alec Baldwin on 30 Rock
Neil Patrick Harris on HIMYM
John Krasinski on The Office

Comedy Actress:
Tina Fey on 30 Rock
Jenna Fischer on The Office

Drama Actor:
Bryan Cranston on Breaking Bad
Aaron Paul on Breaking Bad
Jon Hamm on Mad Men
Zach Gilford on FNL
Taylor Kitsch on FNL
Michael Emerson on Lost

Drama Actress:
Connie Britton on FNL
Elisabeth Moss on Mad Men

Evamarie said...

Comedy series
How I Met Your Mother
Big Bang Theory

Drama series
LOST
Grey's Anatomy
Veronica Mars
Dexter
Dead Like Me - Was that the 2000's?
There was a time when I would have put Heroes on here, but not so much

Drama lead actor
Michael Hall - Dexter
Terry O'Quinn - LOST

Drama lead actress
Lauren Graham - Gilmore Girls
I forget her name - but who plays Christina on Grey's Anatomy?
Kristen Bell - Veronica Mars especially (also Heroes and Gossip Girl)


Comedy lead actor
Neil Patrick Harris - HIMYM

Comedy lead actress
Lauren Graham - Gilmore Girls
(I know I'm double listing her, but she does both so well)

frinklin said...

Man, this is hard.

Drama Series:

The Sopranos
The West Wing
Battlestar Galactica
Deadwood
Six Feet Under
Life On Mars (UK)

Comedy Series:
Freaks and Geeks
Undeclared
Arrested Development
Scrubs
30 Rock
The Office (US)

Drama Actor:
James Gandolfini - The Sopranos
John Hamm - Mad Men
Martin Sheen - The West Wing
Ian McShane - Deadwood
Brad Whitford - The West Wing
Philip Glenister - Life On Mars (UK)

Drama Actress:
Edie Falco - The Sopranos
Allison Janney - The West Wing
Kristin Bell - Veronica Mars
Frances Conroy - Six Feet Under
Mary McDonnell - Battlestar Galactica
Elisabeth Moss - Mad Men

Comedy Actor:
Jason Batemen - Arrested Development
Michael Cera - Arrested Development
Steve Carell - The Office (US)
John C. McGinley - Scrubs
Alec Baldwin - 30 Rock
Jason Segal - Freaks and Geeks

Comedy Actress:
Sarah Chalke - Scrubs
Linda Cardenelli - Freaks and Geeks
Mary-Louise Parker - Weeds
Jenna Fischer - The Office (US)
Portia Di Rossi - Arrested Development
Jamie Pressley - My Name Is Earl

Tyroc said...

I totally forgot about Sacha Baron Cohen as ALI G!

The HBO series had one of the funniest moments in TV history (and completely offensive of course.)

The Borat "Down the Well" song scene!

Darrel said...

I think Freaks and Geeks might really be my favorite series overall. I'm not sure if it should be thrown into the drama or comedy category. Maybe I'll say drama, because if we're talking pure comedy I might have to say The Office (UK) and Arrested Development belong on top, but if we're talking Drama I think Freaks and Geeks takes the cake.

I just got the DVD a few weeks ago and I was blown away by how brilliant the show was. I remembered liking it a lot when it aired, but I had been in 9th grade back then. When I saw it again a few weeks ago I was astounded.

I love Battlestar Galactica, Sopranos, The Wire, The Shield...but in the end I don't know if they really effected me as much as Freaks and Geeks did.

All four of those dramas I just mentioned though are absolutely brilliant. For pure drama, I can't remember any other show that was as absolutely intense as The Shield. I can't think of a twist that hit me as hard as the season 5 finale of The Shield did.

As for overall quality though, I think my favorite show would have to be Freaks and Geeks, followed very closely by:

Comedy: Office, Arrested Development, Curb Your Enthusiasm, 30 Rock, Office (American).

Drama: The Shield, The Wire, BSG, Lost, Mad Men, Sopranos, Six Feet Under.

Damn. You know when you look back, the last 10 or so years have been a phenomenal time for television. There's a lot of crap out there with reality TV and ridiculous shows, but at the same time there's been a surge in high quality, creative, artistic shows with amazing character development and/or brilliant comedy. As far as I'm concerned a well-written television series is as good or better than the best feature films.

karl b. said...

Comedy series:
Arrested Development
Weeds
Entourage
Extras
The Office (US/UK - you choose)
Lucky Louie (definitely underrated)

Drama series:
The West Wing
Breaking Bad
The Shield
The Wire
Sopranos
House M.D.


Drama lead actor:
Bryan Cranston (Breaking Bad)
Jay Karnes (The Shield)
Charlie Hunnam (Sons of Anarchy)
Michael K. Williams (The Wire - maybe not lead though)
Ben Whishaw (Criminal Justice)
Adam Scott (Tell Me You Love Me)

Drama lead actress:
Katey Segal (Sons of Anarchy)
Toni Collette (United States of Tara)
Julie Benz (Dexter)
Kim Raver (Lipstick Jungle - think she's awesome here)
Edie Falco (Sopranos)
Chloe Sevigny (Big Love)


Comedy lead actor:
Kevin Dillon (Entourage)
Ricky Gervais (Extras)
Stephen Colbert (does he count? Otherwise: Alec Baldwin)
Steve Carell (The Office US)
Hugh Laurie (House M.D.)
Michael Cera (Arrested Development)

Comedy lead actress:
Mary-Louise Parker (Weeds)
Amy Sedaris (Strangers With Candy)
Natascha McElhone (Californication)
Pamela Adlon (Lucky Louie)
Tina Fey (30 Rock)
Madeleine Martin (Californication)

Long list said...

It's curious to see the divide between HBO whores (not in an offensive way, something I think is from James Gunn's list of something tv) and the normies traditional network tv. Once you go premium cable, you never really see television drama in the same light.

Anyway, I'm also HBOs whipping boy:

Drama:
The big four of HBO, Six Feet Under may be the weak sister but it was awesome at mining that repressed surbubia people exploding once in a while. It was a very "whitebread" show for me (not being racist) like Gilmore Girls is whitebread; except SFU had teeth and GG was only good at suckling.
Last spot BSG, epic storytelling and very ambitious.

Comedy:
Arrested, The Office (everything) ,F&G
The less deserving 2: HIMYM, Scrubs or maybe Sports Night(?)

Animation
South Park (it's been gold through most of its existence, some credit is due), Mission Hill, Futurama, ATHF, And sometimes Boondocks

Variety: Daily Show, Colbert, and now Glenn Becks post-modern comedy hour. Letterman, Conan.

Drama Actor
IAN *beeping* McShane (my pick)
Hugh Laurie
Idris Elba (Strings) or Michael K. WIlliams (Omar)
Jon Hamm's John Ham
Bryan Cranston (mostly Breaking Bad but also Malcolm even tho it's comedy)
Michael C. Hall
Gandolfini
kinda diggin Gaius Baltar Callis
Emmy Voters: James Spader and Kiefer

Actress (women don't get enough good roles)
Edie Falco
Frances Conroy or Ambrose or Griffith (but really it's Ruth)
Laura Roslin McDonell
Maybe: Kristen Bell (for the charisma), and Laura Innes (for carrying ER)
Emmy Voters: something Grey's

Comedy Actor
Neil Patrick Harris wins.
Gervais, Carell, Alec Baldwin, Gob Arnett-Poehler, Dr. Stephen T. Colbert DFA(?)(for the Michael Steele rap)
Also Tim Canterbury Freeman? and Michael Cera
Emmy voters: auto-Shahloub.

Comedy Actress
Doris Roberts (it was one-note, so?)
Kristin Chenowith (Pushed Daisies)
Ellen Muth (dead like me)
Felicity Huffman
Ashley Jensen

Animation Lead
Cartman, Homer, Hughie, Roger the Alien, Butters

kendall said...

Comedy series: Frisky Dingo or It's Always Sunny in Philadelphia

Drama series: Lost

Comedy Actress: Mary Louise Parker or Marcia Cross

Drama Actress: Edie Falco

Comedy Adtor: Steve Carrell

Drama Actor: James Spader

Evamarie said...

I voted earlier, but only had one person down for this category, so I would like to add:

Comedy Lead Actor:
Ray Wise, Reaper

Fernando said...

Comedy Series
Office (US)
Arrested Development
Extras
The Daily Show
CHAPPELLE'S SHOW (surprised many ppl didn't have this, i almost forgot myself)
THE BOONDOCKS

Drama:
The Wire (hands down)
Lost
BSG
The Sopranos
Mad Men
Oz

Comedy Actor:
Dave Chappelle
Steve Carell
Ricky Gervais
Jason Bateman

Comedy Actress:
Tina Fey
Portia D'rossi
Regina King (The Boondocks)
Jenna Fischer

Drama Actor:
IDRIS ELBA
Terry O'Quinn
John Hamm
Micheal Emerson
MICHAEL HOGAN
JAMES CALLIS

Drama Actress:
Mary McDonell
CCH Pounder
Christina Hendricks
Edie Falco

Lester Freamon said...

Drama Series:
The Wire
Deadwood
Lost
Battlestar Galactica
Mad Men
Friday Night Lights

Comedy Series:
Arrested Development
30 Rock
The Office
Curb Your Enthusiasm
How I Met Your Mother
Freaks and Geeks

Drama Actor:
Ian McShane, Deadwood
Hugh Laurie, House
Kyle Chandler, Friday Night Lights
Terry O'Quinn, Lost
Victor Garber, Alias
James Spader, The Practice (not Boston Legal)

Drama Actress:
Mary McDonnell, Battlestar Galactica
Katee Sackhoff, Battlestar Galactica
Kristen Bell, Veronica Mars
Chloe Sevigny, Big Love
Jeanne Tripplehorn, Big Love
Connie Britton, Friday Night Lights

Comedy Actor:
Steve Carrell, The Office
Alec Baldwin, 30 Rock
Tracy Morgan, 30 Rock
Bret MacKenzie, Flight of the Conchords
Jemaine Clement, Flight of the Conchords
Michael Cera, Arrested Development

Comedy Actress:
Tina Fey, 30 Rock
Marcia Cross, Desperate Housewives
Sarah Chalke, Scrubs
Jennifer Aniston, Friends
Lisa Kudrow, Friends
Jenna Fischer, The Office

JCM said...

Comedy series
Arrested Development
30 Rock
How I Met Your Mother
Scrubs
Sports Night
Everybody Loves Raymond

Drama series
Lost
Battlestar Galactica
The Sopranos
The West Wing
Deadwood
Band of Brothers (miniseries, I know)

Drama lead actor
James Gandalfini
Hugh Laurie
John Hamm
Richard Schiff
Ian McShane
Damien Lewis

Drama lead actress
Edie Falco
Allison Janey
Mary McDonald
Jennifer Garner
Frances Conroy
Chandra Wilson

Comedy lead actor
Tony Shaloub
Neil Patrick Harris
Jason Bateman
Ricky Gervais
Kelsey Grammer
Alec Baldwin

Comedy lead actress
Tina Fey
Patricia Heaton
Jane Kaczmarek
Jamie Pressly
Dorris Roberts
Megan Mullally

Anonymous said...

Drama Series

Veronica Mars
Friday Night Lights
Lost
The Wire

Comedy Series
The Office (US)
Arrested Development
Chuck
Coupling (UK)

Actor-Drama
Kyle Chandler (FNL)
Jon Hamm (Mad Men)
Hugh Laurie (House)

Actress-Drama
Connie Britton (FNL)
Kristen Bell (Veronica Mars)

Actor-Comedy
Ricky Gervais (Extras)
Jason Bateman (Arrested Development)
Neil Patrick Harris (HIMYM)
Alec Baldwin (30 Rock)

Actress-Comedy
Lauren Graham (Gilmore Girls)
Tina Fey (30 Rock)
Jenna Fischer (The Office)
Jaime Pressly (My Name is Earl)

Gayle said...

Comedy Series:
Arrested Development
Curb Your Enthusiasm
The Office
30 Rock
Pushing Daisies
The Knights of Prosperity--just throwing it out there

Drama Series:
Alias--yes it fell apart at the end of its run, but for a while it was spellbinding
Mad Men
Battlestar Galactica
Lost
The West Wing
In Treatment
The Sopranos

Drama Lead Actor:
James Gandolfini
Jon Hamm
Hugh Laurie
Gabriel Byrne
Martin Sheen
Terry O'Quinn

Drama Lead Actress:
Jennifer Garner
Edie Falco
Mary McDonnell
Rachel Griffiths
Allison Janney

Comedy Lead Actress:
Tina Fey
Julia Louis Dreyfus
Jessica Walter
Megan Mulally
Lisa Kudrow

Comedy Lead Actor:
Ricky Gervais
Steve Carrell
Alec Baldwin
Jason Bateman

Phantom said...

A french opinion xD

Drama Series:Farscape (only one person mentions it !)
The West Wing
The Wire
Doctor Who
Maybe Once & Again ?

Drama Lead Actor:John Spencer, The West Wing
Alexis Denisof, Angel
Ben Browder, Farscape
Martin Sheen, The West Wing
David Tennant, Doctor Who
JD Williams, The Wire
(it's a tough category but Walter Goggins isn't quoted once)

Drama Lead Actress:Claudia Black, Farscape
Connie Britton, FNL
Ellen Muth, Dead Like Me
Allison Janey, The West Wing
Edie Falco, The Sopranos
Maybe Evan Rachel Wood, Once & Again (but it's not really a lead ^^)

Comedy Series:The Office (US)
Extras
Malcolm in the Middle
Arrested Development
The Office (UK)

Comedy Lead Actress:Julia Louis-Dreyfus, Old Christine
Jane Kaczmarek, Malcolm in the Middle
Olivia Hallinan, Sugar Rush

Comedy Lead Actor:Ricky Gervais, Extras/The Office UK
Steve Carell, The Office US
Bryan Cranston, Malcolm in the Middle
Neil Patrick Harris, HIMYM
Will Arnett, Arrested Development
Tony Hale, Arrested Development

Anonymous said...

Well, you already have all the feedback you could possibly process and everyone's chimed in with thoughtful responses. What you could really use is a new category! Not possible, I know, but simply for kicks...

Best Ensembles of the 00s:

1. The Wire
2. Sopranos
3. Arrested Development
4. Six Feet Under
5. Freaks and Geeks
6. The West Wing

Question Mark said...

If you're counting shows that aired in the 2000s (and not necessarily had their best days in the 2000s), then Frasier, Kelsey Grammer and David Hyde Pierce are locks on every acting list.

Question Mark said...

I'd also like to propose an award for acting excellent in both genres for two different shows.

Enrico Colantoni, Just Shoot Me/Veronica Mars
Bryan Cranston, Breaking Bad/Malcolm In The Middle
Alyson Hannigan, Buffy The Vampire Slayer/How I Met Your Mother
Felicity Huffman, Sports Night/Desperate Housewives
Matthew Perry, Friends/Studio 60 On The Sunset Strip

ZeppJets said...

Drama Series:
1)The Wire
2)Battlestar Galactica
3)The Sopranos
4)Deadwood
5)Firefly
6)Carnivale
7)Mad Men
8)The West Wing

I don't think I've seen you write about Carnivale- thoughts on that trippy creature which I loved so much?

Comedy Series
1)The Office (US)
2)30 Rock
3)Arrested Development
4)Conchords
5)HIMYM

Drama Actress
-Edie Falco
-Connie Britton
-Mary McDonell
-Katee Sackhoff

Drama Actor
-gotta be Gandolfini

But much love for :
-Ian McShane
-Eddie Olmos and Michael Hogan
-Michael Emerson
-Martin Sheen and John Spencer
-Michael C. Hall
-I'll confine my Wire-gushing to Idris Alba, Michael K. Williams, and Andre Royo (my favorite three out of dozens who could be on this list)

The Comedy actors have been covered well already; though I'd like to see more love for the supporters on Arrested Development, like Tony Hale and David Cross----
and, thus far, only one other commenter shares my love of Cobie Smulders' Robin Scherbatsky

Flannel said...

Thanks for asking for our help Alan.

Comedy series - Black Books
The Office (UK)
The Office (US)
Freaks and Geeks
Spaced
30 Rock

Drama series - Deadwood
The Wire
Mad Men
State of Play (UK)
Dexter
Law and Order SVU (they take it personally!)

Drama lead actor - Ian McShane
Timothy Olyphant
John Hamm
John Simm
Michael C Hall
Michael Emerson

Drama lead actress - Paula Malcolmson
Connie Britton
Elisabeth Moss
Chloe Sevigny
Mary Louise Parker

Comedy lead actor - Dylan Moran
Ricky Gervais
Alec Baldwin
Steve Carell
Will Arnett
John Francis Daley

Comedy lead actress - Jessica Hynes nee Stevenson
Sarah Chalke
Jessica Walter
Tine Fey
Alison Hannigan
Tamsin Grieg

Anonymous said...

Comedy series: The Office (UK)Drama series: Lost)Drama lead actor: Terry O'Quinn (Lost))Drama lead actress: Cynthia Nixon (SATC)). It's cheating, maybe, b/c Sex and the City was technically a comedy, but she could bring every single emotion to the table, especially in the episodes in which her mother died and her mother-in-law had a stroke. I also enjoyed the brief time I spent watching Jennifer Garner (Alias)) and Sarah Michelle Gellar (BTVS).
Comedy lead actor: Alec Baldwin (30 Rock))Comedy lead actress: Tie between Lauren Graham (Gilmore Girls)) and Tina Fey (30 Rock)).

Special mention goes to Jessica Walter (Arrested Development)) and Holland Taylor (2 and a Half Men)).

Tara said...

Dramatic Actress: Maura Tierney, ER

Dramatic Actor: Ian McShane, Deadwood

Anonymous said...

Comedy Series:
The Office [UK]
Arrested Development
30 Rock
Futurama [NEEDS TO BE MENTIONED]
Extras

Drama Series:
Breaking Bad
The Wire
Mad Men
Lost
The West Wing

Comedy Actor: Ricky Gervais
Comedy Actress: Jessica Walter
Drama Actor: Bryan Cranston
Drama Actress: Edie Falco

wjm said...

Chalk up two more votes for Firefly and Capt. Tightpants. Fillion's Reynolds is still who I think of when I hear the word "integrity." He so completely embodied that character, it makes me crazy.

And Mr. and Mrs. Coach. They're all kinds of awesome.

nathansmart said...

When did Ed air on NBC? I'd say that's in my tops along with The Office (UK) and Extras

Turtle said...

Dramas:
Friday Night Lights
Lost
Life on Mars (UK)
Wire in the Blood (UK)
ER
Pushing Daisies

Drama actors:
John Simm (Life on Mars)
Damian Lewis (Life)
Kyle Chandler (Friday Night Lights)
Lee Pace (Pushing Daisies)
Jonathan Tucker (The Black Donnellys)
Adrian Pasdar (Mysterious Ways)

Drama Actresses:
Julianna Margulies (ER)
Melina Kanakederas (CSI: NY)
Kathryn Erbe (Law and Order: CI)
Alisen Down (Mysterious Ways)
Sarah Shahi (Life)
Kristin Bell (Veronica Mars)

The Hypnotoad said...

Comedy series : Arrested Development
Drama series : The Wire
Drama lead actor : Walton Goggins
Drama lead actress : Edie Falco
Comedy lead actor : Ricky Gervais (i'm counting for work in both Office and Extras)
Comedy lead actress : Portia De rossi

Anonymous said...

Some of these categories are hard to narrow down (Drama and Drama Actor) and others are hard to get up to 6, so I am including supporting in the actor/actress categories.

DRAMA
Lost
The Wire
The Shield
Friday Night Lights
Dexter
Alias/Buffy (tie)

COMEDY
Arrested Development
Curb Your Enthusiasm
How I Met Your Mother
Family Guy
That 70's Show
Rescue Me (could be drama, but this show makes me laugh a lot already have too dramas already)

DRAMA ACTOR
M. Emerson (Lost)
K. Chandler (FNL)
M. Hall (Dexter)
M. Chiklis (The Shield)
I. McShane (Deadwood)
T. O'Quinn (Lost)

DRAMA ACTRESS
C. Britton (FNL)
E. Mitchell (Lost)
J. Garner (Alias)
G. Close (Damages)
C. Pounder (The Shield)
S. Gellar (Buffy)

COMENDY ACTOR
NPH (HIMYM)
J. Segel (HIMYM)
L. David (Curb)
McGinley (Scrubs)
Arnett (Arrested)
Cera (Arrested)

COMEDY ACTRESS
M. Parker (Weeds)
C. Smulders (HIMYM)
A. Hannigan (HIMYM)
S. Chalke (Scrubs)
J. Walters (Arrested)
P. di Rossi (Arrested)

Darren said...

Drama series: The Wire

Drama lead actor: Terry O'Quinn (John Locke, Lost)

Drama lead actress: Mary-Louise Parker (Nancy Botwin, Weeds)

Comedy series: Arrested Development

Comedy lead actor: Steve Carell (Michael Scott, The Office)

Comedy lead actress: Jane Kaczmarek (Lois [insert surname here], Malcolm in the Middle)

christy said...

I forgot Sonja Sohn. I'd replace either Elisabeth or Rachel in my list with Sonja. Hard to decide which, of course, when both have done very good work on two series during the aughts. I guess Rachel.

michael said...

Comedy:
The Middleman
Invader Zim
The Venture Brothers
Colbert Report
Pushing Daisies

Drama:
West Wing
Dr Who (current version)
Burn Notice
Raines (or should that be on my guilty pleasures list?)

dee said...

Don't really have anything others haven't mentioned yet, so I won't bore anyone with a somewhat similar list of things, but I wonder why they don't have a Top ensemble cast drama/comedy category, given a lot of the really great shows are the ones with a very well rounded cast, which makes it impossible to choose just one (e.g. The Wire. How does one choose? You can't!)

Though, I suppose perhaps the category of "Best Drama/ Comedy Series" is indicative of the shows with the best ensemble cast, which allows for more shows to be in the list, huh?

Anonymous said...

Needed to be mentioned:

Robin Wiegert (Deadwood)
For UK residents:
The Royle Family (J.K. Rowling seal of approval)

Cameron Hughes said...

Oh, one more for comedy: Futurama

Ellie said...

Drama:
The Wire
The West Wing
Mad Men
Friday Night Lights
Breaking Bad
Six Feet Under

Comedy:
Arrested Development
Sports Night
Freaks and Geeks
The Office US
30 Rock
HIMYM

Lead Actor Drama:
Jon Hamm
Richard Schiff (I don't think he's been mentioned. He did terrific work on TWW)
Kyle Chandler
John Spencer
Bryan Cranston
Everyone on The Wire

Lead Actress Drama:
Connie Britton
Allison Janney
Elisabeth Moss
Frances Conroy
Chloe Sevigny
Jeanne Tripplehorn

Lead Actor Comedy:
Everyone on AD
NPH
Alec Baldwin
Steve Carrell

Lead Actress Comedy:
Everyone on AD
Felicity Huffman
Mary Louise Parker
Elizabeth Perkins
Jenna Fischer

Brian said...

A few comedies no one has yet mentioned:

Home Movies
Mission Hill
The Mighty Boosh
Tim and Eric Awesome Show Great Job!
Clone High

Home Movies, in particular, would be a certain lister for me.

Anonymous said...

THE O.C. and give Melinda Clarke, Autumn Reeser, and, of course, Peter Gallagher some love!

Sean McQuaid said...

COMEDY SERIES
How I Met Your Mother
30 Rock
Big Bang Theory
Colbert Report
Scrubs
Arrested Development

Honorable Mentions:
Andy Barker PI, Corner Gas, Frasier, Simpsons, Undergrads

Not Pure Comedies Genre-Wise:
Being Erica, Burn Notice, Chuck, Gilmore Girls, Monk, Psych, Pushing Daisies, Reaper, Slings & Arrows, Wonderfalls

-----------------

DRAMA SERIES
Veronica Mars
Buffy the Vampire Slayer
Doctor Who
Chuck
Life
Lost

Honorable Mentions:
Angel, Being Erica, Burn Notice, Dollhouse, Eureka, Everwood, Firefly, Gilmore Girls, House, Hustle, Justice League Unlimited, Mad Men, Monk, NCIS, Nero Wolfe Mystery, Poirot, Pushing Daisies, Reaper, Wonderfalls

-----------------

DRAMA LEAD ACTOR
Damian Lewis (Life)
Hugh Laurie (House)
Nathan Fillion (Firefly/Castle)
David Tennant (Dr. Who)
Terry O'Quinn (Lost)
Tony Shaloub (Monk)

Honorable Mentions:
Michael Riley (Being Erica), Anthony Stewart Head (BTVS), Zachary Levi (Chuck), Christopher Eccleston (Dr. Who), Tom Amandes (Everwood), Michael Emerson (Lost), Jon Hamm (Mad Men), Timothy Hutton (Nero Wolfe), Maury Chaykin (Nero Wolfe), David Suchet (Poirot), Enrico Colantoni (Veronica Mars), Jason Dohring (Veronica Mars)

-----------------

DRAMA LEAD ACTRESS
Kristen Bell (Veronica Mars)
Lauren Graham (Gilmore Girls)
Erin Karpluk (Being Erica)
Sarah Michellle Gellar (BTVS)
Catherine Tate (Dr. Who)
Yvonne Strahovski (Chuck)

Honorable Mentions:
Charisma Carpenter (Angel), Amy Acker (Angel), Billie Piper (Dr. Who), Summer Glau (Firefly/Terminator), Liza Weil (Gilmore Girls), Kelly Bishop (Gilmore Girls), Jaime Murray (Hustle), Sarah Shahi (Life), Kristin Chenoweth (Pushing Daisies), Caroline Dhavernas (Wonderfalls)

-----------------

COMEDY LEAD ACTOR
Neil Patrick Harris (How I Met Your Mother)
Jim Parsons (Big Bang Theory)
Kelsey Grammer (Frasier)
Alec Baldwin (30 Rock)
Stephen Colbert (Colbert Report)
Zach Braff (Scrubs)

Honorable Mentions:
Andy Richter (Andy Barker), Brent Butt (Corner Gas), Tony Shaloub (Monk), James Roday (Psych), Ray Wise (Reaper), Paul Gross (Slings & Arrows)

-----------------

COMEDY LEAD ACTRESS
Tina Fey (30 Rock)
Sarah Chalke (Scrubs)
Alyson Hannigan (HIMYM)
Cobie Smulders (HIMYM)
Jessica Walter (Arrested Development)
Kaley Cuoco (Big Bang Theory)

Honorable Mention: Tara Spencer Nairn (Corner Gas)

--------------------

MISSED IT BY THAT MUCH

Newsradio
Star Trek: DS9

Both of those shows ended in 1999, and both would have fit within the following decade well enough. In some ways, STDS9 was more of a 21st Century series than either of Trek's actual 21st Century shows (the far less ambitious Voyager & Enterprise), with its dense serialization, long-term character development, darker themes, wartime setting and flawed heroes.

--------------------

YESTERYEAR'S TITANS
Great shows that came and went well before the 21st Century...

Batman: The Animated Series
Columbo
Freakazoid
Gunsmoke
Have Gun Will Travel
Honey West
Mission: Impossible
Muppet Show
Newhart
Outer Limits
Pinky & The Brain
Rifleman
Sherlock Holmes (Jeremy Brett)
Star Trek
Star Trek: The Next Generation
Taxi
The Tick! (animated)
Twilight Zone
WKRP in Cincinnatti

The Bgt said...

Comedy series:IT Crowd
Big Bang Theory
30 Rock
Samantha Who?
(can I mention Desperate Housewives here? It's not comedy but occasionally it has some of the most hilarious scenes)Drama seriesBattlestar Galactica
Veronica Mars
In Treatment
House MD
Alias
Life
Law and Order SVU (till 2005 so not the last 4 seasons)

Drama lead actorHugh Laurie (house)
Michael Hogan (bsg)
Gabriel Byrne (in treatment)
Damian Lewis (life)
Eddie Olmos (bsg)

Drama lead actressMary McDonnel (bsg- they should name the drama actress Emmy after her or give her an oscar for tv performance)
Kristen Bell (veronica mars)
Jennifer Garner (alias)
Gillian Anderson (bleak house)
Katee Sackhoff (bsg)
Felicity Huffman (housewives)

Comedy lead actorAlec Baldwin (30 rock)
Jim Parsons (Big Bang theory)
Noel Fielding (IT crowd)
Jack McBrayer (30 rock)

Comedy lead actressKatherine Parkinson (IT crowd)
Tina Fey (30 rock)
Vanessa Williams (ugly betty)
Teri Hatcher (housewives)
Kaley Cuoco (big bang theory)

Guilty PleasuresTrue Blood
Cold Case
Uggly Betty
1st season of Heroes

the ARGH! awardthe rest seasons of Heroes

James Morgan said...

Not even remotely enough love for The Thick of It, I'm Alan Partridge and Peep Show here!

As much as I love some of the American imports like Arr Dev, 30 Rock, Curb, Office (U.S.) they don't even come CLOSE to those 3.

Nice to see UK Office getting the kudos it deserves, and a few mentions of Spaced.

Other great UK sitcoms of recent years:
Garth Marenghi's Darkplace
Peter Kay's Phoenix Nights
The Royle Family

Kent said...

I'm doing six shows and three people for each category.

Comedy series:
Arrested Development
The Office (both, but IMHO the US is superior)
Freaks and Geeks
The Venture Bros.
Monk
Chuck

Drama series:
Lost
Angel
Dr. Who (New Series)
Veronica Mars
Supernatural (I'm as surprised as you are)
Burn Notice

Drama lead actor:
Terry O'Quinn (Lost)
David Tennant (Dr. Who)
Alexis Denisof (Angel)

Drama lead actress:
Kristen Bell (Veronica Mars)
Amy Acker (Angel)
Jennifer Garner (Alias)

Comedy lead actor:
Zach Levi (Chuck)
Rainn Wilson (The Office)
Tony Shaloub (Monk)

Comedy lead actress
Jenna Fischer (The Office)
Lauren Graham (Gilmore Girls)
Linda Cardellini (Freaks and Geeks)

I'm sure I've forgotten a few that I'll be kicking myself over later. But there's the best list I can make right now.

Zac F. said...

I thought I posted this already, but apparently, it didn't take.

Best DramaBattlestar Galactica
Mad Men
Six Feet Under
The Sopranos
The West Wing
The Wire

Best ComedyArrested Development
Freaks and Geeks
How I Met Your Mother
The Office
Scrubs
Sports Night

Lead Actor DramaEdward James Olmos, Battlestar Galactica
Hugh Laurie, House
Jon Hamm, Mad Man
Peter Krause, Six Feet Under
James Gandolfini, The Sopranos
Martin Sheen, The West Wing

Lead Actress, DramaMary McDonnell, Battlestar Galactica
Connie Britton, Friday Night Lights
Lauren Graham, Gilmore Girls
Frances Conroy, Six Feet Under
Edie Falco, The Sopranos
Kristen Bell, Veronica Mars

Lead Actor ComedyJason Bateman, Arrested Development
Jim Parsons, The Big Bang Theory
Zachary Levi, Chuck
Neil Patrick Harris, How I Met Your Mother
Steve Carell, The Office
John C. McGinley, Scrubs

Lead Actress ComedyPortia de Rossi, Arrested Development
Yvonne Strahovski, Chuck
Linda Cardinelli, Freaks and Geeks
Jenna Fischer, The Office
Felicity Huffman, Sports Night

Zac F. said...

I don't know what happened, but the title of each category and the first show were run together. Maybe the bold tag was running
amuck? :)

Please delete my previous post.

Best Drama

Battlestar Galactica
Mad Men
Six Feet Under
The Sopranos
The West Wing
The Wire

Best Comedy

Arrested Development
Freaks and Geeks
How I Met Your Mother
The Office
Scrubs
Sports Night

Lead Actor Drama

Edward James Olmos, Battlestar Galactica
Hugh Laurie, House
Jon Hamm, Mad Men
Peter Krause, Six Feet Under
James Gandolfini, The Sopranos
Martin Sheen, The West Wing

Lead Actress Drama

Mary McDonnell, Battlestar Galactica
Connie Britton, Friday Night Lights
Lauren Graham, Gilmore Girls
Frances Conroy, Six Feet Under
Edie Falco, The Sopranos
Kristen Bell, Veronica Mars

Lead Actor Comedy

Jason Bateman, Arrested Development
Jim Parsons, The Big Bang Theory
Zachary Levi, Chuck
Neil Patrick Harris, How I Met Your Mother
Steve Carell, The Office
John C. McGinley, Scrubs

Lead Actress Comedy

Portia de Rossi, Arrested Development
Yvonne Strahovski, Chuck
Linda Cardinelli, Freaks and Geeks
Jenna Fischer, The Office
Felicity Huffman, Sports Night

Vinny said...

Don't forget about these guys:

Ed (comedy), Julie Bowen (comedy actress)...

...as long as The Wire, Mad Men/Jon Hamm, Deadwood, Sopranos make a list, the rest is gravy...

Mike said...

My personal favorites...

Best Series: Chuck

Honorable mention:
Big Bang Theory
24
October Road
Desperate Houswives


Best Actor: Jim Parsons

Honorabel Mention:
Zach Levi
Keither Sutherland

Best Actress: Yvonne Strahovski

Honorable Mention:
Chandra Wilson
Eva Longoria

Pamela Jaye said...

did you have a deadline?
I was busy (doing things i now forget)

Anonymous said...

Drama Series:
Battlestar Galactica
Friday Night Lights
Lost

Comedy:
The Office
Arrested Development

Lead Actress (drama):
Mary McDonnell -- she owned that show. Someone give that woman an Emmy already!

rachelanne6791 said...

Comedy series: Chuck
Drama series: Criminal Minds
Drama lead actor: Shemar Moore
Drama lead actress: Olivia Wilde
Comedy lead actor: Zac Levi
Comedy lead actress: Yvonne Strahovski

Pamela Jaye said...

I wish polls and awards would get away from labeling things drama and comedy. The best shows are usually BOTH (you know, like real life). West Wing,Considering that:
I think Allison Janney is very funny, as is Brad Whitford & Timothy Busfield
I missed this in the latter seasons.

Pamela Jaye said...

I think it probably would be easier to pick 12 each - dividing many shows (if not most shows *I* watch) between comedy and drama is hard, as they are so hybrid.

the last drama shows I watchd that were not funny - i think - were ER and The Practice.

And yes, Buffy had to be brought back to mind, despite the 7 seasons on DVD on my shelf. (hey, Emma Caulfield is very funny)

Pamela Jaye said...

I'll never get my list sorted, and I stole a lot from other people, but there were some things missing, this is my
Not a List - The People who didn't get mentioned (much)

Let me toss in some Ally

Peter MacNicol as best (whichever) comedy - as perfectly as pouring a glass of water. It was easy to see he was one of DEK's favorite playthings.

Speaking of which, Spader was previously awesome - mostly on the Practice. He lost a lot on Boston Legal and won too many awards he didn't deserve, and that diluted things. I'm guessing DEK used to enjoy playing with him, and I'm not sure what happened. They made him "nice" and boring. I have not seen the last 5 eps.

Watching Brothers & Sisters I learned I don't love Calista just as Ally. The DVD commentary notes she & Sally are a lovely comedy team. I'm biased, and have been since 97, but I'm glad she's back. (and they dumped the first two stupid attempts at boyfriends. I doubt I'll ever love Josh Hopkins)
Rachel Griffiths - for Drama - B&S

and Neil Flynn may not have been mentioned (I was still reading when the laptop decided booting was optional.)

And I've already mentioned the comedy of Emma Caulfield & the West Wing second string (Busfield was missed, at least by me).

One person where I can't figure out whether it'ss the acting or the writing - Scott Grimes journey to adulthood on ER. Maura has been mentioned.

Sadly, Ellen Pompeo didn't get to do many of those scenes with Kate Burton that made you believe she could act. But Sandra and Chandra... it was sad when they lost Oscar to Katie. I wasn't sure why she won. Maybe just people knowing her name.

How 'bout Justin Chambers? He isn't on anyone's list I'm guessing. Maybe it's just the writing.

I believe you might be fond of Kate Walsh - if not in her own show. Also Sara Ramirez. They wouldn't be on my list, but only cause there are several people ahead.

Also remember the girls of Once & Again - Julia something? Evan Rachel Wood and occasionally Marin Hinkle (not a girl, but)
Season 3 never made it to DVD and there is one ep I have never seen at all.

While adding Timothy Busfield, above, I noticed that if I take the time to explain my logic leaps... I forget what they were. :-(

Savvy Veteran said...

Sorry to post to this so late, but I couldn't resist, seeing as I love to make lists!

Comedy series:
1. Arrested Development
2. Curb Your Enthusiasm
3. The Office (BBC)
4. Spaced
5. It's Always Sunny in Philadelphia
6. 30 Rock

Drama series (no order on this one):
The Wire
The Sopranos
Veronica Mars
Mad Men
Friday Night Lights
Lost

Comedy actor:
Alec Baldwin (as Jack Donaghy from "30 Rock")
Stephen Merchant (as Darren Lamb from "Extras")
David Cross (as Tobias Funke from "Arrested Development")
Steve Carell (as Michael Scott from "The Office")
Simon Pegg (as Tim Bisley from "Spaced")
Zach Braff (as John Dorian from "Scrubs")

Comedy actress
Jessica Walter (as Lucille Bluth from "Arrested Development")
Ashley Jensen (as Maggie Jacobs from "Extras")
Susie Essman (as Susie Green from "Curb Your Enthusiasm")
Tina Fey (as Liz Lemon from "30 Rock")
Linda Cardellini (as Lindsay Weir from "Freaks and Geeks")
Jenna Fischer (as Pam Beasley from "The Office")