Best of the Decade Television Awards: Winners

Best Drama Series

1. The West Wing (Winner)

2. The Sopranos

3. The Wire

4. Mad Men

5. Six Feet Under

6. Lost

7. Grey's Anatomy
8. The Shield
9. Battlestar Gallactica
10. Breaking Bad
Commentary: While The Sopranos is the more conventional choice, for me, nothing has, nor ever will compare to the greatness that was The West Wing, simply put, the greatest television drama of all time.

Best Comedy Series

1. Friends (Winner)

2. Arrested Development

3. Frasier

4. Will & Grace

5. Gilmore Girls

6. Everbody Loves Raymond
7. Sex and the City
8. 30 Rock
9. Desperate Housewives

10. The Office

Commentary: I'm sure I'm going to get scoffed at for choosing such a populist choice over the more catchy or cool choices, but no one can deny the pop culture impact that a decade of Friends had on American society. They weren't just our Friends, they were our family.

Best Actor in a Drama Series
1. (Tie) Martin Sheen "The West Wing" & James Gandolfini "The Sopranos"  (Winners)
2. Dennis Franz "NYPD Blue"
3. Michael Chiklis "The Shield"
4. Bryan Cranston "Breaking Bad"
5. Hugh Laurie "House"
6. Michael C. Hall "Dexter"
7. Kyle Chandler "Friday Night Lights"

Commentary: Ok, so I could'nt make a decision between the two most powerful male performances of the last decade, and since these are my awards, I made an executive decision to include both Jed Bartlett and Mr. Soprano.

Best Actress in a Drama Series

1. Allison Janey "The West Wing" (Winner)

2. Edie Falco "The Sopranos"

3. Glenn Close "Damages"

4. Frances Conroy "Six Feet Under"

5. Krya Sedgwick "The Closer"

6. January Jones "Mad Men"

7. Connie Britton "Friday Night Lights"

Commentary: Once again, I'm sure some will be disgusted that Edie Falco didn't win, but Allison Janey's portrayal was strong and flawless.

Best Actor in a Comedy Series
1. Jason Bateman "Arrested Development" (Winner)
2. Kelsey Grammar "Frasier"
3. Ray Romano "Everybody Loves Raymond"
4. Eric McCormack "Will & Grace"
5. Steve Carrell "The Office"
6. Alec Baldwin "30 Rock"
7. Jim Parsons "The Big Bang Theory"
Commentary: The talents and subtlety of Jason Bateman are too often underappreciated, so I figured that it was time he deserved some recognition, especially for his hilarious role in this short-lived TV classic.

Best Actress in a Comedy Series

1. Jennifer Aniston "Friends" (Winner)

2. Lauren Graham "Gilmore Girls"

3. Debra Messing "Will & Grace"

4. Jane Kaczmarek "Malcolm in the Middle"

5. Patricia Heaton "Everybody Loves Raymond"
6. Sarah Jessica Parker "Sex and the City"
7. Tina Fey "30 Rock"
Commentary: EW named Rachel Green as one of the top ten great characters of all time, and that is thanks to the emotional and comedic talents of the always fantastic Jennifer Aniston. I just wish her movie career could capture the magic that last for ten years.

Best Supporting Actor in a Drama Series
1. John Spencer "The West Wing" (Winner)
2. Bradley Whitford "The West Wing"
3. Michael Imperioli "The Sopranos"
4. Aaron Paul "Breaking Bad"
5. Richard Schiff "The West Wing"
6. Walter Goggins "The Shield"
7. Michael Emerson "Lost"

Commentary: Unfortunately, John Spencer died before they were able to complete the series, but his Leo McGarry was one of the greatest sidekicks in modern pop culture, and Spencer's abilities and compassion will never be forgotten.

Best Supporting Actress in a Drama Series

1. Chandra Wilson "Grey's Anatomy" (Winner)

2. Stockard Channing "The West Wing"

3. Lorraine Bracco "The Sopranos"
4. Janel Moloney "The West Wing"
5. CCH Pounder "The Shield"
6. Sandra Oh "Grey's Anatomy"
7. Christina Hendricks "Mad Men"
Commentary: Even when Grey's has dipped in quality, Chandra Wilson's Bailey remains one of the strongest, and funniest characters on television.

Best Supporting Actor in a Comedy Series
1. David Hyde Pierce "Frasier" (Winner)
2. Peter Boyle "Everybody Loves Raymond"
3. Sean Hayes "Will & Grace"
4. Brad Garrett "Everybody Loves Raymond"
5. John Mahoney "Frasier"
6. Jeffrey Tambor "Arrested Development"
7. Neil Patrick Harris "How I Met Your Mother"
Commentary: Cheer was great, but adding an even fussier brother as a sidekick to Fraiser Crane was a brilliant move, and David Hyde Pierce was pitch perfect.

Best Supporting Actress in a Comedy Series
1. Megan Mullaly "Will & Grace" (Winner)
2. Doris Roberts "Everbody Loves Raymond"
3. Kellp Bishop "Gilmore Girls"
4. Vanessa Williams "Ugly Betty"
5. Cynthia Nixon "Sex and the City"
6. Kim Cattrall "Sex and the City
7. Kristin Chenoweth "Pushing Daisies"
Commentary: Every scene that she was in Megan Mulally's Karen Walker stole the scene without a doubt with her crazy/drunk antics that always kept us laughing.

Best Made For Television Movie

1. The Gathering Storm (Winner)

2. Warm Springs

3. The Girl in the Cafe

4. Grey Gardens

5. A Raisin in the Sun

6. Path to War

7. Something the Lord Made

Commentary: It's a shame this couldn't be a real movie, because The Gathering Storm was powerful, extremely well acted by the incredible talents of Vanessa Redgrave and Albert Finney, and could have been an Oscar contender had it hit theaters.

Best Miniseries
1. Angels in America (Winner)
2. Band of Brothers
3. John Adams
4. Into the West
5. Empire Falls
Commentary: Simply put, Angels in America was stunning.

Best Actor in a Mini/Movie
1. Albert Finney "The Gathering Storm" (Winner)
2. Al Pacino "Angels in America"
3. Paul Giamatii "John Adams"
4. Michael Gambon "Path to War"
5. Kenneth Branaugh "Warm Springs"
6. Geoffrey Rush "The Life and Death of Peter Sellars"
Commentary: A brilliant performance that today remains the best of Winston Churchill seen in any medium.
7. Alan Rickman "Something the Lord Made"

Best Actress in a Mini/Movie
1. Vanessa Redgrave "The Gathering Storm" (Winner)
2. Meryl Streep "Angels in America"
3. Phylicia Rashad "Raisin in the Sun"
4. S. Epatha Merkerson "Lackawanna Blues"
5. Laura Linney "John Adams"
6. Cynthia Nixon "Warm Springs"
7. Sigourney Weaver "Prayers for Bobby"
Commentary: The dynamic duo of Finney and Redgrave was so believable, and a lot of credit goes to the stunning abilities of Vanessa Redgrave.
Best Supporting Actor in a Mini/Movie
1. Jeffrey Wright "Angels in America" (Winner)
2. Tom Wilkinson "John Adams"
3. Jim Broadbent "The Gathering Storm"
4. Alec Baldwin "Path to War"

5. Justin Kirk "Angels in America"

6. Donald Sutherland "Path to War"

7. Jeremy Irons "Elizabeth I"

Commentary: Still remains one of the most haunting and surprising performances in television history.

Best Supporting Actress in a Mini/Movie

1. Mary-Louise Parker "Angels in America" (Winner)

2. Juliette Lewis "Hysterical Blindness"

3. Jane Alexander "Warm Springs"

4. Kelly MacDonald "The Girl in the Cafe"

5. Gena Rowlands "Hysterical Blindness"
6. Janet McTeer "Into the Storm"
7. Laura Dern "Recount"
Commentary: Not only was she stunning in Angels in America, but include Weeds and The West Wing, and Parker is one of the best television actors of the last decade, and maybe of all time.