Emmy Oversights!

The Emmy Nominations were announced today - I'm delighted that The Sopranos did so well, and Weeds and Jack Bauer got some due, and Heroes, too ...

But here, in classic television-watcher tradition, are some howls of protest from me about egregious oversights:

1. Nothing major for HBO's Rome - including nothing for one of the best performances on television, ever - better, even, than most of what you see on stage and screen - by James Purefoy as Marc Antony. And nothing at all for HBO's The Wire, easily one of the best shows now and in the history of television.

2. Nothing major for Showtime's superb Brotherhood, and nothing major for Showtime's Dexter, including nothing for Michael C. Hall, who gave a great performance. And nothing major, either, for Showtime's The Tudors.

3. Nothing major for Battlestar Galactica or Lost - but not surprising - for some reason, award-givers have glass eyes and tin ears when it comes to most things science fiction.

4. Nothing for NBC's Kidnapped. It was cancelled by NBC, finished its run online, and I predict it will come to be recognized in the future as the great show that it was.

By "nothing major," I mean no best series, no best actress or actor, etc. An "Outstanding Single-Camera Picture Editing For A Drama Series" nomination, as Dexter and Lost received, is excellent for the editor but all but meaningless in the general popular culture.

Network for network, Showtime took the worst oversights. But, awards are like sugar-fixes, anyway. In the long run, what counts are the engagement of the viewers, which Showtime is doing a fine job in building....

And here are AP writer Frazier Moore's views on the matter, with some nice clips ...