Everwood (The WB): I’ve said it before, and I’m about to say it again - no other family drama is as achingly real and earnest as Everwood. Well-drawn characters and relatable story lines made this recently canceled show a TV gem.

The West Wing (NBC): Most shows limp to the finish line. Not The West Wing. NBC’s long-running White House drama ended its seven-year run on a high note that made most fans yearn for at least one more season. How will President Santos govern? Sadly, we’ll never know.

Cold Case (CBS): Forget the three CSIs and the 38 Law & Orders. Cold Case is one of TV’s best cop shows. It’s a totally involving crime drama that makes you care about the victims. Plus, every episode is a fun whodunit that usually keeps you guessing right up until the end.

BEST SUPPORTING ACTRESS/COMEDY

Alyson Hannigan (How I Met Your Mother, CBS): She cast spells on Buffy the Vampire Slayer as the willowy Willow, but now Hannigan is conjuring up nothing but yuks as a sex-obsessed kindergarten teacher on one of TV’s best ensemble comedies.

BEST ACTOR/DRAMA

Forest Whitaker (The Shield, FX): Do you know when an actor is giving an Emmy-caliber performance? When you can’t take your eyes off him or her, that’s when. As an underhanded Internal Affairs detective obsessed with taking down the bullet-headed Vic Mackey (Michael Chiklis) and his corrupt Strike Team, Whitaker was a smoldering presence who managed to ooze both a silky charm and a scary intensity that was fun - and frightening - to watch. No other TV character was as unpredictable as Jon Kavanaugh.

Bill Paxton (Big Love, HBO): Look into Bill Henrickson’s eyes, and you’ll see a deeply troubled soul. After all, Bill, a Bible-thumping polygamist, has three wives, seven kids, three mortgages, an ornery father-in-law and more sex than he can handle. In a quiet, understated way, Paxton beautifully conveys the multi-levels of stress that constantly threaten to overwhelm Bill - and his life. A veteran character actor who has appeared in such films as Aliens, True Lies and Titanic, Paxton finally gets to shine as a leading man.

BEST ACTOR/COMEDY

Kevin James (The King of Queens, CBS): The roly-poly James is the Rodney Dangerfield of TV sitcom leads - he gets no respect. But he gets nothing but respect - and laughs - from me.

BEST ACTRESS/DRAMA

Mariska Hargitay (Law & Order: Special Victims Unit, NBC): Hargitay’s detective Benson may be a tough cop, but she’s a tough cop who’s not afraid to let her emotions show. She’s a cop with heart and feelings - a rare sight on network TV. Hargitay’s unforgettable turn in the episode in which Benson frantically searched for a kidnapped girl became an instant Law & Order classic.

BEST ACTRESS/COMEDY

Julia Louis-Dreyfus (The New Adventures of Old Christine, CBS): Some TV characters take time to grow on you. Others never do. And some, such as Christine, the hilariously neurotic single mom learning how to date and love all over again, you like immediately. You can’t help but love a woman who still wears maternity underwear because it’s comfortable. Or who makes up lumberjack boyfriends just to pretend she’s moved on from her divorce. Or who makes hilarious cracks about her body like, "I have to stand on my head to make my boobs look good." Louis-Dreyfus makes Christine refreshingly human and insanely funny.

BEST COMEDY

The New Adventures of Old Christine (CBS): See above.

Sons & Daughters (ABC): Like The Office, Sons & Daughters does a wonderful job of finding the funny in painfully awkward situations, such as divorce. Shame on ABC for not giving it a second season.

The War at Home (Fox): Weird pick, I know. But this blue-collar comedy about a harried dad (Michael Rapaport) tickles my funny bone every week. Maybe that’s because I’m a harried dad myself.

BEST SUPPORTING ACTOR/DRAMA

Adewale Akinnuoye-Agbaje (Lost, ABC): Mr. Eko is quite the human paradox. He barely speaks above a whisper, yet he can be as savage as a wild boar. He walks around the island exuding a steely-eyed menace, yet he can be loving and tender around babies and former heroin addicts. Of all the castaways on Lost’s freaky island, Akinnuoye-Agbaje’s enigmatic Mr. Eko is the most intriguing. He may be a man of few words, but he demands your attention like no other Lost character.

Robert Knepper (Prison Break, Fox): Look up the term "creepy, slithery slime bucket" in the TV Character Dictionary, and you’ll probably find Knepper’s picture. And you should. Knepper plays T-Bag, Prison Break’s delightfully reprehensible con, with wild-eyed glee. Even though T-Bag is a rapist, a murderer and a kidnapper, you still kinda like the guy in a sick, twisted way. Now, that’s good acting, people.

Alan Alda (The West Wing, NBC): Arnold Vinick was a dream Republican presidential candidate. He was a moderate. He really wanted to unify the country. He made sense. He... cared. Alda’s exceptional performance helped revive a series that two years ago was about as interesting as a filibustering senator. Alda gave Vinick an air of dignity and grace that isn’t often seen in the cutthroat political arena.

BEST SUPPORTING ACTOR/COMEDY

Terry Crews (Everybody Hates Chris, UPN): As a cheapskate, put-upon, several jobs-juggling dad, Crews is a hoot. Who knew that muscle-y former NFL players could be so self-deprecatingly funny? The show may be called Everybody Hates Chris, but everybody should love Crews.

Donald Faison (Scrubs, NBC): OK, so star Zach Braff gets all the love on Scrubs. He’s funny, talented and deserves it. But as J.D.’s best buddy, Turk, Faison, is no slouch. Whether he’s desperately trying not to tick off his wife, Carla (Judy Reyes), or simply hanging out on the couch with his boy or bopping around in a ridiculous high-top fade in one of Scrubs’ hilarious ’80s flashbacks, it’s obvious Faison is one of TV’s best second bananas.

BEST SUPPORTING ACTRESS/DRAMA

Emily VanCamp (Everwood, WB): Amy may only be a teenager, but she has the knowledge and wisdom of someone much older and wiser. That’s what heartache and pain will do to you. When Amy speaks, you listen because you know she knows what she’s talking about. Everwood may be dead, but VanCamp’s career should live for a long time.