Today, the 2009 Emmy Nominations were announced. Unfortunately, it was 95% all joke. I didn’t watch Battlestar Galactica much, caught most of the first season, thought it was a great series for what it was, just not my type of sci-fi show. Well, this was the last shot for the Sci-Fi Channel’s (now Syfy, but that’s irrelevant) most talked about series. Apparently critical acclaim means squat to the Emmys. This is certainly a snub to sci-fi itself, as we continue to take a backseat to technical categories. The five categories Galactica is nominated for: Best Directing, Single-Camera Picture Editing, Special Effects, Sound Editing, and the prestigious, Outstanding Sound Mixing). These are the typical categories shows like Smallville (1), Sanctuary (first year nod, impressive, for Special Effects), and Heroes (2). There were a few birds that flew to the top ranks of Outstanding Lead/Supporting Actors, including Lost (which I got lost through all that crap back in season three).

One sad note, a non-sci-fi series, but a top draw back in the day, the last season of ER got 2 nods, but not any lead nods. So the most Emmy nominated show in history, ends with two more nods on the roster.

And again, the CW continues on the WB and UPN’s legacies of no major Emmys. Smallville has one technical category (the glorious sound-editing one, again), and, that’s about it. I blame the teeny-dramas of One Tree Hill, since that’s all the network is seen as. Wake up Emmy-Voters, Supernatural is a highly acclaimed drama and the fourth season has been labeled as one of the best, and deepest season yet, bringing in more mythology to the series. And I’ll bring this up again…

But the BIGGEST damn snub of them all: True Blood. In the past HBO was the network to contend with. True, it’s still the most nominated network (99, hmm, maybe if Lead Actress for a Drama included Ann Paquin, then HBO would’ve had an even 100), but this is an insult. True Blood has proven itself in ratings (increased recently, even after a week off), and is THE most talked about show (I’m reminded a few times where news journalists have dropped the name once or twice, irrelevant, but it doesn’t stop the buzz). And isn’t it enough that Anna Paquin won an Academy Award when she was like eleven? That Alan Ball had a previous series on HBO, Six Feet Under which was an Emmy winner. It has a great ensemble cast, which, actually is technically recognized for Casting in a Drama (strange, recognize overall casting, but not single out a few key players?). So what is the problem? Is it the vampires? Are we seriously going back to the whole Buffy the Vampire Slayer, being one of the top cult hits, still loved by millions, and had highly snubbed episode “Once More with Feeling,” not to mention, snubbed actress Sarah Michelle Geller. The show had a strong female role, who kicked vampire ass, but that wasn’t enough for Lead Actress in a Drama Series? At least the one explanation we have for Buffy is the fact that it was on the WB/UPN. Maybe, with True Blood, not getting the top nods, maybe the Emmys just have something against vampires.

And the only thing that can get me through, the fact that the magnificent Neil Patrick Harris (How I Met Your Mother) will host this year and is once again nominated for Supporting Actor in a Comedy Series (and his chances of winning have increased since Jeremy Piven (Entourage) was left off the list (he won the last three)).  And, the one thing that really made my day was to find out that How I Met Your Mother itself has finally been nominated for Outstanding Comedy Series.  Other notable nods include Kristin Chenoweth (from the now canceled ABC series Pushing Daisies), for Supporting Actress in a Comedy Series, and of course Tony Shalhoub (Monk) is up for Lead Actor in a Comedy Series, and House for Drama Series with actor Hugh Laurie for Lead Actor in a Drama Series. Then among the biggest surprises, Family Guy partying with Outstanding Comedy Series (first time for an animated program, since, the Flintstones).

Oh, and Bones got a nod too, eh, for Art-Direction, alongside True Blood, Heroes, Pushing Daisies, etc.

And one slight sunshine in all this, the Emmy’s Special Class category recognizing short-form web-based entertainment programs, which has seen the light as Dr. Horrible’s Sing-Along Blog found a way to be nominated for an Emmy. Now, if only they could have recognized Dollhouse, even for a technical category.

Also a note, HBO’s Generation Kill got recognized for Miniseries, Art Direction, Casting, Cinematography, Directing, Single-Camera Picture Editing, Sound Editing, Sound Mixing, Visual Effects, and Writing (all these in Miniseries or movie categories), which starred Alexander Skarsgard (Eric on True Blood).

Complete List of Nominations – E! online
Emmy Snubs and Surprises – LA Times
4 Big Snubs according to LA Times
‘Battlestar’, ‘Lost,’ ‘Daisies’ score Nods – Sci-Fi Wire