2007

Eligible Shows (meaning they predominantly aired between June 1, 2006 and May 31, 2007, and I watched them in their entirety)

Best Supporting Actress in a Comedy:

The BTA goes to:  Jenna Fischer for The Office

When you look at the characters of The Office, it's clear that Pam's the focus of Season 3.  Michael, Jim, and Dwight all grew, particularly in realizing how much they rely on each other, but Pam actually changed.  She held out for Jim, but when she saw that he was in a relationship, she fell back with Roy.  That finally ended though, as expected, and Pam began to develop her independence.  Michael visiting her art show is among the best dramatic scenes of the show, and then she began advising him on his relationship, she changed a tire, and she shamelessly confessed her feelings in front of her coworkers.  And in the end, it paid off, and we close out the season proper (with the exception of the Ryan-Kelly coda) with Pam's teary, joyous face.

Best Supporting Actor in a Comedy: 

The BTA goes to:  John Krasinski for The Office

This season, so many characters vented their frustrations (over their careers or love lives) by being mean or self-centered, Jim included.  His friendship with Pam was barely existent, as Pam rightly points out in "Beach Day," and, regardless of the comedy, he slapped Dwight and had no sympathy for Andy's honest mistake of dating a high school student until the drive back.  But gradually, he realized how attached he is to Dwight, eventually started to play along with Michael again, and finally, thanks to some encouragement from Pam, went after what he really wants.  

Best Actress in a Comedy:

The BTA goes to:  Mary-Louise Parker for Weeds

Mary-Louise Parker has always been captivating on Weeds, navigating her life as a mother trying to connect with her children, a drug dealer trying to make a living, and a wife in a marriage of convenience to a violent, obsessive DEA agent.  This season, everyone turns on her, from U-turn and Agent Wonder Bread to Silas to Shane/Kat to Mayor Celia to Heylia and even a reluctant Conrad, and watching Nancy attempt to recover her life is both hilarious and heart-breaking, because she really is a good person just trying to deal.  My favorite scene is the dinner where Peter slams Silas' elbow against the table and she can't do anything because she needs Peter, but it moves everything inexorably toward her downfall.

Best Actor in a Comedy:

The BTA goes to:  Alec Baldwin for 30 Rock

Alec Baldwin is unstoppable as Jack Donaghy, the new Head of East Coast Television and Microwave Oven Programming for GE who takes a special interest in TGS' head writer Liz Lemon.  His mentorship of Liz is one of the highlights of the series, helping her move from Dennis the Beeper King to the Hair and finally on to the Floydster, while gradually revealing his own neuroses as well.  He comes off as hilariously cool and collected (wearing a tux because it's after 6:00), but episodes like "Black Tie" with his ex-wife and "Hiatus" with his mother reveal the inner Jack Donaghy that only Liz and his sycophantic assistant Jonathan ever see.  Alec Baldwin essentially put 30 Rock on the map, without a doubt my favorite lead comedic actor this year. 

Best Comedy: 

The BTA goes to:  The Office

The Office Season 3 begins with Jim at Stamford, introducing two new characters (favorites of mine that fit perfectly with the rest) and Pam falling into loneliness.  Jim eventually returns in the awesome "Branch Closing" and "Merger", but he brings Karen with him, and Pam eventually gets back together with Roy.  Meanwhile, Phyllis gets married using all of Pam's wedding ideas, Michael and Jan get together, and Jim and Dwight prove their salesmanship together.  February sweeps brought us Jim's vampire trick and Pam's art show, two of my favorite parts, and May sweeps brought us supersized episodes at the mall, the beach, and New York.  But as we all know, the reason to watch this show is in Jim and Pam's relationship, and watching the two develop independently (but not so independent that either would permanently leave the other) in order to be together was a treat.  Take the time Jim called from Stamford and they talked for hours, Pam crying to Dwight, the brilliant joint pranking of Andy, and of course, the glorious ending, complete with a callback to "The Office Olympics."  

Best Supporting Actress in a Drama:

The BTA goes to:  Katee Sackhoff for Battlestar Galactica

Starbuck was really put through the wringer this season, first imprisoned on New Caprica and made to believe she had a daughter, only to discover upon her return that her torturer Leoben broke her.  And she was never put back together again, first building dissent in the ranks, executing those suspected of collaboration during the occupation of New Caprica, then sabotaging her relationships with her loved ones, and finally supposedly dying in an atmospheric maelstrom.  But of course she returns in the final minute of the final episode of the season, prompting all kinds of questions.  Through it all, Sackhoff displays her fearlessness, diving into madness while retaining a slightly off-kilter comedic bent, as when she cleans her face with a napkin while the hand holding it is covered in blood. 

Best Supporting Actor in a Drama:

The BTA goes to:  Michael Hogan for Battlestar Galactica

Now, it may seem like overkill to have three actors from The Wire singled out to the exclusion of great actors from other dramas.  I agree with you.  But when I compiled my list of candidates (including Robert Iler of The Sopranos, who was second in importance this season only to Tony, and Scott Porter whose commitment to the realities of life as a quadriplegic is one of the many reasons Friday Night Lights shines), I had ten from The Wire, and a maximum of two from each of the rest--sorry to Jim Beaver of Deadwood, who got cut due to the staggering performances by the children of The Wire.  It was then that I decided the only right thing to do would be to include three slots for The Wire, and try to judiciously dole out the remainder.  But as much as I love the simple, restrained naturalism of The Wire and its characters, I'm mesmerized by the more wild performance of Michael Hogan.  His story has always been a tragedy, but this season it's especially heart-breaking, as he is forced to kill his wife for collaborating with cylons, only to discover he's one himself.  Not to mention losing an eye.  The look on his face during the reintegration party says it all.  Saul Tigh will always live on to suffer another day. 

"We're on the side of the demons, Chief.  We're evil men in the gardens of Paradise, sent by the forces of death to spread devastation and destruction wherever we go.  I'm surprised you didn't know that."

Best Actress in a Drama:

The BTA goes to:  Connie Britton for Friday Night Lights

Kristen Bell was my fifth place.  That should tell you all you need to know about these other four.  Obviously they're all powerful performers--Veronica catching the rapist, Carmela hearing about Christopher, Roslin preparing to airlock Baltar, and Alma becoming a powerful Deadwood institution--but my favorite this season is Connie Britton's Tami Taylor.  My favorite scene of hers is when she talks with Julie about sex, so much bubbling just below the surface that one smirk from Julie sets her off entirely, and her face changes about ten times saying, "You can be hurt, and you can be degraded, and you can become hard, and you can become cynical."  Of course, she's splendid throughout, particularly in scenes with her husband.

Best Actor in a Drama: 

The BTA goes to:  James Gandolfini for The Sopranos

This is another case where last year's winner is my fifth place this year, and not because of any fault of Callis'.  These other four were just as spectacular.  For all of Dexter's writing faults and weaknesses in the supporting cast, Michael C. Hall is breathtaking in every moment. Kyle Chandler is my runner up, and Ian McShane needs no introduction at the BTAs.  But James Gandolfini had a spectacular run as Tony Soprano, and his final season (the 9 episodes of Part 2) gave him a tremendous arc.  "Soprano Home Movies" sees Tony bond with Bobby only to alienate him a little, and while they reconcile, things can never be the same--Tony made Bobby fear for his life, and then end someone else's.  The next episode, Tony moves further away from Christopher, and then Paulie, and then Hesh, and finally Melfi.  Eventually he permanently ends the frustration and anxiety Christopher causes him, but dives in to save AJ, finally choosing his actual son over the man who was "like a son" to him.  Based on the final scene, choosing to salvage his biological family over his business family may not have been a wise move for his survival, but it doesn't matter.  The real treat is watching Gandolfini in action, and his final season as Tony Soprano was one of his best.

Best Drama: 

The BTA goes to:  The Wire

This is getting repetitive, but I have to point out the brilliance of each of these seasons.  I think we can all agree that we're blessed having to choose among them.  Battlestar Galactica gave us New Caprica and its fallout, culminating in the tremendous "Unfinished Business," and then moving on to the imprisonment, torture, and trial of Gaius Baltar, followed by twenty minutes of mind-blowing revelations.  Deadwood's final season was a war between our characters and the despicable George Hearst, and the ending, though not "happy," was a relief after a season's worth of constantly rising tension.  Friday Night Lights' first season was a gripping, atmospheric lesson in character and setting that made it the go-to example of network drama excellence.  And the final nine episodes of The Sopranos still make me smile, as Tony systematically separates himself from all his allies until he has only his family and onion rings.  As you can see, I had a difficult decision, probably the hardest Best Drama choice of the BTAs, but this is what clinched it for me:  Season 4 of The Wire is my favorite season of my favorite drama ever.  When I realized that, it made it easier to let down the rest. 

2007 BTA Winners: 

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