A good year for new series

Critics are Gleeks too

The Television Critics Association announced its annual awards on Saturday night in a private event hosted by "Parenthood's" Dax Shepard. The group, which is composed of over 200 professional TV critics and journalists who cover the industry, named "Glee" the year's top show. Fox's freshman series earned the most awards overall with a total of three, while fellow first-year programs "Modern Family" and "The Good Wife" also accounted for major awards.

Though the TCA's pick for program of the year frequently highlights a show with more of a cult following than mainstream acceptance (recent years have seen the award go to "Battlestar Galactica," "Mad Men," and "Heroes"), you can consider the awards in the drama and comedy categories a decent predictor for the upcoming Emmys. The critics group has matched Emmy voters in their choice for top drama in five of the past six years (including three years in a row), while selecting the same comedy winner three times in the last six tries.

The full list of this year's winners and nominees appears below.

Program of the Year

Winner		Other Nominees
		"Breaking Bad" (AMC) "Friday Night Lights" (DirecTV/NBC) "Lost" (ABC) "Modern Family" (ABC)
Glee		Previous Year's Winner:
Fox		"Battlestar Galactica" (Sci-Fi)

Outstanding Achievement in Comedy

Winner		Other Nominees
		"The Big Bang Theory" (CBS) "Glee" (Fox) "Parks and Recreation" (NBC) "Party Down" (Starz)
Modern Family		Previous Year's Winner:
ABC		"The Big Bang Theory" (CBS)

Outstanding Achievement in Drama

Winner			Other Nominees
			"The Good Wife" (CBS) "Mad Men" (AMC) "Sons of Anarchy" (FX)
(TIE) Lost	(TIE) Breaking Bad		Previous Year's Winner:
ABC	AMC		"Mad Men" (AMC)

Outstanding New Program

Winner		Other Nominees
		"The Good Wife" (CBS) "Justified" (FX) "Modern Family" (ABC) "Parenthood" (NBC)
Glee		Previous Year's Winner:
Fox		"True Blood" (HBO)

Outstanding Achievement in Movies, Miniseries and Specials

Winner		Other Nominees
		"Life" (Discovery Channel) "Temple Grandin" (HBO) "Torchwood: Children of Earth" (BBC America) "You Don't Know Jack" (HBO)
The Pacific		Previous Year's Winner:
HBO		"Grey Gardens" (HBO)

Outstanding Achievement in News and Information

Winner		Other Nominees
		"30 for 30" (ESPN) "America: The Story of Us" (History Channel) "The Daily Show" (Comedy Central) "The Rachel Maddow Show" (MSNBC)
Life		Previous Year's Winner:
Discovery		"The Alzheimer's Project" (HBO)

Outstanding Achievement in Youth Programming

Winner		Other Nominees
		"Dinosaur Train" (PBS) "iCarly" (Nickelodeon) "Star Wars: The Clone Wars" (Cartoon Network) "Word Girl" (PBS)
Yo Gabba Gabba		Previous Year's Winner:
Nick Jr.		"Yo Gabba Gabba" (Nick Jr.)

Individual Achievement in Drama

Winner		Other Nominees
		Bryan Cranston ("Breaking Bad," AMC) John Lithgow ("Dexter," Showtime) Julianna Margulies ("The Good Wife," CBS) Aaron Paul ("Breaking Bad", AMC) Katey Sagal ("Sons of Anarchy," FX)
Julianna Margulies		Previous Year's Winner:
"The Good Wife," CBS		Bryan Cranston ("Breaking Bad," AMC)

Individual Achievement in Comedy

Winner		Other Nominees
		Ty Burrell ("Modern Family," ABC) Jane Lynch ("Glee," Fox) Nick Offerman ("Parks and Recreation," NBC) Jim Parsons ("The Big Bang Theory," CBS) Eric Stonestreet ("Modern Family," ABC)
Jane Lynch		Previous Year's Winner:
"Glee," Fox		Jim Parsons ("The Big Bang Theory," CBS)

Career Achievement Award

Winner		Other Nominees
		Bill Moyers Sherwood Schwartz William Shatner Dick Wolf
James Garner		Previous Year's Winner:
"The Rockford Files," "Maverick"		Betty White

Heritage Award

Winner		Other Nominees
		"24" "Law & Order" "Lost" "Twin Peaks"
M*A*S*H		Previous Year's Winner:
CBS		"ER" (NBC)

What do you think?

Do you agree or disagree with the critics' choices this year? Let us know in the discussion section below, and don't forget to make your predictions for this year's Emmy Awards.