In past years, when people would ask what the best part of a particular Emmy Awards telecast was, one would be hard-pressed to come up with a suitable answer. The Academy of Television Arts and Sciences has spent years cultivating a reputation for giving us badly hosted telecasts that are often too long, poorly organized and just plain boring.

But last night’s broadcast of the 62nd Primetime Emmy Awards satisfied on nearly all fronts…unless you happen to be a Lostie or a Gleek. Fans of other great TV shows – and George Clooney, who unexpectedly showed up in a filmed comedy bit as well as to accept the Bob Hope Humanitarian Award – had a lot to be excited about. Best of all, people who love awards shows of all stripes were likely thrilled by Jimmy Fallon‘s tremendous hosting skills, starting with his performance the cheerful, hilarious “Glee”-themed cold open, set to Bruce Springsteen’s “Born to Run.”

Let’s break it down.

Stephen Colbert gives Jane Lynch some hardware. Photo courtesy of WireImage

You win some…

Overall, the awards themselves were satisfying, even if there were a couple of  repeat performers. The top winners – Best Drama winner “Mad Men” and Best Comedy “Modern Family” were considered industry favorites in the weeks leading up to the ceremony. Anyone who watched “Mad Men’s”  rough-and-tumble third season and “Modern Family’s” freshman run aren’t likely to find much to quibble about in those choices, even if “Mad Men’s” win is a three-peat. Emmy loves repeat winners; viewers generally would prefer voters to spread the love around.  (See the full list of winners and nominations here.)

The sentimental choice in the top drama category would have been “Lost,” and if Emmy voters wanted to reward both quality and edge, “Breaking Bad” would have snagged this Emmy. Had voters truly wanted to shock, “The Good Wife” would have won. (This is what TV has come to: it would be shocking if a network drama beat a cable series in the top category.)

In true awards show fashion, however, voters made up with most viewers – not all, but most – by handing out hardware to deserving nominees in the individual achievement categories.

“Breaking Bad” did not win Best Drama, but Bryan Cranston and Aaron Paul won Emmys in the Best Lead and Supporting Actor in a Drama categories.

Archie Panjabi. Photo courtesy of WireImage

“The Good Wife‘s” star Julianna Margulies came up empty in the Best Drama Actress category, just as the show itself was passed over. But co-star Archie Panjabi snagged an Emmy, which was equally thrilling and perplexing. Panjabi took a role that would have faded into the background had any other actress been chosen to walk in her signature boots, and she made it one of the most fascinating aspects of the show. Both she and “Breaking Bad‘s” Paul are first time winners, and this was Panjabi’s first Emmy nomination.*

On the other hand, the fact that Panjabi bested “Mad Men” stars Christina Hendricks and Elizabeth Moss in the drama supporting actress slot is bound to be a hot discussion topic for at least the next 48 hours.

Other deserving first timers whose victories aren’t likely to be questioned nearly as much? “Glee‘s” Jane Lynch (best supporting actress in a comedy) and “The Big Bang Theory‘s” Jim Parsons (best lead actor in a comedy). As for shows, “Top Chef’s” win for Outstanding Reality-Competition series, breaking “The Amazing Race‘s” seven-year stranglehold on the competition, is a relief as well as an upset. It’s nice to see Emmy notice that there are other noteworthy unscripted series on television.

Another big winner Sunday evening was host Jimmy Fallon. He may not earn the rave reviews bestowed on last year’s host Neil Patrick Harris, who jammed his night of TV honors with scene-stealing moments galore. But Fallon did viewers the great service of keeping the humor bubbly, keeping his presence relatively scarce, and keeping the pace of the evening fleet. It is as much to his credit, and to the producers’, that the Emmy telecast ended a minute early.

That might not sound like a lot if you’ve forgotten how long and painful some past telecasts have been.

You lose some…

The idea that last night’s telecast may have been both entertaining and satisfying won’t hold much water among Losties, a deeply dedicated bunch with four candidates in major categories: Lead Actor in a Drama (Matthew Fox), Supporting Actor in a Drama (Terry O’Quinn and Michael Emerson) and Outstanding Drama.  But “Lost” was completely shut out in the end.

“Lost” fans, this may be cold comfort, but remember that your show already has a number of Emmys, including the top drama award and one for Emerson. That already puts it ahead of one of the best series to ever grace our televisions, “The Wire,” which never took home Emmy gold. (UPDATE: Speaking of Emmy’s history of forgetting “The Wire,” the “In Memoriam” segment neglected to include one of its main writers, David Mills, who passed away in March.)

Gleeks have a bit more to sing about, thanks to wins for Lynch and series co-creator Ryan Murphy. But there are bound to be quite a few who are miffed that it didn’t topple “Modern Family” to win Best Comedy.

Here are two truly baffling awards: Edie Falco‘s win in the Lead Actress in a Comedy category for “Nurse Jackie.” Falco is a great actress, but even she declared in her acceptance speech, “I’m not funny!” Neither is the show, really. “Nurse Jackie” is terrific, but it’s more a half-hour drama than a comedy.

Then comes the Kyra Sedgwick victory in Lead Actress in a Drama for “The Closer,” which is less a matter of an outstanding performance than Awards Show Science. In terms of quality, Margulies and Glenn Close (“Damages“) were the top contenders, and Connie Britton (“Friday Night Lights“) was the deserving dark horse. But Margulies will be back and Close is a two-time winner here. Sedgwick has been invited to this ball five times already – time for Emmy to pay out.

Besides, without Katey Sagal in this category, is this a contest even worth debating?

And then…

Every decent awards show has a strange moment we’ll recall weeks later, possibly even years. Sunday gave us the phenomenon known as Bucky Gunts.

By this we do not refer to Bucky Gunts, multiple Emmy award-winning producer of Olympics opening ceremonies, but the idea of Bucky Gunts as introduced by Ricky Gervais, who had no idea who he was until he shared his hope that Gunts would win, “because I didn’t know you could say that on television… Let’s face it, we’re all Bucky Gunts here,” Gervais offered with a sly grin.

He opened the envelope, and what do you know – Bucky Gunts! We do not recall what Mr. Gunts said onstage. And it does not matter that his reputation is synonymous with success. No, all that remained was that soon after that #buckygunts was trending on Twitter, attached to all sorts of madness.

The other previously little known personality that won the night was Temple Grandin – the Temple Grandin – who enthusiastically waved as the movie about her life won five Emmys. The highlight was the film’s win for Outstanding Made For TV movie, which prompted Grandin to clasp producer Emily Gerson Saines in a bear hug, interrupting her speech. Someone tweeted that Grandin became the night’s Betty White, which is fine…because on Monday, Betty White went right back to being Betty White, proof that the universe is still unfolding as it should.

Stars join Jimmy Fallon on stage for the opening number. Photo courtesy of WireImage.

See the complete list of winners, and check out photos and every else Emmys-related in this year’s Road to the Emmys section.  And share a comment to let us know what you thought of this year’s Emmy telecast!

*Editor’s note: This updated post includes a correction. The original version stated that Aaron Paul was a first-time nominee last night. Paul received an Outstanding Supporting Actor in a Drama nod in 2009 as well.