Winners, losers, predictions and bets aside, one thing you can count on when it comes to the Emmys is disappointment. It’s simple math – losers always outnumber the winners.  Indeed, the 63rd Primetime Emmy Awards telecast yielded a few worthy winners – some of them wonderfully surprising – and one that had us scratching our heads.  (That would be the Emmy for Barry Pepper, who was not there to accept his Lead Actor in a Miniseries or Movie statuette for his work in the lukewarmly-received miniseries “The Kennedys“.  Maybe he didn’t see that one coming, either.)

For every emotional peak one may have experienced with each award announcement, one also had to slog through dry gulches of flat skits and strange production choices.  Some of the Emmy voters’ ultimate choices were inspired, but the alleged entertainment served up between each envelope’s opening was often brutal to endure.

The Highs

The biggest winners were the usual suspects. “Mad Men” took home the Outstanding Drama Emmy for the fourth year in a row – its only win of the evening – and “Modern Family” reeled in its second Outstanding Comedy statuette. It was a good night for the ABC comedy, which won a total of five Emmys including awards for directing and writing, and Best Supporting Actor and Actress Emmys for onscreen husband and wife team Ty Burrell and Julie Bowen.

More shocking were the actors, actresses and shows most people believed were locked-in for the prize, but went home empty handed. Steve Carell was widely expected to finally walk away with the Lead Actor in a Comedy Emmy that had eluded him for so many seasons. His character Michael Scott was widely liked, and this represented his last shot at the prize for this work on “The Office“.  But the award went to “The Big Bang Theory’s” Jim Parsons for the second time in a row, giving CBS one of four Emmys the network’s shows would go on to win Sunday night.

Julianna Margulies handled her entirely expected Best Actress in a Drama win for “The Good Wife” with grace. But if Margulies had a wonderful evening,  Melissa McCarthy must have been over the moon at winning a Best Comedy Actress Emmy for her work in Bridesmaids “Mike & Molly.”  Anyone ticked off that McCarthy won instead of Amy Poehler should probably to consider this: at least this year, the award went to an actress who is actually funny. And who didn’t love it when all of the Comedy Actress nominees, led by Poehler, took the stage and held hands like pageant queens, taking the bit to its natural denouement by crowning McCarthy with a tiara?

McCarthy’s was one of several pleasantly surprising wins, including one for “Game of Thrones‘” amazing Peter Dinklage for Best Supporting Actor in a Drama and, much to the relief of everyone who cherishes great television, Margo Martindale’s Best Supporting Actress clinch for her tour-de-force performance during the second season of “Justified.” (Had she not won, we suspect Academy of Television Arts and Sciences voters would have received gift baskets from anonymous senders containing at least one bottle of Apple Pie.)

It was also an excellent night for “Downton Abbey,” the superior PBS miniseries that squared off with HBO’s “Mildred Pierce” and emerged victorious in the Outstanding Miniseries or Made for Television Movie category, while also winning Emmys for supporting actress  (Dame Maggie Smith),  writing (Julian Fellowes) and directing (Brian Percival).  “Mildred” was not shut out entirely; Kate Winslet won the Miniseries Best Actress Emmy, with Guy Pearce taking one for Supporting Actor. Even so, in the miniseries category the final score was four Emmys for PBS, two for HBO.

A more bittersweet upset came at the hands of “Friday Night Lights” lead Kyle Chandler who, like Carell, had his final chance (for now) at the prize on Sunday. Chandler was a dark horse in the category; nearly everyone expected Emmy’s glow to finally shine on “Mad Men’s” Jon Hamm. But when the envelope was opened, it was Chandler’s name that was read  – by his ecstatic former castmate Minka Kelly, creating one of the evening’s most heartwarming moments.

The Lows

The winners are a lucky few, but the losers will number in the millions; we won’t have a more accurate estimate until the official ratings come in. (UPDATE: As of Monday afternoon, some 12.4 million viewers are now missing the three hours of life that the Primetime Emmys telecast sucked out through their pores.)  Don’t feel bad if you’re in that crowd; after all, the past two Emmys telecasts were rather inspired affairs. We cannot be blamed for hoping that the 63rd round of the Primetime Emmy Awards, hosted by the charismatic Jane Lynch, would be just as entertaining.

To be clear,  the show’s shortcomings were not Lynch’s fault.  The actress did the absolute best with the pedestrian jokes and the workmanlike scripted segments. She didn’t stumble over the inadequate material and, in fact, got in a few gentle zingers of her own. Lynch did what a good host is supposed to do, which is keep the ball rolling and get out of the way of the presenters and the nominees.

But we knew it was going to be a rough night about a minute or so into the opening montage, which would have probably gotten off to a better start if Alec Baldwin had remained in the mix to play the “President of Television.”  Alas, Fox edited out a joke that might have offended Fox boss Rupert Murdoch, an act that definitely offended Baldwin.  He exited, and was replaced by the pleasant but far from spicy Leonard Nimoy. Thus executive producer Mark Burnett‘s awards show began on a soft note, shot squarely for the middle and slid down to the realm of the forgettable about midway through its run.

Some choices, however, were simply perplexing. Exhibit A: The Emmy Tones, a vocal group composed of Zachary Levi, Taraji P. Henson, Cobie Smulders, Wilmer Valderrama, Kate Flannery, Joel McHale.  Who thought that was a good idea…and why, oh, why, did the actors agree to it? Oh, Chuck, Robyn, Fez, Jeff Winger and Meredith…what dark, sinister deed did each of you commit to merit this level of blackmail? Surely it must be terrible, because personalities of your caliber should not have to sink this low just to get face time on a soporific awards show.

The In Memoriam segment …yikes. No offense to The Canadian Tenors, but strutting down the aisle singing “Hallelujah” in leather jackets is a bit too jarring of a juxtaposed image when we’re watching footage of departed actors such as Tom Bosley moving across our screens. We also suspect the Academy will have some ‘splaining to do tomorrow when people take account of the actors omitted from the segment, including “Taxi’s” Jeff Conaway.

Another bad idea? Charlie Sheen, surprise presenter, using the Emmys platform as yet another stop on his high-profile Image Rehabilitation Tour. “From the bottom of my heart, I wish you nothing but the best for this upcoming season,” he told his former co-workers from the stage. “We spent eight wonderful years together and I know you will continue to make great television.”

That’s lovely. Problem is, his (recently) past behavior and prolific commercials showing him driving the crazy train straight to his Comedy Central Roast (airing on the same night as the “Two and a Half Men” season premiere!) made this statement seem about as genuine as a Diamonelle.

In comparison to these baffling missteps, and a vacuous Jersey-philia skit that slapped us in our faces later on, a medley by The Lonely Island either came off as utterly tasteless or a breath of fresh nitrous. It really depends on how you feel about Akon dancing around in front of a gigantic American flag singing about having sex while Michael Bolton, dressed as Captain Jack Sparrow, provided a melodic counterbalance.

“I know this seems stupid and schlocky and already feels overly long. But this is the Emmys!”  Lynch said this during the opening montage. It’s really too bad that  statement proved to be so prescient.

Visit our Road to the Emmys section to see photos, view the complete list of winners and nominees, read the recap of The 63rd Primetime Emmy Awards telecast and more.

Check our homepage at 4 pm PT/7pm ET to enjoy the red carpet spectacle. Then, beginning at 5pm PT Sunday, the IMDb homepage becomes the headquarters for all things Emmy, including a constant stream of photos as they become available and real-time updates of the winners. You can also join us on Twitter for real-time updates at @IMDb, and for snarkified commentary at @IMDbTV. Updates will also be posted to our IMDb and IMDbTV Facebook pages.

Yes, folks, we adore a good awards show. We’re also fans of this year’s host Jane Lynch. Nevertheless, we’re a tad concerned about what’s going to happen on Sunday’s telecast.

Mind you, we have great faith in Lynch’s ability to play the awards show’s ringmaster. She’s quick on her feet, one of the wittiest women in the entertainment industry and, according to earlier statements, plans to leave Sue Sylvester‘s track suit in the closet. (Please let that be true.) Nope, we’re not that worried about Lynch.

We’re a little concerned about executive producer Mark Burnett‘s influence on Sunday’s telecast, though.

We realize that, generally speaking, the reality television producer has fairly decent taste in terms of what works and what doesn’t.  It will be hard to sink to the nadir of one of most memorable moments of Fox’s 2007 Emmys telecast, when the Jersey Boys cheerfully sang Frankie Valli’s “Just Too Good to Be True” while viewers at home watched archival footage of a terrified Adriana La Cerva crawling to her death. (The Jersey Boys number happened to be a tribute to “The Sopranos,” understand. Just not a good one.)

Then again, check out this picture. It was taken to tease a skit from Sunday’s telecast. And it confirms one of our worst fears: “Jersey Shore” will be in the building, on a night that’s supposed to honor the best of what television had to offer during the 2010-2011 season .

At least we know we’ll have plenty to talk about.

We’ll be covering, um, this…and everything else Emmy-related leading up to event in our Road to the Emmys section culminating in our live coverage of the 63rd Primetime Emmy Awards telecast, airing live at 5pm PT/8pm ET Sunday on Fox.

As for what Snooki plus Lynch plus Burnett equals…honestly, we haven’t a clue. But take our advice, ladies and gentlemen — gird your loins.

Then again, in recent years Emmy voters have slipped in surprises here and there – some welcome, others less so. Such was the case on Thursday morning, when nominations for the 63rd Annual Primetime Emmy awards were finally revealed.

HBO scored 104 nominations, with CBS coming in a distant second place with 50. AMC’s “Mad Men” reaped 19 nominations, followed by “Boardwalk Empire” with 18 and “Modern Family” with 17.  (Visit IMDb’s Road to the Emmys section for the full list of nominations.)

HBO’s typically strong showing is largely thanks to the 21 nominations for “Mildred Pierce,” including a nod in the Outstanding Miniseries or Made for TV Movie category as well as a Lead Actress nomination for Kate Winslet,  and nods in the Supporting categories for Evan Rachel Wood, Melissa Leo, Mare Winningham, Guy Pearce and Brian F. O’Byrne.

The Outstanding Comedy category shaped up pretty much as one expected it to, although there’s little to quibble about with most of the choices. “Modern Family,” “30 Rock,” “Parks and Recreation” were all there, and with Steve Carell leaving “The Office,” it was pretty much a foregone conclusion that both the show and the actor would get nods. “The Big Bang Theory” finally received some Outstanding Comedy love, as did the slot’s most debatable choice, “Glee.”

The Outstanding Drama category received an infusion of new blood, what with “Breaking Bad” and “Lost” out of the running. “Mad Men,” “The Good Wife” and “Boardwalk Empire” received nominations, along with a sentimental nod for “Friday Night Lights,” the heartening presence of deserving newcomer “Game of Thrones,” and…”Dexter.”

More thoughts on that last choice later.

At the very least, voters deserve applause for populating the Outstanding Comedy category with easily identifiable laffers as opposed to trying (again) to earn highbrow cred by throwing the half-hour-drama-masquerading-as-comedy “Nurse Jackie” into that mix. Instead, lead actress Edie Falco (who, when she won a statue in the past, opened her acceptance speech with the newsflash that she’s really not funny) is in the Lead Actress in a Comedy mix with “30 Rock’s” Tina Fey, “The Big C’s” Laura Linney, “Parks & Recreation’s” Amy Poehler and – well, hello ladies! – the deserving Martha Plimpton of “Raising Hope” and “Mike & Molly’s” Melissa McCarthy, who made the announcements Thursday morning.

Seeing Louis C.K.’s name in the Lead Actor in a Comedy mix was also a nice treat, and a bit of a balm for anyone upset that his comedy “Louie” did not make it into the top comedy mix. C.K., one of the most talented and heretofore underrated comedians in the business, joins “30 Rock’s” Alec Baldwin, ” Carell, “Big Bang’s” Johnny Galecki and Jim Parsons, as well as Matt LeBlanc for “Episodes.”

The Drama lead actor and actress categories were pretty typical as well, although given the backlash Emmy withstood last year over Katey Sagal being snubbed (and her subsequent Golden Globes win), one perhaps expected voters to make good this time around with at least a nod.

No such luck.

Sagal was passed over once again in favor of perennial nominee Mariska Hargitay (“Law & Order: SVU”) and Kathy Bates, the best thing about “Harry’s Law.”  Joining them are “Friday Night Lights’” Connie Britton, “Mad Men’s” excellent Elisabeth Moss, “The Good Wife’s” Julianna Margulies and Mireille Enos, who voters chose not to penalize for “The Killing” ultimately letting viewers down.

The Lead Actor lineup consists of “Boardwalk Empire’s” Steve Buscemi, “Friday Night Lights’s” Kyle Chandler, “Dexter’s” Michael C. Hall, “House’s” Hugh Laurie, and “Mad Men’s” Jon Hamm, as well as Timothy Olyphant, star of  “Justified.”  Olyphant was a nice surprise – not because his nomination was out of left field, but due to the fact that Emmy has a long history of overlooking great performance early in a show’s life. Unless that performance happens to be given by a movie star like Steve Buscemi. (Yes, Olyphant is a movie star too, but a different sort. Don’t pretend that you don’t know the difference.)

On that note, let’s talk about “Dexter.”

When the Showtime thriller first showed up in the Best Drama category in 2008, people gave voters credit for embracing the edgier, more creative choices on cable instead of continuing to play it safe and boring.  But with a showing in the category for three years now, “Dexter” is becoming the safe choice, nearly safe as “House” would be .  Given the unevenness of “Dexter’s” most recent season, it’s questionable as to whether it deserves to be there. Mind you, “Dexter” in an off-season is still better than most TV shows. But was it better than the stupendous second season of “Justified”? We don’t think so.

A similar criticism applies to “Glee,” which fought its battles with the dreaded sophomore slump and many believed came out on the losing side of things.  Emmy voters appeared to acknowledge that by shutting Lea Michele and Matthew Morrison out of the lead actor and actress categories. That decision is right and proper – they’re talented, but they don’t bring the laughs. Chris Colfer and Jane Lynch, this year’s Emmy host, do that job and do it well, meriting their slots in the supporting comedy actor and actress categories.

Yet “Glee” is in the running for Best Comedy while shows like “Community”  are left out in the cold.

On the other hand, voters didn’t waste valuable nominations on “The Killing” or “Family Guy,” so there’ s that.

Winners of the 63rd Annual Primetime Emmy Awards will be announced September 18th.

Click here for the full list of Emmy nominations.

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.

Jimmy Fallon hosts the Primetime Emmy Awards

If awards telecasts could be compared to holidays, the Emmys would be akin to a secular celebration of Easter. The award show usually heralds the beginning of a new television season, which traditionally starts the day after the Emmys broadcast –  in years in which the show airs in mid-September. (It’s early this year.)

Fans of some series will go to sleep happy, their shows having received the award equivalent of baskets of candy. For at least one more year they will believe in the ATAS voters with the same magical faith they once reserved for a gigantic rabbit.  Heck, we may even get a delicious ham, if Jimmy Fallon does a good job of hosting.

Good, bad, and ugly, we’re covering everything Emmy-related leading up to event in our Road to the Emmys section culminating in our live coverage of the 62nd Annual Primetime Emmy Awards on Sunday.

Check our homepage at 4 pm PT/7pm ET to enjoy the red carpet spectacle. Then, beginning at 5pm PT Sunday, the IMDb homepage becomes the headquarters for all things Emmy, including a constant stream of photos as they become available and real-time updates of the winners. You can also join us on Twitter at @IMDbTV.

No matter who wins or loses on Sunday, we can take comfort in a few worthwhile victories awarded last Saturday at the low-key Creative Arts Emmys ceremony.   Betty White, for example, won an Emmy for Best Guest Actress in a Comedy for her historic hosting of “Saturday Night Live.”  No doubt her howling of the phrase “wizard of ass!” during a scared-straight skit sealed the deal.

Also proving there is justice in the TV universe was John Lithgow‘s Best Guest Actor in a Drama win for his bone-chilling turn on the fourth season of “Dexter.” So brilliant was Lithgow’s performance that the producers decided to forgo having a single “big bad” for the fifth season, because he could not be topped. Lithgow even made a spectacular gaffe and thanked HBO instead of Showtime in his acceptance speech. Ha!

Other notable victories:

– Ann-Margret received a standing ovation for her Best Guest Actress in a Drama Series win. She did a fabulous job on “Law & Order: SVU.”

– Neil Patrick Harris came up aces in two categories last weekend, winning for his guest star spot in an episode of  “Glee” and returning to the podium to accept the Emmy for the Tony Awards telecast, which won Best Special Class Program.

– “Survivor’s” Jeff Probst won best reality host. (As an aside, all of Chris Harrison‘s contestant-wrangling on “The Bachelor” and “The Bachelorette” should give him a shot at placing in this category next year, wouldn’t you think?)

– And this writer’s favorite li’l Emmy victory? The award for best commercial went to  “The Man Your Man Could Smell Like.” That’s right, Old Spice Man — swan dive!…into an awesome victory for manly men everywhere.

He’s on a horse.

Be sure to join us on Sunday, and remember — you can follow us any day of the week on Twitter for the latest updates on TV news and silliness.

This year, however, there was more cheering than griping. Some would say this is not necessarily a “new” idea, since the tides seemed to turn our way last year — meaning, the Academy of Television Arts and Sciences voters’ tastes may have at long last aligned with critics and the public’s.  Let’s give an example:  A few years ago, most people would have expected Emmy voters to snub “Lost” in its final season. Perhaps the thought would be that it was too complex for its own good or, having won the Emmy for Outstanding Drama in 2005, that its moment had already been acknowledged.

But “Lost” will get its shot in the category once again, alongside CBS’s deserving new series “The Good Wife,”  HBO’s fan favorite “True Blood” (which began to soar, creatively speaking, in its second season), Showtime’s “Dexter,” and AMC’s “Breaking Bad” and “Mad Men,” a two-time winner already.

Nominees for Best Actress in a Drama include the usual suspects ( as in  “The Closer’s” Kyra Sedgwick, “Damages’” Glenn Close, and “Law & Order: SVU’s” Mariska Hargitay), the easily predictable but deserving nomination for “The Good Wife’s” Julianna Margulies…and hello, January Jones! “Man Men’s” Betty Draper showed a variety of colors last year, and Jones took the storyline and ran away with it.

Our next gift-wrapped present: Fox’s “Glee,” a welcome addition to the Outstanding Comedy mix (just one of its 19 nominations) and another one of those no-brainers that probably would have come up empty on past nomination rounds.  ABC’s “Modern Family,” on the other hand, was a shoo-in,  and joins past winners “30 Rock” and “The Office,” both on NBC, as well as Showtime’s dark half-hour “Nurse Jackie” and HBO’s “Curb Your Enthusiasm.”

Among “Glee’s” nominations were individual nods for Lea Michele and Matthew Morrison in actress and actor categories.

Also very much expected was the nominations avalanche for HBO’s “The Pacific.” The premium cable channel’s latest World War II epic racked up 24 nods, nearly a quarter of HBO’s total of 101. That also means that for a straight decade, HBO has led in total nominations.  (Since HBO has had a pretty good year, we’re not yawning this time.)

A complete list of Emmy nominees is, of course, available here.

This is not to imply that everything’s rosy in TV Land today. The voters are getting more things right these days, but Emmy being Emmy, there are enough snubs each year to make TV fans groan loudly and painfully. Here are but a few.

Katey Sagal in "Sons of Anarchy"

1. No Best Actress in a Drama nod for “Sons of Anarchy’s” Katey Sagal. Now, while this shouldn’t come as much of a surprise to anyone familiar with Emmy’s habits — we’ll elaborate in a moment — Sagal gave a beautifully multifaceted performance as SAMCRO’s matriarch Gemma Teller Morrow. We won’t spoil it for anyone who hasn’t seen the second season yet, but Sagal took an incredibly difficult plot twist and a controversial treatment of its aftermath, and handled it with dignity, fragility and in the final moments of the season, a sense of controlled power.

The problem is that the second season opener of FX’s “Sons” was overwhelmingly difficult to watch, even for diehard fans, because of what happened to Sagal’s character. The way she dealt with it in subsequent episodes may have rubbed people the wrong way. Emmy voters tend to behave more cautiously than the average viewer. In other words, Katey probably knew she would be sleeping in this morning.

2. No nomination for “Modern Family’s” Ed O’Neill. Given the above snub, we’re wary about mentioning some alleged “Married with Children” curse, but someone should give this kind of omission an official name. How about, the  Eva Longoria Parker Snub? As in, the kind of snub where everyone else in the cast gets nominated, but you come up empty?

Not that we’re quibbling with the nods for Ty Burrell, Julie Bowen, Eric Stonestreet and Jesse Tyler Ferguson. Plus, whenever Sofia Vergara says “cop-cake,” this writer giggles. (I am not the giggling type, so that has to be worth something.)  But honestly — why not show Ed some love?  We all love Duckie, but did Jon Cryer really need to get nominated again?  Discuss.

3. “Survivor: Heroes vs. Villains” — denied! “Survivor” is another past winner and frequent nominee in the reality competition category, but this season was arguably one of the best in the show’s history. Even if you want to debate that point,  one thing you’d be hard-pressed to defend is Emmy’s choice of “Project Runway” over “Survivor.”  Did “Project Runway” ever deserve an Emmy? Of course. Does the most recent season deserve it? Uh…no.

4. No love for any of the leads from “The Pacific.” Yes, the miniseries led HBO’s pack in terms of total nominations. Yes, the odds that viewers watching the Emmys telecast will get the chance to see Jon Seda, James Badge Dale and Joseph Mazzello on the stage at some point are rather high. That does not lessen the sting for anyone who watched these men make us gasp  and tear up for 10 episodes. Additionally, while it’s hard to feign surprise that Rami Malek was left out of the supporting actor mix, we sure think he deserved to be acknowledged.

5. Ditto for anyone from the cast of “True Blood.” Again, Emmy voters, thanks for acknowledging the show. But maybe next year you’ll have seen enough to realize that what makes it so addictive are stellar performances from the likes of Alexander Skarsgård and Nelsan Ellis.  That’s OK, we’ll wait.

But let’s give credit where credit is due. There are some snubs that we’re completely fine with.

Thank you, Emmy, for leaving Katherine Heigl out this time around, giving someone who actually appreciates having a job on a good TV show a shot at some hardware.

Bless you, Emmy, for giving the Heisman hand to Jay Leno in favor of a nod to “The Tonight Show with Conan O’Brien.” Surely that scored big points with Team Coco.

We are also completely fine with you denying major category recognition to Charlie Sheen, “24“, “Grey’s Anatomy,” “Family Guy” and, although it seems odd to credit you for doing so, “Jersey Shore.” Admit it, voters. You know you thought about pandering to the kids.

Your turn: Were you satisfied with this round of Emmy nominations?

Post-show photos of Emmy host Neil Patrick Harris, courtesy of Wire Image

Neil Patrick Harris’s Emmy conquest is now official: The overnight Nielsens indicate that the ratings were actually up over last year’s telecast. That’s significant, because the award show’s numbers have been in decline for several years now.

Barney Stinson’s alter-ego did not defeat football on NBC, which walked away with 18.5 million that night, but an estimated 14.5 million tuned in  to the 61st Primetime Emmy Awards telecast, keeping it in second place throughout the evening. (Which, truthfully, isn’t that surprising when one considers that every other broadcast network pretty much got out of its way.)

Of course, a number of viewers would never watch the Emmys — even if Angelina Jolie played host and promised numerous costume changes, all of them involving bikinis. Exhibit A:  Today’s IMDb poll. More than 46 percent of respondents did not watch. Geez, what does ol’ NPH have to do to get a witness? (Or  few million?)

It’s important to give a credit to all the people who made Harris look good, starting with executive producer Don Mischer, who along with the other producers had the good sense to reorganize the ceremony by genres.  Not only did breaking up the telecast by category help it move along more smoothly, but the order of the awards made sense for once — although it would have been nice to see the Emmy for Best Comedy revealed during that category’s turn instead of at the end of the show. You know, to toss us a bone early on.

But Harris took the spotlight to the point of making the overall repeats in all the major award categories palatable, and scored big among the critics.

“Neil Patrick Harris? So. Much. Better,”  opined USA Today’s Robert Bianco.

“There’s no reason that Harris should not have the Emmy hosting gig for life,” said  Chicago Tribune’s Maureen Ryan, aka The Watcher.

“Let’s hope Neil Patrick Harris enjoyed hosting Sunday night’s Emmy Awards, because there’s a good chance he’s going to be asked to do it again,” said the Hollywood Reporter’s James Hibberd.

Then again, there’s always somebody who poops on the parade; to that end, here’s the account from Tom Shales.

What did you think? Did NPH nail it?