1. Parenthood
Under-appreciated by viewers and awards committees. Parenthood is one of the only shows that I've ever seen that has gotten better with each passing season without ever hitting a lull. Through strong writing and even-stronger acting performances, the show has forced its audience to form very close connections with the characters on the show. The show is emotional, but it avoids sentimentality and melodrama, and thats much harder to do than one might think. While the show has gone from strength to strength over the years, it is difficult to meet another person who watches the show. Perhaps that is because of its odd time slot 10 PM on Tuesday nights or perhaps its due to the length of the show 45 minutes instead of 22. This upcoming season will be an interesting experiment, as the show will move to Thursday nights, alongside the aforementioned Parks and Recreation. Furthermore, the show has not managed to score many award nods. In fact, Jason Ritter's nomination for his guest work in season 3 is the only Emmy nomination that the show has received. To me, thats very strange, especially since the show relies so much upon its strong acting performances. It is difficult to argue with the Emmy nomination committee not including Peter Krause in the Supporting Actor in a Drama category, with the likes of Aaron Paul and Jonathan Banks from Breaking Bad and Peter Dinklage from Game of Thrones headlining the nods. If there were 7 spots instead of 6, Krause would have to be included in that incredibly strong group. I would argue, however, that Anna Gunn from Breaking Bad should have been replaced with Monica Potter in the Supporting Actress in a Drama category, given Potters incredibly strong performance as a cancer patient in this past season of Parenthood. So maybe next year will be the year for Parenthood to get the award reception that it definitely deserves. Well just have to see.