Thank you for taking the time to put your thoughts and feelings about television in 2017 out there! I know there were many questions but hey, it was worth it! I know the results are long overdue but I appreciate your patience as I tallied the votes (a whopping 2131 of them!) and then double checked it all to make sure its done fairly.
That is why we have a platform like this one, to celebrate shows that aren’t usually and always recognized by awards. To declare which shows won us over and which ones disappointed us. As we're settling into the new TV viewing year with 2018, it’s fun to reflect on the year that went by.
Before we dive in, here are a few very, very important notes to keep in mind:
1. Each winner's list consists of the top three choices that got the most votes for their categories along with the number of votes they got. It's also important to keep in mind that not all the categories were mandatory to answer, therefore, several of them had fewer number of total votes.
2. The answers really surprised me in a good way. Last year, fandom-heavy shows took the cake and this year, there is definitely more range, which is awesome to see.
3. It was specified in the rules that you only have to answer ONCE. Submissions that didn't adhere to this rule were disqualified but it was great to see that almost all of you actually stuck to the rules unlike last time! It made my work easier and more fun.
4. In PURPLE, you'll see some stray observations and details from me. In GREEN, I have added some of the comments/explanations sent by you all with your nominations.
Best TV Show - Drama
2. Marvel’s Agents of SHIELD: 501
3. The Leftovers: 380
- Last year’s top winner “The 100” was fourth, tying with “The Handmaid’s Tale" at 104 votes.
- All the Arrowverse shows got nominated in this category besides “The Flash."
- All the Arrowverse shows got nominated in this category besides “The Flash."
Best Actor - Drama
2. Freddie Highmore, The Good Doctor: 450
3. Iain de Caestecker, Agents of Shield: 340
- None of last years top three, Kit Harington/Anthony Hopkins/Bob Morley, made the cut this time but Morley was a close call at #4.
Best Actress - Drama
2. Caitriona Balfe, Outlander: 533
3. Eliza Taylor, The 100: 380
- Eliza Taylor was #2 on this list year
- "Sian Brooke. Sure, it was only 3 episodes long, but her work on "Sherlock" was so exceptional I remembered it throughout a very impressive year of TV.
Best TV Show - Comedy
2. The Good Place: 500
3. Will & Grace: 327
- The top two winners emerged victorious in almost all the comedy categories!
- Devoted fans of "Supergirl," "Agents of Shield," and even "Hawaii 5-0," I get the passion but those shows aren’t comedies!
Best Actor - Comedy
2. Ted Danson, The Good Place: 517
3. Andy Samberg, Brooklyn 99: 320
Best Actress - Comedy
1. Kristen Bell, The Good Place: 665
2. Stephanie Beatriz, Brooklyn 99: 478
3. Rachel Bloom, Crazy Ex-Girlfriend: 312
- #4 is actually a tie between Debra Messing, “Will & Grace” and Melissa Fumero, “Brooklyn 99."
Worst TV Show - Drama
1. The Inhumans: 750
2. Pretty Little Liars: 466
3. Fear the Walking Dead: 310
- Just like “The Flash” was the only one with not a single vote for Best Drama amongst the Arrowverse shows, “Legends of Tomorrow” didn't get one vote for Worst Drama.
Worst Actor - Drama
1. Anson Mount, The Inhumans: 670
2. Finn Jones, Iron Fist: 543
3. KJ Apa, Riverdale: 398
Worst Actress - Drama
1. Isabelle Cornish, The Inhumans: 648
2. Dania Ramirez, Once Upon a Time: 600
3. Emily Bett Rickards, Arrow: 256
- "Emily Bett Rickards - Here's the thing. She actually is capable in select scenes that require a quirky/awkward comedic touch. But the show continues to insist on her taking on dramatic scenes, and it isn't in this actress's skill set. "
Worst TV Show - Comedy
2. Kevin Can Wait: 289
3. The Big Bang Theory: 284
- "The Inhumans. It may be a drama but it's a joke."
Worst Actor - Comedy
1. Kevin James, Kevin Can Wait: 417
2. Mark Feuerstein, 9JKL: 266
3. Ashton Kutcher, The Ranch: 200
- To whoever nominated the "the grandpa from Modern Family," I'm sorry for disqualifying your vote but you could have used Google! Any similar votes for any category were also, unfortunately, not counted as the rules specifically stated.
Worst Actress - Comedy
1. Lena Dunham, Girls: 350
2. Kaley Cuoco, The Big Bang Theory: 249
3. Vanessa Hudgens, Powerless: 188
Best Episode - Drama
1. "Self-Control," Agents of Shield: 621
2. "Spoils of War," Game of Thrones: 488
3. "Praimfaya," The 100: 318
Best Episode - Comedy
1. "Michael’s Gambit," The Good Place: 995
2. "HalloVeen," Brooklyn 99: 522
3. "Rosarios Quinceanera," Will & Grace: 116
- Fun fact: Michael’s Gambit received the most votes in this entire “Best and Worst of…” An endlessly popular episode, indeed. Number four on this list would’ve been Moo Moo from "Brooklyn 99" at 113 votes so, very close call.
- A bunch of nominations for various episodes from "The 100," which I would say is pretty weird because it does make me wonder what fans really think of the show.
- "Michael's Gambit" is what made me fall in love with "The Good Place." It took everything the show has established, threw it in a pit, and gave us (the viewers) a great curveball ending.
Best Character in a Drama
1. Jamie Fraser, Outlander: 655
2. Offred/June, The Handmaid’s Tale: 416
3. Nora Durst, The Leftovers/Leopold Fitz, Agents of Shield: 200
- For all the fans of “The 100,” Bellamy Blake was only one vote shy of being on the top 3 list, followed closely by Clarke Griffin 160 votes.
- This category was full of interesting ties. #6 was Randall Pearson from "This is Us" and Shaun Murphy from "The Good Doctor" and #7 was also a tie between Dean Winchester from "Supernatural "and Lena Luthor from "Supergirl."
Worst Character in a Drama:
1. Danny Rand, Iron Fist/The Defenders: 546
2. Black Bolt, Inhumans: 501
3. Mon-el, Supergirl: 377
Best Character in a Comedy
1. Eleanor Shellstrop, The Good Place: 601
2. Raymond Holt, Brooklyn 99: 550
3. Rosa Diaz, Brooklyn 99: 539
- As made clear, “Brooklyn 99” and “The Good Place” are dominating the comedy votes. Both are extremely well-deserving so it’s a great thing. For those who are curious, #4, #5, #6 were from the same two shows; Jake Peralta, Michael, and Janet, respectively!
- For characters not in those two shows, most of the votes went to Dev Shah from "Master of None" and Jessica Huang from "Fresh off the Boat."
Worst Character in a Comedy
1. Kevin Gable, Kevin Can Wait: 356
2. Amy Farrah Fowler, The Big Bang Theory: 290
3. Josh Chan, Crazy Ex-Girlfriend: 178
Best Couple of 2017 (Drama or Comedy)
1. Jamie and Claire, Outlander: 566
2. Jake and Amy, Brooklyn 99: 487
3. Fitz and Simmons, Agents of SHIELD: 440
Worst Couple of 2017 (Drama or Comedy)
1. Oliver and Felicity, Arrow: 750
2. Archie and Veronica, Riverdale: 509
3. Kara and Mon-El: 500
- Alright, we’ll give this one to the shippers. Even the next two couples on this list were from shows with passionate fandoms: #4 were Barry and Iris from "The Flash", #5 were Clarke and Bellamy from "The 100." (Are they even a couple? Refer to next category!)
Best TV Friendship of 2017
1. Bellamy and Clarke, The 100: 620
2. Jemma and Daisy, Agents of SHIELD: 619
3. Dustin and Steve, Stranger Things: 369
- Bellamy and Clarke topped this category last year, too.
- Since #1 and #2 were literally one vote apart, i’ll throw in the #4 result (and also because it was such a happy surprise for me!): Jane, Kat, Sutton from "The Bold Type." Kara and Lena from "Supergirl" were close behind.
Best TV Family of 2017:
1. The Pearsons, This is Us: 539
2. The Frasers, Outlander: 463
3. The Hecks, The Middle: 230
- Beyond these, lots of votes went to not your typical families but teams, especially the 99 crew, the Shield agents. The Winchester brothers were #4 on the list.
- To the person who voted for The Bravermans from Parenthood as the best TV family of 2017, I have some news for you.
Best Wedding of the Year:
1. Emma and Captain Hook, Once Upon a Time: 468
2. Fergus and Marsali, Outlander: 366
3. Philip and Elizabeth, The Americans: 201
Worst Wedding of the Year:
1. Oliver and Felicity, Arrow: 612
2. Barry and Iris, The Flash: 385
3. Josh and Rebecca, Crazy Ex-Girlfriend: 210
- Emma and Hook showed up as #4 on this list despite topping the Best Wedding category.
- Despite the double wedding, or perhaps because of it since many of you mentioned it in your submission, Barry and Iris are a couple of hundred votes behind Oliver and Felicity.
- There were limited number of on-screen weddings so almost all options actually showed up on both categories.
Best Character Development
1. Steve Harrington, Stranger Things: 531
2. Rosa Diaz, Brooklyn 99: 513
3. Daisy Johnson, Agents of Shield: 415
- I'll share some other great options in the top few because they’ll give you a sense of variety: Michaela Pratt from "How to Get Away with Murder," Samantha Arias/Reign from "Supergirl."
- "Jamie Fraser of Outlander. Jamie went through 20 years of hiding, imprisonment, servitude and finally reuniting and searching for his nephew.
Underrated Drama
1. Marvel’s Agents of Shield: 520
2. Timeless: 419
3. iZombie: 309
- #4 was The 100 and #5 was Outlander, no surprises there. But, what followed is great. This was the most interesting category for me because it had a four-way tie of 76 votes for the #6 position: "Halt and Catch Fire," "The Leftovers," "Good Behavior," and "Legion."
- "The Americans," always! No matter how much critical acclaim it gets.
Underrated Comedy
1. Brooklyn 99: 599
2. One Day at a Time: 320
3. Speechless: 300
Underrated Actor
1. Justin Hartley, This is Us: 622
2. Noah Schnapp, Stranger Things: 430
3. Dan Stevens, Legion: 405
Underrated Actress
1. Chloe Bennet, Agents of Shield: 701
2. Yvonne Strahovski, The Handmaid’s Tale: 598
3. Lindsey Morgan, The 100: 496
- Lindsey Morgan topped this category last year.
Overrated Drama
1. Game of Thrones: 587
2. Riverdale: 450
3. The 100: 448
- Again, a very close call between #2 and #3. Only a two vote difference! #4 was "Supergirl" at 396 votes.
Overrated Comedy
1. The Big Bang Theory: 459
2. Modern Family: 420
3. Veep: 410
- Surprisingly, there were lots of votes for these shows in the underrated comedy category, too.
Overrated Actor
1. Cole Sprouse, Riverdale: 597
2. Kit Harington, Game of Thrones: 500
3. Stephen Amell, Arrow: 388
- Kit Harington was actually the top winner for the Best Actor category last year. Whoops.
- Stephen Amell retained his #3 position on this list from last year.
Overrated Actress
1. Emilia Clarke, Game of Thrones: 567
2. Katie McGrath, Supergirl: 458
3. Alycia Debnam-Carey, Fear the Walking Dead: 302
- Alycia Debnam-Carey topped this category last year.
Most Shocking Plot Twist
1. The Good Place season 1 finale: 702
2. Viserion’s death and resurrection, Game of Thrones/Team Shield is in the future, Marvel's Agents of Shield: 412
3. The 100 season 4 finale + flash forward: 278
- The season 3 finale of the 100 topped this category last year.
Best New Show
1. The Handmaid’s Tale: 588
2. The Good Doctor: 512
3. Big Little Lies: 457
- Other solid contenders for this category were "The Gifted," "Marvel's Runaways," and "Mindhunter."
Worst New Show
1. Inhumans: 512
2. Dynasty: 356
3. 9JKL: 340
Biggest TV Disappointment of 2017
1. Pretty Little Liars series finale/AD Reveal: 730
2. Lena and James Olsen's relationship, Supergirl: 422
3. The Walking Dead season 7: 398
- Season 1 of both, "The Inhumans" and "The Defenders" weren't trailing too far behind.
- "The Mindy Project." Mindy and Danny should not have gotten back together. Emotionally abusive relationship.
TV Show Better than Expected
1. The Orville: 440
2. American Vandal: 432
3. The Bold Type: 360
- Since there's only a small difference between the first two positiI'll i'll throw in what came in #4: "Marvel's Runaways."
- Besides these, there were many ongoing shows like "Supernatural," "The Crown," and "Once Upon a Time," whose current seasons seemed to impress viewers.
Best Series Finale
1. Orphan Black: 533
2. The Leftovers: 398
3. The Vampire Diaries/Bones: 390
Worst Series Finale
1. Pretty Little Liars: 665
2. Girls: 500
3. Teen Wolf: 412
Saddest Cancellation
1. Sense8: 620
2. Last Man Standing: 453
3. Pitch: 392
- "Sweet/Vicious" was just a few votes behind.
Acting Revelation/Breakout Star in a Drama
1. Mallory Jansen, Agents of Shield: 842
2. Noah Schnapp, Stranger Things: 462
3. Katherine Langford, 13 Reasons Why: 400
- This is quite the victory for Mallory Jansen!
- Two actors from "Outlander" were at #4 and #5: David Berry and John Bell.
Acting Revelation/Breakout Star in a Comedy
1. Iain Armitage, Young Sheldon: 493
2. D’Arcy Carden, The Good Place: 449
3. Isabella Gomez, One Day at a Time: 348
- This category had one of the least number of total votes so shoutout to the other few who scored lots of nominations: Rachel Brosnahan, "The Marvelous Mrs. Maisel," Jameela Jamil, "The Good Place," Jimmy Tatro, "American Vandal," and Liv Hewson, "Santa Clarita Diet."
Most Painful Death in 2017
1. Martin Stein, Legends of Tomorrow: 598
2. Hannah Baker, 13 Reasons Why: 415
3. Jasper, The 100: 410
- Just a personal note to say I'm still deeply impacted by the death of Bob Newby (superhero), "Stranger Things." Poor guy didn't even make it to the top 10 for this category!
- VOTER description: "Hannah Baker. While its rare for a predicted death to hit that hard, this one did, and I think its a credit to the entire "13 Reasons Why" team from the actors, to the writing to the casting. "
Best TV Revival/Remake/Reboot
1. Will & Grace: 440
2. Twin Peaks: 339
3. Prison Break: 212
Worst TV Revival/Remake/Reboot
1. Dynasty: 472
2. Prison Break: 408
3. 24: Legacy: 294
- The "revival/remake/reboot" categories were also some of the least answered, hence the fewer votes.
Most Improved Show of 2017
1. Marvel's Agents of Shield: 720
2. How to Get Away with Murder: 449
3. Legends of Tomorrow: 400
Best Opening Credits
1. Game of Thrones: 712
2. Big Little Lies: 561
3. Crazy Ex-Girlfriend: 492
- GoT was #3 on this last year!
2017 Guilty Pleasure
1. Riverdale: 603
2. Outlander: 500
3. Fuller House: 429
- "Fuller House. It's horrible but I can't help it!"
New Show in 2018 You Look Forward To
1. Black Lightning: 577
2. Castle Rock: 482
3. Rise: 423
Did your favorites win? What did you think of those who came out reigning? Let us know in the comments.
