The 2009 411 Movie & TV Awards, Part 2 - TV Awards

Posted by Ben Piper on 01.28.2010

The conclusion of the year's awards extravaganza.














Hello, and welcome to part 2 of the 2009 411 Movie & TV Awards. If you haven't already you can check out part 1 here. Yesterday we covered the bases with regards to movies, today, it's all about the boob tube. Let's get right to it, shall we?




It's widely known that the 50's are considered the "Golden Age of Television", highlighted by such stars as Lucille Ball, Milton Berle, and Jackie Gleason. However, I am not the only one that is willing to quickly point out that at this point in time we're also enjoying a "Golden Age of Television" all our own. Only this time, it's the shows themselves that are the stars, rather than the actors in the lead roles. One only needs to look at the stuff that is currently available. If you're in the mood for a show about a serial killer adjusting to family life? Or a modern day society plagued by a vision of a future that may or may not come to pass? How about something with regards to advertising executives personal and professional lives set in the early sixties? If that's not your speed, you can always catch up on outlaw biker gangs or supernatural happenings down in Louisiana. And again, if that's not your cup of tea, you could always just check out and take up residence on a mysterious time-traveling island.

Coincidentally, these are the premises of the crème of the crop with regards to Best TV Show Drama. These are all challenging, thought provoking shows that are not for the faint of heart. If you're going to tune in, you better be prepared to have your mind blown, have your heart skip a beat, or just be ready to give yourself over and go along for the ride… -Ben Piper

And the nominees are: Dexter; Flashforward; Lost; Mad Men; Sons Of Anarchy; True Blood

Runner up- Lost: While Lost has always included remnants of sci-fi and the fantastical, (I'm looking at you, Smokey) this past year the show let its freak flag fly as time travel proved to be an integral element as characters traveled back to live on the island in the heyday of The Dharma Initiative, the 1970's. The showrunners made this choice as they felt it was the only way to clear up some mysteries about the island's nebulous past while also pushing the narrative forward towards its final resolution.

For what could have been a risky venture on paper (seriously, time travel?), it actually worked. And the reason for it was the reason why the show had been a success in the first place; For all the mysteries, and all the peculiar happenings on the Island, and all the mythology that has been built up over the course of five seasons, the show remains squarely focused upon the characters more than anything else.

It also doesn't hurt that Lost continues to boast one of the more underrated ensemble casts working today. Buoyed by Emmy winners Terry O'Quinn and Michael Emerson and anchored by this year's acting MVP Josh Holloway, the assembled talent is what makes season five's more unbelievable conceits believable. From Naveen Andrews consistently solid work to Elizabeth Mitchell's heartbreaking performance as the (Seemingly) ill-fated Juliet, to the support of the character actors that made up the 70's regime of The Dharma Initiative, for if the cast didn't bring the goods, this thing would have never flied.

And yeah, then there was the finale. That smash to white. And that unbridled feeling of "oh, those bastards" once it became clear that the showrunners REALLY wanted to keep us guessing and hungry for more heading into the final salvo.

Well played, good sirs. Well played indeed. -Ben Piper

Winner- Dexter: Finally, the devil is starting to get his due. After three years, the genius of Dexter had seemed to be in the "always a bridesmaid, never a bride" category; despite all the critical acclaim and the highest ratings a Showtime series had ever garnered, the story of a serial killer who ends the lives of other serial killers never seemed to quite get the respect it was due. All of that changed in this season, which was undoubtedly Dexter's darkest and finest to date. Following on the heels of his marriage to Rita at the end of Season Three, Dexter had to deal with being a husband and a father, and settling into suburban life. Unfortunately for him (but fortunately for us), the arrival of the Trinity Killer threw his life in uproar. Marital strife showed him how dangerous of an edge he was walking and the case nearly cost him his sister. Under the sure hand of one of the best writing teams on television, the show walked a darker path and drew characters off in surprising directions, but it never seemed to betray itself or lose our interest. As the ratings deservedly grew, the audience became vocal and even more passionate about the show. Surprise after surprise hit us and they never seemed cheapened or thrown out just for shock value, but because they made sense to the story. And the final moment of the show, which I can say with some confidence is one of the darkest scenes in a television series I've ever seen, stunned the audience and then threw us into a frenzy. Whether they liked it or were appalled, one thing you can't say is that it was handled poorly; in fact it was in my mind the top season finale of the year, and helped propel this deserving show into some of the serious attention it completely deserves. -Jeremy Thomas





I wanted to start of this introduction with a great joke but I quickly realized that no material could compare to the quality of humor that we were all treated to this past year in our nominees for Best Comedy TV Show.

"Two cannibals were eating a clown. One said to the other does this taste funny? "

See, I was right! Please excuse my feeble attempt at humor and turn your attention instead to the shows that made us all laugh throughout 2009. The field is well stocked this year and if you cannot identify a stand out performance then you must be missing your funny bone. Whether you enjoyed the strong ensembles of 30 Rock and It's Always Sunny in Philadelphia, the dramadies Castle and Chuck, or the scene stealing antics of Barney in How I Met Your Mother or Sheldon on The Big Bang Theory there truly was something for everyone. All of these shows benefited from the skills of their crack writing staffs and the amazing comedic timing of their stars.

It is not often that one could say "I'd be happy to see any show win" and actually mean it, but this year you definitely can. That said, I give you the nominees... -Mike Gorman

And the nominees are: 30 Rock; The Big Bang Theory; Castle; Chuck; How I Met Your Mother; It's Always Sunny In Philadelphia

Runner up- It's Always Sunny In Philadelphia: Sure, I could talk about how It's Always Sunny in Philadelphia is "like Seinfeld on crack" (an oft-repeated analogy). Or I could mention the stellar work of its cast, who play the most self-centered group of assholes on the planet, but somehow do so in a lovable enough way that'd actually want to hang out with these characters (or at least I would…maybe that says something about me, though). And I guess it would makes sense to specifically discuss this past season, which featured such instant classic moments as the gang's brief run as professional wrestlers or their ill-fated road trip to the Grand Canyon (which never even gets out of Philly). But, instead, I'd like to take this opportunity to congratulate It's Always Sunny for being that rarest of beasts in today's television world – a true word of mouth hit. You need look no further than the current NBC late night mess to be reminded of how, nowadays, a show usually has to be an instant success in order to get any kind of love from its network. But here we have a case where FX wisely showed patience with a show it could tell was something special, and that patience has paid off big time. Ratings for It's Always Sunny have grown every season, and today it is finally a full-blown phenomenon, with fans dressing as their favorite characters (how many times have you seen Green Man in the background at an actual sporting event?), a best-selling straight-to-DVD holiday special, and even a sold-out live tour. If you ask me, it couldn't have happened to a better group of bastards. -Trevor Snyder

Winner- 30 Rock: Is there a better show on television right now? Don't answer that because you know it is a rhetorical question. 30 Rock is a juggernaut with few apparent weaknesses. In concept, it honestly seems that it shouldn't work. It is a half hour sit com about the making of a fictitious sketch comedy show on NBC created by the people who brought you the real sketch comedy show on NBC for years, SNL. Yet somehow it does work and gets better each season. There is a rhythm to the show that showcases the individual talents of the cast yet also has built a very strong ensemble. The writing is tight and the humor maintains the wry look at our culture that Tina Fey brought to her time as a writer on SNL. The show even succeeds with celebrity guest stars who might feel like gimmicks on other programs. Some might say that it is time for 30 Rock to step aside and let a new program take center stage when it comes to awards like this but I think as long as they continue to present such quality, and truly funny episodes they can be the big fish in the little pond of television for as long as they like. -Mike Gorman






We're all TV fans here, right? Of course we are. We've all got TV's in our homes (several TV's most likely). Our living quarters are all set up to maximize our ability to watch TV comfortably. Go on, go to your living room (or your bedroom, wherever it is you watch TV the most) and look at how the room is set up. Look at it. Notice how all of the furniture is pointed towards the TV? That's how much you like TV.

But why do you like TV? Is it the entertainment it provides you? Is it the companionship it provides you? If you're all alone, and you still have power, who is your best friend? The TV is (now, for those of you with your minds in the gutter, and you know who you are, yes, that can be your best friend, but eventually it and you are going to get tired and you're going to have to take a break. Where are you going to take that break? Right in front of the TV). Basically, there are several reasons why you like TV.

One of those reasons is the great performances by male actors on your favorite TV shows (females, too. They have their own category). 2009 provided several of them on several shows, both on cable and on regular broadcast TV. You could say great performances are everywhere when it comes to TV.

And I just did. So I'll just end this intro and have you move on to the winners. Thanks. -Bryan Kristopowitz

And the nominees are: Alec Baldwin, 30 Rock; Michael Emerson, Lost; Michael C. Hall, Dexter; Hugh Laurie, House; John Lythgoe, Dexter

Runner up- John Lythgoe, Dexter I love John Lithgow. His starring role as Dick Solomon in 3rd Rock from the Sun is one of the most underrated acting performances of the previous decade. He's found success in nearly everything he has set foot in and has earned multiple awards to show for it. What I'm trying to say is that he's no stranger in this business of show. So it shouldn't be anyone's surprise that he once again outdid himself in another award nominated role, right?

Well, even he surprised me a little. Lithgow's performance as Arthur, aka The Trinity Killer, on Dexter was so pure of win. On the outside, his character seems nothing more than a typical lumpy man who shops for his clothes in the discount bin at the local department store just like the rest of us. But we soon find out that underneath that innocent masquerade lies nothing but evil. I'm not surprised that Lithgow handled his part perfectly. He's played similar roles like these in his career before (coughCliffhangercough).

No, it's the way the Lithgow was able to comfortably slide into a role on a show that was already critically praised already and somehow make it better. It helped that Lithgow was given great lines to coordinate with some fantastic editing to really set off the mood that Arthur is, indeed, a very bad and crazy man. The fact that Lithgow gave Michael C. Hall a real acting workout in just his first season shows how remarkable Lithgow truly is. Don't get me wrong. Both guys performed excellently and both deceived the recognition they received but I feel it was Lithgow that helped advanced Hall's performance to another level. Did I mention that this was just Lithgow's first season on the show? "Hello, Dexter Morgan" indeed. -Porfirio Diaz

Winner: Alec Baldwin, 30 Rock; Trying to pick a standout on the show 30 Rock is next to impossible. The cast is superb, with everyone playing their role perfectly. But when you come down to it, Alec Baldwin IS Jack Donaghy; The decisive and controlling network executive who makes it his business to interfere as much as possible. Baldwin's career has found new energy and it can be attribute to his hilarious take and participation in this comedy. He can slide in and out of scenes, dropping laugh bomb after laugh bomb with his mannerisms and comedic timing. He knows just when to pour it on and when to back off the scene to let it breath. His interplay with Tina Fey's Liz Lemon will be looked back on as some of the best TV has produced. When it comes to line delivery, Baldwin is in a league of his own.

One of my favorite exchanges was between Jack and a Priest in the St. Valentine's Day episode. Let's have a look:
Priest: Don't you have faith?
Jack: I have faith...in things I can see and buy and deregulate. Capitalism is my religion. Now, you want to have an intellectual argument? Fine, but I should warn you, I went to Princeton.
Priest: I went to Harvard Divinity School.
Jack: [scoffs] You crimson guys never miss a chance, do you? You want a confession? Let's get this done so I can go eat. I'm divorced. I take the Lord's name in vain often and with great relish. I hit my mother with a car, possibly by accident. [jump cut]...I almost let him choke to death right there on the football field. I looked the other way when my wig-based parent company turned a bunch of children orange. I once claimed "I am God" during a deposition. [jump cut] and...I may have sodomized our former Vice President while under the influence of some weapons-grade narcotics. [sighs] It feels good to say that out loud actually. That one was weighing on me.
Priest: Wow! I, uh, I don't know what to say.
Jack: I don't want you to say anything. I thought I'd made that perfectly clear.

Nothing more needs to be said. -Steve Gustafson






Anything men could do, women can do…too. I think that's how it goes. Being the best female TV performance isn't just about being ridiculously hot or who can wear the least amount of clothes in the most amount of screen time. If that was the criteria, Heidi Montag would be winning every year. Oh well, at least she still has that fabulous singing career ahead of her.

Anyway, actresses are capable of performing just as well, if not more so, than any actor out there. I guess it doesn't hurt to look as sexy as possible…you know, as long as they have the acting chops to go along with it. In all serious, the actresses listed here should be pleased that they're considered the most talented individuals to grace our television sets of the previous year. That means it's not just about their bodies that we pay attention to, but their professionalism as well.

Sure, our views on female characters can be…somewhat shallow, but there's no denying the greatness that these actresses can express through the power of being neked~! their acting performances. -Porfirio Diaz

And the nominees are: Eliza Dushku, Dollhouse; Tina Fey, 30 Rock; Elizabeth Mitchell, Lost; Anna Paquin, True Blood; Anna Torv, Fringe

Runner up (Tie)- Anna Paquin, True Blood: Whether you love True Blood for its unique style and interesting take on the supernatural in the deep South or hate it for being another show that's helping the Twilight trend of "vampires are so cool" continue, one thing that few people can deny is what it's done for the career of Anna Pacquin. Pacquin was already a fanboy wet dream from her work as Rogue in the X-Men movie franchise and she further added to it with her role in Trick r' Treat. Nowhere did she reveal herself as a woman for fanboys to obsess over—and I mean that in more than just the obvious "guy" way—than as Sookie Stackhouse in True Blood this season. While the writing may go over the top from time to time, Pacquin handled every character turn with deft skill and showed she had just as much chemistry with Alexander Skarsgård as she does with Stephen Moyer. Sookie had to really come out of her shell this season, as she infiltrated the anti-vampire bad guys of the Fellowship of the Sun and found herself going head to head with more powerful creatures and vampires. It is her scenes with Eric, both when they are allies and at odds, where Pacquin shone brightest and if the rumors of Season Three's plot are true it means better things yet are afoot. Pacquin is able to project this innocent optimism, almost to the point of naiveté. At the same time though, she's becoming wise to the world in which she now walks and the more she learns, the more formidable she becomes. The Golden Globes can have Julianna Margulies and the Emmy's can have Glenn Close; I'll happily take Anna Pacquin. Make of that comment what you will. -Jeremy Thomas

Runner up (Tie)- Anna Torv, Fringe: Anna Torv has one of the toughest jobs on television. She's the star of Fringe, a show that's all about, well, weirdness. She plays an FBI agent named Olivia Dunham, and she investigates all sorts of weird phenomena referred to as "The Pattern" (alternate dimensions, parasitic worms that are really biological weapons, big ass hairy monsters that kind of look like bigfoot werewolves, whatever the hell that thing was in the first episode that killed all of those people on that airplane) as part of a special section of the FBI called "The Fringe Division." And within that "Fringe Division" she has to deal with a sarcastic, dark and brooding pretty boy (Peter Bishop, as played by Joshua Jackson), a wickedly intense boss (Agent Phillip Broyles, as played by the great Lance Reddick), a bionic woman (Nina Sharp, as played by Blair Brown) and a whacked out weirdo scientist and expert on "fringe science" Dr. Walter Bishop (John Noble). She's got a lot to deal with.

And how does she deal with it? By never letting on that the stuff her character investigates is ridiculous. She may be amazed that someone is actually talking about "psychic connections" and "memory reading" (you know, that water thing she uses with the help of Walter to read her dead boyfriend's dreams or memories or whatever the hell it was), but she makes it seem as though it's all in a day's work. It is her efforts that go a long way to lead us to believe that "The Pattern" is, and will (right?) lead somewhere.

She's also clearly the leader of the show, the straight man to all of the weird beard nonsense going on. If she isn't involved in the main thrust of the story the show suffers. She is the show. That's a big burden for any actor. And she makes it look easy.

It also helps that Anna is pretty dang hot, so she's never boring to look at. That's always a plus. Bryan Kristopowitz

Winner: Tina Fey, 30 Rock: Oh, this is the predictable pick, right? This is probably the category where it could be considered "wide-open" – so why the former SNL head writer? Simply put, the answer is consistency. There probably isn't a more hard-working, CONSISTENT master of comedy than Tina Fey. As Liz Lemon, the "socially-retarded" (not my words), stress-eating and Star Wars loving head writer, Fey hits all the right notes and expresses just enough quirkiness to make Liz a "character", but is able to keep her grounded in the real world so she doesn't become just a "caricature". There is something to be said about one's comedic timing when they are able to hilariously express "white guilt" (ugh) through her interactions with Tracy Jordan – or her acidic relationship with Jack Donaghy (of course, if you play opposite Alec Baldwin, you better be prepared to bring the AWESOME every time.) To be honest, I can't even think of another woman on television that is as instantly recognizable or as smartly written as Ms. Lemon, and that may be the ultimate power of Tina Fey's performance: she is just the best written female character on television today, and so – the performance better match the words and Fey does that in spades. -Len Archibald





For almost two decades, we lovers of film have taken it upon ourselves to collect as many movies as possible on VHS. All that mattered to us back then was that the quality was good enough for us to ensure we could enjoy our favorites over and over again. But in the late 90s, something changed. Something big. We were introduced to DVDs, and within a couple of years, we got to see just how little we were able to get just on videotape. Now, we were getting special edition discs with filmmaker commentary tracks, retrospective documentaries, prologues designed specifically for the discs, director's cuts with the branching option that allows you to plug in scenes that were pulled from the theatrical releases… the list goes on and on.

This day and age, you have to admit, we're spoiled. It's almost become pointless for us to see a movie in the theaters since we're more likely to see an even better version of the movie on DVD. Remember when we had to wait years for movies to come out on VHS? Now, if the movie we want to see isn't available to buy right after Opening Night, it's taking too long.

If you're a hardcore collector like myself, you know to be patient on certain films, usually hit films that only have barebones releases. Experience tells you that you just have to wait a while, and before you know it, you'll be hearing news about a Special Edition or Deluxe Edition or a Bueller… Bueller… Edition. Or, and this is what gets our hopes up quite a bit, the Ultimate Edition. For this category, we celebrate the best of the best of 2009. We give our highest awards to the two DVD releases that take the format and push it to the nth degree, giving customers hours of extra footage to watch and enjoy and creating a wonderful experience that keeps viewers coming back again and again. -George H. Sirios

And the nominees are: The Hangover (Unrated 2-Disk Edition); Inglorious Basterds (2-Disk Special Edition); The Seventh Seal (Criterion Collection); Star Trek (2 Disk Special Edition); Watchmen: The Ultimate Cut

Runner up- The Hangover: It's no longer all about the movie in a one sided compact disc. Nowadays people want more extras. More deleted scenes, more behind-the-screen footage, more commentary, and more than one movie version. The Hangover (Unrated 2-Disk Edition) does that and more.

Not only does the movie come with the theatrical version of the film (made for your religious friend that hates those naughty bits in movies…err…) but the DVD also comes with the super hardcore unrated almost pornographic super version. You know the story by now: four guys go to Las Vegas, all get royally hammered, and all get royally screwed. The unrated version runs about eight minutes longer than the theatrical release and has a lot more language and nudity than you made care for but then you didn't buy the "unrated version" for safety procedures, did you?

The Hangover is considered one of the best films of 2009 but there can't be a release without a few extras, right? Let me rattle off some special features here:

- 100 added photos from the camera (NSFW!)
- Commentary from director Todd Phillips, Bradley Cooper (Phil), Ed Helms (Stu), and Zach Galifianakis (Alan).
- "Map of Destruction" – contains 15 marker spots where they filmed on location and gives you interesting information
- A couple of songs: Three Best Friends Song and The Fame Song (performed by the Dan Band aka that wedding band in the movie)
- "Madness of Ken Jeong" – improv from the purse carrying leader Mr. Chow and more…

Admittedly, there could have been more done with the extras portion of the DVD and some would be really disappointed by it. Whatever the case, this is still an absolutely hilarious film that you should put on your DVD collection. -Porfirio Diaz

Winner- Watchmen: The Ultimate Cut; There are fewer comic book films that have divided their audiences like Watchmen did. While some people found the movie to be too slow or the music choices too distracting or too faithful to reach a more general audience, I found myself riveted and very much into the choices that Zack Snyder made. I didn't care for the switching around of scenes before the final act when Laurie realizes her connection to The Comedian AFTER Nite Owl and Rorscharch found out who was behind The Comedian's death, but I approved of the choice to get rid of the squid and make the destruction of New York City look like Dr. Manhattan was behind it.

Those who agreed with me about the film knew better than to pick up the single-disc DVD when it hit shelves. And they even knew better than to get the 2-disc Director's Cut that came out soon after. Why? Because they knew what was on the horizon, and eternal amounts of credit go to Zack Snyder, Warner Bros, Paramount and Legendary Pictures for making "The Ultimate Cut" of Watchmen more than worth the wait with their five-disc DVD package.

First, you have the "Ultimate Cut" which integrates all of the footage used in Zack's Director's Cut with the complete "Tales of the Black Freighter" animated film, giving the viewer an even more faithful adaptation of the original comic than both versions of the main live-action blockbuster. Then, on the same disc, you have two different commentary tracks: one by Zack Snyder (which is interesting, but Snyder seems to suffer from Michael Bay Syndrome when he says there are decisions he made on including something because it "seemed cool") and one by co-creator and illustrator Dave Gibbons (who loved the adaptation and made a point to constantly show how close this came to the comic).

Let's move on to Disc 2, which includes a slew of featurettes including the history of the comic and how it became such a groundbreaking piece of literature, a glance at the "Under the Hood" and "Tales of the Black Freighter" sub-stories and how they fit into the comic and the film adaptation, the video of My Chemical Romance's "Desolation Row," and many other shorter behind-the-scenes pieces. But my personal favorite has to be the adaptation of Hollis Mason's interview in the comic regarding his book "Under the Hood." What the filmmakers did was take the print interview and turn it into a half-hour-long tabloid show called "The Culpeper Minute," where Hollis Mason and other characters from Watchmen are interviewed. They discuss Mason's book, the relationships the original "Minutemen" had and what made them come together, and even delve into their personal lives (or at least, just enough into their personal lives before the subjects stop the interviews short). If you are introducing someone to the story of Watchmen, make sure you show them this first. THEN show them the movie.

Speaking of the movie, let's look at Disc 3. Or at least, let's only look at Disc 3 if you have a DVD-ROM drive because this has a full screen version of the theatrical version of the film.

To top it off, we have Discs 4 & 5, the Watchmen Complete Motion Picture Comic. For those who wanted the movie to be even more faithful to the comic, this is what they had in mind. This is a complete telling of the comic with limited animation and only one actor voicing everyone, even the women.

When DVDs were invented, THIS is what they had in mind when they were put together. Getting more than just the movie is a bit of an understatement when you look at Watchmen: The Ultimate Cut, and spending so many hours enjoying what's available on this is more reason than you need to consider this DVD the very best of 2009. -George H. Sirios





2009 turned out to be an incredibly awesome year made directly for your viewing pleasure. Honestly, I went into 2009 with low expectations since there was hardly anything to get excited about. Another Star Trek and Terminator movie? Meh. Harry Potter and the Half-Blood Prince? Not my thing. X-Men Origins: Wolverine? Semi-interesting but I know some people that still have nightmares about X-Men 3. I was even less excited about anything that was coming out of television besides Heroes and even I think that's hardly a show worth waiting for.

Needless to say, my expectations were more than fulfilled…and how! James Cameron made multiple eyeballs orgasm with delight at the sight of his new 3D movie format, a Star Trek franchise successfully (and profitably) rose from the dead, Quentin Tarantino banked out another highly quality film, and Megan Fox proved to the world that running around in slow motion while being nothing more than eye candy can be considered a worthwhile career choice. I even caved into the hype surrounding certain shows like Man Men and Dexter, and instantly grew to love them.

As great as 2009 was for movies and television, 2010 looks to become an even greater collection of sequels, remakes, and season premiering shows. There's so much to look forward to in the next 12 months ("Rampage" Jackson in The A-Team, anyone?) that you should definitely have plenty of popcorn ready.

Without further ado, here's a list of what we consider to be 2010's most wanted. -Porfirio Diaz

And the nominees are- Inception; Iron Man 2; Lost- The Final Season; Shutter Island

Runner up- Iron Man 2: It's funny to think that just a few years ago, Iron Man was considered a second-tier hero, barely known to any but die-hard comic fans. And despite some early positive buzz, there wasn't really much reason to expect the first Iron Man film to change that in as big of a way as it did. Headlined by a once-promising star who had unfortunately spent most of his recent years as a walking punchline, helmed by a director whose previous experience with FX-heavy action was the disappointing Zathura, and opening the same summer as the much more anticipated Dark Knight, it wasn't out of the question to wonder if Iron Man would end up just another also-ran in the superhero movie department. Instead, Iron Man rocked. No, it wasn't the heady examination of morality that Dark Knight was, but it didn't need to be. It was exactly what it had to be – a hell of a lot of fun. Now, Iron Man is pure A-List, a fact that will no doubt continue to prove true with this summer's release of the sequel. With star Robert Downey Jr. and director Jon Favreau back, and acclaimed actors like Don Cheadle, Scarlett Johansson, Mickey Rourke and Sam Rockwell now on board, Iron Man 2 should cement the series as one of the best franchises going…not to mention continue the exciting build towards Marvel's Avengers film, which promises to be one of the biggest movie events in history. -Trevor Snyder

Winner; Lost- The Final Season: Out of all the things that people are looking forward towards seeing pop-culture wise in 2010? You've got the big blockbuster sequels, the high profile theatric releases from your favorite auteur, and then you have the final conclusion of what may arguably be one of the most original television series of all time.

The fact that myself, as well as the majority of the 411 staff voted LOST's final season as the thing we all collectively wanted to see transpire in 2010 over such things like Iron Man 2, or the final gasp of the Harry Potter series of films, or films by both Martin Scorsese and Christopher Nolan?

That in and of itself is a testament of LOST's narrative prowess. We've invested five years of our lives watching, and waiting for answers. And seemingly, we're now on the verge of having them. We cannot wait.

What is the smoke monster? Why is Walt "special"? Who is Jacob, and for that matter, the Man In Black we met in the season five finale? Who will Kate choose, Jack or Sawyer? What is up with Jack's dad appearing on the island continuously, despite the fact that he's dead? And most importantly in the short term, what will the detonation of Jughead mean to our castaways? This is just a sample of the myriad mysteries that fans have puzzled over for the past five years.

We are ready. Bring it on.

They had just better not f*** it up. -Ben Piper



And that's it. The best of the very best as voted upon by the 411 staff. Whether you agree or disagree, that's up for you to debate in the comments.

I'd like to thank greatly all those that not only that took the time and effort to help out by writing and contributing to this column, but to those that merely voted. There were a lot to be sure, and every voice that spoke up was appreciated.

Special thanks also have to be expressed towards Tim ‘O Sullivan, whom had my back and helped out greatly with hunting down the various youtube clips.

And finally, a final shout out to my good buddy Velcronius (not his real name) whom provided all the banners. If you wish to see more of his work, check out his website.

It's been a blast. Hope you enjoyed it. We'll do it again next year.
-BP