The Buffy

Salon's second annual award for the most underappreciated television show in all the land.

By Salon's A&E staff

Sep 17, 2005 | The awarding of last year's Buffy, our first-ever award for the most underappreciated show on all of television, was an easy choice. "The Wire" is simply everything we want out of a TV show: We bond forcefully with the characters of David Simon's Shakespearean urban drama and become deeply invested in the plot; the violent death of thug kingpin Stringer Bell last season left us feeling giddy, sad, enlightened and anxious -- just as a searing dramatization of the dynamics behind poverty, the war on drugs, and the class/race ceiling should. Our Sunday night HBO votive burns as bright for "The Wire" as it does for all those other shows -- and frequently, much brighter.

The Emmy graciously bowed to The Buffy's wisdom this year, offering a belated nomination to "The Wire" for outstanding writing. A token gesture, sure. But at least they're learning.

This year, deciding who was truly worthy of following in "The Wire's" footsteps was a tougher assignment. Following the advice of people we trust, we have become fans of SciFi's "Battlestar Galactica." We're continually irritated that "The Daily Show" isn't given much Emmy prominence, the way it's shoved into the category of variety, music or comedy series -- let's face it, the show's a lot more influential, and hilarious, than anything nominated for best comedy series, and it's daily. And now that writers are demanding that they be treated appropriately for scripting "reality" TV, should one of the several great shows from that genre deserve greater recognition? Also, we really do have a soft spot for "Gilmore Girls," and the devilishly crisp writing on "Nip/Tuck" at times seems like everything "Desperate Housewives" could ever hope to be. Such tough decisions!

Next Page: And the Buffy goes to ...

• View blog reactions