TV in the 2000s or How Let's name ABND's Best Drama Actors/Actresses

Best Performances (TV Drama)

Narrowing the performance/actor categories was HARD. But I went with two things:

1. Do I like the actor/actress?

2. Do I like the performance?

Okay, maybe that didn't help 'em narrow them down at all. But I do have a crazy math system in the back of my head. Just don't make me explain it to cause I'm sure it would blow you away with its awesome and accurateness.

Best Drama Actor

What is it about male actors that keeps me from being wholly invested in them and prevents me from giving great praise to their work? I was planning on writing these men up but maybe it's the end-of-year fatigue coupled with the amount of schoolwork I have but I think they'll speak for themselves.

Jon Hamm - Don Draper (Mad Men)

"You are the product. You feeling something. That's what sells. Not them. Not sex. They can't do what we do and they hate us for it."

Peter Krause - Nate Fisher (Six Feet Under)

"None of us know how long we've got. Which is why we have to make each day matter."

Michael C Hall - David Fisher (Six Feet Under)/ Dexter Morgan (Dexter)

"Yeah, I'll be the strong one, the stable one, the dependable one, because that's what I do. And everyone around me will fall apart. 'Cause that's what they do." - David

"Viva Miami" - Dexter

Hugh Laurie - Dr Gregory House (House)

"It's Never Lupus!"

Victor Garber - Jack Bristow (Alias)

"Sydney, get in. Get in now... you can be stubborn later."

Runners up:

What would Battlestar Galactica have been without Edward James Olmos' raspy, Bale-doing-Batman voice and stern command? What would Big Love have been without its center piece in the form of Bill Paxton? Or, what would Joss's Angel had been without its leading cast member (David Boreanaz, now a staple at Fox's Bones)? Answer: not as good a show as they were.

Best Drama Actress

The ladies though, I couldn't leave without some commentary. Brief as it may be:

Mary McDonnell - President Laura Roslin (Battlestar Galactica)

"I won't compromise the success of this operation or the safety of this fleet to indulge the neediness of 12 perpetually unhappy representatives. I can't."

What to say about one of the most complex female political figures to grace TV this past decade? The younger cast may have given us plenty of eye candy (Tricia, Katee, Tammoh, Jamie) but it was truly in the duo of Edward James-Olmos and Mary McDonnell, that BSG soared for me. In Laura Roslin - a minister of Education thrust into the role of president after humankind is annihilated, McDonnell gave us a towering presence from the miniseries all the way to the end, when we finally saw her experience pure happiness. Here was a woman who knew what was best for humanity and in many odd ways managed to make me support and believe in the powers of dictatorship, torture, as well as ruthless political strategy without ever making me blink or doubt her. That alone was a feat in itself. The fact that despite this resolute nature of her was still imbued with tenderness and vulnerability (not only in the form of her illness but in her romantic engagement with Adama), without ever seeming at odds, shows how carefully McDonnell (a past Oscar nominee, let us not forget) crafted this character.

Sarah Michelle Gellar - Buffy Summers (Buffy the Vampire Slayer)

"I'm the thing that monsters have nightmares about. And right now, you and me are gonna show 'em why."

Probably my pick for the bravest and most fully formed character this past decade, there's no denying that Buffy Summers wouldn't have been the pop cultural icon it became without the strength of Gellar's thespian skills. Few can straddle the line between high camp and deep melancholy which this part required. Here was a conflicted woman torn between triviality (prom, dating, hairstyles, boys) and the transcendent (death, grief, demons, boys). "The Body" - the episode where Buffy's mom passes away (beautifully directed sans accompanying score by Joss Whedon) is one of the most affecting episodes this show ever produced. To see Gellar's close ups is to see a great actress at work, showing so much grief and so much pain yet trying to remain in control and composed: but how does a slayer deal with death when 'death is her gift' as that season constantly reminded us? But it wasn't just the dramatic scenes that make Buffy a great character and Gellar a worthy candidate for this award: her comedic timing (whether she's playing a robot version of herself, going all "cave-girl" because of beer, or playing up her ditzy blonde routine) is flawless, never missing a beat and always willing to be butt of the joke should the occasion require it. For that, Gellar remains one of my all-time favorite actresses, even if her filmography leaves much to be desired.

January Jones - Betty Draper (Mad Men)

"Sally! Go Bang Your head against the wall"

There are many detractors when it comes to Betty Draper. But one thing that is hard to argue is that, regardless how you feel about Betty, you have to give January Jones props for unflinchingly making Betty the ice-cold Nordic frazzled and childish queen that she is. While her storyline this past season fell mostly on the grating side, her season 2 arc is one of the most interesting examinations of female (and feminine) desire in twentieth century America I've seen put on screen (and here's someone who loves Revolutionary Road, Far From Heaven, The Women, The Hours and Almodovar's films). Betty may seem like a spoiled child (and there's no denying she is) but rather than see her as merely promoting this ideal, Weiner's show is clearly more interested in examining her as a symptom of the culture that bred her. Her mood swings are no less a consequence of here-and-there plot twists but more of a portrayal of the conflicting discourses that rule her life and which she cannot seem to comprehend. I am still waiting to see what they have in store for her next season (I, for one don't want Betty to go away) but these past three seasons enamoured me and while she's anything but lovable, she's fascinated and most of this is because Jones plays her so beautifully (her melancholy gazes, her hysterical fits, even her eerie calm resolve are always magnetic).

Jeanne Tripplehorn - Barb Henrickson (Big Love)

"We're never too far apart when we're holding hands."

This show is pitch-perfect when it comes to complex women (any of the other two wives could have easily made this lineup) but for me it's all about Barb. Maybe it's because she's the one I can relate to the most (and the one that most reminds me of my mother) but it's also because she seems to be the most fully formed and conflicted when it comes to her make-shift "family" and still its most staunch supporter (as evidenced by last season's storyline). She always breaks my heart but what Tripplehorn manages is to achieve this without falling into a portrayal that plays up her victim-like position (which is rarely promoted by the writing itself) but by braving the attacks on her family and her lifestyle knowing full well how she will always stand for what is right (which is why I love the quote that I chose): she may not agree with Margie or Nikki all the time, but she loves them. Family, as they say, always comes first.

Amy Acker - Winifred Burkle (Angel)/Dr Saunders (Dollhouse)

"This has been the best night ever. First, there's you taking me to ice cream, then there's the ice cream, then that monster jumps out of the freezer and you're all brave and, "Fred, watch out!," and then we get to chase it down into the sewers, which are just so bleak, and oppressive and homey. I-I could build a condo down here." - Fred

"You can't be your best. Your best is past. Your past you can't even remember. You're ugly now. You're disgusting. All you can hope for now is pity. And for that, you're going to have to look somewhere else." - Dr Saunders

This is probably my only left-field entry but I have a soft-spot for Amy Acker and I truly believe that her 2 (well, 4 if we're being specific) Whedon characters speak very highly about this young Sci-Fi starlet (it's no surprise she has several Saturn Award nominations and one win under her belt). From the quirky and lovable Winifred ("Fred") to the ice-cold alien nature of Illyria to the touching pitiable Dr Saunders (and then her creepy and touching turn as Whiskey), Acker showed great range, while still nailing the vulnerable and wounded aspects of her characters. "A Hole in the World" (the episode where - spoilers alert! - Fred "dies") still ranks as one of my all-time favorite Whedon episodes and most of it is due to Acker's performance because even as it could have fallen into cliche (dying words, sickness), her tenderness and humour weren't completely gone and made the scene when she finally dies that much more heartbreaking.

Runners up:

The Six Feet Under gals (Lauren Ambrose, Rachel Griffiths & Frances Conroy) for carefully adding much needed estrogen to the boy-ruled household. Tricia Helfer (Battlestar Galactica) for making Six a more complex and interesting cylon than most human TV characters this decade. The Damages pair: this show really works Rose Byrne and Glenn Close for all their thespian power and in the process we get two lawyers with more characterization than a mere procedural would ever require.

TV in the 2000s or How Let's name ABND's Best Drama Series

Best Drama Series

To say I don't watch too many dramas is an understatement. Maybe this is in part due to the fact that networks rarely stray far away from doctors, lawyers and cops (notice only one of the 8 shows I am about to mention fall into one of those categories), so while everyone this decade was entranced by a mob family (which I hear I really should give it a chance), a plane crash (which I'm scolded for not having given it a chance), McDreamy, all the CSIs and all the Law and Orders, I found a couple of shows that struck a nerve: a blond girl, an AdMan, a rag-tag fleet and a shark-lady lawyer are for me the best drama series this past decade. Find out why:

Buffy the Vampire Slayer

Joss Whedon's gift to the world came in the figure of a slender blonde girl from California who was a regular misfit (and occasional cheerleader) by the day but who was the 'Chosen One' by night (and also sometimes during the day). "Into every generation a slayer is born" might have ticked off a lot of people who don't see genre as a valid way to make quality TV, but for us geeks every season of Buffy gave us a newfound respect for the writers and actors in this show who took a metaphorical premise (demons in high school) to a new level, making Sarah Michelle Gellar a star (and spawning, among others, current TV staples both in front of the screen: Bones's David Boreanaz, Robot Chicken's Seth Green, How I Met Your Mother's Alyson Hannigan and behind it: BSG/Caprica's Jane Espenson, Grey's/Mad Men's Marti Noxon) way before Twilight, True Blood and every other vampire franchise that paired a young girl with a vampire as her romantic interest was even being gestated. Buffy's mix of humour, pathos, camp and drama can best be summed up in the episodes that have cherished by fans years after the show went off the air: 'The Body' gave SMG a chance to show her acting chops as Buffy dealt with the death of her mother, 'Once More With Feeling' will always be the 'musical episode' every TV show who ever attempts one will be compared to, and the Emmy-nominated 'Hush' (an almost-silent episode) is a master-class in writing and acting. For blending all of these aspects together and breaking new ground in terms of what it means to have a strong female role and spawning a franchise that extended to a spin-off show, several comic book titles, novels and infinite amount of forums around the internets, Buffy should be considered one of the greatest achievements in TV of the decade.

Mad Men

Is there a show on the air more elegantly crafted than Matthew Weiner's two-time Emmy winner Best Drama Series Mad Men? It may be the time period (1960s NYC) but the allure of the show doesn't stop there. Following the elusive and mysterious Don Draper as an Madison Avenue advertising man, Mad Men feels at once like a look back to simpler times and a stern look at how nostalgia itself does wonders for hindsight. Tearing apart the American quaintness of the period (with scathing social commentary ranging from critiques on femininity, marriage and class), the show in the three seasons it has aired, has shown that the American dream might have been at its most nightmarish while it rode high on the Camelot myth. Punctuated by nation-shattering events (Marylin's death, the Cuban Missile Crisis, JFK's assassination, the riots in the South after MLK's murder) the show has never lost track of its nuanced and well-paced style, favoring character studies over plot developments, creating simmering build ups rather than explosive melodrama. Emmy nominated thesps John Hamm, Elisabeth Moss and John Slattery, along with (sadly snubbed) January Jones and Christina Hendricks keep us entranced by these characters as they have been moving through the tumultuous decade of the 1960s, a time of change in America, not of course, without looking slicker and more glamorous than any other ensemble cast on television this past decade.

Battlestar Galactica

In a Hollywood world intent on remaking, rebooting and recharging failing and fading franchises, we should all look closer to Ronald D. Moore's Battlestar Galactica to see how it can be done. Taking the premise of the 1970s show of the same name (where a group of cylons - self-aware and intelligent robots - annihilate the entire human race save for one Battlestar), Moore's show took the concept, tweaked it (cylons in this version have managed to look like humans) and carefully constructed an allegory of America in a post-9/11 world dealing with issues of terrorism, suicide-bombers, torture, faith and spirituality in a way that never seemed derivative or exploitative. While many took issue with how the series was resolved, there's no denying that for 4 seasons (and two made for TV movies), BSG was one of the most engaging television series to grace the screen. That it featured a great cast (including Oscar-nominated Mary McDonnell & Edward James Olmos, as well as Jamie Bamber, Tricia Helfer, Grace Park, Katee Sackhoff and Tammoh Penikket didn't hurt either as they each brought a visceral vulnerability to characters that, in hands of lesser writers and actors, might have been lost in between the cylon/human fights and all the spaceship stuff worthy of a good Sci Fi show.

Damages

Not since Ally McBeal had I cared more about lawyers and their crazy shenanigans. But while that David E. Kelley worked the whimsy into courtrooms, Damages takes a slightly more terrifying and electric look at what happens behind close doors (mostly, in random alleys and under tables). From the first frame of the pilot you're hooked. But you stay for the great writing, editing and acting. Close and Byrne play to their strengths as Patty Hewes and her new associate Ellen Parsons, the former evoking the great crazy-ladies of Close's Oscar-nominated past and the former playing the ingenue (though as season 2 showed, us - not for long). With only two seasons under its belt I considered not placing it so high up, but its first season was so perfectly crafted and gripping that I couldn't not think of it as one of the greatest pieces of television I have seen this past decade.

Runners up:

Six Feet Under (a great cast, pitch-perfect dialogue and a somber and macabre mood sprinkled with dry humour made this a gem of a show - I'm sure it'll rank higher once I finish the entire series - confession: I'm only on season 2), Big Love (because this is what families are: a mixed-bag of crazy held together by the common filial bond of marriage(s)), Skins (showing that the Brits do it better - and sexier and edgier - this show gives us a glimpse of high school life without sanitizing it), Alias (sorry Zoe, I know this isn't the JJ. Abrams show you wanted me to shout out, I never truly watched Felicity) (not only for giving us Jennifer Garner, but for creating a fast-paced female centered show that rarely sacrificed storytelling for big bangs).

Mad Men, or How smoking is damn sexy!

Despite what ads in bus stops may tell me, smoking can be sexy (!) without making want to partake in the practice itself. I mean, it sure as hell looks like it could be oodles of fun, no?

At least when it's done by January Jones (who looked gorgeous in this week's episode):

Part of it must be the fact that she doesn't even need to light up herself (though I do lover her lighter which looks like it could be used to escape a maximum security prison)

Here, light up and join her!

"We're MAAAD MEN!" or How Sesame Street spoofs Mad Men!

Mad Men, or How what to do with all this blood?

It's fitting that one of the opening images of Mad Men's Season 3 premiere was of a bloodied bed due to miscarriage. If the ant colony (and it's smashing) symbolised Sterling Cooper under the Brits, the image of the a bloodied bed from a miscarriage viscerally encapsulates several of the themes that have so far run through the season: the (in)ability to conceive (Betty and Trudy as mirror opposites as seen at Roger's party), the creation of new familial relations (both in Roger's new found family and in Don & Betty's household), sexual promiscuity - which bears Dick Whitman (in Peggy's newfound sexuality) and as the following images show, blood in itself comes to figure in several different contexts:

A bloody helmet became the center of a discussion on war.

Sally's bloodied face came to symbolize her inability to cope with loss.

A blood-stained floor haunted Betty's drug-induced labour dreams.

And of course, a splatter of blood took center stage in last week's episode, ruining Joan's lovely green dress.

And I have to wonder... are Weiner & co. building up for that other (in)famous blood splatter which took place in Novemeber 1963?

Mad Men, or How "a guy walks into an advertising agency..."

The more things change...

Can we please just talk about this week's episode of Mad Men (you know, the one that aired at roughly the same time the show was receiving its two Emmys on Sunday)?

Coming hot on the heels of what I thought was one of the best episodes this season (last week's "The Fog"), Matthew Weiner & co. have presented us with an episode that threatened to change everything at Sterling Cooper and in a 'bloody surprising' move, managed to turn everything back to 'normal' faster than you can say John Deere (if that line makes no sense to you, you need to watch the episode, as I have no desire to spoil the episode's plot-twist (though you can go here and see an animated GIF of it if you want)).

If nothing else, this episode re-calibrated much of the plot gears we have slowly been watching (Sally and Gene, Betty's (in)explicable attitude towards her family, Peggy & Pete's career aspirations - notice how McKendrick used the same line on both of them, Don & Roger's enmity) but did so in a very MadMenian way: not with grandiose changes (though it did start out that way) but by challenging its characters with what so threatened the 1960s: the status quo.

And jolly did it do it with a dose of black humour:

"I'm bored"

"Bang you head on the wall"

"He might lose his foot"

"Right when he got it in the door..."

Yet for me the question remains: what will happen to Joan who has seen (in less then a year) her hopes for marrying a successful doctor and living the/her dream dashed (not least because of her rape last season, but also because her beloved didn't make surgeon after all) - will she return to Sterling Cooper? Is there a way to do so while still being able to rule the office - not with a iron clad fist but - with a stylish silk glove?

That said, I love that she got screen time (and one of the better lines of the night):

"My god"

"I know, it's ruined"

Ah Joan, always with her priorities set.

Mad (Wo)Men, or How Ms Jones is gorgeous

[src]

Season 3 of Mad Men kicks off Aug 16th.

Little Miss Moss, or How Bette's Gypsy had Peggy pre-Mad Men

Before she was Ms Peggy Olson,

Ms Elisabeth Moss was Li'l Louise opposite Bette Midler in the 1993 TV version of Gypsy.

Isn't she adorable?

Wish I could be in Springfield, or How it's Homer "Don Draper" Simpson to you!

A new series to keep the blog going. I'm choosing on a weekly basis (Wishing Wednesdays!) someone/thing I wish I could be from whatever popular culture outlet I choose.

Wish I could be... in Springfield:

The Treehouse of Horror episodes are usually brilliant, and this Sunday's promises to be one for the books. Here's the Mad Men opening credits courtesy of a Mr Homer Simpson giving us one last MM fix before we start the countdown for Season 3 to start next July (now if only AMC would sign Matthew Weiner already!):

Mad Manly Links, or How Sometimes Other People Say it Better

Mad Men

Meditations on an Emergency 

Season 2 Finale

Wow. Mad Men's latest episode blew me away - Peggy and Pete: heartbreaking; Betty and Don: harrowing. Add to that a Frank O'Hara reference, a Cuban Missile Crisis backdrop and deft direction by creator/writer Matthew Weiner and you got yourself one of TVs greatest scripted hours.

And going by the idea that talking/reading about good things only makes them better I found a couple of posts that sum up exactly how I felt about the episode:

Televisionary - Meditations on an Emergency: Truth and Consequences on the Mad Men season finale

Vulture - 'Mad Men' Season Finale: Near-Anihilation 

TV Blogster - Mad Men Season Finale: Meditations on an Emergency

John Hamm & co, or How Mad Men takes over SNL

An excellent way to remind everyone that tonight's the Mad Men Season 2 Finale!

Don Draper's Guide to Picking up Women:

Step 1:

When in doubt, remain absolutely silent.

Step 2:

When asked about your past give vague, open ended answers.

Step 3: 

Have a great name.

Step 4:

Look fantastic in a suit.

Look fantastic in casual wear.

Look fantastic in anything.

Sound good.

Smell good.

Kiss good.

Strut around with supreme confidence.

Be uncannily successful at your job.

Blow people away everytime you say anything.

Take six hour lunches.

Disappear for weeks at a time.

Lie to everyone about everything.

Drink and smoke constantly.

... Basically, be Don Draper.

A-Holes: Pitch Meeting:

Loved the Moss ("bangs")/Slattery ("silver fox") cameos and the way the SNL writers successfully spoofed the inspired 'Wheel' pitch from Season 1's season finale.

"Isn't doing nothing the ultimate luxury? We spend our lives jumping through hoops isn't it time we relaxed inside one?"

Favorite Characters on TV, or How this is why Lists were created!

Here goes, for no reason whatsoever and prompted by nothing but boredom and a will to procrastinate like it's nobody's business, I give you my favorite characters from TV from 2008. Yes, they are arbitrary, only include characters from shows I actually watch (so yeah... House, any of them Heroes, 90210ers and Gossipy boys, any procedurals or McDoctors will not be found here... for that you people got the Tv rags and them People's Choice whatevers). Here, strong women and gay men rule the world. Also being a bitch helps you out. A lot.

Top 10 Favorite TV Characters from 2008

Shoutouts to:

Amy Poehler as Hillary Clinton (that laugh... so creepy, so funny!), the rest of the Desperate Housewives (yay Ensemble work!), Vanessa Williams' Wilhemina Slater (Ugly Betty) - she's scarier in HD!, Christina Applegate's Samantha (Samantha Who? - exactly!), Stephen Colbert (The Colbert Report) - cause it wouldn't be Indecision 2008 without good ol' Stephen, Jack Donaghy (30 Rock... actually that entire cast for being so hysterical!)... I could go on, but instead here's the actual list.

10. Holly

Amy Ryan (The Office)

Who knew Amy Ryan was so funny? And awkward? And Michael Scott's secret long-lost soulmate? She has been a breathe of fresh air (and a welcome one at that!) in The Office's newest season.

I was trying to adjust the lumbar support on Toby's chair and that made this up-down lever not work and I took the whole chair apart and that is the story of me on the floor. It's pretty good right? I'm gonna sell the movie rights.

9. _____

Kristen Wiig (SNL)

I had to include Kristen here, because well... she makes EVERY skit she's in AMAZING. 

Actually, there's a few ways -- just kidding, there's only one way -- just kidding, I don't know how many ways there are -- just kidding, I do, there's eight -- just kidding, there's eighteen, I counted them -- just kidding, my friend did and she never lies -- just kidding, she lied once, but I wasn't there -- just kidding, we're not really friends, we work together -- just kidding, I work by myself -- just kidding, I workout by myself -- just kidding, I don't work out, 'cause I kicked out of my gym -- just kidding, it closed -- just kidding! 

8. Jenna Maroney

Jane Krakowski (30 Rock)

Me want food... er me want Jenna! Jane sells every line she gets handed as if it was a comedic 

gem, and by the time you're done laughing you realize it is. Fat Jenna? Funny. Skinny bitchy Jenna? Hysterical. Porn video game voice actress Jenna? Priceless. I am very excited for what's in store for that Mystic Pizza the Musical actress/Muffin Top singer.

These things happen Liz. I had my "no sex with Asians" rule but then one day you walk into Sharper Image and there's Quan

7. Marc St James

Michael Urie (Ugly Betty)

Marc is the funniest half of the funniest Fag/Fag-Hag pair to grace Prime Time since a certain flat-chested red-headed Jewess was rooming with a sex-less suburban lawyer gay. Marc is deliciously bitchy albeit stereotypical, and that scene where he slapped fake Wilhemina was priceless (add to that his wardrobe) and you have numero siete on my list.

Sure, if by 'beer' you mean 'Appletini'

6. Bree Van de Camp... ahem Hodge

Marcia Cross (Desperate Housewives)

Everyone's favorite housewife is even more desperate this season what with no more baby, a failing marriage, a bickering partner and well... thankfully, a soaring business. Here's hoping for more Bree-bites this season.

Andrew, tell this gentleman that if he calls me 'sweetie' again I'm gonna grab his camera and take a picture of his colon!

5. Barney Stinson

Neil Patrick Harris (How I Met Your Mother)

In one word Barney is "Awesome" ... or maybe just "Legen...wait for it... dary!" HIMYM is a show that shines when NPH gets great storylines and even better one-liners. I'm interested to see how the "falling in love" with Robin storyline will play out (Nothing's funnier than an anxiety-ridden Barney!) Bonus points: Dr Horrible's Sing-Along Blog.

What's that? Self-five? Nice, we out!

4. Six, Tricia Helfer 

(Battlestar Galactica)

Earlier seasons might have been all about President Roslin (Roslin'08!) and Starbuck, but Six dominated this past season - in all and every one of her incarnations. And much of that has come from the writer's willingness to explore the "humanity" in the cylons and of course the increasing talent of a certain Ms Helfer who's proven she's as talented as she is gorgeous.

God has a plan, Gaius. He has a plan for everything, and everyone

3. Tina Fey's Sarah Palin

Tina Fey (SNL)

What can I say about Tina's Palin that I haven't said before? Her Alaskan accent, her matching outfits, her crazy never-ending sentences... It has made for Must-Watch Saturday Night TV. And gosh-darnit, Tina made me be interested in your crazy US of A politics by following a certain moose-hunting, anti-women Alaskan right-wing nut. Here's hoping that this SNL exposure can make Tina's other doppelganger (Liz Lemon) gets some traction starting next week on NBC, making 30 Rock Must-Watch TV as well.

Senator McCain and I are not afraid to get Maverickey in there

2. Olive Snook

Kristin Chenoweth (Pushing Daisies)

Cheno is clearly a staple at this blog (click here for more) but really, a spunky romantic little blond waitress who sings? How could I resist? Also Season 2's story arc where she was a nun was hilarious but I'm also glad she's back in the Pie-Hole bickering and rooming with Lonely Tourist Charlotte Charles.

Our store is called The Pie Hole. As in shut your. Or in this case "Open your" because it's real good.

1. Joan Holloway

Christina Hendricks (Mad Men)

Joan is amazing. She is a bitch, she's gorgeous, she's curvy and sexy. And in Season 2 she's proven she's more than a cliché (See here for more on Joan) - how crushing was her rape scene this past Sunday? It's no wonder she made the banner for A Blog Next Door. Oh also: she's a Whedon Alum (if you don't know what Whedon show I mean you need to re-watch Firefly) and that just gives Christina Hendricks a boost of a gazillion points.

(Commenting about Paul to his new African-American girlfriend) 
"The last thing I would’ve taken him for was open-minded"