2005: The Best TV Year Ever? Highlighting all the Year's Bright Spots

As TV viewers, we have all been blessed this past year. Blessed with so many wonderful, engaging, and quality shows that we often find that there are too many and too few hours to catch them all. There have been incredible performances on the small screen this past year along with some touching, scary, intense and just plain amazing moments. Let's take a moment to reflect back on the best of television 2005. Here are the rules: all entries came from network television only (cable is a whole different ballgame) and are from the current season so far (there would be far too many if I went back to last season as well). OK, here we go...

2005's Best Primetime Moments
*Michael Gets an IM (Lost) - This has to be one of the most shocking moments in this show's history, which is riddled with shocking moments. Michael sits down at the computer in the mysterious hatch and suddenly, a message appears from none other than Walt!

*Wallace Returns (Veronica Mars) - Proving that this show never ceases to catch us off guard, Wallace returned right when Veronica needed him the most. It was a surprise, and a very welcomed one with that.

*Lilly Loses Control (Cold Case) - In an episode from earlier this season, Lilly was faced with a case that she never solved and it led to the death of three more Bubley brothers. She was so ridden with guilt and anger that she spent most of the episode in a complete emotional meltdown, a rare event for a character that guards her emotions like she does her cases.

*Bright Helps Hannah (Everwood) - In a touching and well played scene, Bright talked Hannah through her self esteem issues by locking her in the bathroom until she finally saw herself the way he does. Scenes like this cement this series as one of television's finest.

*The Map (The Amazing Race: Family Edition) - In one of the most exciting finishes in the history of this show, two neck-and-neck teams rushed to put together a puzzle-like map of North America so they could race to the finish line. The two teams finished within seconds of each other, and we were all reminded why this show is leaps and bounds above its competition.

*The Reunion (Lost) - After thinking that their loved ones were dead, the survivors of flight 815 learn that they weren't the only ones who survived the crash. The "tallies," joined with Michael, Jin, and Sawyer, finally meet up with the rest of the survivors on the beach. It was a three hanky event.

*Vera Baby Sits (Cold Case) - One of this show's more touching personal moments. Tough talking Vera got straddled with a baby for a day and fell asleep with the little guy in one of the interrogation rooms until Lilly entered with a child services agent in toe. It seems Vera had grown attached and was sad to see the baby go, so sad that he filled out adoption papers in the episode's closing moments.

*Mom's Back (Alias) - Leave it to Alias to give us one of the season's most shocking moments so far. We find out that behind all this Prophet 5 babble is none other than Irina Derevko, Syd's mother! Kudos to everyone for keeping Lena Olin's appearance a secret and providing one of 2005's most shocking TV moments.

*Rat Saw Bus (Veronica Mars) - Keith's discovery of a dead rat under one of the seats of the ill-fated bus was both shocking and puzzling. What does the rat have to do with the crash? Wouldn't be all love to know! No worries, Veronica will figure it out in due time.

2005's Best TV Performances
*Kristen Bell (Veronica Mars, Veronica Mars) - Kristen's navigation through Veronica's complicated emotions for Duncan and Logan this season has been flawless. She has the continued ability to make us laugh one moment and cry along with her the next.

*Anthony LaPaglia (Jack Malone, Without A Trace) - Anthony always turns out a top notch performance, but his work in the recent episode in which Jack's father dies is some of his finest. He managed to convey Jack's anger, sadness, relief, and love for his father in that final scene where his father passed without saying anything more than a too-late "I love you."

*Mariska Hargitay (Olivia Benson, Law & Order: SVU) - Another consistent performer, but her work in this season's episode involving a child that might have been/might not have been kidnapped was outstanding. We felt conflicted about whether to believe the little girl and elated when things turned out okay right along with Olivia.

*Chris Pratt (Bright Abbott, Everwood) - This has been a big season for Bright. He found out his girlfriend doesn't believe in premarital sex, almost dumped her for that reason, realized that he loved her, found out she was moving to live with her mom, then found out she was staying until the end of the school year, and most recently, helped her deal with her self esteem. Pratt has managed to turn the stereotypical school jock into a lovable character that keeps growing with each new episode.

*Jason Dohring (Logan Echolls, Veronica Mars) - We've seen a more emotional side to Logan this season as he deals with losing Veronica, the impact of the revelation that his father killed his girlfriend because he was sleeping with her too, and those infamous tapes. It has given Jason a chance to shine, and he has risen to the occasion perfectly.

*Kathryn Morris (Lilly Rush, Cold Case) - With Lilly still reeling from her experience with George last season and her sister's bang-up trip through town, Kathryn has shown us the beauty of subtly this season. We've quietly watched Lilly come unraveled, all leading up to her meltdown during the Bubley case. Since then, she's subtly shown us a more controlled Lilly, and she does it all with the perfect finesse.

2005's Best Shows
*Everybody Hates Chris (UPN) - the funniest comedy on television
*Law & Order: SVU (NBC) - best of its franchise because it has the most heart
*Without A Trace (CBS) - this show gets props for coming back from the mediocrity it had fallen into last season. Proof you can't keep a good show down for long.
*Lost (ABC) - TV's most literature-like show is having an incredible sophomore season
*Everwood (WB) - this show is having its most consistent season yet, with each episode turning into a classic
*Cold Case (CBS) - TV's best procedural because it blends character development and the cases perfectly is continuing the tradition this season with compelling storylines both on and off the Case.
*Veronica Mars (UPN) - It's a rare show that continues to get better and better with each passing week, but Veronica does it with one of television's most talented writing staffs.

Those are my picks for 2005's best moments, performances and shows. What are yours? Be sure to leave a comment with your thoughts on 2005.


Making its final appearance until next year's holiday season...




It's a Wonderful Life - This is the second airing this season of this holiday classic. Saturday 8 p.m. NBC

Arthur's Perfect Christmas - This animated show finds Ellwood City in a flurry of holiday activity, but things aren't going as planned for Arthur. Saturday 8 p.m. PBS

A Christmas Story - Young Ralphie works to convince his parents, teachers, and Santa that a Red Ryder BB Gun is the perfect Christmas gift, but he keeps hearing that he'll "shoot his eye out!" Saturday 8 p.m. (marathon starts at 8 and runs for 24 hours) TBS

I'll Be Home for Christmas - Jonathan Taylor Thomas stars in this holiday movie about a college student who sets out on a trek home to win back his girlfriend. Saturday 9 p.m. ABC

How the Grinch Stole Christmas - This is the animated holiday classic based on the famous Dr. Seuss book. Saturday 10 p.m. Cartoon Network

Finding John Christmas - Valerie Bertinelli stars in this 2003 movie about a woman who searches for her brother and finds a newspaper photographer and an angel. Sunday 9 p.m. CBS

A Rugrats Kwanzaa - Little Susie learns about honoring the legacy and where greatness comes from after Aunt T arrives at the Carmichaels. Monday 8:30 p.m. Nickelodeon



QUICK CUTS

*The cast of ABC's Lost has the distinguished honor of being named Entertainment Weekly's "Entertainer of the Year." The magazine called the group of actors "treasured islanders" on a show that is "one of the biggest cult breakouts since The X-Files." The cast beat out Steve Carrell (# 2) and Naomi Watts (# 3) to claim the prime position.

*And finally, fans of the popular sci-fi drama Battlestar Galactica can get an early inside look at the show courtesy of iTunes. The special, Sci Fi Inside: Battlestar Galactica, will premiere on SCI FI Channel on January 2nd, but you can catch it on iTunes now. The special is the first program to be broadcast on the music program before hitting the traditional television airwaves.

That's all for today and 2005! I'm on hiatus for a couple of weeks to enjoy the holiday season with family. I hope you all have a wonderful holiday filled with good times and good people. Be sure to catch up on shows like Veronica Mars (Wednesdays, 9 p.m. UPN) during this short rerun season. Thank you all so much for your comments, suggestions, corrections and readership. Be sure to tune in on Thursday, January 5th, 2006 for the latest edition of Pass the Remote. This New Year should bring plenty of new TV moments, fabulous performances and most important, brand new episodes of all your favorite shows! Pass the Remote will be there for all of them, so be sure to come back on January 5th! Happy Holidays!