Best Moments on TV of 2012... So Far

Jordan Peele (left) and
Keegan Michael Key in "Key & Peele"

Most movie theaters are only open 12 hours a day and the content is repeated over and over for a week. Television is available 24 hours a day and the content has gotten to the point where the major networks don't show many re-runs. Fresh programming is daily and on hundreds of channels. Finding the best of all that is difficult and for one person to do is very limited. Because I'm adding YouTube to the mix, this proves to be impossible. Based on what I was able to see and my own personal tastes, I put together this very subjective list.

Best Moments on TV of 2012... So Far

10. SACHA BARON COHEN VS. RYAN SEACREST (Feb. 26) - Sacha Baron Cohen walked the Red Carpet at the Oscars as his character from The Dictator and used his time with Ryan Seacrest who was doing interviews for E! Entertainment to spill what he thought was ashes from Kim Jong Il's urn.

9. BACK TO THE START - CHIPOTLE AD (Feb. 12) - The TV ad featured stop-motion animation of a farmer going "green" and going "organic" in the way he cultivates his live stock. Adweek named this commercial the second-best TV ad of 2011. The two-minute ad became Chipotle's first national television spot when it aired during the Grammys. It featured Willie Nelson covering Coldplay's song "The Scientist."

8. COLOR CHANGES EVERYTHING - TARGET AD  (Feb. 14) -  Director Fillip Engstrom follows a colorful, energetic, and sprightly group of characters who arrive in a bright, bold hot air balloon, spilling out and bringing their magic touch. Advertising agency Weiden + Kennedy created the ad. Music is the French folk song “Alouette”, sung by Delta Rhythm Boys in 1958.

7. KONY 2012 DOCUMENTARY (March 5) - The organization Invisible Children put the 30-minute documentary on YouTube and with celebrity help got 100 million people to view it, certifing it the most viral video in history. The documentary was designed to raise awareness of Joseph Kony, the dictator in Uganda. Less than two weeks later, the documentary's filmmaker, Jason Russell was arrested in San Diego for a mental breakdown.

6. LEGALIZE GAY (May 5) - LOGO television broadcast this hour-long documentary that followed ten people, both gay and straight, who were working to advance gay rights, particularly people who made headlines this past year, including Zach Wahls and Brian Sims. I only wish that filmmaker Christopher Hines had been able to include U.S. Marines Sgt. Brandon Morgan's story this past February but MSNBC did.

5. THE TALK ON TRAYVON MARTIN (March 20) - The CBS daytime series The Talk addressed the shooting of Trayvon Martin in Florida and it got very emotional for the show and its all women panel. Aisha Tyler was passionate and Sheryl Underwood was tearful.

4. WHITE HOUSE CORRESPONDENTS DINNER - (April 28) President Obama's comedy routine wasn't as great as it was last year where he had Donald Trump as a target, but Jimmy Kimmel was very much on point.

 

3. MAYA RUDOLPH HOSTS SATURDAY NIGHT LIVE (Feb. 18) - There were some great moments from SNL this past year and some great hosts including Melissa McCarthy, Jimmy Fallen and Eli Manning. The 100th Digital Short was also hilarious and Mick Jagger leading Kristen Wiig's send-off in the Season 37 finale was poignant, but the best episode overall would have to be Maya Rudolph's. Her impressions of Maya Angelou, Beyonce and Michelle Obama were incredible.

2. 8: THE PLAY (March 3) - The American Foundation for Equal Rights (AFER) sponsored the production of "8" a play written by Dustin Lance Black, the Oscar-winning writer of Milk. YouTube broadcast the play, which is a dramatic reading of the Perry v Schwarzenegger trial transcript, live fom, the Wilshire Ebell Theatre in Los Angeles. It starred Brad Pitt, George Clooney, Martin Sheen, Kevin Bacon, Jamie Lee Curtis, Christine Lahti, John C. Reilly, Matthew Morrison, Matt Bomer, George Takei, Jane Lynch and many more.

 

1. WHITNEY HOUSTON MEMORIAL (Feb. 18) - Held at the New Hope Baptist Church in Newark, New Jersey, this service, which was essentially the pop singer's funeral was simulcast Saturday morning starting at 11:30AM on CNN, BET, MSNBC and NY1. Various news web sites and live-streaming services broadcast the 4-hour-long event online as well. It featured a bevy of celebrities who performed or spoke on Houston's behalf, including her mentor Clive Davis and Kevin Costner. My favorite performance was by Alicia Keys who sang "Prelude to a Kiss (Send Me an Angel)."

Best TV Movies

1. FAMILY AFFAIR (OWN)

2. WOODY ALLEN: A DOCUMENTARY (PBS)
3. HATFIELDS & MCCOYS (HIST)

4. THE WEIGHT OF THE NATION (HBO)

5. LEAVE IT ON THE FLOOR (LOGO)

Best Reality / Variety

1. FROZEN PLANET (DISC)

2. REAL TIME WITH BILL MAHER (HBO)
3. WATCH WHAT HAPPENS: LIVE (BRAVO)

4. OUR AMERICA WITH LISA LING (OWN)

5. RED EYE WITH GREG GUTFELD (FOX NEWS)

Best Comedy

1. KEY & PEELE: Season 1 (COM)

2. DESPERATE HOUSEWIVES: Final Season (ABC)

3. 30 ROCK: Season 6 (NBC)

4. NURSE JACKIE: Season 4  (SHOW)

5. HAPPY ENDINGS: Season 2 (ABC)

6. AWKWARD: Season 2 (MTV)

Best Drama

1. THE GOOD WIFE: Season 3  (CBS)
2. JUSTIFIED: Season 3 (FX)
3. THE WALKING DEAD: Season 2 (AMC)

4. CASTLE: Season 4 (ABC)

5. SUPERNATURAL: Season 7 (CW)
6. TEEN WOLF: Season 2 (MTV)

Best Actor or Actress for Individual Performances

1. Bruce Greenwood - The River

2. Megan Hilty - Smash

3. Patrick Wilson - A Gifted Man

4. Kiefer Sutherland - Touch

5. Kerry Washington - Scandal