Best Moments on TV of 2013... So Far

Zoosk Heart Friend in TV ad

The biggest thing happening on TV isn't actually happening on TV. It's happening on Netflix. House of Cards and Arrested Development were made available exclusively on the video streaming service that requires online subscription. Thanks to modern technology, Netflix can be streamed to people's television sets or flat screens, but it's all happening on the Internet.

Another big thing was the return of two cancelled soap operas. All My Children and One Life to Live returned, but it wasn't to television. It was again to the Internet. Not many people logged on to see them, but they came back. I'm not sure how many people watch Blip.tv, but I, for example, watch YouTube probably everyday and with the exception of things that air on Sunday nights, due to my work schedule, everything I watched was through a web site like Hulu. My list of the best moments on TV are ironically all moments I viewed on a computer.

10. GE's BRILLIANT MACHINES (Nov. 29, 2012) - Advertising does support TV and while TiVo and DVR helps people to skip them, there are ads that pop up every now and then. GE's commercial about real robots and TV robots converging was very cool.

9. ZOOSK's HOT DATE (March 4) - I had never heard of Zoosk before seeing this commercial, now everytime I think of online dating, it won't be eHarmony or Match.com that sticks in my mind, it will be the image of Liz on a date with Brad, while Brad is molested by a big, red, heart puppet.

8. HEALING IN THE HEARTLAND (May 29) - Country star Blake Shelton organized this telethon in Oklahoma City, which raised more than $6 million in pledges and ticket sales for the United Way of Central Oklahoma's May Tornadoes Relief Fund. Miranda Lambert, Reba McEntire, Vince Gill, Luke Bryan, Darius Rucker and Rascal Flatts also performed. Produced by NBC, the event also aired on other cable channels, including CMT.

7. OPRAH INTERVIEWS LANCE ARMSTRONG (Jan. 17) - Oprah Winfrey's weekly series Oprah's Next Chapter on her cable channel OWN has become an occasional must-watch for the guests she lands. Last year, it was Jason Russell who had a crazy, naked-in-the-street, mental breakdown. This year, so far, it's a toss-up. Oprah was the first to interview on TV the first openly gay NBA player, Jason Collins, but Oprah wasn't as challenging as she was to Lance Armstrong, which makes his the better interview.

6. PRESIDENT BARACK OBAMA'S SECOND INAUGURATION (Jan. 21) - It wasn't as moving or meaningful as the first inauguration of the country's first, African-American president, but it was held on Martin Luther King, Jr. Day, as well as on the 150th anniversary of Lincoln's Emancipation Proclamation. Aside from popular acts like James Taylor, Kelly Clarkson and Beyonce singing "The Star-Spangled Banner," important speakers like Myrlie Evers and Richard Blanco, the first openly gay inaugural poet, took to the podium.

5. SUPER BOWL XLVII (Feb. 3) - The 47th annual game had so many highlights and surprising drama. The Baltimore Ravens beat the San Francisco 49ers at a score of 34-31 that included sibling rivalry between the team's coaches. Beyonce also sang, reuniting her girl group Destiny's child, and of course a half-hour blackout that resulted in great Twitter jokes.

President Obama as Daniel Day-Lewis
as President Obama in Spielberg parody.

4. WHITE HOUSE CORRESPONDENTS' DINNER (April 28) - This year featured a great parody of House of Cards. President Obama had a good routine, which included him pretending to be Daniel Day-Lewis in a biopic of himself, and Conan O'Brien definitely had me cracking up.

3. 67TH TONY AWARDS (June 9) - Neil Patrick Harris hosted for the third consecutive year with probably one of the best opening numbers I've ever seen. His subsequent bits and musical numbers were also fantastic, including one about Broadway stars who have failed TV careers. A lot of great child performers took to the stage, and Cyndi Lauper's win for Kinky Boots: The Musical, as well as her In Memoriam tribute singing "True Colors" brought me to tears.

Rick Springfield returns
for "General Hospital"

2. 70TH GOLDEN GLOBES (Jan. 13) - Tina Fey and Amy Poehler co-hosted and blew everyone away, proving that they should host the Oscars, if not more things. Jodie Foster's speech as she accepted the Cecil B. DeMille Award was crazy and shocking, and think what you will of it, it was compelling television.

1. GENERAL HOSPITAL'S 50TH ANNIVERSARY (April 1) - Technically, April was the soap opera's golden anniversary, but the year leading up to it was also really standout. The writers of One Life to Live took over the show and resurrected the Nurse's Ball, as well as brought back a wealth of the classic characters that made the show the powerhouse it used to be. It also integrated characters and actors from One Life to Live in bold and creative ways.


Best TV Movie

Nev and Max help people with online
romances in "Catfish: The TV Show"

Steel Magnolias (LIFE)
American Masters: Mel Brooks (PBS)
Goodnight for Justice: Queen of Hearts (HMK)
Behind the Candelabra (HBO)
If You Really Love Me (GMC)

Best Reality / Variety

Real Time with Bill Maher (HBO)
Catfish: The TV Show (MTV)
The Jeselnik Offensive (COM)
The Talk (CBS)
Best Week Ever (VH1)
What Would Ryan Lochte Do? (E!)

Best Comedy

Arrested Development: Season 4 (NETFLIX)
Parks and Recreation: Season 5 (NBC)
The Middle: Season 4 (ABC)
Glee: Season 4 (FOX)
Enlightened: Season 2 (HBO)

Best Drama

Charlie Barnett (left) and Eamon Walker in my
favorite of this year's newest shows "Chicago Fire"

The Good Wife: Season 4 (CBS)
Touch: Season 2 (FOX)
Chicago Fire: Season 1 (NBC)
Continuum: Season 1 (SYFY)
Elementary: Season 1 (CBS) 
American Horror Story: Asylum (FX)
Castle: Season 5 (ABC)
Teen Wolf: Season 3 (MTV)

Best Individual Peformance

Vera Farmiga - Bates Motel
Aden Young - Rectify
David Lyons - Revolution
Steven Pasquale - Do No Harm
Felicia Day - Supernatural