TV

That sets up an easy opportunity for crying foul at passing over the show in other big categories -- Best drama series and, obviously, James Gandolfini for best actor -- but it's hard to work up much enthusiasm for those objections. Frankly, the show is over and was abundantly awarded during its run and in the meantime a lot of good shows have gotten great (HBO's Big Love) or new shows have debuted and quickly established their greatness (FX's Damages)

Both of those shows are nominated in the Best Drama category. When you fill in the other nominees -- ABC's Grey's Anatomy, AMC's Mad Men and Showtime's The Tudors -- the theme of this year's nominees begins to emerge. With The Sopranos gone, HBO has lost its flagship and its stranglehold on award nominations. It still leads all other networks with 18, but there's a shift at work in a couple of ways. First, broadcast networks have stepped up the quality of their programming so that cable can no longer be fairly viewed as the uncontested platform for high-end entertainment. ABC came in second with 11 nominations, thanks not just to tried-and-true titles like Grey's Anatomy, but also innovative new shows such as Pushing Daisies, which was nominated in Best Comedy/Musical, and Best Actor and Actress in Comedy/Musical.

NBC tied for third with six, thanks to its success at once again making the network a source of smart comedy with shows like The Office and perhaps the breakout show of the year, 30 Rock. The network tied with NBC for third reflects the other way the TV scene is shifting. Showtime also came in with six nominations, led by its dramas, Dexter and The Tudors. When you look at the range of cable networks, both premium and basic, now showcasing nominated series -- FX, AMC, TNT, Showtime -- you see that in the wake of the early flood of awards for a few cable networks, most notably HBO, all boats have risen.