Never in Emmy history have all of the top series champs of one year (best comedy and drama series, plus lead actor and actress) returned the next to strike gold again, but it's starting to look like it may happen on Sept. 20.

Many of Gold Derby's top experts — who view the same sample episodes submitted by nominees to Emmy judges — say that the new front-runners are last year's champs: "Mad Men" (best drama series), "Breaking Bad's" Bryan Cranston (lead actor), "Damages'" Glenn Close (lead actress), "30 Rock" (comedy series), "30 Rock's" Alec Baldwin (lead actor) and "30 Rock's" Tina Fey (lead actress).

Possible upsets: Hugh Laurie ("House M.D.") or Gabriel Byrne ("In Treatment") might crush Cranston, Steve Carell ("The Office") could humble Baldwin and Toni Collette ("United States of Tara") may trounce Tina Fey. Otherwise, the outcomes of these Emmy races seem pretty much set, according to our kudos prophets. Over the next few weeks, we'll be spotlighting their predix in more detail.

The closest the Emmys came to repeating in the past occurred in 1968 when all of the victorious lead actors in drama and comedy series returned from 1967: Bill Cosby ("I Spy"), Barbara Bain ("Mission: Impossible"), Don Adams ("Get Smart"), and Lucille Ball ("The Lucy Show"). "Mission: Impossible" won best drama series both years, but there were different winners of best comedy. "The Monkees" won in 1967, "Get Smart" in 1968.

Why would it be bad for last year's Emmy champs to repeat? (Why did I put "Uh, oh!" in the headline?) Actually, it wouldn't be terrible from the point of view of justice. Our spies viewing the nominees' episodes tell us that it seems like last year's victors deserve to prevail again. But the TV critics of America don't care about that. Historically, they've demanded that the Emmys reward new, cool faves and, if they dare to bore them with refried beans, they'll hurl their sloppy plates at them with a fury. Remember, I've written the definitive book on these kudos' history ("The Emmys," Penguin Putnam/ Perigee). I can tell you that's how it always plays out whenever there's too much overlap from year to year.

It shouldn't matter what TV critics think. They don't bother to watch the sample episodes submitted to Emmy judges. They don't even bother to investigate what episodes were submitted. They don't care. But that doesn't stop them from mouthing huffy condemnations of the Emmys. That's the equivalent of film critics lambasting the Oscars without bothering to see the movies. Thus their opinions are almost worthless, as far as I'm concerned.

In the Emmy election for best guest actress in a comedy series, one rival towers over all others: Tina Fey on "Saturday Night Live" as Sarah Palin. Easily, it was the most celebrated and even most important TV performance of the year because it played a starring role in the U.S. presidential election. So theoretically she's a shoo-in to win this lowly Emmy race, right?

Yes, but only in theory. Remember who votes here: snooty actors, who may not take an impersonation on a comedy-skit show seriously when measured against grand theatrical mugging in a traditional program with plot and character development. Last year, many of us pundits thought Amy Poehler ("Saturday Night Live") had the Emmy for best supporting actress in the bag, but voter bias against skit shows propelled Jean Smart ("Samantha Who?") to an upset victory.

Both of our gurus, Chris "Boomer" Beachum and Robert "Rob L" Licuria (Awardsheaven.net), who've viewed the episodes submitted to Emmy judges, believe Fey will prevail, but they're keenly aware of this voter bias too and believe an upset could happen easily. Read their expanded views below. Also check out their (often clashing) predix in these categories: best comedy series, lead actor, lead actress, supporting actor, supporting actress, guest actor, comedy writing and comedy directing. Read more in our forums.

BEST GUEST ACTRESS IN A COMEDY: BOOMER'S PREDIX
(Listed in likelihood of winning)
1. Tina Fey, "Saturday Night Live" ("Presidential Bash 2008")
2. Betty White, "My Name Is Earl" ("Witch Lady")
3. Elaine Stritch, "30 Rock" ("Christmas Special")
4. Christine Baranski, "Big Bang Theory" ("The Maternal Capacitance")
5. Jennifer Aniston, "30 Rock" ("One With the Cast of Night Court")
6. Gena Rowlands, "Monk" ("Mr. Monk & the Lady Next Door")

BOOMER'S COMMENTARY: Unlike the guest actor category, there doesn't seem to be a single trend to predicting who will win among the ladies. In recent years, veteran actresses (Cloris Leachman, Stritch, Kathryn Joosten) have won. A younger actress (Christina Applegate) and slightly older actress (Laura Linney) have won. I would say, in general, that the Emmy voters want to laugh and want good characters.

If you're looking for a previous Emmy winner, this category is completely loaded down with them (all six ladies have won before). In viewing these performances, I must admit that I was disappointed that Rowlands didn't have all that much to do on her episode of "Monk." While other characters had some funny things to do, she did not (although she does a wonderful job in what she is given).

Aniston is upbeat and silly, allowing her to play some funny personality traits that we don't often see from her. I would be surprised with a Rowlands or Aniston victory. Everybody else, though, has a decent shot.

Baranski, tremendously funny as the buttoned-down professor and mother of Leonard, gets some hilarious scenes with Jim Parsons.  Stritch has proved she can win with her portrayal of Alec Baldwin's mother and even gets a couple of nice sentimental holiday moments on this episode.

White is someone beloved by Emmy voters and plays a character unlike anyone we have ever seen her play before: a crazy witch neighbor who chains up all the regular cast members in her basement. Any other year, she would easily win yet another Emmy Award, but there is one person standing in her way: Fey as Sarah Palin. In a performance that was a comedy highlight of the decade, Fey also most likely influenced an entire presidential election. I just don't see how the voters are going to pass up the chance to honor something so iconic and memorable.

BEST GUEST ACTRESS IN A COMEDY: ROB'S PREDIX
(Listed in likelihood of winning)
1.) Tina Fey, "Saturday Night Live" ("Presidential Bash 2008")
2.) Betty White, "My Name Is Earl" ("Witch Lady")
3.) Christine Baranski, "Big Bang Theory" ("The Maternal Capacitance")
4.) Elaine Stritch, "30 Rock" ("Christmas Special")
5.) Jennifer Aniston, "30 Rock" ("One With the Cast of Night Court")
6.) Gena Rowlands, "Monk" ("Mr. Monk & the Lady Next Door")

ROB'S COMMENTARY: This category could go any way because, as is the case for all four of the guest acting categories, the winners are sometimes based on other factors such as name recognition and honoring industry veterans. Since 2000, we've had three double winners, all being highly regarded industry vets (Jean Smart, Cloris Leachman and Kathryn Joosten); two high-profile winners (Christina Applegate and Laura Linney); and comedy legend Stritch, for the same role she is nominated for this year. Four of the wins were for traditional sitcoms ("Friends" and "Frasier"), three for single-camera comedies ("Malcolm in the Middle" and "30 Rock"), and both of Kathryn Joosten's wins were for her role in the hourlong dramedy "Desperate Housewives."

Our dueling Emmy pundits Chris "Boomer" Beachum and Robert "Rob L" Licuria (Awardsheaven.net) agree that "30 Rock" — which has four of the five nominations — will win best comedy writing. However, they disagree on which episode will prevail.

BEST COMEDY WRITING: BOOMER'S PREDIX
1. Robert Carlock, "30 Rock," "Apollo, Apollo"
2. Matt Hubbard, "30 Rock," "Reunion"
3. Jack Burditt & Robert Carlock, "30 Rock," "Kidney Now!"
4. James Bobin, Jemaine Clement & Bret McKenzie, "Flight of the Conchords," "Prime Minister"
5. Ron Weiner, "30 Rock," "Mamma Mia"

BOOMER'S COMMENTARY: The old theory of vote-splitting doesn't really hold up in the writing categories at the Emmy Awards. Often, when a show has multiple nominations, one of that show's episodes will walk away with the victory.  I thought "Apollo, Apollo" from "30 Rock" was one of the two best episodes of any program this past season.  Robert Carlock is the most prolific writer on that series (other than Tina Fey herself), so I think a victory by him would be well-earned.  The "Reunion" episode was incredibly well written and has such a nice blend of characters and moments at Liz Lemon's high-school reunion. I wasn't all that thrilled with the season finale ("Kidney Now!") and thought it to be a bit bloated and underwhelming (more so the writing than the directing even).

If the voters want to reward another nominee for best comedy series like "Flight of the Conchords," this would be their best chance to win of the night (but I really don't think it would happen).  The "Mamma Mia" episode was cute, but nothing all that memorable.

BEST COMEDY WRITING: ROB'S COMMENTARY
1. Jack Burditt & Robert Carlock, "30 Rock," "Kidney Now!"
2. Robert Carlock, "30 Rock," "Apollo, Apollo"
3. Ron Weiner, "30 Rock," "Mamma Mia"
4. Matt Hubbard, "30 Rock," "Reunion"
5. James Bobin, Jemaine Clement & Bret McKenzie, "Flight of the Conchords," "Prime Minister"

ROB'S COMMENTARY: Logic tells us that having four out of five episodes in this category will hurt "30 Rock" (the dreaded "vote-splitting" theory). But I don't think that will come into play with the particular voters judging this category. I think the "Conchords" are probably out of this, with this year's Emmy nomination leader "30 Rock" winning this, albeit with a big question mark as to which episode will triumph.

Our forum posters remained enthusiastic about the second season of "In Treatment" throughout its seven-week run on HBO, which wrapped up this holiday weekend. Based on the hit Israeli series "BeTipul," "In Treatment" unfolds over the course of weekly therapy sessions. As Dr. Paul Weston, Gabriel Byrne counsels a different patient in four of the weekly installments while in the fifth he is undergoing therapy himself.

This season, the good doctor is treating another wide array of patients. Among those earning plaudits from our posters are current Tony nominee Hope Davis ("God of Carnage") as a successful attorney who blames Weston for her woes because she was once under his care. And two-time Emmy nominee John Mahoney ("Frasier"), who plays a CEO consumed by panic attacks, has earned his share of rave reviews as well.

But it is one-time Tony nominee Alison Pill ("The Lieutenant of Inishmore") as a student in denial about her cancer who has won over most of our posters. Last month Atypical said, "Alison Pill was incredible this week. She's on a different playing field than everyone else at this point. Just wow." More recently Buffy Mars thought, "Alison Pill should win the Emmy. I watch a lot of tv and I know there are many great supporting actress performances this year, but she's on a completely different level from everyone else." And for sirkevin, "It has been years since I've been so moved and intrigued by a character arc on television. Pill is creating one of the most complex characters of the season. What a star. She really deserves this."

However, as nicolefan notes, "I'm really rooting for Alison Pill this year. I mean, I'm a nervous wreck while watching her episodes, she's just so unbelievably real and heartbreaking. I doubt she'll get a nomination, but she truly deserves to win it this year. And as much as I like Diane Wiest and Hope Davis, I bet they get in over Alison Pill just on name recognition alone. I wouldn't mind them getting nominated, because they're both great, but only if Alison Pill can get nominated too."

Last year, Gabriel Byrne earned his first Emmy nod for this role but lost the lead actor in a drama series race to Bryan Cranston ("Breaking Bad"). In January, he won a Golden Globe as a consolation prize.

Two-time Oscar champ Dianne Wiest ("Hannah and Her Sisters," "Bullets over Broadway") won her second Emmy Award for her work as the therapist's therapist Dr. Gina Toll. Wiest prevailed over perennial Emmy champ Candice Bergen ("Boston Legal" ) and repeat nominees Rachel Griffith ("Brothers and Sisters") and "Grey's Anatomy" co-stars Sandra Oh and Chandra Wilson.

Throughout this season of "American Idol," Adam Lambert was widely proclaimed to be the front-runner, even by the notoriously fickle Simon Cowell, who called him a brilliant artist, showman and "worldwide star." Victory by Kris Allen is such a blatant rejection of industry and critical opinion, we must wonder: Does it diminish the credibility of the show?

For Jon Caramanica of the New York Times, "At best, Mr. Allen is a harmless singer — he makes Kenny Loggins look tough. At worst, he’s indefensible, utterly lacking in texture and range and interpretive imagination. His awww-shucks demeanor spills over to his performances, in which his chin jerks violently to the right every time he’s aiming for a big note, as if his mouth is struggling to deliver what his brain is asking for."

However, as Whitney Pastorek of Entertainment Weekly explained, "Adam Lambert was never going to win this show, but I don't think it had anything to do with platform boots or flaming bombast or some vast red state/Mormon/hillbilly/Miss California conspiracy. I think it had more to do with the fact that the sort of people who would be inclined to like Adam Lambert are not as inclined to watch this show as the sort of people who would be inclined to like Kris Allen."

And as Ann Powers of the Los Angeles Times pointed out, "Allen has his undeniable strong points. In terms of the music industry, he cuts a more contemporary figure than Lambert: Many stars now (specifically rock-oriented, male ones) tend to do better when they draw themselves to scale, offering songs that make fans feel warm and connected, not blown away."

Though the public may have preferred the soft rock of Kris Allen, Adam Lambert's hard edge certainly made for better TV. And the ultimate judges of that aspect of "American Idol" will be the Emmy voters. Over its first seven seasons, "American Idol" has struck out repeatedly at the Emmy Awards, winning only two of its 34 bids. And neither of those wins came in the top race of best reality competition program. Indeed, since that category was introduced in 2003, "The Amazing Race" has won all six years.

"Dancing With the Stars" crowned its newest — and youngest — champ last night when Olympic gymnast Shawn Johnson, 17, edged out "Sex and the City" stud Gilles Marini to win Season 8. Last-minute addition "The Bachelor"-jilted Melissa Rycroft came in third place. All three scored top marks for their routines from the panel of judges with the viewer vote making the difference. With such strong performances this year, perhaps this show can finally win the Emmy Award for choreography.

After all, the two women in the final three both came to the dancefest with a talent for toe-tapping. Shawn Johnson won gold at the 2008 Olympics and was the 2007 world champion gymnast. And before we got to know Melissa Rycroft as one of the women vying for Jason Mesnick's attentions on "The Bachelor," she performed with the renowned Dallas Cowboy Cheerleaders. As for Gilles Marini, he certainly made all the right moves on Kim Cattrall in the big-screen version of "Sex and the City."

Surprising as it seems, this celebrity dance-off has lost the choreography Emmy for three years running. In 2006, "Dancing With the Stars" had three noms in the category but lost to "High School Musical." In 2007, there was a three-way tie as "So You Think You Can Dance" took two Emmys and "Tony Bennett: An American Classic" also won, leaving "Dancing With the Stars" the sole loser. Last year, "So You Think You Can Dance" repeated, albeit with just one win.

Over those first three years of Emmy eligibility, "Dancing With the Stars" managed only four technical wins from its 23 nominations. Besides that embarrassing shutout in the choreography category, the show has lost the reality competition title three years running to "The Amazing Race." And last September, "Dancing with the Stars" emcee Tom Bergeron lost the first Emmy race for reality show host to Jeff Probst of "Survivor."

"How I Met Your Mother" ended its fourth season last night having moved one step tantalizingly closer to explaining the rendezvous referred to in the TV series' title. And while the mystery of how Ted (Josh Radnor) meets his match may not be answered for seasons to come, this year could mark the entry of the show into the Emmy race for best comedy series.

"How I Met Your Mother" is still, admittedly, a long shot. The show needs to place in the top six or seven with the popular vote of the academy members to land an Emmynod. During its first three years on the air, "HIMYM" failed to rank in the top 10 when run-off elections were held to determine semi-finalists before judging panels picked five nominees. This year the panels will be scrapped while the number of nominees will  be expanded. 

However, the cast and creative types of "HIMYM" should take some comfort in the examples of how the Emmys first treated other CBS Monday night sitcoms. It took till Season 3 for "Everybody Loves Raymond" to break into the comedy series race and then five consecutive nods before it finally won the award in 2003. It would also win for its tenth and final season in 2005. The following year "Two and a Half Men" took over the "Raymond" time slot and also its place in the Emmy lineup. This top-rated laffer has earned three consecutive nods, losing first to critical darling "The Office" in 2006 and then for the last two years to the little-watched but much loved "30 Rock."

"HIMYM" has won three successive Emmys for art direction and contended for several other technical awards. Among the talent, only Neil Patrick Harris — who plays the boorish Barney — has been Emmy nominated. He has lost the last two supporting actor races to Jeremy Piven ("Entourage"). But based on growing critical kudos, this could be the breakthrough year for the show.

Aly Semigran of Entertainment Weekly found the finale, "did what 'How I Met Your Mother' does best, which give us those tiny little hints (more on that later) without giving away the big payoff. As far as season finales go, it wasn't exactly what I was hoping for, even if those last few minutes were fantastic. Maybe it was the fact that the weeks leading up had given us such wonderful little nuggets (the yellow umbrella! Stella returns!), but something about it didn't seem as fulfilling as I was hoping for (I also somewhat blame 'The Office' for filling my quota of painfully good humor and heartbreak)."

"Grey's Anatomy" star Katherine Heigl will submit her name for Emmy Awards consideration this season, reports Mike Ausiello of Entertainment Weekly. Gold Derby can add to that news: After appearing in a high-profile role that could've been defined as lead, she's decided to remain in the same supporting category she won in 2007. 

It was Gold Derby that noticed Katherine Heigl's name missing from the initial list of 2008 contenders last June. When we inquired as to why, Heigl's response to us triggered a huge media uproar: "I did not feel that I was given the material this season to warrant an Emmy nomination."

After that brouhaha, there was talk that her character of Izzie could be killed off this season on the medical drama. Though Izzie has been battling cancer, her fate remains a mystery with an ambiguous finale putting both her and George (T.R. Knight) in limbo. 

While we will have to wait till the fall to learn which — if either of them — survives, we now know that Heigl liked this storyline enough to put her name forward for the Emmys. That she decided to stay in the supporting race is illuminating. After all, there are plenty of Emmy precedents to legitimize a move up to lead actress by a supporting winner without any noticeable increase in screen time.

Last night's seventh-season finale of "24" delivered the show's trademark mix of action and drama as it wrapped up another eventful day in the life of Jack Bauer (Kiefer Sutherland). This year the rogue spy battled friends and foes before ending the day facing imminent death.

Many critics have hailed the creative resurgence of this onetime perennial Emmy Awards contender. "24" sat out last year's Emmy race due to the writers strike. In 2007, Season 6 was deemed a disappointment and the show failed to contend for the drama series Emmy for the first time in its run. While "24" had made the top 10 — as determined by a popular vote of academy members — the sample episodes failed to impress the judging panel enough for the show to make it through to the final round of nominees.

That snub was especially glaring as "24" had taken TV's top honor the previous year. That win in 2006 came for the fifth consecutive series nod. And Sutherland won the lead actor Emmy Award that night as well. Though the show was not in the running in 2007, Sutherland did contend again for the sixth year in a row. He lost to James Spader ("Boston Legal"). Both he and the show are certainly in the mix this year based on reviews like the following for last night's two-hour season-ender.

Robert Bianco of USA Today thought the show "capped its season-long creative resurgence Monday with a finale that was characteristically rousing and uncharacteristically thoughtful. Spurred by Tony's betrayal and his own sense of impending doom, Jack allowed his heroic façade to drop — allowing the show to dig a bit deeper into the nature of his heroism."

"Survivor" wrapped its 18th installment Sunday night on CBS with a finale that saw one of the relatively good guys — James "J.T. Thomas — winning over both the jury and the public. Now the question is: can this kinder, gentler version of "Survivor" can win over Emmy voters once more?

This granddaddy of all reality competition shows premiered back in summer 2000 and quickly became a national obsession. In 2001, "Survivor" was named outstanding nonfiction program (special class) at the Emmy Awards. Two years later, the reality competition category was introduced at the Emmys and "Survivor" was one of the front-runners to win this award. Instead, that critical darling "The Amazing Race" took home the gold and has done so ever since.

"Survivor" was an Emmy also-ran for four years before being dropped from the lineup of nominees two years ago in favor of "Top Chef." How ironic that a show that starves its contestants was replaced by a culinary competition. And adding to the twists of Emmy fate, last year "Survivor" wrangler Jeff Probst won the first Emmy bestowed on a reality show host while "Amazing Race" leader Phil Keoghan was not even nominated.

"Survivor" took over the time slot of that perennial Emmy champ time on Sunday night. The finale of this one-time ratings juggernaut — which stretched over three hours — proved strong competition for "Desperate Housewives." "Survivor" is ranked 17th for the season, attracting about half the viewers of top-rated "American Idol." That musical competition has been bested by the much-lower-rated "Amazing Race" at the Emmys for six straight years. And just as that show is enjoying a critical resurgence this season, so too is "Survivor."

For Dalton Ross of Entertainment Weekly, "occasionally we are reminded that 'Survivor' is chiefly a social experiment and we are treated to a fascinating social scene, and that's what was served up at the final Tribal Council. Two best friends who hadn't had a cross word in 39 days suddenly ripping and clawing at each other for a splash of cash. Honestly, is there anything better than that?"