Emmy Race: Best Lead Actress in a Comedy Series

This is the ninth in a daily series of Emmy predictions, focusing on a specific category and outlining the most likely 10 or 15 contenders, with an analysis of their chances and the episodes chosen as submissions for consideration. Predictions will be revisited in July as the Emmy nomination announcement approaches.

Best Lead Actress in a Comedy Series

Last year's nominees:
LISA KUDROW, THE COMEBACK (show ended last year)
JANE KACZMAREK, MALCOLM IN THE MIDDLE (show ended last year)
JULIA LOUIS-DREYFUS, THE NEW ADVENTURES OF OLD CHRISTINE (winner)
STOCKARD CHANNING, OUT OF PRACTICE (show ended last year)
DEBRA MESSING, WILL & GRACE (show ended last year)

About this category:
Last year I was absolutely shocked when the nominees were announced and I went 0/5 in this category. All four "Desperate Housewives" actresses were snubbed, and four of the nominees were from cancelled shows, and the remaining one was from a new show. I think "Housewives" has fallen back in favor a bit with critics and probably Emmy voters. If the same kind of thing happens next year, as it did with the despicable Stockard Channing nomination, Leah Remini from "The King of Queens" or Wendie Malick from the one-season "Big Day" could make the cut.

This year's top contenders:
MARCIA CROSS AS BREE, DESPERATE HOUSEWIVES (1 nomination)
Cross really should have won for her stellar work in the second half of the first season, and may have missed her chance. She was fine this season, at least more on track than with last year's plotlines, but her real-life pregnancy caused her to be absent for half the season. I personally do not think it would be fair for her to receive a nomination, but her submission, "Come Play Wiz Me", from early on in the season, showcases some of her best work and her interactions with the fantastic Kyle Maclachlan.

TERI HATCHER AS SUSAN, DESPERATE HOUSEWIVES (1 nomination)
Hatcher, who deserved her Emmy win for the first half of season one, has also missed her chance, I think. She takes a real backseat dramatically in this season and I do not think she is deserving of a nod. This year's Golden Globe nominations show that Cross and Huffman are the favorites from the show. She has yet to choose an episode to submit.

FELICITY HUFFMAN AS LYNETTE, DESPERATE HOUSEWIVES (1 nomination/1 win)
I do not believe Huffman deserved her win over Cross and Hatcher for the show's first season, but she has really grown on me and come into her own this season. Her submitted episode, "Bang", in which she is taken hostage by a crazed woman in a supermarket, assures her the best shot out of all the potential nominees in this category.

EVA LONGORIA AS GABRIELLE, DESPERATE HOUSEWIVES
I thought Longoria was the best of the entire cast in the second season, and a strong runner-up to Huffman this year. People seem to think she is just a pretty face, though, not deserving of any accolades. I am not sure how strong Emmy voters perceive her storyline to be, and she is at a disadvantage because her plotlines never touch upon the dramatic and mysterious elements of the show.

ANNE HECHE AS MARIN, MEN IN TREES
Heche has really had a comeback with this surprise success, and it is possible that Emmy voters could reward her. I doubt "Men in Trees" will merit much award attention, but this category was surprising last year.

JULIA LOUIS-DREYFUS AS CHRISTINE, THE NEW ADVENTURES OF OLD CHRISTINE (1 nomination/1 win)
Louis-Dreyfus supposedly "broke" the Seinfeld curse last year with this desperately unfunny show. Jason Alexander's middle-of-the-road "Listen Up" comedy series from a few years ago was much funnier. I think she is in for the long haul at this point, and I will just have to get over it.

SARAH SILVERMAN AS SARAH SILVERMAN, THE SARAH SILVERMAN PROGRAM
Critics and audienes seem to love Silverman, but I do not think that her brand of humor is likely to embraced by Emmy voters. She is a contender though, barring another vote split between the Housewives.

TINA FEY AS LEMON, 30 ROCK
Fey plays the "straight man" in her comedy series but she does an excellent job of it, and more impressively, holds more than her own opposite Alec Baldwin, Tracy Morgan, and Jane Krakowski. Her episode submission is a very strong episode for both the show and herself. Many people are upset that the fantastic Baldwin keeps getting all the accolades, so I think it is time for Fey to get some recognition.

AMERICA FERRERA AS BETTY, UGLY BETTY
The surest lock for a nomination is the star of this unbelievably popular new show. I detest the show, but I think Ferrera is certainly the best part of the show and the happiness and joy she shows every time she wins an award makes me sort of want to root for her.

MARY-LOUISE PARKER AS NANCY, WEEDS
I was shocked the excellent Parker was not nominated last year for her role as the pot dealer slash single mother in the popular Showtime comedy. I think that Emmy voters will embrace "Weeds" more this year, and Parker has the biggest and most visible role on the show.

Current predictions:
FELICITY HUFFMAN, DESPERATE HOUSEWIVES
JULIA LOUIS-DREYFUS, THE NEW ADVENTURES OF OLD CHRISTINE
TINA FEY, 30 ROCK
AMERICA FERRERA, UGLY BETTY
MARY-LOUISE PARKER, WEEDS

Tomorrow: Best Lead Actor in a Comedy Series.