Emmy voters mostly ignore critical faves

THEY are critics’ darlings, continually praised as being among the most innovative shows on TV. But when it comes to the Emmy derby, “The Wire,” “The Shield,” “Nip/Tuck” and “Battlestar Galactica” are barely in the running.

The veteran dramas earned only five nominations among them, “Battlestar” earning four nods -- for outstanding directing and writing, the other two in technical categories. “Nip/Tuck” scored one for outstanding prosthetic makeup for a series, miniseries, movie or a special. “The Shield” and “The Wire” were shut out.

The Emmys’ attention went to more flashy dramatic series such as last year’s winner “24,” which lost viewership and creative ground this season but scored multiple nominations, though it was left out of the best drama category.

“The Wire” and “The Shield,” both gritty, unsentimental portrayals of inner-city life and crime, have been repeatedly snubbed, even in the technical arenas. Since its premiere in 2002, HBO’s “The Wire,” set in Baltimore, has earned only one Emmy nomination -- a nod in 2005 for outstanding writing in a drama series.

FX’s L.A.-based “The Shield” has done slightly better -- it has received five major nominations in acting, writing and directing categories since its 2002 launch. But it has never been nominated for outstanding drama, and although it is often compared to “The Sopranos” as one of TV’s most groundbreaking series, it has failed to earn a major Emmy win since Michael Chiklis’ upset victory for outstanding lead actor in a drama series in the show’s first season.

Chiklis said this season that he felt his early Emmy win may have hurt the series: “I think there was a tendency to think, ‘Well, they got theirs.’ ”

The Emmys will have one more chance to honor “The Wire” and “The Shield.” Both will reach their finales next year.

greg.braxton@latimes.com

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Big numbers

Here are the most-nominated shows and nominations by network.

Nominations by show

“Bury My Heart at Wounded

Knee”...17

“Broken Trail”...16

“The Sopranos”...15

“Ugly Betty”...11

“Grey’s Anatomy”...10

“The Starter Wife”...10

“30 Rock”...10

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Nominations by network

HBO...86

ABC...70

NBC...69

CBS...44

Fox...28

PBS...24

AMC...18

Showtime...17

The 59th annual Primetime Emmy Awards will air at 8 p.m. Sept. 16 on Fox from L.A.’s Shrine Auditorium.

Los Angeles Times