Kate, Olivia and I will be in the chat room below starting at 7pm for some red carpet madness. We’ll go straight into the awards shindig hosted once again by Ricky Gervais.

Get your drinks and snacks ready, then prepare to cheer and jeer along with us!

The 2012 Golden Globe Awards begin at 8pm ET on NBC.

A couple of weeks ago, I was at the FX Canada launch event, which featured screenings of AHS, Wilfred and Louie, followed by a party that included photo ops with the Rubberman from AHS and Wilfred‘s Fiona Gubelmann and Jason Gann. Personally, I couldn’t be happier about the network coming to Canada, as most of my favourite series are on it, and I’m excited that my Canadian friends and family that haven’t discovered their programming yet now have the chance to check it out!

Following tonight’s launch, AHS will air in its regular slot, Wednesdays at 10pm, Wilfred will air Thursdays at 10pm followed by The League at 10:30pm. You’ll also be able to catch Sons of Anarchy from the beginning – the Season 1 premiere airs on Tuesday, November 1st at 10pm and will air in that timeslot each week. Short-lived yet critically acclaimed series Terriers will air on Mondays at 10pm starting November 7th, and Louie will premiere in Winter 2012. Here’s hoping more of their stellar hits make their way north soon!

You can watch FX Canada on Rogers Digital Cable Channel 318 in Ontario, New Brunswick and Newfoundland, and in HD on Channel 565 in Ontario only. EastLink subscribers will also be able to watch in HD on Channel 667.

Photo by Melissa Girimonte – Copyright © 2011 TheTelevixen.com

Best Actor, Drama

Steve Buscemi, Boardwalk Empire, Michael C. Hall, Dexter, Kyle Chandler, Friday Night Lights, Hugh Laurie, House, Timothy Olyphant, Justified and Jon Hamm, Mad Men

Best Actress, Drama

Connie Britton, Friday Night Lights, Julianna Margulies, The Good Wife, Kathy Bates, Harry’s Law, Mireille Enos, The Killing, Mariska Hargitay, Law & Order SVU and Elisabeth Moss, Mad Men

Best Actor, Comedy

Jim Parsons, The Big Bang Theory, Johnny Galecki, The Big Bang Theory, Matt LeBlanc, Episodes, Louis C.K., Louie, Steve Carell, The Office and Alec Baldwin, 30 Rock

Best Actress, Comedy

Laura Linney, The Big C, Melissa McCarthy, Mike & Molly, Edie Falco, Nurse Jackie, Amy Poehler, Parks and Recreations, Martha Plimpton, Raising Hope and Tina Fey, 30 Rock

So the exciting thing. It’s the absence of three-time drama winner Bryan Cranston. If you remember from my first post, Breaking Bad didn’t air during the eligibility period this year so now the race is wide open. The fangirl in me is shouting KYLE CHANDLER, KYLE CHANDLER, KYLE CHANDLER. And really, Chandler is damn good and a w wouldn’t be uncalled for.

The leading actor race is stacked. With the exception of Timothy Olyphant, and only because I haven’t watched Justified, I can personally vouch that every nominee deserves to be there and win. Laurie continues to deliver a solid performance as Dr. House, even if the series is weakening. Buscemi is a legend. Hall has put in five impressive seasons as the delicious serial killer Dexter. And Jon Hamm … well … is Jon Hamm.

I think it comes down to Hamm and Buscemi. Hamm has gotten the most buzz, but Buscemi could ride his Golden Globe win right into Emmy victory.

If I had written this post two weeks ago, my comments on the drama actress category would be very similar to the above shouting, just subbing in CONNIE BRITTON. But in these past two weeks, I’ve caught up on two seasons of The Good Wife and now I’m torn. Well, not so much torn as accepting of and cool with the fact that Margulies will probably triumph over Britton (and everyone else).

I would be very surprised if Moss took this. Yes, “The Suitcase” was a great episode, but that’s one great episode, not a season’s worth of great, leading moments. Moss rarely carries the show so really, she shouldn’t even be in this category. Bates was thrown the “Welcome to full-time network television” nomination and Enos … well, actually, could be an upset. A sort of “congrats on your first successful leading role” because she was great in The Killing, even if I’m still rolling my eyes over the finale.

The comedy actress category is quite simple. It’s Laura Linney. Anyone who’s seen The Big C will agree with this. Falco and Fey have got theirs, and I doubt enough voters watch Mike & Molly, Parks and Rec and Raising Hope. But even if all playing fields were even, this would still go to Linney. She’s just that good.

The comedy actor category throws me. Don’t have much to say about Galecki or LeBlanc, other than, congratulations on the nomination, work that red carpet and enjoy the show. I haven’t seen Louie, but people are losing their minds over C.K., so he just may become the new Tony Shalhoub (aka the guy that always wins for that show I never watch and forget is on the air).

And then we have Carell, Baldwin and Parsons. Carell has been nominated every single year during his run on The Office. This was his last year on the series, so it would be fitting for him to win because he has done some really admirable work as Michael Scott. Baldwin is still going strong on 30 Rock and Parsons won last year, and the Academy really likes The Big Bang Theory, as evident by Galecki’s inclusion.

So who wins? I’m going with C.K. or Carell. Hoping for Carell. Michael Scott has secured his place in pop culture with his “That’s what she said” catch phrase and it’s only fitting to reward his creator.

So to round up, I have Hamm or Buscemi, Margulies, Linney and Carrell or C.K., but I will continue to cross my fingers for a Hail Mary win for Chandler or Britton, because that would just be the best thing in the world.

And if you disagree with that statement, do yourself a favour and go here.

Then click “add to cart”.

You’re welcome.

Thoughts on some of the nominees:

The competition is really tough in the Best Performance by an Actor in a Continuing Leading Dramatic Role category. I’d be pleased with any of those nominees taking home the statue, but if I had to choose, it’d be a toss up between Hugh Dillon for Durham County and Michael Riley for Being Erica. I was very pleased to see Sam Witwer in that category for hsi performance as Aidan in the SPACE/Syfy series Being Human, although I’d probably say he’s the long shot.

I was pleased with Erin Karpluk‘s nomination for Best Performance by an Actress in a Continuing Leading Dramatic Role for Being Erica. She was impressive this past season given the twist that the series took and how terribly wrong it could have gone if it didn’t have a solid anchor like her. I haven’t seen any of her opponents’ performances in this category so I can’t say with any certainty if Karpluk’s the frontrunner.

By far, the nomination I was most excited by is Ksenia Solo‘s as Best Performance by an Actress in a Featured Supporting Role in a Dramatic Series for Lost Girl. She is perfection as Kenzi, Bo’s human sidekick, and shines with every line she speaks. But she faces stiff competition in that category, which pits her against Rookie Blue‘s Melanie Nicholls-King and Enuka Okuma.

John Dunsworth was nominated in the Best Performance by an Actor in a Featured Supporting Role in a Dramatic Series category for Haven, although I think Colm Feore may take that one for his role in The Borgias. Haven is a series that I’ve grown to love, with its eccentric characters and “Trouble-d” small town setting, so I’m happy to see it get some love.

Could have/should have made the list:

Best Dramatic Series nod for Durham County.

Best Performance by an Actress in a Continuing Leading Dramatic Role nom for Anna Silk in Lost Girl, Meaghan Rath in Being Human and Emily Rose in Haven.

Lucas Bryant in the Best Performance by an Actor in a Continuing Leading Dramatic Role category for Haven.

Rick Howland and Kris Holden-Ried in the Best Performance by an Actor in a Featured Supporting Role in a Dramatic Series for Lost Girl.

A Best Performance by an Actor in a Guest Role, Dramatic Series nomination for Sebastian Pigott in Being Erica.

Random observations:

One thing I do have to note – genre TV performances were recognized again this year (last year’s Geminis had Robert Carlyle take home a statue for his role on Stargate Universe). I always see this as a victory for genre TV, considering this is roughly the Canadian equivalent of the Emmys.

Lots of co-productions between Canada & other countries were reflected in this year’s nominees - Being Human, Haven, Rookie Blue, and The Borgias, to name a few.

I was surprised by multiple nominations for Skins, which was supposedly an inferior facsimile of its UK counterpart, caused an uproar with advertisers, and was already been cancelled. Other cancelled series Shattered & Endgame landed several nominations as well.

The Best Dramatic Series category really baffled me, especially since Skins was included and Durham County wasn’t.

You can read the complete list of nominees here.

Which nominations are you most pleased with? And who, in your opinion, was left out in the cold?

The 26th Annual Gemini Awards air Wednesday, September 7th on CBC.

Adam Baldwin in the Press Room

Melinda Clarke in the Press Room

Charlaine Harris in the Press Room

Meaghan Rath in the Press Room

Jewel Staite during the Fan Q&A

We’ll have a full photo gallery for you soon in addition to some great video clips! And a special thanks to TCON and the entire crew at Polaris 25 for a great weekend!

Photos Copyright © 2011 TheTelevixen.com

Photo Courtesy of Syfy

Photo Courtesy of NBC

Photo Courtesy of The CW

Adam Baldwin – Break out your Jayne hats! The man best known as Serenity/Firefly‘s Jayne Cobb, and currently as John Casey on Chuck, will be on hand for this year’s event.

Ben Browder – The popular Farscape and Stargate: SG-1 star is scheduled to appear. Browder is a three time Saturn Award winner for the role of John Crichton on Farscape.

Melinda Clarke – Whether in a recurring role, such as Lady Heather on CSI, as the conniving Julie Cooper on The OC, or as Amanda on her current series, Nikita, Melinda Clarke always leaves a strong impression. This is your chance to see her up close!

Meaghan Rath – Earlier this year, Syfy debuted its version of the hit BBC series Being Human, and stepping into the role of the beautiful and troubled ghost Sally was Meaghan Rath. You’ll be able to see her in her first year on the con circuit!

Armin Shimerman – One of the hardest working men in Hollywood, you probably recognize Armin Shimerman as Quark on Star Trek: Deep Space Nine or Principal Snyder on Buffy the Vampire Slayer. Fun for Whedonites and Trekkers alike!

Jewel Staite – For those who thought having one Firefly/Serenity star was cool, how about two? Jewel Staite, who played the frisky engineer Kaylee Frye will also be attending! Jewel is also known for her role as Dr. Jennifer Keller on Stargate Atlantis.

True Blood fans, there’s something for you as well, because Charlaine Harris will be attending! This is her first Canadian convention, so you’ll want to be there to meet the woman behind a number of memorable book series, particularly thse featuring Sookie Stackhouse.

Polaris 25 takes place July 15th – 17th at The Sheraton Parkway North Hotel. We’ll be covering the weekend for those of you that can’t attend, but for those who are in the Toronto area, it’s a great way to meet some of your TV faves for photo and autograph opportunities, participate in Q&As, and meet other fans in an intimate, friendly setting. Click here for more info and ticket prices.