In a little under one month’s time the 67^th Golden Globes will be broadcast, celebrating the best of film and television. Looking at the nominations for television, some bold choices have been put forth by the Hollywood Foreign Press Association this year, nominating some new up-and-coming shows. The nominations for Modern Family and Glee in Best Musical/Comedy were surprising, but very well-deserved. Both shows have had stellar starts to their season and have resonated strongly with the public and critics alike.

However, what one notices immediately, looking at the rest of the nomination list, is the supremacy of cable shows over network ones. Shows like Big Love, Damages, Dexter, and Mad Men seem to be picking up nods left, right and centre - why is it then that cable seems to have the best programming? I believe a strong case can be made that their greatest weakness, their lack of recognition is also their greatest asset. By being small and unknown television channels, they are forced to work harder to stand out against the grain rained down by the big networks. Rather than putting forth another standard crime procedural, the smaller networks don’t have the money to burn and must put forth more innovative fare – a serial killer police officer, advertisement executives in the 1960s, or the intricacies of a polygamous marriage. The big networks have gotten complacent and were taken unaware when cable came knocking on their door. But now there’s been a resurgence, and at least in the comedy field the big 4 are fighting back.

So what does this mean for the future of television? If we’re lucky, cable will continue to thrive by being innovative and unique and the big networks will start to follow suit eager to regain their once-insurmountable supremacy, and us the viewers will be the ones who truly win.