Best of 2014: Is ‘Sons of Anarchy,’ ‘True Detective,’ ‘Sherlock,’ ‘Masters of Sex’ Show of the Year?

We’ve gone through a variety of different categories now for our 2014 CarterMatt Awards, but we’ve now made it to the end of the road, and the end of the year: The nominees for Show of the Year. This is routinely one of our favorites to go through, and we feel like we have a pretty diverse lineup to go through this time around. You have three American shows, one British, and one Canadian. Also, a reality show managed to sneak in there this time!

As with the other categories that we have put up throughout the month of December, we are going to have the results for this one precisely two weeks from today. Therefore, expect to see the full list of winners come December 27.

Big Brother Canada (Slice) – We’re sure that some cynical TV snobs will thumb their nose at the choice, but we don’t really care. This was the most entertaining, immersing reality competition experience we’ve had in some time. You had a very likable cast for the most part, but above that, what made this work was a complete willingness from producers to shake things up, and never allow the status quo to remain. Even if you may feel like Neda should have won over Jon, she needed to win that final challenge!

Masters of Sex (Showtime) – One of the biggest snubs of award season, especially when you consider just what the show pulled off: It told another fantastic chapter in the lives of William Masters and Virginia Johnson, and it did so with a nine-month window between seasons. This meant very little time off for the cast or the crew, and rather than show their fatigue, they upped the ante.

Sherlock (BBC) – From a character standpoint alone, season 3 was outstanding. We really feel like it added new dimension to Holmes and Watson, and showed that in addition to telling mysteries, it can also be dramatic and even funny at times. We could watch Benedict Cumberbatch and Martin Freeman every week, though unfortunately we know they will not be back on until late 2015 at the earliest.

Sons of Anarchy (FX) – Even with a polarizing conclusion, it’s hard to imagine “Sons of Anarchy” not on this list for a pretty magnificent ride on TV. This final season had many classic moments, especially over the final two episodes. There were so many amazing things that this show did well, from the performances to the music to the brilliant camera work. We also teared up in the closing minutes, even if Jax Teller is hardly a good person.

True Detective (HBO) – Will this be the king … or the Yellow King? If nothing else, we at least know that it was a fantastic watch through the early portion of this year, especially with its creepy atmosphere and sense of the unknown. It also may have in some ways redefined what TV can be to some actors, who want to try something a little different beyond just making movies.

Photo: BBC One