Critics’ Choice TV Awards 2015: ‘The Amazing Race,’ ‘Dancing with the Stars,’ ‘America’s Got Talent’ battle

If we are looking across the board, the Best Reality Competition Series trophy is one that is typically not taken seriously by major awards shows. The Emmys tend to nominate the same exact shows every year, and as much as we love the Critics’ Choice TV Awards, we’re really not sure that they did much better with the category this time. Where is “The Quest,” “Ink Master,” “Survivor,” or “Top Chef” in the mix?

Then again, we put some of the blame for stale nominees on a genre of TV that really has not innovated well or produced many hits in years. We mention a show we loved in “The Quest,” but the ratings were so low that few voters probably even know what it is. Just as we’ve done for weeks now leading into the May 31 show, let’s go ahead now and share the full list of nominees, coupled with who we would like to see win in the end.

The nominees

The Amazing Race (CBS)

America’s Got Talent (NBC)

Dancing with the Stars (ABC)

Face Off (Syfy)

MasterChef Junior (Fox)

The Voice (NBC)

Who should win – It’s tough, given that “Dancing with the Stars” had a decent but not necessarily great year of TV, “The Amazing Race” was somewhat inconsistent, “MasterChef Junior” is the same thing every week more or less, and “The Voice” sags in spots. We’re actually going to give this to “America’s Got Talent,” even if we do feel that the show sags at times with rampant product placement. It at least strikes the right tone, and it gives us some variety in a way that no other American show does.

Who will win – Probably “The Voice,” since it has the right combination of critical acclaim and also commercial success. We’re not ruling out “Amazing Race” entirely, and some viewers may just vote for “Face Off” because it’s on cable and they consider that to be somewhat more cool.