'Friday Night Lights,' 'Heroes' among top TCA nominees

It's probably small comfort to recently departed NBC chief Kevin Reilly, but TV critics really like several of the shows he put on the air.

So much so, in fact, that NBC landed the most nominations for the 23rd annual Television Critics Association awards. The network, thanks mostly to three new series -- "Friday Night Lights," "Heroes" and "30 Rock" -- grabbed 13 total nominations, including two of the six nods for program of the year ("FNL" and "Heroes").

HBO was second with nine nominations, while ABC has five -- including three for its first-year comedy "Ugly Betty." PBS received four nods.

In addition to the two NBC shows, a pair of HBO programs, "The Wire" and "When the Levees Broke," as well as Discovery's "Planet Earth" and FOX's "American Idol" are up for program of the year.

"Friday Night Lights" is also the most-nominated show, grabbing nods for program of the year, outstanding drama and outstanding new series. Stars Kyle Chandler and Connie Britton will vie against each other for the individual drama award.

"Heroes" has three nominations -- program of the year, best drama and best new series -- while "30 Rock" has four, for best comedy and best new series, star-creator Tina Fey and star Alec Baldwin. "The Office," nominated for outstanding comedy, rounds out NBC's total.

"When the Levees Broke," Spike Lee's HBO documentary about New Orleans in the wake of Hurricane Katrina, is up for outstanding movie or miniseries and outstanding achievement in news and information in addition to program of the year. "The Wire" and the departing "Sopranos" are both up for best drama, and "The Sopranos" is also nominated for the Heritage Award, given to a program that's had a lasting impact on popular culture.

The awards will be handed out on July 21. Here's the complete list of nominees:

Program of the Year

"American Idol" (FOX)

"Friday Night Lights" (NBC)

"Heroes" (NBC)

"Planet Earth" (Discovery)

"The Wire" (HBO)

"When the Levees Broke"

Outstanding Comedy

"30 Rock" (NBC)

"The Daily Show" (Comedy Central)

"Entourage" (HBO)

"The Office"

"Ugly Betty" (ABC)

Outstanding Drama

"Friday Night Lights" (NBC)

"Heroes" (NBC)

"Lost" (ABC)

"The Sopranos" (HBO)

"The Wire" (HBO)

Outstanding New Program

"30 Rock" (NBC)

"Dexter" (Showtime)

"Friday Night Lights" (NBC)

"Heroes" (NBC)

"Ugly Betty" (ABC)

Outstanding Movie, Miniseries or Special

"Broken Trail" (AMC)

"Planet Earth" (Discovery)

"Prime Suspect" (PBS)

"The State Within" (BBC America)

"When the Levees Broke" (HBO)

Individual Achievement in Comedy

Alec Baldwin ("30 Rock")

Stephen Colbert ("The Colbert Report")

America Ferrera ("Ugly Betty")

Tina Fey ("30 Rock")

Jon Stewart ("The Daily Show")

Individual Achievement in Drama

Connie Britton ("Friday Night Lights")

Kyle Chandler ("Friday Night Lights")

Michael C. Hall ("Dexter")

Hugh Laurie ("House")

Helen Mirren ("Prime Suspect")

Outstanding Children's Programming

"Dora the Explorer" (Nickelodeon)

"Johnny and the Sprites" (Disney Channel)

"Kyle XY" (ABC Family)

"Lincoln Heights (ABC Family)

"SpongeBob SquarePants" (Nickelodeon)

Outstanding Achievement in News & Information

"Baghdad ER" (HBO)

"Bill Moyers Journal" (PBS)

"Galapagos" (National Geographic Channel)

"Planet Earth" (Discovery)

"When the Levees Broke" (HBO)

Heritage Award

"M*A*S*H" (CBS)

"Roots" (ABC)

"Sesame Street" (PBS)

"The Mary Tyler Moore Show" (CBS)

"The Sopranos" (HBO)