People's Choice Awards: Which Past Favorite New TV Dramas Did Fans Get Right?

This ABC comedy-drama, based on the family life of syndicated newspaper columnist and dad of eight, Thomas Braden, beat out Lou Grant and Rafferty for Favorite New TV Drama in 1978. This family-themed series changed gears early on when original star Diana Hyland passed away, but the show amazingly ran for five seasons anyway.

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While this original sci-fi series only lasted for one season on ABC, it spawned the successful Battlestar Galactica franchise, which includes book adaptations, comics, games, a mini-series, a prequel series, and a critically acclaimed 2004 reboot that ran for four seasons on Syfy. And it all started in 1979, when this Glen A. Larsen-created series beat Dallas and Vegas for the People’s Choice Award in the Favorite New TV Drama category.

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This mystery series starred Robert Wagner and Stefanie Powers as Jonathan and Jennifer Hart, married jetsetters who dabbled in amateur crime solving. This popular show was up against Trapper John M.D. for the PCA in 1980, and it went on to air for five seasons on ABC.

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For eight seasons, Tom Selleck (and his mustache) starred in this CBS series about a private investigator in Hawaii. People’s Choice voters had an eye for a hit when they voted Magnum P.I. as Favorite New TV Drama in lieu of the forgettable Breaking Away and Secrets of Midland Heights, two series that were both axed after eight episodes!

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Hill Street Blues was up against some serious soap competition in 1982. Not only did the NBC police drama earn eight Emmy Awards in its debut season, but the show beat out Falcon Crest and Dynasty for a PCA that year. Hill Street Blues aired for seven seasons on NBC.

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This gritty medical drama was set in an underrated Boston hospital, but the series was highly rated by fans when it beat Knight Rider and Matt Houston for the 1983 PCA. With a huge ensemble cast that included Ed Flanders, Norman Lloyd, and William Daniels, St. Elsewhere aired for seven seasons on NBC.

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For five seasons, viewers checked in to this Aaron Spelling-produced ABC drama series set at the high-end St. Gregory Hotel. In 1984, Hotel beat Emerald Point and The A Team for the Favorite New TV Drama.

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Don Johnson and Philip Michael Thomas played sharp-dressed detectives Crockett and Tubbs on this Miami-based NBC crime drama, which ran for five seasons on NBC. The rockin’ cop show made a splash when it beat out Murder She Wrote and the short-lived modeling drama Paper Dolls as Favorite New TV Drama in 1985.

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This Dynasty spinoff boasted an A-list movie star cast with Charlton Heston, Barbara Stanwyck, Katharine Ross, and Ricardo Montalban. It only aired for two seasons, but fans voted it a favorite over Moonlighting and Equalizer.

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Steven Bochco’s long-running NBC legal drama won seven People’s Choice Awards over eight seasons, first beating Crime Story and Our House for the Favorite New TV Drama PCA in 1987. The supersized ensemble cast included Harry Hamlin, Susan Dey, Corbin Bernsen, and Jill Eikenberry.

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This ABC drama about a “thirtysomething” group of friends in Philadelphia starred Ken Olin and Mel Harris. The show ran for four seasons after beating Beauty and the Beast and Wiseguy for the New Drama PCA in 1988.

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Set at an evacuation hospital during the Vietnam War, this medical drama starred Dana Delaney as First Lieutenant Colleen McMurphy and aired for four seasons on ABC. In its first year, China Beach beat out new dramas Heartbeat and In the Heat of the Night for the PCA.

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For seven seasons, this CBS docudrama featured reenactments of emergency situations. Hosted by William Shatner, Rescue 911 beat Young Riders, Quantum Leap, and Life Goes On as Favorite New TV Drama in 1990.

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Justice was served in 1991 when this ABC legal drama was voted fans’ favorite over Gabriel’s Fire and Twin Peaks. Unfortunately, the George DiCenzo and Sarah Jessica Parker drama was canceled after two seasons.

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This ABC period drama was a fan favorite (even Dear Abby was a fan), so it’s no wonder it beat out the I’ll Fly Away and Reasonable Doubts for the Favorite New TV Drama title in 1992. Kyle Chandler and Sammi Davis starred in this 1940s-era series for two seasons.

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In 1993, new dramas Going to Extremes and Picket Fences didn’t have a chance against Melrose Place. Darren Star’s soapy Fox drama aired for eight seasons with a star-studded cast that included Josie Bissett, Grant Show, Andrew Shue, Heather Locklear, and Marcia Cross.

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1994 was a really good year for TV drama, with Dr. Quinn, Medicine Woman, Homicide: Life on the Street, and Walker, Texas Ranger all kicking off their successful runs that year. But none of those long-running dramas had the staying power of PCA winner NYPD Blue, which aired for a whopping 12 seasons on ABC.

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Speaking of long-running dramas, fans really got this one right. In a year when Viper, Babylon 5, Chicago Hope, and My So-Called Life all debuted, PCA voters chose ER as Favorite New TV drama. The NBC series aired for an unbelievable 15 seasons, making it the longest running medical primetime drama in television history — and making George Clooney a star.

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In 1996, PCA fans chose the ABC legal drama Murder One over CBS’s The Client, but neither show proved to be as successful as fellow nominee Jag. Murder One aired for two seasons and starred Daniel Benzani, Anthony LaPaglia, and Stanley Tucci.

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X-Files creator Chris Carter’s crime-thriller about a former FBI agent (Lance Henriksen) who could see inside criminals’ minds beat out new dramas Relativity and Profiler as Favorite New Drama in 1997. The show aired for three seasons on Fox.

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Remember 413 Hope Street and Dellaventura? Neither do we. In 1998, fans showed support for Steven Bochco’s single season CBS ensemble police drama, Brooklyn South, voting for it over its fellow forgettable dramas that year.

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While fans gave L.A. Doctors the 1999 PCA over future heavy hitters Felicity and Dawson’s Creek, this CBS medical drama, which starred Ken Olin and Matt Craven, ended after one season.

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Melina Kanakaredes starred as a hometown Rhode Island doc in this five-season NBC drama, which PCA voters picked as the favorite new drama in 2000. Of course, fans had an embarrassment of riches that year, with Third Watch and Law & Order: SVU also in the running.

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Jessica Alba’s breakout role as a genetically enhanced super-soldier helped earn this Fox drama a PCA over newcomers Gideon’s Crossing and Boston Public in 2001.

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For five seasons, Jennifer Garner headlined J.J. Abrams’s spy-action thriller about CIA double agent Sydney Bristow, but fans pegged it a hit early on. Alias beat Crossing Jordan and Law & Order: Criminal Intent for a first-year PCA.

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This megahit CSI spinoff starred David Caruso, Kim Delaney, and Emily Procter. The Miami-based police procedural aired for 10 seasons on CBS, winning the PCA over Presidio Med and Everwood in 2003.

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Ambler Tamblyn starred as a teen who had a direct line to God in this CBS fantasy drama. The OC and Cold Case didn’t have a prayer against Joan of Arcadia in the 2004 People’s Choice race.

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Lost and CSI: NY were both successful dramas, but fellow PCA nominee Desperate Housewives was the fan favorite in 2005. Marc Cherry’s dramedy/mystery series, set in a fictional suburban neighborhood on Wisteria Lane, starred Teri Hatcher, Felicity Huffman, Marcia Cross, Eva Longoria, and Nicollette Sheridan, and ran for eight soapy seasons on ABC.

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Prison Break was a breakout hit in 2006. The first season of the four-season Fox crime thriller starred Dominic Purcell, Wentworth Miller, and Patricia Wettig and beat out Commander in Chief and Criminal Minds for PCA bragging rights in 2006.

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Before it was Reborn, Tom Kring’s Heroes won a PCA for Favorite New Drama in its first season. The original incarnation of the sci-fi drama aired for four seasons on NBC after beating Ugly Betty and Brothers & Sisters in 2007.

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Viewers loved Private Practice and Gossip Girl, but they loved Moonlight more in its first (and only) season. The short-lived paranormal romance starred Alex O’Loughlin as a private investigator turned vampire.

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Simon Baker played phony psychic Patrick Jane in this CBS police procedural, and viewers predicted the show’s longevity with a 2009 PCA, choosing it over Fringe and 90210. The popular drama for seven seasons on CBS.

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Flash Forward, The Good Wife, NCIS: Los Angeles, and V were just some of the new shows that The Vampire Dairies beat as Favorite New TV Drama in 2010. The CW supernatural drama is currently in its seventh season, despite the fact that Nina Dobrev, who played lead female protagonist Elena Gilbert, exited the show at the end of Season 6.

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This modern day remake of the ‘70s classic series had fan support from the beginning. Forty-two years after the original series debuted, the rebooted Hawaii Five-0 had a new McGarrett (Alex O’Loughlin) and enough loyal fans to beat The Event, Hellcats, Nikita, and No Ordinary Family at the PCAs. The CBS police procedural is currently in its sixth season.

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Once Upon a Time, Revenge, The Secret Circle, and Terra Nova were all up against Person of Interest for Favorite New TV Drama PCA in 2012, but Jonathan Nolan’s sci-fi crime drama turned out to be the fan favorite. The fifth season of the CBS series, which stars Jim Caviezel, is slated for a midseason premiere.

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Kristin Kreuk and Jay Ryan star in this CW series, which is loosely based on CBS’s 1987 series of the same name. While filming for this drama’s fourth and final season just wrapped, Beauty & the Beast was the PCA fan pick (up against Arrow, Elementary, Nashville, and Revolution) in its first season in 2013.

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The CW’s historical fantasy romance about the early days of Mary, Queen of Scots stars Adelaide Kane and is currently in its third season. Reign was voted Favorite New TV Drama in 2013, up against fellow high-profile nominees Dracula, Marvel’s Agents of S.H.I.E.L.D., The Originals, and Sleepy Hollow.

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This Arrow spinoff, based on DC Comics’s crime-fighting character Barry Allen/Flash (played by Grant Gustin), has been a hit with fans. Constantine, Forever, Gotham, and How to Get Away With Murder all lost out to the CW superhero drama at last year’s PCAs.

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