In this horse race, the network fare’s an also-ran

OLD favorites (“Everybody Loves Raymond”), new hits (“Desperate Housewives”), veteran movie stars (Glenn Close of “The Shield”) and relative unknowns (Naveen Andrews of “Lost”) all compete tonight for an Emmy Award. We asked The Times’ TV critics, Paul Brownfield and Robert Lloyd, to make their choices in some of the top categories.

[DRAMA]

DRAMA SERIES

Nominees: “Deadwood,” HBO; “Lost,” ABC; “Six Feet Under,” HBO; “24,” Fox; “The West Wing,” NBC.

Paul Brownfield’s pick: “Six Feet Under.” It’s hard not to acknowledge “Deadwood,” which is only deepening in story and character in its imagining of the Old West. But “Six Feet Under” rose to the challenge of its themes and took chances that paid off.

Robert Lloyd’s pick: “Deadwood.” A more ambitious series than most, and one that manages to be deeply strange without sacrificing reality.

ACTOR, DRAMA SERIES

Nominees: James Spader, “Boston Legal,” ABC; Ian McShane, “Deadwood,” HBO; Hugh Laurie, “House,” Fox; Hank Azaria, “Huff,” Showtime; Kiefer Sutherland, “24,” Fox.

P.B.’s pick: Ian McShane. It’s a battle of Brits: On “House,” Laurie is fun to watch, but McShane as saloon boss Al Swearengen continues to take the dichotomy of the pleasingly unlikable character to surprising places. Plus, he spent several episodes passing a most difficult gallstone.

R.L.’s pick: Hugh Laurie.

ACTRESS, DRAMA SERIES

Nominees: Jennifer Garner, “Alias,” ABC; Mariska Hargitay, “Law & Order: Special Victims Unit,” NBC; Patricia Arquette, “Medium,” NBC; Glenn Close, “The Shield,” FX; Frances Conroy, “Six Feet Under,” HBO.

P.B.’s pick: Frances Conroy. As the alternately bottled-up, grief-stricken and liberated Ruth Fisher, Conroy journeyed emotional distances without losing a consistency of tone.

R.L.’s pick: Frances Conroy.

SUPPORTING ACTOR, DRAMA SERIES

Nominees: William Shatner, “Boston Legal,” ABC; Oliver Platt, “Huff,” Showtime; Naveen Andrews, “Lost,” ABC; Terry O’Quinn, “Lost,” ABC; Alan Alda, “The West Wing,” NBC.

P.B.’s pick: Oliver Platt. Andrews and O’Quinn helped give “Lost” some needed depth of character, but Platt, as a self-indulgent, spiraling-out-of-control attorney on “Huff,” was a consistent scene-stealer on a show that otherwise seemed to be looking for its identity in Season 1.

R.L.’s pick: Oliver Platt.

SUPPORTING ACTRESS, DRAMA SERIES

Nominees: Sandra Oh, “Grey’s Anatomy,” ABC; Blythe Danner, “Huff,” Showtime; Tyne Daly, “Judging Amy,” CBS; CCH Pounder, “The Shield,” FX; Stockard Channing, “The West Wing,” NBC.

P.B.’s pick: CCH Pounder. “The Shield” is all about grit and tension-fueled square-offs between stressed-out cops and detectives. In this world, Pounder’s ability, as Det. Claudette Wyms, to convey authority and humanity consistently enriches the show.

R.L.’s pick: Blythe Danner.

[COMEDY]

COMEDY SERIES

Nominees: “Arrested Development,” Fox; “Desperate Housewives,” ABC; “Everybody Loves Raymond,” CBS; “Scrubs,” NBC; “Will & Grace,” NBC.

P.B.’s pick: “Everybody Loves Raymond.” Executive producer Phil Rosenthal is accustomed to vying for Emmys in the shadow of hotter shows (“Sex and the City,” “Will & Grace”) and this year is no exception, with the appearance of “Desperate Housewives” in the best comedy category. But “Everybody Loves Raymond” went off the air with the same aplomb with which it came on, making it deserving of recognition.

R.L.’s pick: “Arrested Development” -- always finding unexpected uses for interesting actors.

ACTOR, COMEDY SERIES

Nominees: Jason Bateman, “Arrested Development,” Fox; Ray Romano, “Everybody Loves Raymond,” CBS; Tony Shalhoub, “Monk,” USA; Zach Braff, “Scrubs,” NBC; Eric McCormack, “Will & Grace,” NBC.

P.B.’s pick: Jason Bateman. The show might be over-hyped, but as the moral center of a twisted family, Bateman isn’t.

R.L.’s pick: Jason Bateman.

ACTRESS, COMEDY SERIES

Nominees: Marcia Cross, “Desperate Housewives,” ABC; Teri Hatcher, “Desperate Housewives,” ABC; Felicity Huffman, “Desperate Housewives,” ABC; Patricia Heaton, “Everybody Loves Raymond,” CBS; Jane Kaczmarek, “Malcolm in the Middle,” Fox.

P.B.’s pick: Felicity Huffman. She brings a touch of acting class to this comedy soap.

R.L.’s pick: Felicity Huffman.

SUPPORTING ACTOR, COMEDY SERIES

Nominees: Jeffrey Tambor, “Arrested Development,” Fox; Jeremy Piven, “Entourage,” HBO; Peter Boyle, “Everybody Loves Raymond,” CBS; Brad Garrett,” “Everybody Loves Raymond,” CBS; Sean Hayes, “Will & Grace,” NBC.

P.B.’s pick: Jeremy Piven. As Ari Gold, Piven’s performance is a festival of tics and biting insults, an actor accessing his arsenal to deliver a mad agent’s need, greed and neuroses.

R.L.’s pick: Jeremy Piven.

SUPPORTING ACTRESS, COMEDY SERIES

Nominees: Jessica Walter, “Arrested Development,” Fox; Doris Roberts, “Everybody Loves Raymond,” CBS; Holland Taylor, “Two and a Half Men,” CBS; Conchata Ferrell,” “Two and a Half Men,” CBS; Megan Mullally, “Will & Grace,” NBC.

P.B.’s pick: Big, out-there performances being the general order of the day here, the pick goes to the reliably out-there Mullally.

R.L.’s pick: Jessica Walter.

VARIETY, MUSIC OR COMEDY SERIES

Nominees: “Da Ali G Show,” HBO; “The Daily Show With Jon Stewart,” Comedy Central; “Late Show With David Letterman,” CBS; “Late Night With Conan O’Brien,” NBC; “Real Time With Bill Maher,” HBO.

P.B.’s pick: “The Daily Show With Jon Stewart.” A national presidential election gave “The Daily Show” a natural platform for its comedy, and the show delivered an antidote to media coverage of a summer of conventions, polls, swift boats, spin and counter-spin.

R.L.’s pick: “The Daily Show With Jon Stewart.” How I spell “relief.”

*

The Emmys

The Emmy Awards will be broadcast at 8 tonight on KCBS-TV Channel 2.

On Calendarlive.com, you can vote for your favorite TV comedy and drama series and view a photo gallery and clips from some of the nominated shows.

For a complete list of the 57th Annual Primetime Emmy nominees and comprehensive coverage of tonight’s show, go to www.calendarlive.com/emmys.