With Emmy nominations around the corner, it’s time for the critics to sift through all the networks’ offerings and pick the best of the best. The nominations for this year’s Television Critics Association Awards have been unveiled.

Leading the pack with a total of four nominations is FX’s The Americans. The drama starring Keri Russell about KGB spies nabbed Program of the Year, Outstanding Achievement in Drama, Outstanding New Program and Individual Achievement in Drama nominations. Thanks to The Americans, FX was the top dog among networks with seven nominations. CBS, NBC and HBO follow with six apiece, and AMC picks up five nods.

“These were not easy choices for our 200-plus members,” TCA President Candace Havens says of the nominations. “The past TV season was filled with deserving people and programs, and these are the cream of the crop.”

Other dramas with multiple nods include Breaking Bad, Game of Thrones and House of Cards. Top comedy honorees were Veep, The New Girl and Parks and Recreation. For all you lovers of vintage television, you might be interested to know that All In The Family, Star Trek, Twin Peaks, Saturday Night Live and Lost are all competing for the Heritage Award. Check out all the nominations below.

check out all the nominations after the jump

I’m a sucker for all things Werewolves (Team Jacob) and this book takes that world to a whole new level. First time authors Jade Olivia Braddock and Cyril Alfred Blake really outdid themselves on this one. If I had to compare it to anything I would say it’s like Game of Thrones meets True Blood with a hit of The Mortal Instruments.

This is the story of the death of Devon Andrews, and her rebirth into a world she never asked for. On the night of the winter solstice: a lunar eclipse, a prophecy and a world of war and leadership. A once-forgotten ancient culture and a dynasty under the guidance of the last of the druids. A war between two families, one given gifts by the Gods the other created through dark magic, both with their own secrets and agendas. Her old life ripped away, a new destiny is created. Follow Devon and her journey into this one-of-a-kind story of history, magic, and werewolves. The Solstice Moon Series has taken a classic supernatural genre beloved by its fans and given it a world that no one has seen before.

I found Devon Andrews to a rough and tumble kind of girl with a tomboy sense of fashion and a street smarts attitude. She kept me guessing the whole way about how she was going to react in certain situations and there was always this aura of mystery around her which I quite enjoyed. There is also a slew of other characters to fall in love with along the way including a fabulous gay and a studly trainer. I find whenever there is a gay character in a book, like The Mortal Instruments for example, I grow more attached to the story and enjoy reading it just that much more. All in all I loved the story and thought it did a beautiful job of setting things up for the rest of the series, which I will definitely be buying.

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Director Kenneth Branagh (Thor) finally has all three major players in his upcoming live action adaptation of Disney’s Cinderella all secure. Richard Madden joins previously announced Cate Blanchett and Lily James who are playing Cinderella’s evil stepmother, Lady Tremaine, and the titular princess respectively. The 26-year-old Scottish actor has been tapped to tackle the lead male role aka Prince Charming.

Madden is best known for his role as Robb Stark in the hit fantasy drama Game of Thrones. His previous on-screen credits include the Eddie Redmayne-led TV drama Birdsong and Channel 4′s short-lived Sirens where he played a gay character. Speaking of which, there’s this hot scene where he picks up a construction worker at a church and the two get it on in the toilets. Check out the video below, along with several pictures of Madden.

check out more pics of Madden after the jump

Since it’s Game of Thrones Sunday, I thought I’d share a couple of GoT-related clips. Both are ridiculous but somewhat entertaining, even for me and I don’t watch the HBO show. Yes, I realize I’m missing out, but have the show queued up. Soon enough, I’ll be caught up with all you folks.

The first clip involves Games of Thrones footage spliced up with the Friends theme song. A couple of weeks ago, I shared a similar video with The CW’s Arrow getting a Friends-type of intro. IMHO, this one works better because GoT is far more serious and hearing “I’ll Be There For You” associated with it is the last thing you’d expect. Emilia Clarke and them prove they’ll be “heir” for you in the fan made clip.

Next up is Funny or Die’s hilarious recap of the show. I’m so glad Jonathan the hairdresser is back to deliver his unique viewpoints. This time he amps it up by bringing along Alfie Allen who stars in the HBO show. Check out his fierce musings on this week’s Gay of Thrones which includes twerking, Alfie’s gang rape scene, the three “T’s” and three “B’s.” It’s must-see FOD.

watch the latest hilarious clip

Funny or Die videos are hit or miss. When they’re on, they’re hilarious. Even though I don’t watch Game of Thrones, I was thoroughly entertained with their Gay of Thrones clip. I think you will too.

Jonathan is a very gay, very flamboyant hairdresser who chats up his client about the HBO fantasy series. He sassily gives a breakdown of the first two episodes of the season. You don’t even have to be familiar with the show to appreciate his delivery. From dropping a Christina Aguilera reference to talking about a “f**king beetle,” Jonathan hilariously reviews the show with lots of limp wrist hand gestures.

Though references to the show are dropped, his random confusing plot analysis won’t give away any spoilers. Check it out below.

watch the clip after the jump

Just because I don’t watch Game of Thrones doesn’t mean I can’t appreciate the hotness that is Nikolaj Coster-Waldau who plays Jaime Lannister on the HBO series. Truth be told, this sexy Danish actor has been on my radar since I first set my eyes on him in Wimbledon starring Kristen Dunst and Paul Bettany. That scene in the steam room with Bettany and Coster-Waldau wearing just towels and dripping in sweat was kinda hot. Love, set and match indeed.

The 42-year-old actor appears on the May 2013 cover of Men’s Health. In addition to posing for photographer Nino Munoz for a series of photos, Nikolaj goes “medieval on your abs.” I can think of a couple of other body parts where he can get all medieval ;) For the accompanying interview, he discuss his acting process, favorite movie and losing Vertical Limit to Chris O’Donnell because he blew his audition big time. Check out a few quotes and photos from the publication below.

more pics and quotes after the jump

Last week, HBO released the first official poster for Season 3 of Game of Thrones. That artwork simply featured a dragon’s shadow, show title and premiere date. Side note: I was walking with Nic and a few friends in Santa Monica when we stumbled upon a bus with the image. For some reason Nic kept turning his head around. He was looking for what was casting the dragon shadow on the bus. LOL. Clearly someone was still drunk from the previous night ;)

The network just released a slew of new images to promote the March 31 premiere. The 12 character posters will launch outdoor and print next week, but you can check all of them out below. I have to say, even though the images are meant to be haunting, a few of guys look super sexy. Most notably Kit Harington (Jon Snow), Nikolaj Coster-Waldau (Jaime Lannister) and Richard Madden (Robb Stark). Their scruffy looks put me over the edge. Check them all out below.

check them all out after the jump

If you’re chomping at the bit for Game of Thrones to return on March 31 on HBO, then this might your satisfy your GoT craving. The Season 2 DVD and Blu-ray hit shelves yesterday and includes a slew of treats for hardcore fans of the fantasy series to enjoy. Four of which are deleted scenes featuring Ser Sandor Clegane (Rory McCann), Lady Sansa Stark (Sophie Turner) and Tyrion Lannister (Peter Dinklage), as well as Lord Petyr Baelish (Aidan Gillen) and Lord Varys (Conleth Hill) to name a few. From murder to passionate love scenes and everything in between, the clips definitely give you an eyeful. Check them out below.

check out the deleted scenes after the jump