Cheers and Jeers for 2008

As How I Met Your Mother's Neil Patrick Harris says on the cover of the latest issue of TV Guide, it's been "One Mother of a Year."

How did that translate to the magazine's famous Cheers & Jeers section? Let's find out what the publication lauded, and what it lamented, in 2008...

CHEERS TO:

• Simon Baker for The Mentalist.
• True Blood for putting some bite back into HBO’s anemic line up.
• Amy Ryan for showing her flair for both drama and comedy.
• To the Presidential campaign for winning over the TV electorate.
• Gossip Girl for dodging the sophomore slump.

JEERS TO:

• Season 5 of Project Runway.
• Heroes for flipping characters round from hero to villain and back again.
• Grey’s Anatomy’s ghostly love story.
• To E!s reality shows with Pamela Anderson, Denise Richards and Dina Lohan.

Matt Richenthal is the Editor in Chief of TV Fanatic. Follow him on Twitter and on Google+.