The Emmys are a bit of a joke. In fact, as soon as one gets past the Oscars, nearly every award ceremony is a joke. The Grammys, the Golden Globes, the ESPYs and MTV award shows all fail to truly recognize the best, either by the very nature of the viewer demographic, the award structure or sheer stupidity.

The Emmys, in particular, seem to have this unofficial grandfather rule where once something is nominated, it just keeps getting nominated, whether or not it is still quality or not. “The Office” and “30 Rock” deserved nominations in 2006 but not so much today.

Other times, the Emmys dole out nominations simply because something is popular — “Glee” — or because they feel like they ought to — anything on HBO.

Since the Emmys are this Sunday on Fox, and since despite a dislike for the show, I will still end up arguing about who should have won after, I’ll just go ahead and give my picks for each category. This is not picking from the Emmys’ nominations because in some cases, the best show or actor in a category was not even nominated.

Outstanding Drama Series: “Breaking Bad” (AMC)

It was a tough call between “Breaking Bad” and AMC’s other stellar series, “Mad Men,” as both series are in a this-season-will-always-top-last-season mode, but “Breaking Bad” edges it out by building tension throughout its third season last year and ending on a high note.

“Breaking Bad” is the best show on television because it does not baby its audience. Like “Mad Men,” show writers bring back plot elements at any given moment. Nothing ever feels like simply a plot device because everything is always set up beforehand, and all the character motivations are clear and logical. “Breaking Bad” is a step above everything on television right now.

Runners-up: “Mad Men” (AMC), “Boardwalk Empire” (HBO), “Big Love” (HBO), “Shameless” (Showtime)

Outstanding Comedy Series: “Parks and Recreation” (NBC)

Fox’s “Bob’s Burgers” came awfully close to taking this award with a hilarious first season, but “Parks and Recreation” built off its breakout second season with an excellent third season last year. The third-season premiere, “Go Big or Go Home,” like the title suggests, started the season off with a bang and demanded multiple viewings after its airing.

The show has built an excellent ensemble cast, and the writing shows a clear understanding of the characters and attempts to put the characters in the funniest situations possible, like the episode “Ron and Tammy: Part Two,” with Ron Swanson and his ex-wife Tammy, or “Media Blitz,” which essentially served as the character-fleshing-out episode of Ben. Adding Rob Lowe and Adam Scott to the main cast was an excellent decision, as both stole the show in their stints at the end of season two. Lowe instantly became a breakout character, and Scott plays the straight man superbly.

Runners-up: “Bob’s Burgers” (Fox), “The Increasingly Poor Decisions of Todd Margaret” (IFC), “Community” (NBC), “Hung” (HBO)

Outstanding Lead Performance in a Drama Series: Jon Hamm as Don Draper in “Mad Men” (AMC)

Each year Hamm takes Draper in new and interesting directions, and this year was no different as Hamm played the divorced man lost in the ’60s well. It’s hard for an actor to get viewer sympathy when he pretty much has it all, but Hamm did that and then some.

Outstanding Lead Performance in a Comedy Series: David Cross as Todd Margaret in “The Increasingly Poor Decisions of Todd Margaret” (IFC)

Cross played the idiot role with style, making it fun again — not just painful — for viewers to laugh at the inept lead character. In particular, his character’s first-episode breakdown is must-see, even if one does not watch another second of the show.

Outstanding Supporting Performance in a Drama Series: Michael Shannon as Nelson Van Alden in “Boardwalk Empire” (HBO)

Shannon, part of an excellent cast on “Boardwalk,” stole the show as the scenery-chewing Van Alden. His character was the cause of more than one double-take moment in the show’s first season, like that strange nightly ritual he had and his attempted baptism of another character.

Outstanding Supporting Performance in a Comedy Series: Nick Offerman as Ron Swanson in “Parks and Recreation” (NBC)

This is the best category of them all. Will Arnett in “Todd Margaret,” Rob Lowe in “Parks,” Kristen Schaal in “Bob’s Burgers” and Alison Brie in “Community” are all worthy, but Ron Swanson just had too many memorable lines this year. Here’s an example, Swanson on whether he wants a salad: “Since I’m not a rabbit, no, I do not.”

— Robby O’Daniel is a graduate student in communications. He can be reached at rodaniel.utk.edu.