It's Emmy nomination eve as TV fans are looking forward to tomorrow morning's Emmy nominations, announced at 8:35am ET by Grey';s Anatomy's Chandra Wilson and The Big Bang Theory's Jim Parsons.

This year there are plenty of interesting changes and storylines going into the announcement.  As always, Grey's Anatomy has plenty of drama, with Katherine Heigl and T.R. Knight's behind-the-scenes decisions and Patrick Dempsey's choice to submit himself as a supporting actor for the first time.  Expanding the major acting and series categories to six nominees each should also add some extra spice into the morning.

So what can you expect, who are the favorites going into the nominations, and who might have a shot at sneaking in?  On the drama side, expect cable to dominate, with Mad Men, Breaking Bad, Damages, Rescue Me, Sons of Anarchy, The Shield, True Blood, In Treatment, Big Love and Dexter all picking up multiple nominations.  The real test is The Shield, the FX drama starring Michael Chiklis that has the hopes and prayers of every TV critic behind it.

Another interesting issue will be whether sci-fi and fantasy shows like True Blood and Battlestar Galactica can score major nominations, or if they will be stuck in the technical categories.

On the comedy side, expect 30 Rock to dominate with a ton of acting nominations for Tina Fey, Alec Baldwin, supporting players like Tracy Morgan and Jane Krakowski, and a handful of guest starts like Jennifer Aniston, Salma Hayek, Alan Alda and Steven Martin.  There are also some potential wildcards like Danny McBride in HBO's Eastbound and Down, Toni Collette in Showtime's United States of Tara, and Debra Messing in USA's The Starter Wife.

Also, it's a virtual lock that Tina Fey will also make a play in the guest actress category for her Saturday Night Live appearances as Governor Sarah Palin.  This love might even expand to Justin Timberlake, who could become an Emmy nominated actor for his guest appearance as SNL host.

Even with six nominees apiece, the major categories are still hard to predict with so many great performances, but here are my final Emmy predictions:



DRAMA SERIES:
Damages
Grey's Anatomy
House
Lost
Mad Men
The Shield

DRAMA LEAD ACTOR:
James Spader, Boston Legal
Bryan Cranston, Breaking Bad
Michael C. Hall, Dexter
Hugh Laurie, House
Jon Hamm, Mad Men
Michael Chiklis, The Shield

DRAMA LEAD ACTRESS:
Sally Field, Brothers and Sisters
Kyra Sedgwick, The Closer
Glenn Close, Damages
Mariska Hargitay, Law and Order: SVU
January Jones, Mad Men
Holly Hunter, Saving Grace

DRAMA SUPPORTING ACTOR:
Wiilliam Shatner, Boston Legal
William Hurt, Damages
T.R. Knight, Grey's Anatomy
John Mahoney, In Treatment
Michael Emerson, Lost
Walton Goggins, The Shield

DRAMA SUPPORTING ACTRESS:
Rose Byrne, Damages
Marcia Gay Harden, Damages
Sandra Oh, Grey's Anatomy
Chandra Wilson, Grey's Anatomy
Dianne Wiest, In Treatment
Katey Sagal, Sons of Anarchy


COMEDY SERIES:
The Big Bang Theory
Entourage
The Office
30 Rock    
Two and a Half Men
Weeds

COMEDY LEAD ACTOR:
Jim Parsons, The Big Bang Theory
Danny McBride, Eastbound and Down
Tony Shalhoub, Monk
Steve Carell, The Office
Alec Baldwin, 30 Rock
Charlie Sheen, Two and a Half Men
        
COMEDY LEAD ACTRESS:
Julia Louis-Dreyfus, The New Adventures of Old Christine
Christina Applegate, Samantha Who?
Debra Messing, The Satrter Wife
Tina Fey, 30 Rock
America Ferrera, Ugly Betty
Mary-Louise Parker, Weeds

COMEDY SUPPORTING ACTOR:
Kevin Dillon, Entourage
Jeremy Piven, Entourage
Neil Patrick Harris, How I Met Your Mother
Rainn Wilson, The Office
Tracy Morgan, 30 Rock
Jon Cryer, Two and a Half Men
        
COMEDY SUPPORTING ACTRESS:
Wanda Sykes, The New Adventures of Old Christine
Jenna Fischer, The Office
Jean Smart, Samantha Who?
Jane Krakowski, 30 Rock
Holland Taylor, Two and a Half Men
Elizabeth Perkins, Weeds


-John Kubicek, BuddyTV Senior Writer
(Image courtesy of FX)