King takes Queen, not Emmy

We're sensing a full-scale snub of the cast of "The Tudors," and that's making us very unhappy.

Off with somebody's head!

Sure, people criticized the Showtime drama for being talky and complicated, but it had copious amounts of sex, betrayal, torture and blood. The thumbscrews! It leaped the hurdle to make it into the top 10 vote-getters on the Emmy drama list, but word is that it won't be in the five semifinalists.

The actors, meanwhile, are nowhere to be found as the field narrows.

If this preliminary list for best actor in a drama holds up, then Jonathan Rhys Meyers isn't in the running for an Emmy.

Unofficial lists for actresses (in supporting and lead roles) don't have Natalie Dormer (pictured above as Anne Boleyn with Rhys Meyers) or Maria Doyle Kennedy (Queen Katherine) on them, and that's a mighty affront, sirs.

Developments that could pull us out of this funk: Bryan Cranston, the perpetually and wrongly overlooked dad on "Malcolm in the Middle," could have his Emmy moment for his role as a teacher-turned-meth-dealer in the daring and original AMC series "Breaking Bad," Gabriel Byrne's being considered for his shrink-with-baggage in "In Treatment," and Denis Leary again has a chance to be rewarded for the consistently outstanding work he does on "Rescue Me."

But the actor to beat will be John Hamm, whose dashing, Brylcreemed Don Draper carries much of "Mad Men" on his broad shoulders. Too bad he might not be joined by King Henry VIII. Now that could've been a real bloodbath.