Central POP

10. The Shield Season Finale

9. American Idol Season 7 Finale

8.

7. HBO Series True Blood

6. Battlestar Galactica

5. Mad Men
AMC’s amazing adman series “Mad Men” delivers its twists and turns in such a subtle way that fans often don’t know what hit them. Perhaps the most shocking scene of Season 2 came when Don’s pregnant wife Betty picked up a stranger in a bar. The atypical move symbolized Betty’s complete unraveling, which began when the socially inept comedian Jimmy Barrett casually revealed that Don had been having an affair with his wife, Bobbie. Though Betty had surely been aware of her husband’s infidelities for about as long as he’d been having them, the news about Bobbie was the last straw. Betty confronted Don about the affair (“She’s so OLD!”), kicked him out of the house, fell into a boozy funk, began playing mind games with her horseback riding pals, and asked around about terminating her unwanted pregnancy (illegal at the time). So when the irreparably damaged Betty stepped into that bar and led that strange man to a cold, empty room in the back, it was her own sad way of taking control. With these riveting moments beautifully strung together week after week, it’s no wonder the show became the first basic cable series to capture the Outstanding Drama Series Emmy. — Lizbeth Scordo

4. Lost
Much to the delight of fans, the fourth season of “Lost” picked up the pace, started delivering answers and, most importantly, returned to the high rate of OMGs that hooked us all in the first place: Sayid’s a hit man! Michael is Ben’s spy on the boat! “Lost” is interesting again! Without question, though, the season’s biggest “Whoa, let’s rewind the DVR” shocker came in the finale, when Ben descended deep into the island’s frigid core to make the entire island disappear, preventing him from ever returning to the island or saving those left behind, and adding yet another layer of meaning to the show’s title. — Brian Wallace

3. Tina Fey’s Sarah Palin Impersonation

The day Republican presidential candidate Senator John McCain surprised everyone by choosing the first-term governor of Alaska as his running mate, Palin Fever began to spread. From her speech at the Republican National Convention to the infamous Katie Couric interview, whenever the 44-year-old “hockey mom” spoke, America tuned in. But perhaps the person who reaped the most benefit from Palin’s rise to fame was “Saturday Night Live” executive producer Lorne Michaels, who quickly tapped former head writer (and Palin look-alike) Tina Fey to make special appearances on the sketch show as the vice presidential candidate. Fey’s impersonations were dead-on (not to mention hilarious) and America was suddenly watching “SNL” again and buzzing about it all week. The real Sarah Palin proved she was truly a good sport when she made an appearance on “SNL,” and even bopped along as the very pregnant Amy Poehler tore into a rap about hunting, McCain’s creepy smile, and Russia. Sorry things didn’t quite work out, Sarah, but you sure did make the election a heck of a lot more interesting. You betcha! — Lizbeth Scordo

2. Michael Phelps winning streak in the 2008 Beijing Olympics
Sure, there were a lot of great athletes at the Summer Olympics in Beijing, but American swimmer Michael Phelps was the one everyone was talking about around the watercooler as he sought the record for most gold medals at a single Olympics. On Day 8 of the games, Phelps hoped to tie record-holder Mark Spitz with a seventh gold in the 100-meter butterfly. For most of the race, Phelps trailed behind Serbian Milorad Cavic and it wasn’t until the very last few meters that Phelps caught up to Cavic, and ultimately beat him to the wall by a mere one-hundredth of a second. Phelps went on to win his eighth gold medal the next day, breaking Spitz’s record. But his blink-and-you-missed-it lunge for the wall resulting in a miraculous win over Cavic was the moment that had us out of our seats, hearts racing, and cheering the swimming phenom to victory. — Chrissy Le Nguyen

1. President-Elect Obama’s Victory Speech
Whether you voted Democrat, Republican, or made your Aunt Mildred a write-in candidate, you have to admit one thing: The presidential election of 2008 played out on TV in a REALLY big way. The entire country spent November 4th glued to their television sets as the results rolled in. After throwing his hat into the ring 21 months prior, Barack Obama beat Republican opponent John McCain, and was declared the 44th President of the United States of America. As thrilled as Obama supporters were when they heard the news, it was Obama’s victory speech later that evening that became the biggest moment to remember. To the crowd of 125,000 people who gathered to see the junior senator speak in Chicago’s Grant Park, and to the millions watching around the world, President-elect Obama marked the beginning of a much-anticipated new chapter in American history with the first line of his captivating speech: “If there is anyone out there who still doubts that America is a place where all things are possible; who still wonders if the dream of our founders is alive in our time; who still questions the power of our democracy, tonight is your answer.” — Lizbeth Scordo