Under-appreciated Entertainer of the Year is...Thomas Gibson of 'Criminal Minds'!

[Brian Damage]

Quick! What do American Idol graduate Allison Iraheta, So You Think You Can Dance host Cat Deeley, Sons of Anarchy star Katey Sagal, The Vampire Diaries hottie Paul Wesley, Fringe scene-stealer John Noble, and House sidekick Robert Sean Leonard have in common? Aside from the fact that their copious talents don’t get as much recognition as they should, the sextet of entertainers all share the distinction of having been steamrolled by Thomas Gibson, star of CBS’ chilling procedural Criminal Minds, in EW.com’s Under-appreciated Entertainer of the Year bracket tournament.

Yes, folks, after a month of intense voting, fanbase lobbying, and crushed dreams, Gibson stands alone at the end of a competition that began with 64 players under-appreciated by the world, but beloved among EW readers. As the No. 8 seed in the TV bracket, EW’s team of editors clearly underestimated Gibson’s chances, but the dashing underdog could not be stopped. “Thomas Gibson IS Criminal Minds,” wrote a reader named GS. “The last couple of seasons he has done AMAZING work with the storylines he’s been given, and the show in general gets no respect. It has tons of fans but never gets recognized. That is the definition of underappreciated in my book.” Gibson’s final-round win against teenage rocker Iraheta (the No. 2 seed in the Music division) wasn’t even close, as his fans propelled him to a nifty 66.8 percent of the vote.

http://popwatch.ew.com/2010/12/03/th...3A+PopWatch%29