in heaven", although at the end of the series the guest stars were increasingly placed in "throwaway roles". However, with the exit of male lead Josh Charles (who played Will Gardner) in season five, Kayla Kumari Upadhyaya of The A.V. Club opined that the show's "writers really struggled to rebuild that same type of long-term emotional storytelling. His departure left a gap that was never fully filled again." While reviewers acknowledged that Charles's departure was inevitable (and praised how Will was written off dramatically), they questioned decisions made by the writers for seasons six and seven that further hurt the show. Archie Panjabi's portrayal of Kalinda Sharma was well-regarded during the first three seasons, but Sonia Saraiya of Salon felt that her character ended up sidelined by a much-criticized plotline in seasons four to six, amid a rumored rift between Panjabi and producer Julianna Margulies where they did not share any screen time for their final 50 episodes. In season seven, longtime stalwarts like Cary Agos and Diane Lockhart were reportedly marginalized to irrelevance with a lack of compelling storylines, in favor of promoting new characters like Lucca Quinn and Jason Crouse. TV ratings DVR ratings Season Averages in Live+7 DVR Ratings: season 1: 14million viewers|DVR ratings: million season 2: 14.059million viewers|DVR ratings: 2.257million season 3: 12.100million viewers|DVR ratings: 1.880million season 4: 11.523million viewers|DVR ratings: 2.075million season 5: 12. million viewers|DVR ratings: million season 6: 12.268million |DVR ratings: 2.522million 2013: With 11.7million viewers, the series ranks at No. 36 among American TV primetime series. Among 18 to 49 viewers (106); 34 and under (223). Awards and nominations The series and its cast have won a number of awards. Julianna Margulies has been widely recognized for her portrayal in the lead role, winning the Primetime Emmy Award, Golden Globe Award, Critics' Choice Television Award, TCA Award for Individual Achievement in Drama, and twice for the Screen Actors Guild Award. The series has also been nominated for five Golden Globe Awards in its first four seasons, with Margulies winning the Golden Globe Award for Best Actress – Television Series Drama for the first half of the first season in 2010. In addition, the series won a Peabody Award in 2010, and has been thrice nominated for the Screen Actors Guild Award for Outstanding Performance by an Ensemble in a Drama Series and twice nominated for the Primetime Emmy Award for Outstanding Drama