If you're just joining us in the cultural impact battle royale there are two first-round match-ups already under way. SNL and Freaks and Geeks are locked in a tight battle while Swingers has opened up a nice lead on The Daily Show. Today's battle pits the show where I learned how to use my "feelings," Dawson's Creek, versus a show that made me laugh on a consistent basis, That 70's Show. Let's break it down!

The Case for Dawson's Creek (1999):

Let's get the big one out of the way. Katie Holmes. You may know her from ... being married to Tom Cruise (which in and of itself is not a skill). But you should know her from her fantastic work in Wonder Boys. I'm one of the few who dug her in Batman Begins too. Plus, Thank You for Smoking means she's not afraid of interesting projects. So can we have her back Tom? Please?

Michelle Williams is the next Dawson's alum worth mentioning. She received an Oscar nomination for her work in Brokeback Mountain and had another critical darling with The Station Agent. Her recent work in Deception was forgettable but we won't hold that against her.

Joshua Jackson seems to have transitioned from potential box-office star to "guy who does interesting work that you've never heard of." Cruel Intentions and The Skulls were both better off for his participation; Bobby and Battle in Seattle are both well-regarded. Shutter bombed in a big way. However, if he comes back as Fletch, we can look for Joshua Jackson to again be a household name.

Oddly enough, Jimmy Van Der Beek, the "Dawson" in Dawson's Creek has had the least success of the bunch. Back in 2002 The Rules of Attraction had some buzz and Varsity Blues is a cult classic but it's been slim pickings since then.

Lastly, as we've cherry-picked the second season of Dawson's Creek, I'll throw out Michael Pitt who was recently in the critically acclaimed Funny Games.

The Case for That '70's Show (1999):

Ashton! That's right, the Kutch. He married Demi Moore (again, not a skill) and appears in this weekend's disaster film What Happens in Vegas. He was also in The Guardian and Just Married. Do we count those? I will say he's one of the better SNL hosts out there. And he was in Bobby too!

Next up, Mila Kunis. Here's a gal with some serious buzz after her home run in Forgetting Sarah Marshall. She's also got another nice credit, voicing Meg in Family Guy.

Topher Grace seemed like a bigger deal a few years ago, didn't he? He was in a little low-budget film called Spider-Man 3 as Venom. He was also very solid in In Good Company. I even sort of dug that Tad Hamilton movie. Traffic was eight years ago but if you watch it again you'll notice he's got a few solid minutes in that one too.

Wilmer Valderrama anyone? Were this a dating contest he'd have it sown up. But the resume is a bit thin otherwise. He's on that crazy MTV show where people take turns insulting each other. He was actually decent in Fast Food Nation, a movie which no one in the entire universe saw (except me).

Laura Prepon can currently be seen on a show called October Road. Danny Masterson has quite a few projects in production ... so maybe he'll be big in 2010 or so.

So who ya got? Which troupe has made the biggest pop culture impact?

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