Reactions to the Emmy Nominations

Oh, those Emmys. Yes, it is that time of the year again, when the nominations are made, and people all over are shaking their heads, wondering, "What were they thinking?" Let's discuss.

First, I'll confess that I don't watch everything that is considered good and noteworthy on television. I don't think it's possible (especially if you want to have a life outside of TV), and right now, with two pay channels presenting what some think are the gold standard of shows, it's really not affordable either. So, that means that I've missed a lot of what was selected, including Boardwalk Empire (premise didn't really interest me), The Borgias (don't have Showtime), The Killing (never had time), Dexter (still don't have Showtime), Friday Night Lights (never made time for it and I don't have DirecTV), and Justified (I didn't even know it was on until after the first season aired!) are just a few of the shows I've not seen but were nominated for something. And, of course, I don't watch most comedies. The fact that I don't watch these shows does not prevent me from having opinions about them, of course. I do read a lot.

Next, I have to confess that most of the awards bore me to tears. Art direction, editing, makeup and costume. Yawn. I know that there are professionals at work who are as deserving of awards as any, but I don't know any of them, and really, a winner in one of those awards really doesn't help the reputation of the show or the actors.

So, let's discuss the nominations I am interested in.

Once again, two of my favorite shows were completely shut out of the major awards: Fringe and Community. Both had strong years, and both had strong performances by talented actors. I will return to this theme.

Comedy first - critics were ecstatic that two leading men were added this year: Johnny Galecki of The Big Bang Theory and Louis C.K. of Louie. I've watched the latter with B, and I do think he's rather good. Steve Carrell was also nominated for his last season of The Office (figures), and he is the current favorite to win. The lead actress in a comedy group has two surprises as well: Melissa McCarthy of Bridesmaids - oh, wait, I meant Mike & Molly (yes, a lot of critics believe she was nominated not for her show but because of her performance in the movie) and Martha Plimpton of Raising Hope. Again, I've seen the latter, and Plimpton is great, and I'm really happy she's getting work.

Pretty much every actor in Modern Family was nominated for supporting actor. I know a lot of people love that show, but thanks to the inclusion of Glee's Chris Colfer and Jon Cryer of Two and a Half Men (at least they didn't nominate Sheen this year), there was no room for Community's Danny Pudi and Donald Glover. Or even Chevy Chase, for that matter (you would think he's an Emmy magnet). The supporting actress category also has a lot of "really?" for me, including the addition of Jane Lynch, Betty White, and Kristen Wiig (I'll discuss these three along with many more below). But no love for Yvette Nicole Brown, who's Shirley on Community was awesome this year!

And I honestly could not care less who wins Outstanding Comedy Series - I either don't watch them or they just weren't that good (I'm looking at you, The Office and 30 Rock).

Readers of this blog know that I'm really a drama girl at heart, and the drama awards always interest me the most. The best actor award is filled with the usual suspects: Steve Buscemi, Michael C. Hall, Kyle Chandler, Hugh Laurie, Timothy Olyphant, and Jon Hamm. Hamm had a fabulous year on Mad Men, so I hope he bags the gold. Elisabeth Moss was nominated for best actress, and she too deserves the gold over her competitors. But why was Kathy Bates nominated for Harry's Law? Just because she won an Oscar doesn't mean her performance was better than, say, Anna Torv on Fringe. Torv managed to convincingly play three different persons last year. Not that the Emmys noticed.

The supporting actor race is such a strong one that I can barely muster the energy to point out that John Noble of Fringe was left out again. But the two men from The Good Wife (Josh Charles and Alan Cumming), Peter Dinklage from Game of Thrones, John Slattery of Mad Men, and Andre Braugher from Men of a Certain Age are all deserving of the award. Only one actor is nominated from a show I've not seen: Walter Goggins from Justified. Knowing my luck, that means he'll win.

My feelings about the supporting actress race are not as strong, as there are two shows represented I don't watch - Boardwalk Empire and Justified. However, Christine Baranski and Archie Punjabi from The Good Wife were both nominated, as well Michelle Forbes (granted, I've not seen The Killing, but I've followed Forbes for years - she's fabulous) and Christina Hendricks from Mad Men are all deserving.

So, what was nominated for best drama? Boardwalk Empire, Dexter, Friday Night Lights, Game of Thrones, The Good Wife, and Mad Men. Of the shows I watch, the latter two are the most deserving, with The Good Wife getting the edge.

In reading the nominations, I had a feeling of "really?" for a lot of them. Steve Buscemi was nominated for best actor for his portrayal as Nucky Thompson, despite the fact that many critics feel this is not his strongest role and that Boardwalk Empire was a bit of a disappointment. I'm always happy Hugh Laurie is nominated, but House wasn't all that good last year. And Kathy Bates? Really? Jon Cryer? Jane Lynch's Sue Sylvester had a bad year, creatively, and has allegedly just turned mean. I love Betty White, but her nomination for Hot in Cleveland just seems gratuitous. And try as I might, I have found none of Kristen Wiig's characters to be remotely amusing.

My last "what were they thinking" came from Outstanding Miniseries, as The Pillars of the Earth was nominated. The only award that show should win is worst miniseries ever.

The Emmy Awards

I had hoped to have a pre-Emmy post with my comments on the nominees, who I thought would win and who should win. But I guess I missed my chance. Instead, I'll report on who won, what I liked, and what ticked me off - or just plain bored me.

But before I talk about the winners, I think I must say how impressed I was by Neil Patrick Harris as host? Award shows are old-fashioned events, and Harris was an old-fashioned host, singing and dancing and cracking jokes. But he also felt up-to-date, with modern humor and sensibilities. He made fun of how long the show usually is, and made a joke of his own loss for Outstanding Supporting Actor in a Comedy Series. And the show only ran 5 minutes late. I also liked how the awards were divided into their categories - comedy, reality, variety, and drama. The only sour note was The Family Guy "skit" in which a baby beat a dog. That produced more cringes than laughter from me.

And a caveat - I didn't keep track of everything, especially the parts of the show and awards that relate to reality shows. I only paid attention to parts of the variety awards that are noted below. And I suspect that I have the names of the awards slightly wrong. Oh well.

First, the comedy awards. As you know, I rarely watch comedies, with 30 Rock and now Community as exceptions. And sadly, I'm behind on my 30 Rock - we've quite a few on our DVR. Of course, some shows are labeled comedies that I don't think of as comedies, such as Pushing Daisies, which was sadly cancelled last year. I was also surprised that actresses from Saturday Night Live were nominated under comedy instead of variety show.

The first award of the night was fabulous! The award was for Outstanding Supporting Actress in a Comedy Series. Kristin Chenowith, Olive Snook on Pushing Daisies, won over the SNL comedians and Vanessa Williams. Olive Snook was the one character that really broke out from a cast of quirky characters. Olive could easily have become a one-note character, but in Chenowith's capable hands, she was a delight. I could never take my eyes off her.

The award for Outstanding Supporting Actor in a Comedy Series was a joke, and not the funny kind. Kevin Dillon of Entourage, Harris from How I Met Your Mother, Rainn Wilson from The Office, and Jack McBrayer and Tracy Morgan, both of 30 Rock, all lost to Jon Cryer of that comedy classic, Two and a Half Men. It is not that I don't appreciate Cryer's talents - I think that they are manifold. It's just that, first of all, he's a Lead Actor, not a Supporting Actor, and that Two and a Half Men suck.

Toni Collette won Outstanding Actress in a Comedy Series for her series on HBO (I can't believe I can't remember the name of it!), upsetting the expected favorite, Tina Fey of 30 Rock. Fey's co-lead, Alec Baldwin, won in his category - a well-deserved win if you ask me.

Baldwin makes the show with his zany performance of an ambitious executive.

No surprise that 30 Rock won for Outstanding Comedy Series.

The only reason I pay attention to the variety awards is to see if The Daily Show with Jon Stewart and/or The Colbert Report win. This year, it was The Daily Show's time to win - again, for writing and series. Go Stewart!

The drama awards started with the best victory of the night for me - Michael Emerson won for Outstanding Supporting Actor in a Drama for his role as Benjamin Linus in Lost! As you all may know, I love Lost, and the character of Benjamin Linus is one of the best crafted and acted in a well-acted show. Another deserving win.

Cherry Jones won the corresponding Supporting Actress for her performance in 24, and a director of ER won for Outstanding Direction.

The remaining award-winners were fairly predictable. Mad Men won for Outstanding Writing and Outstanding Drama Series, Glenn Close won for Outstanding Lead Actress for her work in Damages, and Bryan Cranston repeated his win last year for Outstanding Lead Actor for Breaking Bad.

So, now the Emmys are over, and we can all go back to living our lives. In the meantime, what did y'all think?