Entering adulthood through the New Golden Age of Television was once thrilling, but has since become a bit tiring. Yes, we are all aware that there are dozens and dozens of great TV shows airing right now, but man, starting a new one just seems like such a commitment these days. How many TV shows are really worth investing 100 hours of your life in? Is there anything in life worth investing 100 hours of your life in?
I say this not to make stupid generalizations (after all, Pam and I still sit down to watch a television show after the kids go to bed more than 75% of our nights together), but to explain why it's more difficult to have an expert opinion on the Emmys than most other award shows. I can easily watch nine Oscar nominated films in one month, but it's a little more difficult to watch 16 seasons of television. The difference in time commitment alone is astronomical.
It ends up being so that you either coincidentally have seen enough of the television shows nominated, or you haven't. This year, coincidentally, I feel like I have. But, like, only maybe? Out of the sixteen shows nominated for Best Comedy or Best Drama, I've seen eight of the seasons nominated, and have seen at least one previous season of another four of them. So either I've watched enough television, or this blog post is just a product of my tendency to form strong opinions about pop culture without really knowing the full story.
With that in mind, here are my opinions about some of the major categories at this year's Emmys, which will be broadcasted this Sunday, September 20th (and promise to be either fun/weird or incredibly boring, due to COVID). Check out the full list of nominations HERE.
~~~~~~~~~
Best Comedy
I'm sure with a lot of these categories, I'll feel the need to explain what I think it means to be the "best" in XYZ category. What does it mean to be the "best comedy"?
If we're okay with the fact that a show can consider humor secondary to reinventing the medium and answer huge life questions and making you "think," then The Good Place wins easily. But that wasn't necessarily the funniest show on this list. It's probably the least funny (that I've seen), if we're being honest, but that doesn't mean I didn't love it.
Like, Dead to Me made me laugh more, but at the end of the day, I felt like the drama came first, then the comedy. It would be weird to me if this show won "Best Comedy" because it's not really a comedy. And is it even appropriate to talk about its flaws in the drama department (the constant twists started thrilling and became tiring), seeing as this is apparently being judged as a comedy?
I could probably say the same about Insecure, but I was way more invested in the characters on this show (i.e. it felt real and didn't rely on constant plot twists), and overall, it was funnier than Dead to Me. So does that make it a better comedy? Technically, sure.
But overall, I think this comes down to Schitt's Creek and The Marvelous Mrs. Maisel. Both shows were laugh-out-loud funny, both shows were easy to become invested in, and both shows prioritized comedy over drama. I think it probably comes down to whether you prefer the grounded, heartwarming humor of Schitt's Creek, or the over-the-top, showstopper humor of Maisel. I won't know what I prefer until I type it out below—I'm really conflicted.
Notes: I saw bits and pieces of the new season of Curb, and was surprised how much I laughed at this dinosaur of a show; I've seen most of the first season of What We Do in the Shadows, and laughed a lot, but didn't really see any evidence of it being "the funniest show on TV," though maybe it levels up in season two; I have zero interest in watching The Kominsky Method—like, just fucking zero.
WHAT WILL WIN: The Marvelous Mrs. Maisel
WHAT SHOULD WIN: The Marvelous Mrs. Maisel
~~~~~~~~~
Best Drama
Dramas are easier to understand than comedies—comedies have more of a tendency to blend elements of drama into the mix, whereas you know when you are watching a drama. That's not to say that dramas can't be funny (Deadwood is the funniest show of all time), but the "seriousness" of it all always takes precedence.
That being said, the two that stand out to me are Better Call Saul and Succession—and that has nothing to do with the fact that these are the two dramas airing right now that are the best at blending comedic elements into their DNAs.
I find myself thinking about Succession a lot. I think about the fact that I could love a show that features no redeeming characters. I think about how there are no weak links in the cast, and whether that has anything to do with the fact that these are fucking terrible people that the actors are portraying. I think about how the overarching plot can somehow be predictable but that the show manages to stuff thousands of surprising moments into the story anyway. This is a show that looked fucking AWFUL in the pre-premiere commercials—Pam and I used to make fun of it all the time—but somehow ended up being one of the best shows on television. It was surprising.
Better Call Saul's success is these days much less surprising. Yeah, maybe at one point in time there were doubts that a prequel could match the success of its parent show (the immortal Breaking Bad), but those doubts are pretty far in the rearview mirror now. No, the great joy of watching BCS now is that the show knows exactly what it wants to be at this point, and in season five, it suddenly found itself clicking on every single cylinder. Seriously, this show has never been better. This is absolutely a matter of investment—how many hours have I spent in this universe by now?—but sometimes investment pays off.
The only other show I have anything significant to say about is Stranger Things, which, yeah, found a few new ways to thrill, but in season three still remains a shitty pastiche of every '80s kids movie you've ever seen. This show has nothing to say besides "eat your popcorn while we remind you that E.T. exists." There's a reason "popcorn" is the go-to example in statements like that—like popcorn, this show is a fun treat, but has zero substance, and ultimately it just ends up giving you a stomachache.
I am definitely less familiar with more of the TV shows on this list than the Best Comedy list. We've seen The Handmaid's Tale and Killing Eve's first seasons, but stopped after that, though for very different reasons—Handmaid was too bleak, Killing Eve was fun but ultimately felt like Stranger Things but with spy thrillers. I would be surprised to hear any opinion that states that either of these shows got better in later seasons. I've never heard anyone say that about either. It seems more like the Emmys rewarding past winners / not being able to let go even after dips in quality.
The Crown and The Mandalorian seem okay but I don't have any active interest in checking them out. I do have an active interest in avoiding Ozark, though. I've received so many recommendations for this show that at this point I'm refusing to watch it out of spite. I don't need to watch a Breaking Bad rip-off, especially while Better Call Saul is killing it currently.
WHAT WILL WIN: Succession
WHAT SHOULD WIN: Better Call Saul
~~~~~~~~~~~~~~
Okay, I can't write as much for the rest of these, both because I have less to say, and because of time constraints.
Lead Actor in a Comedy
For me personally, this comes down to Ted Danson and Eugene Levy. I think Ted Danson is really good with pretty much any material you can throw at him, though I'd say he crushes the dramatic moments more so than the broad comedy he was asked to carry in The Good Place.
Eugene Levy, on the other hand, has made me laugh more times with just his eyebrows than Ted Danson has in his entire career. I sincerely cannot stop laughing at Eugene Levy. The man is a genius. Like, I don't mind the existence of five-hundred straight-to-DVD American Pie sequels just because it means that Levy could cash those checks.
From what we've seen of Ramy (the first five episodes at one point), Ramy Youssef was pretty great at playing a quiet, humble humor, but I just haven't seen enough of him to think he could beat Eugene Levy. I've never seen Black-ish, but if Anthony Anderson wins, I'll know it's earned. Not sure if I can say the same about Don Cheadle. And again, I'm never watching The Kominsky Method.
WHO WILL WIN: Don Cheadle
WHO SHOULD WIN: Eugene Levy
~~~~~~~~~~~~
Lead Actress in a Comedy
I would have no problem with any of these women winning, including Tracee Ellis Ross, who acts on the only show I'm not familiar with in this category (Black-ish).
Christina Applegate and Linda Cardellini were both enjoyable on Dead to Me, but honestly, both performances tend to lapse into the cartoonish on occasions. For me, this category comes down to Rachel Brosnahan, Catherine O'Hara, and Issa Rae.
Eugene Levy's eyebrows are to Catherine O'Hara's vocabulary and diction—that shit will never not crack me up. And Rachel Brosnahan totally embodies Mrs. Maisel, so much so that you can sometimes see the flopsweat on her forehead as she pirouettes through dozens of set pieces.
But I'm going to give the tiebreaker to Issa Rae, who I think does the best job of totally becoming the character (my praise even despite the fact that Issa Rae's character is based on Issa Rae). She is so comfortable in this role, and is able to go from serious to corny in the blink of an eye. She deserves it.
WHO WILL WIN: Catherine O'Hara
WHO SHOULD WIN: Issa Rae
~~~~~~~~~~~~
Lead Actor in a Drama
My love for This Is Us is forever, but it's bizarre to me that Sterling K. Brown is that show's only acting nom. He's pretty good, but there are better performances. Justin Hartley probably should be here for his Kevin instead of Brown. But I get that SKB is having a moment. Good for him. Doesn't mean he should win.
It would be crazy to me if neither Succession actor wins this one. I could see Brian Cox getting the nod, just because his character is the "center" of the show's world, even though Jeremy Strong put on a better performance this season, and by the end of the last episode breaks ahead to become the show's true lead.
Otherwise, we have some forgettable nominations. Fuck Ozark (Bateman), fuck legacy nominations for performances on shitty shows (Carell), and... well, no, not fuck Billy Porter, apparently he's pretty great on Pose, but man, that show was just way to over-the-top for me when we watched the pilot.
WHO WILL WIN: Steve Carell
WHO SHOULD WIN: Jeremy Strong
~~~~~~~~~~~
Lead Actress in a Drama
I have never seen any of these shows, so I'll just be happy if Ozark gets swept, despite the fact that I like Laura Linney. Otherwise, I dunno, maybe don't give it to Jennifer Aniston, who still makes like one billion dollars a year from Friends residuals?
WHO WILL WIN: Olivia Colman
WHO SHOULD WIN: Zendaya
~~~~~~~~~~~
Supporting Actor in a Comedy
Ugh, this is a tough one. Let's weed some out. I didn't see Mahershala Ali's performance on Ramy, and while I'm sure it's good, I'm also sure that he is nominated because Emmy voters will nominate any movie star who deigns to act on lowly TV. Alan Arkin acted on The Kominsky Method, so that's out. The fact that anyone performing on SNL could be nominated is a fucking joke, so Keenan's out too. Sterling K. Brown did well on Mrs. Maisel, but I wasn't completely sold on his "angry guy" performance—Brown is just too nice for it. And I think it would be really tone deaf to give the award to someone portraying a cop, so, sorry Andre Braugher, you're out.
This leaves William Jackson Harper, Dan Levy, and Tony Shalhoub. All three of them were so fucking good. Goddamn it.
Have we seen "neurotic Jewish father" before? I can't think of any off the top of my head, but I feel like Shalhoub's character wasn't as trailblazing as the other two. Harper brought depth to every single line reading on The Good Place—like, he could be reading a McDonald's menu and spin gold from it.
But I'm probably going with Dan Levy, who was effortless in finding the humanity underneath his many, many layers of sarcastic aloofness. Nepotism sometimes works in Hollywood (see: Wyatt Russell in Lodge 49... which, come to think of it, where the fuck are the Lodge 49 nominations?!?!?!)
WHO WILL WIN: Mahershala Ali
WHO SHOULD WIN: Dan Levy
~~~~~~~~~~~
Supporting Actress in a Comedy
Jeez, another tough one. Really, the one two we can immediately rule are the SNL girls, who do not deserve Emmys for mugging their way through shitty skits about trump. Which means that Kate McKinnon is definitely going to win this award. Goddamn it.
But who should win it is an almost impossible question. I guess we can rule out Betty Gilpin as well—she's fine in GLOW, but this is an insane that this is that wonderfully warm show's only nomination.
How can I choose between the polar opposites of the Mrs. Maisel supporting actresses, both a bundle of quirks, but expressed in wildly different ways? How can you compare Yvonne Orji giving a grounded and real performance on Insecure and Annie Murphy giving a flighty, hilarious turn on Schitt's Creek? D'Arcy Carden basically plays a robot, and does it so, so well, but how can you compare that to human performances? I don't know, you guys. I just don't.
WHO WILL WIN: Kate McKinnon
WHO SHOULD WIN: fuck it—Alex Borstein
~~~~~~~~~~~
Supporting Actor in a Drama
This is probably the place to put this—FUCK the Emmys for only giving Better Call Saul one acting nomination. Not only did many worthy candidates not get the nod (Rhea Seahorn should've won the past couple years, and she's never even been nominated), but the one actor who did get the nom was by far the least essential actor on the show. Gus Fring is pure fan service, and Giancarlo Esposito, as good of an actor as he is, does nothing to add layers to this one-note character. How was this the year Bob Odenkirk didn't get nominated? Are you fucking serious?!
Okay, anyway, no, I don't think Esposito should win this award, though I wouldn't be pissed off about it like I would if either Morning Show actor got it, or Jeffrey Wright for playing a way less fun robot than D'Arcy Caden was playing. Bradley Whitford? I know, I know, repeat nominations are a thing, and I guess the Emmys still miss The West Wing.
No, this award, like Best Lead Actor in a Drama, comes down to the Succession boys. There are three in this category. The internet loves Cousin Greg, and I do too, but his bromance with fellow nom Matthew Macfadyen's Tom is fun but ultimately sideline work. Kieran Culkin takes what could be a one-note quip machine and gives him a perverse likeability and vulnerability. I'm a fan.
WHO WILL WIN: Jeffrey Wright
WHO SHOULD WIN: Kieran Culkin
~~~~~~~~~~~
Supporting Actress in a Drama
Sarah Snook gives a great unheralded performance as Shiv in Succession, and it's the only performance on this list that I watched during the season it was nominated for. So, no surprise, I think she should win. But I have other thoughts.
For instance, I have no idea what Samira Wiley's performance looked like in season three of The Handmaid's Tale, but I think Wiley is great, and if Poussey wins the Emmy, I'll be a happy man. I also don't know if Fiona Shaw's performance grew by leaps and bounds in later Killing Eve seasons, but it must've, because she was okay in season one I guess?
Fuck The Crown, and fuck Ozark, of course, but I'm saving one final fuck you, and I'm going to savor this one. Fuck Big Little Lies. I'm still bitter that this show chose to be listed in the "Limited Series" categories last year, even though everyone involved knew it wasn't going to be limited. Cleaning up last year like they did was akin to Bryce Harper going on a slump and choosing to play AAA ball so he could win a batting title in that league instead. It's bogus.
So it's with a delicious sense of schadenfreude that I watch as that show falters with the big boys. Only two acting noms, and denied a Best Drama nom? Good! I will roll my eyes so hard when Meryl Streep wins this. Not IF, but WHEN. Book it!!
WHO WILL WIN: Meryl Streep
WHO SHOULD WIN: Sarah Snook
~~~~~~~~~~
Final note: I didn't bother talking about any Limited Series categories, because I've only seen Watchmen, and that shit was so good that I don't even have to watch any other limited series to know that it should motherfucking clean up.
~~~~~~~~~~
Puke on Your Birthday will not be live tweeting the Emmys. I will probably wake up and read the list of winners online the next morning like everyone else.
1 comment:
which, come to think of it, where the fuck are the Lodge 49 nominations?!?!?!)
EXACTLY
Post a Comment