Thursday, July 18, 2013

AND I SWEAR TO YOU THAT THOSE WHO DO NOT VOTE FOR ME WILL DIE SCREAMING:  Emmy nominations are out, and there's much to say. I'm going to focus more on the quirks than the top categories, and supplement this as needed:

  • First-time nominees include Kerry Washington, Emilia Clarke, Carrie Preston, and Harry Hamlin.
  • Eric Stonestreet becomes the first Modern Family actor to fail to be Emmy-nominated since Ed O'Neill was skipped in the first season. The other three get to go up against Stefon, Tony Hale, and Adam Driver. (Third straight year they passed on NPH.)
  • No Kingslayer. No Tatiana Maslany. No Corey Stoll. And no Rob Lowe love for Behind the Candelabra, or David Lynch for Guest Actor on Louie? Really?
  • Eight different individual nominations for Louis C.K., five for Tina Fey (including lyrics to "The Rural Juror"), and three for Anthony Bourdain.
  • Christine Baranski yes, Archie Panjabi no.  This is correct.
  • Much love for 30 Rock's final season, including Best Comedy, Tina Fey, Jane Krakowski, Will Forte (!!) in guest, writing noms for each half of the finale ...
  • Survivor gets no love other than in the tech categories. Amazing Race, however, again, yeah.
  • Jonathan Banks' first nomination since 1989, when he was supporting on Wiseguy and lost to Larry Drake ("Benny") from L.A. Law.
  • Parks and Rec was only nominated for Amy Poehler and Sound Mixing.
Sepinwall: "[T]hese aren't the exact nominees I'd have chosen, but it's a far less egregious list than we've had in some other years."

MZS: "If Jonathan Banks doesn't win Best Supporting Actor for playing Mike on Breaking Bad, the award means nothing, and the word acting means nothing, and maybe everything means nothing, and we should all just go die in the tall grass." 

24 comments:

  1. Very sad about Maslany, particularly since that category is so big. Happy for Jonathan Banks, Carrie Preston, and the song "Rural Juror." Surprised at the omission of Rob Lowe. And yes, for the season just passed, Baranski over Panjabi for sure.

    I would have like to see a nomination for Holly Hunter in Top of the Lake, but happy to think Elisabeth Moss might finally get an Emmy for something.

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  2. Joseph Finn10:25 AM

    I'm mystified by the Survivor snub after two really strong seasons this year.


    That Lowe omission feels even worse when you see Scott Bakula got nominated for Candelabra. Say what now?.


    My count on Louis C.K. nominations is nine, assuming he is part of the nomination for Louie for best comedy.


    New Girl's snubs are mystifying and bedeviling and I just want Modern Family to go away (even more so for Matt Walsh being snubbed). At this point I'm rooting for Bill Hader and his Grenada puppet.


    Congratulations for America Horror Story for gaming the system.

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  3. I can't believe that they've left out Nick Offerman again! They clearly have seen Parks & Rec, because Amy Poehler keeps getting nominated. I love her, but if it weren't for Nick Offerman (and Aubrey Plaza), I don't think that the show would be as good as it is.


    Happy to see nods for Jonathan Banks, Carrie Preston and Connie Britton. Nashville's a mess, but she's great in it. And I'm taking it as a retro nomination for FNL.

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  4. My hatred for "Modern Family" grows every year. The Emmys should mandate they submit half of them as leads to quit destroying both supporting categories, or - OR - just stop nominating "Modern Family" for everything in a a world where "New Girl," "Parks and Rec" and "Happy Endings" (RIP) exist.

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  5. Yay for Jonathan Banks! I was sure he'd be overlooked. Also thrilled about Carrie Preston, who is one of my favorite parts of The Good Wife. Also happy to see Emilia Clarke get some Emmy love. She didn't have much to do in season two (except say "Where are my dragons?" a lot), but man, she killed it in season 3.

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  6. lisased11:06 AM

    Just reading the words "Grenada puppet" makes me snort, so just hand the award to him already.

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  7. Top of the Lake was excellent. I just watched it - highly recommend. Very suspenseful.

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  8. lisased11:08 AM

    Am I right in seeing that Alan Menken could get closer to the EGOT with his "Neighbors" song nomination? And did that show get better?

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  9. lisased11:12 AM

    I too am disappointed about Maslany. I watched "Orphan Black" over three days while recovering from surgery. It's been a long time since I watched an actor in multiple roles and completely forgot that the characters were played by one person. Just the way she carried herself as certain characters (and characters imitating other characters) was impressive.

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  10. Adam B.11:28 AM

    It looks like he would complete it with this win.

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  11. Eric J.11:45 AM

    From what I heard, "Neighbors" developed into an OK family comedy.


    I'm kind of mystified by the Harry Hamlin nomination. There was nothing wrong with his Mad Men performance, but nothing about it stands out for me either. I'm guessing a combination of nostalgia and a strong push from his people.

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  12. andrewraff11:50 AM

    Eric Stonestreet becomes the first adult Modern Family actor to fail to be Emmy-nominated. None of the kids have ever been nominated (and I wouldn't object to Nolan Gould getting one.) I'm not sure that I wouldn't put Nick Offerman into that category over Hale, but thrilled to see Driver and Hader recognized, especially when Driver's role isn't purely comic.

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  13. Marsha12:17 PM

    We have such an embarrassment of riches on TV these days that it is hard for me to quibble with most of the inclusions, even if it leaves out people I like.

    Very pleased to see the nomination for Nathan Lane on TGW and glad to see Margo Martindale get love for her role as Claudia, though I think both are cheating given how prominent they were - there should be a difference between a recurring role and a one-off in these nominations. Loved Harry Hamlin in this role (he's carving out quite an interesting career in recent years, isn't he?) but again - only a guest role in the weird Hollywood contract sort of way. Ditto Cardellini on Mad Men. Now Carrie Preston and Michael J. Fox on TGW? Those are guest roles - one or maybe two episodes in a season. The comedy category is much better about this.

    Glad to see the writing and directing love for "Q&A."

    Yay for Merritt Wever! She classes up everything she does (even Studio 60) and she had a wonderful story line this year on Nurse Jackie. Also happy about Anna Chlumsky on Veep, who is fantastic.

    If you're going to nominate a song from Smash, how can there be anything you pick over "They Just Keep Movin' the Line"? (Thought YAY for "Rural Juror"!)

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  14. Maret Orliss12:45 PM

    Can someone remind me why American Horror Story counts as miniseries and not actual series!

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  15. Because it's a different cast and story every year, instead of a continuation of the previousl year. It's a loophole, but they found it and have exploited it for two years.

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  16. Maret Orliss1:05 PM

    Aha. Thanks.

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  17. I'm kind of psyched to see "Shark Tank" get a nom in the reality series category. I find that show sort of addictive. On the other hand, I have no idea how "Diners, Drive Ins and Dives" got in there. The guy drives around and eats. That's it.

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  18. Bobsyeruncle1:41 PM

    I just want to take a moment to bitch about the sheer number of nominations for DOWNTON ABBEY. It seems to be a fact universally agreed upon that the show has experienced a precipitous decline in quality since the end of the first season. And this year was a special sort of disaster, culminating the Christmas Special's ultimate screw you to the audience. So, nominations in all the major categories? Come on.


    And while everyone on the show is perfectly lovely, the performances aren't terribly groundbreaking. Which is a long way of saying damn you Emmy voters, for giving Michelle Dockery a nomination that could have gone to Tatiana Maslany.

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  19. Joseph Finn2:43 PM

    It's a series. Emmy simply hasn't closed the very technical loophole that allows AHS to cheat the system.

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  20. KCosmo3:46 PM

    I love Harry Hamlin's performance on Mad Men. Every time he is in an episode I comment afterward about how much I like him in this role.

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  21. I totally agree that it's a series, but it keeps submitting itself as a miniseries, and they keep on nominating them. Ryan Murphy will not be denied his Emmy!

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  22. Genevieve8:16 PM

    Pleased and surprised to see that Brain Games got a nomination, under Outstanding Informational Series or Special. Very entertaining and informative, good to watch with adults/teens/kids.

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  23. I think there are rules about how many songs they can submit, and great as Hilty's performance of "Movin' The Line" is, it's not a big production of the sort that they tend to honor.

    There is a line between guest and supporting beyond just billing--I know at least in years past, Chris Noth has had to submit as supporting actor for Good Wife, even though he's billed as "Special Guest Star" on the show.

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  24. 1. NO ONE TAKES KHALEESI'S EMMY! (Except, let's be honest, Maggie Smith is going to win again.)

    2. In guest, I hope they reward Nathan Lane's nice, small, against-type work on Good Wife rather than his shrill work on Modern Family, and that Bob Newhart finally wins an Emmy (no, not even the Emmy bait ER part won him one).

    3. In rules confusion--why are the two parts of the 30 Rock finale nominated separately for writing but as a unit for direction?

    4. In addition to Rob Lowe, would have loved to see Political Animals get more love in Supporting Actor Miniseries for James Wolk, Ciaran Hinds, and arguably even Sebastian Stan.

    5. I kind of love the fact that it took 3 people to write the lyrics to "The Rural Juror."

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