Monday, August 30, 2010

Quick Emmy reaction

Well, let's see what I can remember from this post I was going to make of quick Emmy reactions. Thanks, Firefox, for eating my homework as it were.

I didn't watch the telecast, so these are just reactions to the winners. And, first, a note about the nominees. I think I said it before, but this was a really good year for Emmy nominees. Plenty of new blood and getting rid of the old guard. Now, it'll never be "perfect," and everyone's definitely of "perfect" is different so, y'know, there'll always be snubs. But by and large, and with the glaring exception of Community ("Modern Warfare," I contend, is truly the funniest episode of television that aired last season), I felt this was a standout year for Emmy nominations.

Highlights:
- Jane Lynch's win for Supporting Actress in a Comedy... do I even need to quality this?
- Eric Stonestreet's win for Supporting Actor in a Comedy... a surprise when the expectation was that three nominees from the same show meant they'd split the vote and all lose. Eric's affable Cameron is a delight. Fizbo rules!
- Jim Parsons's overdue win for Lead Actor in a Comedy... he so should've won last year
- Archie Panjabi's win for Supporting Actress in a Drama... she's really the reason I tune into the show, which too often veers toward dull as dishwater (Baranski can be a hoot and a half, but Panjabi is the true scene stealer). Truth be told, I'd have been happy with any of this season's nominees winning, but I like it when a fresh face gets recognized so quickly
- Aaron Paul's win for Supporting Actor in a Drama... the show is more than Bryan Cranston's Walter White and hopefully in two years - Breaking Bad won't be eligible for next year's Emmys - Anna Gunn will at least receive a nomination after this year's snub for her excellent and challenging work. But Aaron Paul is truly fantastic, the heart of the show
- Kyra Sedgwick's win for Lead Actress in a Drama... overdue, perhaps, but she submitted a great episode, and even though she's been nominated every year (Hugh Laurie, perhaps next year will be your year with Bryan Cranston out of contention) and it's nice to get a new winner after back-to-back Glenn Close wins, not to mention a welcome surprise when everyone expected one-note, wooden Julianna Margulies to win
- Modern Family's win for Best Comedy Series... indisputably the funniest and most consistent of the nominees

Lowlights:
- Mad Men's threepeat win for Best Drama Series. Season three was by far the most uneven and, yeah, I'll say it, worst season of the show. For it to win when shows like Dexter and Breaking Bad put forth their best seasons yet (IMHO) is just wrong.
- Edie Falco's win for Lead Actress in a Comedy. I just don't "get" Nurse Jackie, I suppose. Of course, she's a really good actress (the category, after all, isn't "Funniest Lead Actress," it's "Best Lead Actress") and two seasons of the show were eligible so I understand the win, but it's a shrug for me. An expected shrug.

6 comments:

Anonymous said...

I drifted in and out of the Emmy's as I was down to deadline on a project, and couldn't really devote full viewership to the Emmy's (I listened to most of it).

That being said, there were moments that caused me to rise from the computer and make a bolt for the television:

-> Mr. Jimmy Fallon's musical numbers that opened the show, and were interspersed throughout.

-> Miss Betty White as presenter, which, alarmingly (is she no longer "it" girl?), drew no standing ovation. Miss White, who was nominated for her first Emmy Award back in 1951 (broadcast only on KECA in Los Angeles), deserved a rousing, sustained ovation from the orchestra pit to the highest lofts, but sadly, most of todays Academy members and guests have likely never seen her best work. In my household, I was standing and ovating her coming on stage. Bravi, Miss White!

-> I thought the In Memorian segment was very nicely done, and it brought tears. And thankfully, they didn't make the mistake they have in the past of cutting away from the montage to the singer while somebody is being recognized.

-> It was nice to see lots of new faces as winners, though I was wishing ever so desperately for a double-win for 'Friday Night Lights' of Miss Connie Britten and Mr. Kyle Chandler in their respective categories. Universal, DirecTV and NBC must begin plotting a strategy to ensure that the upcoming fifth season of 'Friday Night Lights' gets lots of advance Emmy promoing so the show garners a mantle-full of Emmy's next year. I still hold out hopes that, should 'FNL' see some significant ratings uptick on DirecTV, NBC or ABC Family (where encores are unspooling this September), Miss Angela Bromsted might be tempted to get out her checkbook for another 13 episodes. I'm told the season five finale is open-ended enough that a sixth season could be put together, although fresh negotiations with a new cast (and probably production team too) would be required.

-> I was very pleased to see TEMPLE GRANDIN earn so much recognition, although somewhat miffed that the actual person on which the story is based was given a mere wave from back of the auditiorium instead of being brought up on stage with one of the winners. I, for one, would have enjoyed hearing her for-sure elliptical and seemingly-meandering reaction to the Emmy's significance in her life, before a nervous backstage producer cued the orchestra pit to commence drowning her out to cut to commercial.

Anonymously yours,
DuMont

Anonymous said...

I drifted in and out of the Emmy's as I was down to deadline on a project, and couldn't really devote full viewership to the Emmy's (I listened to most of it).

That being said, there were moments that caused me to rise from the computer and make a bolt for the television:

-> Mr. Jimmy Fallon's musical numbers that opened the show, and were interspersed throughout.

-> Miss Betty White as presenter, which, alarmingly (is she no longer "it" girl?), drew no standing ovation. Miss White, who was nominated for her first Emmy Award back in 1951 (broadcast only on KECA in Los Angeles), deserved a rousing, sustained ovation from the orchestra pit to the highest lofts, but sadly, most of todays Academy members and guests have likely never seen her best work. In my household, I was standing and ovating her coming on stage. Bravi, Miss White!

-> I thought the In Memorian segment was very nicely done, and it brought tears. And thankfully, they didn't make the mistake they have in the past of cutting away from the montage to the singer while somebody is being recognized.

-> It was nice to see lots of new faces as winners, though I was wishing ever so desperately for a double-win for 'Friday Night Lights' of Miss Connie Britten and Mr. Kyle Chandler in their respective categories. Universal, DirecTV and NBC must begin plotting a strategy to ensure that the upcoming fifth season of 'Friday Night Lights' gets lots of advance Emmy promoing so the show garners a mantle-full of Emmy's next year. I still hold out hopes that, should 'FNL' see some significant ratings uptick on DirecTV, NBC or ABC Family (where encores are unspooling this September), Miss Angela Bromsted might be tempted to get out her checkbook for another 13 episodes. I'm told the season five finale is open-ended enough that a sixth season could be put together, although fresh negotiations with a new cast (and probably production team too) would be required.

-> I was very pleased to see TEMPLE GRANDIN earn so much recognition, although somewhat miffed that the actual person on which the story is based was given a mere wave from back of the auditiorium instead of being brought up on stage with one of the winners. I, for one, would have enjoyed hearing her for-sure elliptical and seemingly-meandering reaction to the Emmy's significance in her life, before a nervous backstage producer cued the orchestra pit to commence drowning her out to cut to commercial.

Anonymously yours,
DuMont

Anonymous said...

A note to blogger.com Administrator:

My post was accidentally posted twice. Please eliminate duplicate posting.

Anonymously,
DuMont

CraigGoldwyn said...

Off topic, but the gmail address on your bio page doesn't work for me. Apologies.

I write about food, especially BBQ, for HuffingtonPost.com and AmazingRibs.com. For the past four weeks I have been writing about BBQ Pitmasters, THU at 9 p.m. Eastern on TLC:
http://tinyurl.com/28o2v4j

The producers will not share with me ratings numbers. Grrrrr. I have no idea how to find them, but I did find a post of yours that helps:
http://tinyurl.com/26mo2ac

Do you have a similar table for THU 8/12, the first week, so I can see the trend, up or down.

Craig "Meathead" Goldwyn

Anonymous said...

Where art thou on pifeedback, DuMont? :)

Again, we miss ya there, DuMont! Bring back some of the humor on that forum!

Douglas

Sara said...

wow,,nice to read your blog post again