Well, that was a depressing morning. The total lack of love for Arrested Development, plus the the acclaim for the overrated House of Cards, and the continuing inexplicable Downton Abbey support. All the movie/miniseries nominations for Top of the Lake was my only saving grace this morning. Let's go through it, piece by piece.
- I cannot believe Will Arnett and Jessica Walter were snubbed. I promised to throw a hissy fit if that happened, and I did when I did not see Arnett's name. They should have been locks to WIN, much less be nominated. I'm happy for Jason Bateman, but considering that AD was totally shut out elsewhere, it makes me think they just circled his name out of recognition. SO lame. The biggest disappointment of the day. I mean, how the hell did Jane Lynch make a comeback in Supporting Actress over Jessica Walter?
- Why on earth do the Emmys love Downton Abbey so much? It's a period soap opera and once again they have showered nods on some very undeserving people. Hugh Bonneville, Jim Carter and Michelle Dockery again? Really? They just stood there this last season, people. Come on.
- Amazingly, several of my wildcard wishlist nominations came through- Adam Driver, Tony Hale, and Anna Chlumsky in the comedy supporting categories. Like I said, Driver does stand out on that show, and the Veep cast strengthened its group dynamic this year, so that was a welcome sight. And Emilia Clarke actually made it in for Game of Thrones (which led the nominations this year with 16!)
- No Tatiana Maslany, like I figured. Sigh. Hopefully she's going to keep pushing as the show goes on, and maybe she'll get some attention from the Golden Globes to make her case next time. Julianna Margulies being knocked out of Lead Actress in a Drama was surprising though, as I thought she and Claire Danes were the only locks here. Kerry Washington getting in is the first nomination for an African-American woman in this category since Cicely Tyson in 1995, so that's good news, but I think the nods here make it pretty easy for Danes to walk away with it again.
- Breaking Bad got writing nominations for the first time ever, knocking out Mad Men completely, and collecting directing, and supporting acting nods for Anna Gunn and Jonathan Banks. Even though Game of Thrones and Homeland remain strong contenders, I was right about it being BB's time. The Series win is theirs to lose.
- It looks like Modern Family will pick up its fourth straight win, with no real competition except for maybe 30 Rock, which had something of a resurgence in nominations for the final season. Despite all the support that Louie has, I still think it'll be hard for that show to win, and Veep looks stronger but still didn't land any writing or directing nods. Girls and The Big Bang Theory remained flat in support with no writing noms, so it looks to me like the alternative for someone who doesn't want Modern Family to win again is probably 30 Rock.
I'll be making my final winner's predictions in the weeks before the Emmys are handed out on Sep 22nd, so stay tuned.
