'UnReal' Finally Returns With a Female Suitor for Season 3

It's been so long since the second season of Lifetime's UnReal that they're probably hoping you forgot how widely panned that season was. Still, I'll give this new one a chance, although it's curious that it's been wrapped and kinda sitting on the shelf for a while now (the show's already moved into production for Season 4). They're finally doing a take on The Bachelorette instead of The Bachelor, but who knows how that's gonna go, since I'm pretty sure the creator/showrunner claimed to prefer writing female characters as the contestants. I have always liked Caitlin Fitzgerald in everything she's been in from Masters of Sex to Rectify. It returns on Monday, February 26th at 10pm.

Golden Globe TV Predictions

Okay, TV time! The Globe Awards for TV are always a pretty meaningless grab bag of whatever it is this odd group of 90 older, foreign journalists happened to like best, so there’s no big secret to predicting in these categories. They tend to have a history of liking new, first season shows and bigger name winners, but that’s about it, and even that gets varied up from time to time. Let’s dive in.

BEST DRAMA SERIES

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  • The Crown
  • Game of Thrones
  • The Handmaid’s Tale
  • Stranger Things
  • This is Us

Gonna go with Handmaid’s Tale. It’s the buzziest new first season show, so I think they’ll want to jump on that Emmy bandwagon.

Winner: The Handmaid’s Tale

Alternate: The Crown

Dark Horse: This is Us

BEST COMEDY SERIES

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  • Black-ish
  • The Marvelous Mrs. Maisel
  • Master of None
  • SMILF
  • Will & Grace

Be kinda funny if Will & Grace could win for its comeback after more than a decade, but…I’m thinking the Globes will choose the brand new Mrs. Maisel show (which I haven’t seen one second of. Not an Amy Sherman-Palladino fan).

Winner: The Marvelous Mrs. Maisel

Alternate: Will & Grace

BEST ACTOR- DRAMA

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  • Jason Bateman, Ozark
  • Sterling K. Brown, This is Us
  • Freddie Highmore, The Good Doctor
  • Bob Odenkirk, Better Call Saul
  • Liev Schreiber, Ray Donovan

Eh- I think probably Emmy winner Sterling K. Brown? He’s new, he’s popular, and they liked the show, since it’s nominated.

Winner: Sterling K. Brown

Alternate: Freddie Highmore

BEST ACTRESS- DRAMA

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  • Caitriona Balfe, Outlander
  • Claire Foy, The Crown
  • Maggie Gyllenhaal, The Deuce
  • Katherine Langford, 13 Reasons Why
  • Elisabeth Moss, The Handmaid’s Tale

I think Elisabeth Moss will win, but I could see it going to newcomer Katherine Langford as well, which would be a kind of Golden Globes thing to do.

Winner: Elisabeth Moss

Alternate: Katherine Langford

BEST ACTOR- COMEDY

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  • Anthony Anderson, Black-ish
  • Aziz Ansari, Master of None
  • Kevin Bacon, I Love Dick
  • William H. Macy, Shameless
  • Eric McCormack, Will & Grace

I feel like Kevin Bacon will win this, for some reason. Big name, veteran actor. Also a very Globes thing to do, but maybe Eric McCormack could take it.

Winner: Kevin Bacon

Alternate: Eric McCormack

BEST ACTRESS- COMEDY

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  • Pamela Adlon, Better Things
  • Alison Brie, GLOW
  • Rachel Brosnahan, The Marvelous Mrs. Maisel
  • Issa Rae- Insecure
  • Frankie Shaw, SMILF

I would love to see Alison Brie or Issa Rae win, and since both are new I could see it happening. But neither of their shows are nominated, so I’m thinking they’ll pick Brosnahan, whose show made it into the series category.

Winner: Rachel Brosnahan

Alternate: Issa Rae

Dark Horse: Alison Brie

BEST ACTOR- MINISERIES/TV MOVIE

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  • Robert DeNiro, The Wizard of Lies
  • Jude Law, The Young Pope
  • Kyle MacLachlan, Twin Peaks
  • Ewan McGregor, Fargo
  • Geoffrey Rush, Genius

Ummm…going with Jude Law. That show made more of a splash overseas than here, I think, and the HFPA are mostly European, so there you go. Plus he’s a big movie name.

Winner: Jude Law

Alternate: Kyle MacLachlan

BEST ACTRESS- MINISERIES/TV MOVIE

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  • Jessica Biel, The Sinner
  • Nicole Kidman, Big Little Lies
  • Jessica Lange, Feud: Bette and Joan
  • Susan Sarandon, Feud: Bette and Joan
  • Reese Witherspoon, Big Little Lies

This category’s packed with big movie names, but going to go with Emmy winner and Globe darling Nicole Kidman here. Jessica Lange in a distant second.

Winner: Nicole Kidman

Alternate: Jessica Lange

BEST SUPPORTING ACTOR

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  • David Harbour, Stranger Things
  • Alfred Molina, Feud: Bette and Joan
  • Alexander Skarsgard, Big Little Lies
  • Christian Slater, Mr. Robot
  • David Thewlis, Fargo

I don’t know…maybe Skarsgard? He won the Emmy for this too, surprisingly. I’m assuming they’re going to fall all over themselves for Big Little Lies, like the Emmys did, so perhaps it’ll just clean up.

Winner: Alexander Skarsgard

Alternate: Alfred Molina

Dark Horse: David Thewlis

BEST SUPPORTING ACTRESS

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  • Laura Dern, Big Little Lies
  • Ann Down, The Handmaid’s Tale
  • Chrissy Metz, This is Us
  • Michelle Pfeiffer, The Wizard of Lies
  • Shailene Woodley, BIg Little Lies

Again, the Emmy winner was Laura Dern, but I have a feeling Chrissy Metz could take this. The Globes don’t always follow the Emmy precedent. I might as well take a chance somewhere.

Winner: Chrissy Metz

Alternate: Laura Dern

BEST MINISERIES OR TV MOVIE

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  • Big Little Lies
  • Fargo
  • Feud: Bette and Joan
  • The Sinner
  • Top of the Lake: China Girl

Big Little Lies, for sure. It led the nominations, it’s HBO, it’s the most popular. It will win.

Winner: Big Little Lies

Alternate: Feud: Bette and Joan

Top 10 Shows of 2017

To kiss off 2017, here were the top ten shows I enjoyed the most. I thought this year was a slight comedown in terms of quality, at least compared to recent years, but that's because some of my favorite shows produced some "down" seasons. Still, this is what came out on top:

1. THE VIETNAM WAR

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A grueling, engrossing 18-hour experience that documents the war, the times, the fighters on both sides, the government, the citizens, everything you'd ever need to know about this defining era in American history. Like the best documentaries, what it masterfully provides is context for what happened then so you can read into what's still happening now. A can't miss.

2. CASUAL SEASON 3

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I'm one of about three people who actually watches this show, which is too bad, because many are really missing out. Sadly, that's why the fourth season will be its last, but Hulu's family dramedy is really something special and will be missed. This last season was its best yet, as the cast keeps on shining and the show continues the reveal the depths of the sibling relationship at its center by exploring Alex and Valerie's past. Funny, real, filled with pathos and heart, but not sentimentality. I love it.

3. FARGO SEASON 3

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Amazingly, Noah Hawley wrote another quality season of Fargo without repeating himself. This one gave us another female cop heroine (Carrie Coon), a dual performance by Ewan MacGregor and a deliciously repulsive villain in David Thewlis. It packed a particularly powerful punch in a finale that took aim at the heart of 2017, asking us about who "wins" versus who deserves to, or whether anything truly matters at all.

4. AMERICAN HORROR STORY: CULT

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Yup. I never watched any other season of this show, but this one gave me the murderous catharsis that I was looking for this year. Evan Peters kills it as an insane alt-right cult leader (and impersonates several famous ones in history) while Sarah Paulsen gives us the vengeance we deserve. If only.

5. THE CROWN SEASON 2

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A glorious second season is in lockstep with the quality of the first, enhancing our intimate knowledge of the royal family as the 1960's roll onward. With deepening looks at Philip and Margaret's shenanigans, it's Claire Foy who stays majestic as the stoic Elizabeth, doing more with subtle looks and unemotional rigidness than most actors can do when given tantrums and hysterics to work with. It's going to be hard to get used to a new Queen when the show recasts for its third season.

6. BROADCHURCH SEASON 3

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I loved this show's first season and hated the second one, so it was SO nice to see it reclaim its former glory with a story centered on a serial rapist terrorizing the town, with Hardy and Miller on the case. A much better note for the show to go out on. 

7. FEUD SEASON 1

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For Old Hollywood junkies like me, this was like candy. Jessica Lange and Susan Sarandon relish playing Joan Crawford and Bette Davis, respectively, but Joan's story gets the most poignancy in the end, as the show manages to garner some sympathy for her tragic life. Filled with trivia and great performances from Stanley Tucci and Alfred Molina, its commentary on the lasting effects of how women are treated in Hollywood resonates even more as we go through what's happening today.

8. CATASTROPHE SEASON 3

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A darker, more serious tone for this show is still entertaining and packs a punch, especially since death and alcoholism are some of the themes Sharon and Rob have to deal with, now that they have two little kids and financial problems. It's still hilariously funny of course.

9. LEGION SEASON 1

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Probably the most innovative new show of the year, also from Noah Hawley, and unlike any other superhero show on TV, even though it's dealing with a character who's technically part of the X-Men. It's almost pointless to explain it- you just have to be willing to submit to all eight episodes and experience it yourself. Headtrip doesn't begin to describe this.

10. GLOW SEASON 1

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A lovely surprise this summer, as this delightful ensemble looks at the origins of women's wrestling on TV in the 1980's. Funny, fresh and smartly cast, especially leads Alison Brie and Betty Gilpin as frenemies Ruth and Debbie, while Marc Maron brings exactly the right amount of crabby cynicism to the proceedings. Kinda reminds of a series version of A League of Their Own.

HONORABLE MENTIONS: Big Little Lies, Stranger Things 2, Orphan Black S5, Unbreakable Kimmy Schmidt S3, Underground S2, Planet Earth II

Mary Tyler Moore 1936-2017

It's hard to overstate what Mary Tyler Moore meant to television. One of the biggest icons in the history of the medium, and especially for women on TV, she became famous after being cast as Laura Petrie, the wife of Rob Petrie on Carl Reiner's legendary 1960's sitcom The Dick Van Dyke Show (1961-66). She and Van Dyke were the epitome of the happy married couple on a show that was groundbreaking in the Kennedy era, and she won an Emmy for Outstanding Lead Actress in a Comedy, but after that, she formed a production company with her husband Grant Tinker, and went on to star in The Mary Tyler Moore Show (1970-77). As Mary Richards, successful single working woman, she changed the face of how women could be seen not just on television, but culturally as well.

The Mary Tyler Moore Show was emblematic of a changing society in the 1970's, but amazingly, it still holds up today, mostly because it was so damn funny. One of the great ensemble casts of all time that saw nearly every single actor win at least one Emmy during its run, it led to many spinoffs, including Rhoda, Phyllis, and Lou Grant. MTM Productions was responsible for not only the spinoffs, but also such television staples as The Bob Newhart Show, WKRP in Cincinnati, Hill Street Blues, Remington Steele and Newhart. The impact of the show (for which Moore won three Emmys as Lead Actress) would leave Moore forever seen as that character, but she went on to act in films, earning an Oscar nomination for Best Actress for 1980's Ordinary People, a role that turned her cheery, sunny image on its head as a cold, distant mother. She was also an activist for various causes, including animals rights and juvenile diabetes, which she was diagnosed with in her early 30's. She won the SAG lifetime achievement award in 2011 and died yesterday from cardiopulmonary arrest due to pneumonia. Her legacy lives on, as one of the most influential comediennes in television history, up there with Lucille Ball, Carol Burnett and Julia Louis-Dreyfus.

The Dick Van Dyke Show was often times a flat out musical comedy, and the chemistry between Mary Tyler Moore and Dick Van Dyke is what made Rob and Laura such an appealing couple:

Since they have the whole thing on youtube, I'm just posting the full episode of the classic MTM from Season 6- "Chuckles Bites the Dust":

Golden Globes TV Predictions

On the TV side of things, the HFPA pretty much just goes for what they like, which is usually the new, shiny nominee with the most recent buzz. In most categories anyway. Let's have at, shall we?

BEST DRAMA SERIES

  • The Crown
  • Game of Thrones
  • Stranger Things
  • This is Us
  • Westworld

This may be trickier than it looks to predict, because we've got four hot new shows here. Hmm. So which one does the HFPA love the most? I'm thinking The Crown. Prestige period drama about the royal family? Yeah, that's Globe catnip if ever there was any.

Winner: The Crown

Alt: This is Us

Dark Horse: Westworld

BEST COMEDY/MUSICAL SERIES

  • Atlanta
  • Black-ish
  • Mozart in the Jungle
  • Transparent
  • Veep

They really love this Mozart in the Jungle show, but do they go for it yet again? Seems like too much for them. But what wins instead? To be honest, none of these other shows feel like their type. Is it Veep, after five seasons? New kid on the block, Atlanta? I'm stumped on this one.

Winner: Atlanta

Alt: Mozart in the Jungle

Dark Horse: Veep

BEST DRAMA ACTOR

  • Rami Malek, Mr. Robot
  • Bob Odenkirk, Better Call Saul
  • Matthew Rhys, The Americans
  • Liev Schreiber, Ray Donovan
  • BIll Bob Thornton, Goliath

I thought for sure Rami Malek would win this last year and he didn't, so maybe they catch up with him this time, after his Emmy win. Otherwise, I think Matthew Rhys may have a shot. None of these actors' shows got nominated in drama series, so it's kind of a free for all.

Winner: Rami Malek

Alt: Matthew Rhys

BEST DRAMA ACTRESS

  • Caitriona Balfe, Outlander
  • Claire Foy, The Crown
  • Keri Russell, The Americans
  • Winona Ryder, Stranger Things
  • Evan Rachel Wood, Westworld

I think Foy should take this one, as the young Queen Elizabeth. The HFPA almost always chooses a first time nominee from a hot new show here, but Winona Ryder is tempting, as a veteran star in a comeback role.

Winner: Claire Foy

Alt: Winona Ryder

Dark Horse: Caitriona Balfe

BEST ACTOR COMEDY/MUSICAL

  • Anthony Anderson, Black-ish
  • Gael Garcia Bernal, Mozart in the Jungle
  • Donald Glover, Atlanta
  • Nick Nolte, Graves
  • Jeffrey Tambor, Transparent

I'm saying Donald Glover for this, following the hot newcomer trend. 

Winner: Donald Glover

Alt: Gael Garcia Bernal

BEST ACTRESS COMEDY/MUSICAL

  • Rachel Bloom, Crazy Ex-Girlfriend
  • Julia Louis-Dreyfus, Veep
  • Sarah Jessica Parker, Divorce
  • Issa Rae, Insecure
  • Gina Rodriguez, Jane the Virgin
  • Tracee Ellis-Ross, Black-ish

Yikes. With two previous first time winners here, I'm not sure if they'll repeat or go for someone new. They've never gone for Julia Louis-Dreyfus, despite her epic awards run for Veep- could the Globe finally be hers? Or maybe Tracee Ellis-Ross is the new winner? I could honestly see any one of either Bloom, Louis-Dreyfus, Rodriguez or Ellis-Ross winning.

Winner: Tracee Ellis-Ross

Alt: Rachel Bloom

Dark Horse: Julia Louis-Dreyfus

BEST LIMITED SERIES

  • American Crime
  • The Dresser
  • The Night Manager
  • The Night Of
  • The People vs. OJ Simpson

I'm guessing People v. OJ, although to be honest, I'm not sure if the HFPA's tastes align with that show. If not for all the hype, I'd be tempted to go with something like The Night Manager. But it was a little too much of a cultural, zeitgeisty thing to be ignored by them.

Winner: The People vs. OJ Simpson

Alt: The Night Manager

BEST ACTOR- LIMITED SERIES/TV MOVIE

  • Riz Ahmed, The Night Of
  • Bryan Cranston, All the Way
  • Tom Hiddleston, The Night Manager
  • John Turturro, The Night Of
  • Courtney B. Vance, The People vs. OJ Simpson

I should maybe go for OJ in all these categories, same as the Emmys did. But I'm less certain about it, knowing this voting group. I'm saying Tom Hiddleston.

Winner: Tom Hiddleston

Alt: Courtney B. Vance

BEST ACTRESS- LIMITED SERIES/TV MOVIE

  • Felicity Huffman, American Crime
  • Riley Keough, The Girlfriend Experience
  • Sarah Paulson, The People vs. OJ Simpson
  • Charlotte Rampling, London Spy
  • Kerry Washington, Confirmation

Paulson it is, with less competition here, seeing as how these other shows don't have as much Globes attention.

Winner: Sarah Paulson

Alt: Kerry Washington

Dark Horse: Riley Keough (don't ask me why- I just have a feeling the HFPA knows this is Elvis Presley's granddaughter)

BEST SUPPORTING ACTOR

  • Sterling K. Brown, The People vs. OJ Simpson
  • Hugh Laurie, The Night Manager
  • John Lithgow, The Crown
  • Christian Slater, Mr. Robot
  • John Travolta, The People vs. OJ Simpson

Okay, I'm deviating from OJ here. I'm gonna go with John Lithgow, who was extremely good and a total scene-stealer as Winston Churchill. Again, it feel like Globes catnip.

Winner: John Lithgow

Alt: John Travolta (they would like this performance)

BEST SUPPORTING ACTRESS

  • Olivia Colman, The Night Manager
  • Lena Headey, Game of Thrones
  • Chrissy Metz, This is Us
  • Mandy Moore, This is Us
  • Thandie Newyon, Westworld

I'm at a disadvantage here, having not seen any of This is Us or Westworld. I don't even know if those shows are up Golden Globe alley or not. It'd be nice to see Lena Headey win something for Game of Thrones someday, but the Globes do like the new. I'm thinking Thandie Newton. On the other hand, there is precedent for the Globes using this category to catch up with someone who's overdue, and Headey would be the most obvious beneficiary of that. Hmm.

Winner: Lena Headey

Alt: Thandie Newton

Dark Horse: Mandy Moore