Emmys -- the good, the bad and the head-scratching

So, today the Emmy nominations were announced, and they were the usual mix of pleasing and puzzling. First, it was a really good year to be "Breaking Bad," "Downton Abbey" (moving from the miniseries category to the regular series category) or "Homeland" (unless you are poor Mandy Patinkin, who got lost in all the Downton love).

It was a bad year to be "Justified," which, other than a nod for Jeremy Davies as guest star, yielded pretty much no major nominations.

Here are some more of my thoughts on the good, the bad and the loony in this year's Emmy nods.
The good: Well, obviously, I love that "Breaking Bad" got so many nods -- not just for lead Bryan Cranston and second lead Aaron Paul, but also for the eternally overlooked Anna Gunn (who probably suffers from how much people seem to hate her character) and for season four MVP Giancarlo Esposito. Bonus: Mark Margolis's mostly silent (but brilliant) performance as Don Hector got a nod for best guest performance. I ding my bell in approval!

I also applauded the nomination of "Girls" in not just the best comedy category, but also in the lead actress category. Lena Dunham not only created one of the riskiest, funniest new shows of the year, she also gave an incredibly raw and daring performance as a fairly unsympathetic character. Love it or hate it (and her), "Girls" is an original, and it's nice to see something that risky get recognized.

Other things making me smile included the nod for Jared Harris of "Mad Men", whose searing performance in his final episode as Lane Pryce earned the nomination (even if he had little to in the episode leading up to it).
And yay to the "Homeland" love as well, with the expected best actress nod for Claire Danes, as well as a slightly more dark horse nomination for Damian Lewis.

The bad: Look, I love Michael C. Hall on "Dexter," but hated this latest season so much I couldn't even finish it. I guess we shouldn't punish him for that, but the truth is that Timothy Olyphant had a much stronger season on "Justified" than Hall did on "Dexter."  And yes, we love Kathy Bates and "Harry's Law" got canceled and all that. But there's just no way that she deserves a nod over Emmy Rossum, who continues to be amazing and heartbreaking on "Shameless."

Also,  I wish the Emmys could have found some way to show some love for HBO's "Luck." Yes, it met an unfortunate end, but it had some really good performances (including from marquee stars like Dustin Hoffmann and Nick Nolte), and I really think they deserved a little applause.

Lastly, how many times do we have to nominate Jon Cryer for "Two and a Half Men," people? I like him too, but the show stopped being good a while ago. I would have preferred to see the nod go to Danny McBride's brave, crazy work as Kenny Powers in the fourth season of HBO's "Eastbound and Down."

The insane: Um, I knew "American Horror Story" would be competing in the miniseries category (which is weird, but whatever), but I didn't know that ABC's short-lived "Missing" was using the same strategy. If it means Ashley Judd gets recognized for her fine performance on that show, OK. But it's still crazy. And it further illustrates to me that someone really, really didn't want "Luck" to get nominated for anything, or they would have used the same strategy for that show.

What did everyone else thing?

My belated, sure to be wrong, Emmy predictions

So, the Primetime Emmy Awards air tonight at 8 on Fox. Yes, I realize that's just a few hours from now, but it's still not too late to make some last minute, sure to be wrong predictions. So here I go:

My Emmy thoughts

Was hoping to post this earlier, but I had to run out right after the Emmy nominations were announced this morning. But I did want to comment on them because, as you might imagine, I had some thoughts. Overall, I was fairly pleased with this year's crop of nominees (particularly the Academy of Television Arts & Sciences wise decision to recognize the excellent work being done by actors on FX shows -- something it arguably hasn't done since the early seasons of "The Shield).
However, I do have some criticisms. Below is my list of the best and worst of this year's Emmy nominations.
Best:
"Friday Night" Love: Got love all the love for the low-rated but critically adored drama "Friday Night Lights," which wrapped up its final season this year. The show got a best drama nod and nods for best lead actor Kyle Chandler and best lead actress Connie Britton. The actors were nominated last year, but I don't think the show's been recognized, so yay!
"Justified" Actors: OK, no one was expecting Timothy Olyphant and Walton Goggins to get nods for their uniformly excellent work on this season of "Justified." NO ONE. But, hey -- the Emmys got it right, and gave them credit. Much deserved, especially the nod for Olyphant. I'm a little cheesed that Goggins is getting a nomination for this show, when he never got one for "The Shield," but I won't dwell on that.
Less unexpected -- but no less deserved -- was the nod for Margo Martindale's work as this season's big bad, Mags Bennett. Extra credit for nominating Jeremy Davies for best guest actor. I don't know what got into the Academy's water this year, but I say double the dose.
Louis CK: I guess it's debatable whether the FX sitcom "Louie" is REALLY a comedy in the traditional sense. It's dark and unconventional and doesn't always have a lot of laughs. But it was one of the most daring, and intelligent shows launched last year -- and that's almost solely because of CK, the show's star, writer, creator, and driving force. So it's nice to see him get a nod for best actor in a comedy. Not sure what his chances are -- especially since Steve Carell is up for his final "Office" season, but sometimes it really is just an honor to be nominated.
Martha Plimpton: I only watched a couple episodes of "Raising Hope," but, from what little I saw, it was clear that Plimpton was the best thing about it and a lock for a best comedy actress nom. Kudos to the Academy for agreeing.
No nod for William H. Macy: I was almost positive that beloved character actor Macy would get a nod for his work as an awful dad on Showtime's "Shameless." I didn't think he would have been a good choice, as I find his performance overbearing and shrill most of the time. But come on -- he's got movie cred and Oscar noms. Surely Emmy would take the bait. But they didn't. Good for them in picking much more deserving performances, such as those by Goggins and Peter Dinklage.
No nod for "The Killing": Though two of its actresses -- Mireille Enos and Michelle Forbes -- got (arguably deserved) nods for their work, the show as a whole got snubbed. Yahoo! I think the Internet might have exploded had the show with one of the most hated season finales of all time received a nomination.


Worst:
As in most years, the "worst" category consists of two groups -- all the shows and actors that were snubbed and all the shows and actors that got undeserved nominations. So I broke them down accordingly.
Snubs:Maybe some of the most glaring snubs were in the best actress category. Not only was last year's winner Kyra Sedgwick omitted (I kinda understand that, actually -- she got her win, and she'll probably be back in this category before "The Closer" ends its run), but two other fine actresses from cable dramas failed to get a nod. To me, the breakout performance of the year came from Emmy Rossum on "Shameless." She was funny, moving, sexy and absolutely riveting. So, of course, she got snubbed so they could honor Kathy Bates's work on "Harry's Law" (more on that later). It's one of those moves that makes me want to slap the Emmys -- and that's not an easy thing to do in a year when I liked so many of the nomination choices. Also, while the third season of "Sons of Anarchy" was highly uneven, Katey Sagal continued to deliver strong work as Gemma Teller Morrow -- particularly in her scenes with Hal Holbrook, who played her dad. Sadly, she got snubbed for the third year in a row.
Other snubs occurred in the best supporting drama actor category, where not one of the excellent supporting actors named Michael from "Boardwalk Empire" got a nod (Michael Shannon would have been my choice). Also, as much as I hated what they did to his character in the season finale, Joel Kinnaman was often the best thing about AMC's "The Killing."
In the supporting drama actress category, I was annoyed, but not surprised, that the year's other breakout star -- Emilia Clarke of "Game of Thrones" -- didn't get recognition.
In the best drama series category, was surprised to see new hot thing "The Walking Dead" fail to get a nomination, and I was sad (but, again, unsurprised) that the otherwise honored "Justified" didn't get a series nomination.
As I don't watch many comedies, I can't speak as much to snubs there. However -- and I know I'm almost totally alone in this -- it totally bugs me that the Academy refuses to acknowledge Danny McBride's work as Kenny Powers on "Eastbound and Down." Yes, his character is abrasive, which turns a lot of people off. But McBride humanizes Kenny without compromising his nastiness -- a tricky thing to do. Also, he's hilarious. Why no love?
Undeserved nods: Though I'm one of the few people who actually kind of liked the fifth season of "Dexter," even I think it's ridiculous that the show got a nod, particularly since "The Walking Dead" and "Justified" got snubbed. Also, let's talk about Kathy Bates. I only saw one episode of "Harry's Law," so it's possible her performance got all deep and nuanced after the pilot and I missed it. But I don't think so. This seems like a clear case of the Emmys cozying up to an Oscar winner. Don't get me wrong -- I love Kathy Bates. "Misery" is an all-time fave of mine. But she didn't do anything I saw that approached the work being done by the likes of Rossum or Sagal. Also, let's talk about the nod for Jon Cryer as best supporting comedy actor on "Two and a Half Men," shall we? I like Cryer. He's funny, a good sport and acquitted himself well in some witty talk show appearances in the midst of Sheen-gate. But let's be honest -- he's not getting a nomination for his performance on his CBS sitcom. He's getting the nod for being an oasis of calm in a media firestorm caused by his co-star. That's not fair to other comedy actors, and it's not fair to Cryer.

What did you think of the noms? Let me know.

The Emmys air live on Sept. 18.

"Mad Men" recap: It's an honor just to be so drunk you black out and lose your award

Recap of this week's "Mad Men" below. Don't click through if you don't want to know.

My Emmy picks

I think we can all agree that this year's Emmy nominations, while overlooking a lot of great shows and performers, were a bit better than normal. After all, the academy finally gave nods to eternally snubbed "Friday Night Lights" leads Connie Britton and Kyle Chandler, and gave lots of love to some promising newbies, like "Glee" and "Modern Family."
But, no matter what they say, it's the win that matters. When the awards are handed out on Aug. 29, who will win? Here are my predictions on who will win in the major categories -- and my thoughts on who SHOULD win in the major categories.

A matter of housekeeping

Just wanted to let you know that I'm taking a much needed week's vacation, during which I will be more or less blog free. Don't fret, though -- I've already assigned a pair of dogged guest bloggers to write this week's "True Blood" and "Mad Men" recaps, and I've loaded up a piece about my Emmy predictions, which will run next Saturday. I should be back on the blog in time to write next week's recaps.
In the meantime, please go enjoy the rest of your summer.
Oh! And go vote in the I Screen You Screen alternative Emmy poll if you haven't already!

Reminder: PLEASE vote in the I Screen You Screen Alternative Emmy Poll

Only one more week to vote in the I Screen You Screen Alternative Emmy Poll, folks -- and it seems as though virtually no one has voted.
Come on! You know you have an opinion about which shows were cheated out of a nomination! So go click some buttons!
You can vote in the poll by clicking here and feel free to list any write-in candidates below. Go!

Announcing the 2010 I Screen You Screen Alternative Emmys

Look folks, I've been thinking a lot about last week's Emmy nominations, and, frankly, I'm still conflicting. Sure, there were a lot of great nominations I never thought I'd see (hello Kyle Chandler and Connie Britton!). But there were also many snubs. I mean, Mariska Hargitay gets nominated over Katey Sagal of "Sons of Anarchy" and Anna Gunn of "Breaking Bad" (the latter of whom had her best season to date)? Jon Cryer getting another nod for "Two and a Half Men" while Ed O'Neill's awesome work on "Modern Family" goes unheralded? Clearly, this will not do. So, I've created my own list of nominees in each of the main categories. Some choices are my own personal favorites; some were culled from lists of snubs I've seen mentioned by other writers and fans.
But all are shows and performances that have captured the heart of many people...none of whom, apparently, belong to the Academy of Television Arts and Sciences.
Just click here and cast your votes. Your favorites not there? Write in your choices below! I'll announcing the winners in mid-August, a couple of weeks before the "real" awards come out. So be sure to vote, and invite your friends!

Some extremely brief thoughts on the Emmy nominations

Don't have much time to recap this morning's Emmy noms, so I'm going to do a brief break down of the things about the nominations that made me happy, the things that made me mad and the one thing I can't understand.
Things that made me happy: Well of course I, and everyone else in TV nerd world, was THRILLED to see Kyle Chandler and Connie Britton finally get recognized for their stellar work on the stellar "Friday Night Lights." It only took four seasons, but the academy finally got that right. So yay.
Also, I know a lot of people were polarized by the character of Jack on "Lost," but Matthew Fox was always excellent, so it was good to see him get recognized, along with this season's undisputed scene-stealer, Terry O'Quinn, who got a supporting nod for playing the Smoke Monster and John Locke.
It was nice to see another scene stealer, Andre Braugher, get a nod for his work on the surprisingly fine new TNT series "Men Of A Certain Age." A little disappointed at no recognition for his co-stars Ray Romano and Scott Bakula, but Braugher was obviously the stand-out and the male drama categories are always tight.
And a nice surprise nod for Sharon Gless for her excellent work as Jeffrey Donovan's mom on "Burn Notice!" She's a dark horse (I'm pulling for either "Mad Men's" Christina Hendricks or "The Good Wife's" Archie Panjabi to bring it home), but a lovely choice.
Things that made me mad:Surprisingly few of those this year, though I was upset to see that, once again, Tracy Morgan was passed over for his hilarious work on "30 Rock." Yes, his character is kind of close to his personality. So what? I'd rather see a nod for his fresh, crazy work than another nom for Jon Cryer (don't get me wrong -- I love Cryer. I'd just like to see a little fresh blood here). Also, it's a little sad that Ed O'Neil was the only major cast member of "Modern Family" not nominated.
And my other big pet peeve is kind of due to a high class problem over at "Lost." I love Michael Emerson's work as Ben, but he had only one real showcase episode this season. I would have liked to see that spot go to a "Lost"-ite with more screen time -- preferably the underrated Jorge Garcia, whom I don't think has ever gotten a nomination.
Thing that made me nuts:Look, I love "True Blood," but are they kidding with that Best Drama nomination? "Friday Night Lights." "Men of a Certain Age." "Justified." Even "Damages." All would have been excellent choices for that spot. I don't get it.
You can view a complete list of the Emmy nominees here. The Primetime Emmy winners will be announced Aug. 29.

A bigger Emmy breakdown

Though I already posted a few thoughts on yesterday's Emmy nominations, I wanted to take the time to write a longer, more involved post on the subject. This year's nominations were fairly unique, as there were seven nominees in the comedy and drama series categories, as opposed to the traditional five. That's due to a new rule allowing six nominees in these categories (a tie can lead to more, which seems to be what happened here).
At any rate, there were some odd picks this year ("The Family Guy" for best comedy series? Really?) as well as some refreshing ones (finally, a series nod for "Big Love" and for "Flight of the Conchords") and the usual horrifying oversights (I can't say it enough -- NO NOMINATION FOR "The Shield"?????).
Here's my rundown of the best and worst of the Emmy nominations. The entire list of nominees can be viewed here. And feel free to post your own thoughts/feelings/wails of anguish over the omission of "The Shield."
The Good: Let's start on a positive note, shall we? It was nice to see at least some fresh faces among the nominees this year, particularly Aaron Paul of "Breaking Bad" and Elisabeth Moss of "Mad Men." While both work with leading men -- Bryan Cranston and Jon Hamm -- who often get all the praise (and award nominations), Paul and Moss more than held their own this season, delivering sad, searing performance. Also nice to see was a nod for Jemaine Clement, of HBO's whimsical musical comedy "Flight of the Conchords." I agree that, of the show's two stars (Bret McKenzie is the other), Clement is a bit funnier, often selling a whole scene with one shrewd reaction shot or disarmingly dry line delivery. I also liked seeing the show get nominated for best comedy.
While we're on the subject of comedy, I was thrilled to see some "30 Rock" supporting players get some love. Yes, stars Alec Baldwin and Tina Fey are great, but this show has a deep bench, so I was thrilled that Tracy Morgan (maybe having his best season yet) and Jack McBrayer (always a daffy delight as Kenneth the page) got nods for their work.
Also, I don't watch Comedy Central's "The Sarah Silverman Program," but I enjoyed seeing the show's star, Sarah Silverman, get an out-of-the-box nod as best actress.
Other positive thoughts: liked that Emmy finally decided to start paying attention to "Lost" again. The show, which had its best season to date, deserved its best drama series nomination. And it's good to see Michael Emerson, whose work as the increasingly complex Benjamin Linus is never less than awesome, back in the supporting actor category. Despite strong competition from Paul and William Hurt ("Damages"), I'm going to go out on a limb and say this award is his to lose.
The Bad: Even with an increased number of nominees and an open-minded approach, there were still MANY glaring oversights. First, why does Emmy refuse to acknowledge the wonderful small town drama "Friday Night Lights" and its stars? Kyle Chandler's sweet, subtle work as Coach Eric Taylor is some of the best acting on TV; ditto for the performance of Connie Britton as his wife, Tami. But Emmy never looks at them twice. Why? I think Britton was far more deserving of a supporting actress nod than, say, Rose Byrne of "Damages" (good, but constantly outclassed by her co-stars) or Cherry Jones of "24" (good, but saddled with a somewhat thankless role). Granted, most of the guys who got nominated in the leading actor category are tough to argue with (except possibly Simon Baker of "The Mentalist," whose success in his role has more to do with charm and presence than acting chops), but I hope against hope they could find a spot for Chandler. He's too good to ignore. I'm also upset by the fresh choices who were overlooked in favor of stale old stand-bys. Did the Academy really need to nominate Charlie Sheen AGAIN for "Two and a Half Men?" I know the show is popular, but I would have much rather seen his spot in the leading comedy actor category go to a fresh face, like Danny McBride of HBO's new series "Eastbound and Down." The comedy category itself was a bit stale, save for the odd nomination of "Family Guy" and the encouraging nod for "Flight of the Conchords." I feel the Emmys are now just nominating "Weeds" and "Entourage" because they've managed to stay on the air for five seasons, not because the shows are so good. In fact, both shows are fading a bit, and I feel it's time to pass them by for some fresh blood.
And let's take a second to discuss that "Family Guy" nomination, shall we? Of all the animated shows on TV over the years, THIS is the one that the academy felt was worthy of recognizing in the comedy category, instead of just the animation category?
Think about it. "The Simpsons." "South Park." "King of the Hill." None nominated for best comedy. Look, I sometimes enjoy "Family Guy," but it can't compete with "The Simpsons" at its peak, or with any season of "King of the Hill." And while I admire "South Park" more than I enjoy it, it's hard to argue that it presents some of the most scathing satire on TV. So why "Family Guy?" Well, I guess we can be thankful they didn't nominate "American Dad" for best comedy. Yet.
The Downright Insane: You might have noticed that I haven't said much about the lack of major nominations for FX's drama "The Shield." That's because I feel this oversight deserves its own category. The last season of "The Shield" was possibly one of the greatest seasons of TV in the past 10 years. I don't even think I'm exaggerating. It was devastating, realistic and impossible to look away from. Nearly every performance was perfect, from Michael Chiklis's mesmerizing work in the lead role of corrupt cop Vic Mackey to Walton Goggins's lacerating performance as Mackey's shunned underling Shane Vendrell, to CCH Pounder's wonderful work as decent, doomed police captain Claudette Wyms. Yet it failed to get a single major nomination. And it will never have another shot. Why? Why didn't the academy recognize this show? Was it even a blip on their radar? Were they really able to convince themselves that there were SEVEN better shows on TV this season? Yes, "Lost," "Mad Men," "Breaking Bad" and "Big Love" all had great seasons worthy of nomination. But "Dexter" got a nod for its third season, its weakest yet. And "Damages," while entertaining, isn't nearly as smart or penetrating as "The Shield." Why couldn't "The Shield" sneak in? And why didn't Chiklis, Pounder and especially Goggins make the cut for their work? We'll never know. It hurts to think about. I guess everyone involved with "The Shield" should view the show's excellence as its own reward. But they shouldn't have to.

For your consideration...

Dear Academy of Television Arts & Sciences members,
I noticed that you've received your Emmy ballot and that, over the next few weeks, you'll be charged with selecting the nominees for this year's Primetime Emmy Awards. First off, let me say that I've looked at the ballot and I owe you all an apology. I'm always ranting and raving about how you nominate the same people year after year and omit a lot of worthy candidates. But now that I've seen the ballot, I see the difficult job you face. Nearly every actor and show on TV is eligible for nomination. I mean, you could nominate pretty much the entire cast of "Rules of Engagement" if you wanted to (by the way, thanks for never doing that). With so much information, I can see how you'd get overwhelmed.
So, I thought I'd help you out.
Below is a list of worthy candidates in each category. Most would be first-time nominees and all have done excellent, award-worthy work. All I ask is that you take a look and at least CONSIDER nominating them. OK? Let's get started.
Outstanding Lead Actor in a Comedy Series: Until a few months ago, I barely knew who Danny McBride was. I was aware he was a protegee of Will Farrell, and that he'd made a well-received low-budget movie called "The Foot Fist Way" (which I'd never seen), but that was about it. Then HBO debuted the new comedy "Eastbound and Down," on which McBride played angry, foul-mouthed ex-pitcher Kenny Powers. Though it took me a few episodes to figure it out, I eventually realized that McBride is the real deal. Funny, fearless and a good actor, McBride is a talent worth watching...and worth nominating.
Outstanding Lead Actor in a Drama Series: Let's be honest -- this is a category that rewards flash. Yes, Hugh Laurie, James Gandolfini, Bryan Cranston and other past nominees and winners are talented. But I imagine most actors could do good things with complicated, juicy characters like Dr. House, Tony Soprano and Walter White. It's much harder to be memorable when playing the calm, reasonable center of a series. And that's just what Kyle Chandler does every week on "Friday Night Lights." With just a twitch of his jaw, or a cloud of thought floating over his eyes, Chandler reaches deep into the soul of high school football coach Eric Taylor. It's a rich, lived-in performance and it's crazy that, three seasons into this show, Chandler has yet to score a nomination.
Also worth nominating: Jeffrey Donovan, who, in the most recent season of "Burn Notice," found some rich emotional layers in slick ex-spy Michael Westen.
Outstanding Lead Actress in a Comedy Series: I only saw half of the first season of Showtime's new sitcom "The United States of Tara," but I did like Toni Collette's warm, brave, funny performance as a mom juggling work, family and multiple personalities.
Outstanding Lead Actress in a Drama Series: OK, I won't waste much time pushing this one, because I know there's almost zero chance this will ever happen, but I must say that Leighton Meester is a revelation as Blair Waldorf on "Gossip Girl." Don't laugh! She's funny, vulnerable and gives unexpected depth to this pampered princess. The show lives or dies on Meester, and that's what makes her Emmy-worthy. OK, speech over. Let's discuss some other worthy candidates for this category. Regina King is in her first season over on NBC's promising cop drama "Southland," and she's already created a three-dimensional character out of tough but sensitive police Detective Lydia Adams. Plus, she's always been one of my favorite actresses (it's hard to steal a scene from Tom Cruise, Renee Zelleweger and Cuba Gooding, Jr., but she did just that in "Jerry Maguire"). And, no discussion of this category would be complete without a healthy push for Elisabeth Moss, who is nothing short of spectacular as Peggy Olson on "Mad Men." I wish that character was my best friend, that's how vibrant and convincing Moss is.
Outstanding Supporting Actor in Comedy Series: Look, I love Bret and Jemaine, the wacky tunesmiths at the heart of HBO's "Flight of the Conchords," but without Rhys Darby as their sensible yet dense manager Murray, it would definitely lose something. Darby's dry delivery and great, deadpan reaction shots are as essential to this show as the songs and shtick. The guys wouldn't be as funny without him.
Outstanding Supporting Actor in a Drama Series: OK, you can ignore ALL my other suggestions as long as you heed this one -- you absolutely MUST nominate Walton Goggins for his uniformly exceptional work as troubled, doomed Detective Shane Vendrell on "The Shield." Goggins' is one of the best supporting performances of the best decade and he's a huge part of the reason why Shane was one of the show's best characters. Check out the series finale, in which Shane makes a terrible, terrible choice and struggles with every minute of it. Phenomenal.
Also worth mentioning: Dean Norris and Aaron Paul of "Breaking Bad," Ken Leung and Jeremy Davies of "Lost" and John Scurti of "Rescue Me" would all be solid additions to this category. But putting Goggins in the running should be your priority.
Outstanding Supporting Actress in a Comedy Series: This was a good year for funny ladies. "SNL" mainstay Amy Poehler got her own series. Tina Fey was a smash on both "30 Rock" and "SNL." But I can think of at least two hilarious women who are constantly ignored by award-granting institutions: Kristen Schaal of "Flight of the Conchords" and Kaitlin Olson of "It's Always Sunny in Philadelphia." Both women hold their own on male-dominated shows. Both add dimension to truly weird, fairly unsympathetic characters. And both are pee-your-pants hysterical. Recognize!
Outstanding Supporting Actress in a Drama Series: Remember what I said about Walton Goggins? I feel the same way about Chloe Sevigny on "Big Love." She's always been great as mercurial, damaged polygamist Nikki Grant, but this was her strongest season yet. In nearly every single episode, she had at least one amazing, scene-stealing moment. In the season finale, she had two: the scene where she met her abandoned daughter, and her breakdown in the car with Jeanne Tripplehorn's Barb. All the actresses on this show are outstanding, but Sevigny was this season's gem.
Also worth mentioning: I don't know if anyone else is going to plug Michele Hicks' work as Shane's wife Mara on "The Shield," but let me put in my two cents. Hicks was so raw and vulnerable, she made us feel bad for a character that was nearly impossible to like. Well done.
Outstanding Comedy Series: This could very well be the last season for HBO's "Flight of the Conchords." While it wasn't as good as last season, this is still one of the funniest shows on TV. How about a little love?
Outstanding Drama Series: Yes, "The Shield" won a Golden Globe for best drama years ago, and has been nominated in the past. But this is its last season. Please show this fantastic series the appreciation that its devastating final season deserved.
So, those are more thoughts. Again, these are only suggestions, and I hope you'll at least consider them. Except Goggins and Sevigny. Their nominations are non-negotiable. I mean it.
Yours,
I Screen You Screen