Plenty to choose from, and voters chose well
With an everincreasing number of TV shows to choose from, the Emmys made some surprisingly good choices.
This year’s slew of nominations is better than we’ve seen in quite some time. No list is going to please everyone, but overall, by shedding its habit of repeating nominations by rote, the Television Academy’s picks reflect much of the best TV has to offer — while more fairly representing America at large.
More than ever, diversity matters, particularly when you’re talking about the most powerful and influential medium in America. Every one of the six lead actor categories boasts an inclusive slate of nominees, led by Aziz Ansari, Anthony Anderson and Tracee Ellis Ross for comedies and Viola Davis, Taraji P. Henson and Rami Malek for dramas. That list puts the Oscars to shame. The shunning of CW’s Jane the Virgin and equally worthy Crazy Ex-Girlfriend, along with the even more inexcusable slights to CBS’s The Good Wife, represents one of the academy’s worst traits: myopia when it comes to broadcast series. Yes, there’s a tremendous amount of good work being done on newer platforms, but that doesn’t justify ignoring the older ones.
Still, let’s look at some of the things the voters got right. FX’s The Americans, and stars Keri Russell and Matthew Rhys, finally got the recognition they’ve deserved. The nomi- nations for Mr. Robot and its star prove that buzz and quality can equal Emmy notice, even for a first-year show on USA. And ABC’s Black-ish was named one of TV’s best comedies, joining Modern Family as the only broadcast series in the drama or comedy categories. I’m glad Louie Anderson got nominated for the otherwise forgettable comedy Baskets, and that Bokeem Woodbine did along with more famous co-stars in Fargo. And I’m very happy voters made room for American Crime — a great show that needs their support. As for surprises, the biggest shock was felt at Netflix, which otherwise saw its Emmy presence grow. If voters were going to tire of a Netflix show, most would have expected it to be House of Cards, which did well, instead of women’s prison drama Orange Is the New Black — which really, really didn’t. The worst snub? TBS’s Full Frontal With Samantha Bee, a show I would have picked to win its variety category. Take it as proof that even a good Emmy year has its glitches.
And next year, do even better.