Emmy Reading This Correctly?

I'm not sure anything I've watched during the past season toyed with my emotions the way reading this year's list of Emmy nominees did earlier today. It was like my brain was playing Twister with me, calling out one new color after another before I could possibly get my left hand on green.

First there was anticipation: would Lost - after last year's snub - get its due this year with a nomination for Outstanding Drama? Then there was curiosity: there's an Outstanding Choreography category? That was followed by a sense of 'who knew?': there's an Outstanding Commercial category. Next there was self-doubt: "Am I reading this correctly? I must have missed the mentions of Planet Earth." (I did, it picked up 7 nominations). Then the fireworks began, starting with a feeling of satisfaction: 10 nominations for 30 Rock, 9 for The Office; which quickly turned into tempered indignation: Lost getting only 4 nods, but in the right categories and for the right reasons; and finally downright contempt when, after I finished the list, I realized Elizabeth Mitchell's name was nowhere to be found.

Now, I'm grounded enough to know that none of this is really that important. After all, more often than not its nothing more than self-congratulatory Hollywood nonsense. But the same could be said of any industry's awards. Does anyone outside the field really care who the best plumbing supplier in greater Montpelier is in any given year? No, but the pipe pushers in Vermont do, and while I don't get to see how good those guys are at hawking hose I do spend an inordinate amount of time watching television. I have some favorite shows - and guilty pleasures - as well as some absolute must-not-watchers (Grey's Anatomy) and I am able to recognize quality work when it is put in front of me. In that context, I don't feel so ridiculous in my reactions to this morning's announcement.

A second look at the nominees reveals some well deserved recognition as well as some head-scratchers. Among the highlights and lowlights:

It was great to see both Michael Emerson and Terry O'Quinn (Ben and Locke respectively) of Lost get nods for Outstanding Actor, albeit in the supporting category. I think a case could be made for either or both of them to have landed a lead spot, perhaps taking Keifer Sutherland's place in that category. While Sutherland's work is usually pretty compelling, this iteration of 24 left him very little to work with and he felt like more of a supporting character in the last two-thirds of the season.

It was good to see Heroes get some respect - 8 nominations including Outstanding Drama - though it may be a little undeserved. A good show, but very uneven in it's first season, it started to coalesce into something greater than its parts just before it completely imploded with a disastrously disappointing finale. I agree with the suggestions that this nomination may be lip service to those of us who like serialized dramas. Mark Harris has a great article about this and other aspects of the nominating process at EW.com.

Top Chef is in the running for Outstanding Reality Competition, though it will have trouble against perennial favorite The Amazing Race and another Bravo standout, Project Runway.

Alec Baldwin is up against Steve Carell in the Lead Actor - Comedy category. Though I love Carell's continually oblivious performance, Baldwin was a major reason the audience kept watching 30 Rock until the show eventually found its footing and established itself as the best new comedy of the season.

Not to drift too close to fanboydom, but most of my discontent stems from how Lost was treated by those who do the nominating. It was a stellar season (yes, from start to finish) and the second best ep of the season, "Through the Looking Glass", rightly received nominations for writing and directing. How the series didn't make the cut for Outstanding Drama however boggles one's mind, especially in light of the fact that the season finale was quite possibly two of the best hours of primetime television I have ever seen. I like Heroes, but Lost is a far better enterprise. Though maybe both should be in the final list, at the expense of the glorified soap opera that is Grey's Anatomy.

Additionally, I am gobsmacked that Elizabeth Mitchell's portrayal of Juliet on the series was completely overlooked. She should have at least gotten a nod for Supporting Actress if not Lead. Her work was simply fantastic. In each episode she appeared she was asked to play a range of emotions in order to conceal the fact that she is at least a triple agent whose sole allegiance in the end is probably only to herself. I can't imagine anyone who voted for this category seeing any of her performances and not putting her at the top of the list. It's criminal to say the least.

At least, as viewers, we have the next two months to regain our composure. At which time the polka dotted plastic rug will reappear to remind us that the voting process makes no sense, and more often than not seems to be based more on soundbites and hype (read Harris's article) rather than merit. Well, merit wins the technical categories, but we don't get to see those. They apparently don't make good television. Oh the irony!

Season Finale Highlights and Lowlights

Lots of big doin's in the past week. Here are some of the highlights (and lowlights):

The Simpsons - The finale actually consisted of two unrelated episodes, the second being the series' 400th. The first episode however was my favorite of the two. I love The Simpsons, but I rarely watch the episodes in their first run anymore; I either wait for syndication or the DVDs. However, when I saw they were doing a 24 parody I couldn't pass. This ep was spot on (did I see Jack with his man bag?) and so good in fact that I want more Simpson's episodes in this style. The second episode was good too, if for no other reason than Homer's letting us know that he learned from Fox news that "Mexican gays are sneaking across the border and unplugging our brain-dead ladies". Looking forward to the movie this summer.

The Office - A classic episode, and a great way to end a great season. Michael's going nowhere, Jim's got a date with Pam, and Ryan will now be Michael's boss. His exchange with Kelly after his phone call from corporate was fantastic. As was the barely noticeable comment from CFO David Wallace that the corporate HR guy is kind of a jerk. The table has been set for what should be a hilarious fourth season. My only concern is that NBC has apparently ordered thirty episodes for next season. That's 1/3 more the funny; it may be hard to pull off.

24 - This episode was better than most of it's predecessors this season, but still indicative of the unevenness of this sixth season. It was good to see the return of Jack's man bag, but his final confrontation with his father was a bit of a let down. Plus wasn't it just super-convenient that Audrey's house was only a four minute walk from the spot where Jack jumped off the helo? Lots of stories about the producers hearing our frustration and making some significant changes for Jack's next long day. Let's hope they're true.

Lost - Thank goodness for DVRs. I don't think I would have remained mentally stable (relatively, of course) if I had to wait through each commercial break of what was an especially intense and simultaneously uplifting and browbeating two hours of television. The game has definitely changed, and I didn't really see it coming until Jack was alone in his pad with countless maps of the South Pacific. The only other clue I picked up in my initial watching was how new his cell phone looked, but I thought maybe that was just a prop dept. mistake. What a great episode: action, emotional engagement, a good number of loose ends tied up, and several more laid out. I can't wait to see how the show will reconcile its "new" format with the need to tie up all the other loose ends that still exist. Who's funeral do you think it was nobody showed up for?

Smallville - A little uneven, like the rest of the season. Lana's death was a (self-planned) setup telegraphed by the unnecessary delivery van that passed in front of her right before the explosion. I was really hoping Lois was actually dead and Chloe was going to take over her identity for some reason. I'll be sad if Chloe is really dead, cause the actress is much more likable than the chick who plays Lois. The appearance of the Martian Manhunter and Bizarro was cool, but could have been much better executed. This show never allows for more than five minutes an episode for its climactic scenes, and it usually results in a bit of a letdown, just like...

Heroes - I loved the final episode, right up until the last scene with Nathan jetting Peter off to safely explode in the atmosphere. I don't really care if Nathan's dead, but if they really killed off Peter I may stop watching; it's like killing off Superman in a Justice League scenario. The two episodes leading up to the final had a lot of build up to what was billed as a spectacular confrontation. Well, there was a confrontation, but it wasn't very spectacular, and it lasted less than three minutes. Peter used none of his powers to stop Sylar, instead absorbing Nikki's strength to knock him around until Hiro showed up to deliver the fatal blow. This begs another question. Why couldn't Peter just fly himself away? Why did he need Nathan? Hiro's eventual landing in Ancient Japan is interesting, but like a lot of other viewers I felt a little insulted by how weak a job was done of wrapping things up. This show had a good first season, but I think a lot of that was based on faith. I kept watching, even though I wasn't totally connected with any of the characters, for the promise of what the show could be. It seemed like in the last few episodes it might live up to that potential, but then at the last minute it tripped. I just hope in can pick itself up for season two.

Of Amazing Races, Bogus Award Shows, and Other Random Viewing Experiences

YIELD TO THE POWER OF THE AMAZING RACE
I'm a newcomer to The Amazing Race, but I'm hooked. I like this show because it doesn't get caught up in all the usual reality show melodrama; well, at least it doesn't most of the time. Eric and Danielle got yielded again this week, a perfectly legal tactic used by one team to slow another team down. As the two stood stewing and spewing, I sat scratching my head as to why they, and Eric in particular, took it so personally. It's almost as if he thinks all the teams are in this together. Dude, it's a competition, of course people are going to do what they can to win. It's like considering someone a traitor because they skipped you in "Uno". Does this guy sit at a poker table and cry foul when the other players don't show him their cards?


ONLY IN TV-LAND
In the past I've mocked the whole idea of the TV-Land awards as just another ridiculous self-congratulatory way to drum up viewers. However, this year I figured I should at least try to watch since I started blogging about television and all. Wow! I didn't even make it past Kelly Ripa's monologue.


STUPID AGENT MAN
Again last night 24 went the Alias route of making the hero(es) do stupid things in order to fill a plot hole or try to cover bad writing. Luckily, though the whole night wasn't a loss, and in a way it would have been interesting if the whole season focused on the "fallout" of the day's events. Have the nuke go off during the premier, catch the guy by hour five and spend the rest of the day cleaning up the mess.


HEROIC RESTRAINT
Last night I chose to watch 24 instead of Heroes. I did record it though so I hope to watch tonight. The couple seconds I did see however looked pretty fantastic.

Who Needs a Cape?!

So "Heroes" was AWWWWESOME last night! Really, that's all there is to say about it. Though if you would like to hear someone more eloquent then me explain why it was so great, you can do so here. I have never felt so satisfied, yet still intrigued by a cliffhanger finale. (The season two finale of "Lost" is a very close second.) Anyone have any theories on Peter's flu-like symptoms? Whatever their cause they made for some pretty freaky (and cool) fever dreams. Can't wait 'til January!!

In other news TV Gal has a quick rundown of her ten favorite current TV characters. It's definitely worth a glance.

Roundup and Recap

Reports of the Sitcom's Death Have Been Greatly Exaggerated
USA Today this week had a great interview with producers from the shows making up NBC's revamped must-see-tv block on Thursday nights. Among the topics are ratings, the new style of sitcom, and as always, whether the sitcom is dead; to which Bill Lawrence, exec. producer of "Scrubs", has the best answer I've heard in a while:

The only thing really dead about comedy right now is that everybody has so many options about what to watch that crappy comedy is dead. Crappy television is dead. The days of putting anything on at 8:30 just because it's after a hit and expecting people to watch it, I think that's over with.

Of course crappy television isn't quite dead yet (somebody put "Twenty Good Years" on the air after all), but his point is a good one.

Shielded Cable
Also in USA Today, speculation that broadcast decency standards may be applied to basic cable in the not too distant future. I'm a still on the fence about that. There's a lot of questionable stuff on some cable channels even during the middle of the day. But nobody's forcing me to buy basic cable, and most cable boxes these days have more parental control options than they do channels. Plus, the only chance I get to watch "The Daily Show" and "The Colbert Report" is when they're rerun at 8am, and I'm pretty sure a change in the rules would take that away from me.

Fake News Alert!
Speaking of the "The Daily Show" and "The Colbert Report"; executive producer for both shows, Ben Karlin, has decided it's time to move on. Luckily he will stick around as a consultant. Get the whole skinny from the NY Times here.

30 + 60 = 90 Minutes of Quality TV
Alessandra Stanley compares "30 Rock" and "Studio 60" in an interesting piece in the New York Times. She likes both shows, but notices many of the same annoyances with "Studio 60" that I do.

"30 Rock"s on!
Good news for fans of "30 Rock", which includes me. NBC has picked up the show for a full season. Details are here at zap2it.com.


Quick Recap
Solid episodes this week from "The Office" (of course), "Heroes" and "3o Rock". I didn't get a chance to watch "Studio 60" yet. First there was Monday Night Football, and after that I was a little busy with the Superman box set that came out this week.

I saw my first broadcast of Thursday Night Football. Not only wasn't I really interested in the match up (though I do have Baltimore's defense in my fantasy league), but I had a hard time with Bryant Gumbel doing play-by-play. There's something off-putting in his nasally, high-pitched delivery that doesn't really go too well with football. I'll take Greg doing a game any day.

Friday night marked the first on-screen appearance of my brother-in-law Ken. Usually he works behind the scenes, but last night he got some face time and stole the show, leaving at least one viewer (his sister) asking for more. Nice work Ken!