Monday, June 16, 2014

"State of the Race" (Emmys): June 16th

It's time for this week's installment of "State of the Race," so let's break down any changes in this week's lineup.

Best Drama Series
1. Breaking Bad (=)
2. True Detective (=)
3. Game of Thrones (=)
4. House of Cards (=)
5. The Good Wife (=)
6. Mad Men (=)
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7. Masters of Sex (=)
8. The Americans (+1)
9. Homeland (-1)
10. Downton Abbey (=)

I think, unless the Emmys really don't care about truly recognizing the best, Homeland won't be in for a return nomination, so I'm sliding it further down my list. Homeland and Downton Abbey have both been nominated here multiple times, but I think their buzz is dismal and won't make a splash in this race, as opposed to the shows trying to sneak into the lineup, like Masters of Sex and The Americans, which jumps up one slot this week, although I still think this race is down to the top seven contenders.

Best Comedy Series
1. Modern Family (=)
2. Veep (=)
3. The Big Bang Theory (=)
4. Orange Is the New Black (=)
5. Louie (=)
6. Brooklyn Nine-Nine (=)
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7. Girls (=)
8. Silicon Valley (=)
9. Parks and Recreation (=)
10. Shameless (=)

Best Drama Actor
1. Bryan Cranston - Breaking Bad (=)
2. Matthew McConaughey - True Detective (=)
3. Kevin Spacey – House of Cards (=)
4. Jon Hamm - Mad Men (=)
5. James Spader - The Blacklist (=)
6. Woody Harrelson - True Detective (=)
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7. Michael Sheen - Masters of Sex (=)
8. Matthew Rhys – The Americans (=)
9. Jeff Daniels - The Newsroom (=)
10. Damian Lewis – Homeland (=)

Best Drama Actress
1. Robin Wright - House of Cards (=)
2. Julianna Margulies - The Good Wife (=)
3. Claire Danes – Homeland (=)
4. Kerry Washington – Scandal (=)
5. Elisabeth Moss – Mad Men (+1)
6. Tatiana Maslany – Orphan Black (-1)
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7. Vera Farmiga – Bates Motel (+1)
8. Lizzy Caplan – Masters of Sex (-1)
9. Keri Russell - The Americans (=)
10. Michelle Dockery - Downton Abbey (=)

Tatiana Maslany is having a great season on Orphan Black, but the show itself isn't getting the level of praise it was last year. Her performance(s) is/are great, and she's certainly got a lot more name recognition this go around, but I'm not confident to put her too high on my list, so I've slotted her in sixth, bumping up Elisabeth Moss, although she could easily miss the cut, too. That could make room for Vera Farmiga and Lizzy Caplan. I moved Farmiga up one spot because she's getting good buzz and seems like she could return, but last year's lineup was super-sized and with stiff competition, it's not guaranteed, especially when I'm not confident that the Emmys would drop Moss and I'm still believing Maslany will get the nomination. But maybe we will get seven nominees again this year and drop some of the less deserving ones in favor of those who've really earned it. But this is a tough race. There will be big snubs, regardless.

Best Comedy Actor
1. Jim Parsons - The Big Bang Theory (=)
2. Louis CK – Louie (=)
3. Andy Samberg - Brooklyn Nine-Nine (=)
4. Don Cheadle - House of Lies (=)
5. Johnny Galecki – The Big Bang Theory (=)
6. Matt LeBlanc – Episodes (=)
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7. Robin Williams - The Crazy Ones (=)
8. William H. Macy – Shameless (=)
9. Thomas Middleditch – Silicon Valley (=)
10. Chris Messina – The Mindy Project (=)

Best Comedy Actress
1. Julia Louis-Dreyfus – Veep (=)
2. Amy Poehler - Parks and Recreation (=)
3. Lena Dunham – Girls (=)
4. Taylor Schilling - Orange Is The New Black (=)
5. Edie Falco - Nurse Jackie (=)
6. Anna Faris – Mom (=)
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7. Mindy Kaling – The Mindy Project (=)
8. Emmy Rossum – Shameless (=)
9. Melissa McCarthy - Mike and Molly (=)
10. Zooey Deschanel – New Girl (=)

Best Drama Supporting Actor
1. Aaron Paul – Breaking Bad (+1)
2. Peter Dinklage – Game of Thrones (-1)
3. Dean Norris – Breaking Bad (=)
4. Josh Charles – The Good Wife (=)
5. Mandy Patinkin – Homeland (=)
6. Jon Voight – Ray Donovan (=)
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7. Charles Dance – Game of Thrones (=)
8. Jeff Perry – Scandal (=)
9. Jeffrey Wright - Boardwalk Empire (=)
10. Jim Carter - Downton Abbey (=)

I've moved Paul up, but it really won't matter until we see what tapes they submit (assuming they're both nominated, which...I mean...c'mon). It's possible that the double dip of an assumed Paul-Norris nomination could improve their chances, although that wasn't the case last year with Paul and Jonathan Banks. I'm also still not sold on Voight and maybe even Patinkin making it in, but I really am not confident enough to put anyone below #6 in the top tier yet. Overall, not the best of years for this category (and I feel like I've been saying that for years...).

Best Drama Supporting Actress
1. Anna Gunn - Breaking Bad (=)
2. Christine Baranski - The Good Wife (=)
3. Maggie Smith - Downton Abbey (=)
4. Christina Hendricks - Mad Men (+1)
5. Emilia Clarke – Game of Thrones (-1)
6. Michelle Monahan – True Detective (=)
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7.  Bellamy Young – Scandal (=)
8. Monica Potter – Parenthood (=)
9. Archie Panjabi - The Good Wife (+1)
10. Joanne Froggatt – Downton Abbey (NEW)
FALLING OUT: Lena Headey - Game of Thrones

Lena Headey falls out this week because, after lots of pre-season buzz about what might be a great season for her, she really didn't have much to show for it. I feel like it's always that way with Headey's character, as she gets a few great scenes over the course of the season, but not enough to warrant a nomination. I feel the same could be said of Emilia Clarke this season, as well. Her story really stalled and the main thing she has going for her is that she was nominated last year and voters might just want to reward a GoT actress and stick with her. In all actuality, it should be Sophie Turner or Maisie Williams, but those young actresses have less of a chance than Clarke and Headey. So I bumped Clarke down a spot and moved Hendricks up, but only because I'm less confident in Clarke, not because I think Hendricks has a greater shot at the nom. I'm really thinking Bellamy Young sneaks in (and deservedly so), but I don't know who she would knock out among Monahan, Clarke, and Hendricks (assuming the top three are most likely safe). 

Best Comedy Supporting Actor
1. Ty Burrell - Modern Family (=)
2. Tony Hale – Veep (=)
3. Jesse Tyler Ferguson - Modern Family (=)
4. Eric Stonestreet – Modern Family (=)
5. Andre Braugher - Brooklyn Nine-Nine (=)
6. Adam Driver – Girls (=)
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7. Ed O'Neill - Modern Family (=)
8. Timothy Simons – Veep (=)
9. Simon Helberg – The Big Bang Theory (=)
10. Reid Scott – Veep (=)

Best Comedy Supporting Actress
1. Allison Janney – Mom (=)
2. Mayim Bialik - The Big Bang Theory (=)
3. Julie Bowen – Modern Family (=)
4. Sofia Vergara - Modern Family (=)
5. Anna Chlumsky – Veep (=)
6. Kate Mulgrew - Orange Is The New Black (=)
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7. Merritt Wever - Nurse Jackie (=)
8. Haley Cuoco-Sweeting - The Big Bang Theory (=)
9. Jane Lynch – Glee (=)
10. Chelsea Peretti - Brooklyn Nine-Nine (=)

I will be in England for a month starting next week, so my Emmy updates may become a little infrequent but I'll definitely be posting my final predictions the week of the nominations, so just keep checking back!

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