NOMINEES: Alec Baldwin for 30 Rock, Don Cheadle for House of Lies, Louis CK for Louie, Jon Cryer for Two and a Half Men, Larry David for Curb Your Enthusiasm, Jim Parsons for The Big Bang Theory
ANALYSIS: Previously, I had seen Baldwin and Parson's tapes. Starting with Baldwin's tape, I didn't really remember his performance from the 30 Rock live episode, the tape he submitted. The episode itself has a different set-up in which the characters of the show act as characters of other, fake TV shows, so Baldwin gets to play a lot of different characters. It's almost like a Saturday Night Live kind of episode, where more than one performance is being judged. However, a lot of the focus of the episode is on the entire ensemble, and not just Baldwin. A lot of his episodes in the past have had storylines solely focused on himself. Regardless, he is Alec Baldwin, and that alone can get him some votes, plus voters might recognize the hard work put in by the actor to complete the live show compared to taped performances. Next, I watched Cryer's tape. After the dismissal of Charlie Sheen from Two and a Half Men, Cryer became a larger part of the show and is now competing in the lead acting race. Still, the performances still have not changed. Cryer's character is still neurotic, worrisome, nervous, and over-the-top. In this episode, after being released from a nut house, he realizes his entire life is flipped upside down (his son is a baby daddy, his girlfriend is sleeping with his roommate, he gets kicked out of his house), but *spoiler alert!* it's all a dream. It's a good performance, and with some sentimental moments mixed in, he's got range. But I don't see him winning this race. I just don't. Next, I watched Cheadle's tape. Cheadle is an Academy Award nominee, so it's surprising to see him doing TV, especially since his movie career hasn't died down (he's currently working on Iron Man 3), but here he is in House of Lies. The show itself is okay, and I didn't see enough to really entice me. Cheadle's performance is good, and he's definitely the standout, but the writing was kind of weak, and even Oscar nominees can't rise above bad writing. Yeah, he's the biggest name in the group, but the show itself isn't even that big, so I don't see an Emmy win here. Then, I rewatched Parsons' tape. Every year, Parsons seems to submit a tape where his crazy, compulsive character, Sheldon, steps outside of his comfort zone. It seems to have done him a lot of well, considering the two Emmys he has in his pocket, and this tape gives him a great shot at a third. It all starts when Sheldon's barber goes to the hospital, and Sheldon must postpone his weekly haircut. He's neurotic and it's funny to see this one change of plans completely ruin him. Soon enough, however, he starts adjusting to life without restrictions, but he slowly and surely goes off the deep end, leading to a bongos jam session in the early morning. It's a great tape for Parsons, and as the defending champion, he already has one foot on the stage. Having only watched one previous episode of Curb Your Enthusiasm, I found myself not entirely liking Larry David's character. His submission episode for this category only further proved the point. His character is so mean and unlikeable, a complete curmudgeon, that I couldn't get past that and start appreciating his performance. It's funny at some times, yes, but it really turned me off. Still, I can see what some people might appreciate in this performance, and some may say David is overdue for a win here. Personally, I just don't think the performance is that good. Speaking of hyped-up comedian performances, my last tape was CK's episode of Louie. I'd never seen an episode, but everyone has praised Louis CK, and I've never thought a whole lot about him. The episode deals with him going to perform for the troops in Afghanistan while taking care of his daughter's class duckling. It's a great episode, also nominated for Best Directing (which CK also did), and his performance is very genuine. There are some funny moments, a lot of them during his stand-up routines, but there's also real emotion like when CK interacts with the troops and local citizens, or when he takes care of the little duck. CK has seven nominations this year, so you gotta pray the guy wins at least one, right? Well, I certainly think there's a chance this is one he could win. That's why...
WHO SHOULD WIN: ...I think Louis CK's hard work this past year should be recognized with an Emmy here. It's a subtle, different kind of performance than the one normally awarded in this category, but it would be a well-deserved award.
WHO WILL WIN: I still think Parsons' tape does the trick to win the whole thing. Three in a row may sound crazy, but Bryan Cranston's doing it in the drama counterpart category, so why not? Parsons' shtick isn't old anyway, so he looks good to win a third Emmy.
RANKINGS:
1. Jim Parsons - The Big Bang Theory
2. Louis CK - Louie
3. Larry David - Curb Your Enthusiasm
4. Alec Baldwin - 30 Rock
5. Jon Cryer - Two and a Half Men
6. Don Cheadle - House of Lies
Can Parsons make a Big Bang once again, or should someone new take the award? Can stand-up comics David and CK win an Emmy for an actual performance, or should a more accomplished actor like Baldwin or Cheadle take the gold? What about category jumper Cryer? Could a "Congrats on your promotion!" Emmy be likely? Let me know what you think in the comments!
Evan
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