In case you are new to this, the idea is pretty straightforward. I go through the Emmy nomination ballot for a bunch of categories and put together the strongest group I can among what wasn't already nominated for the Emmy. I call this group my B-Team. I then compare the Nominees to my B-Team and choose a winner based on which is a stronger group of performers/shows/etc. The idea is to see how badly chosen the nominees actually are. This serves two purposes:
1) To see how bad the nominees really are. The first year I did this, my theory was that, as a very informed TV viewer, it would be easy for me to find 5-7 names that the Emmy voters missed. I'll go ahead and say now that the Emmy voters, especially outside the Comedy and Drama categories, tend to do a pretty good job picking most of the best options in a category.
2) To highlight some other great work from the last year. With the explosion of new content over the last few years, 5-7 nominees just isn't enough to cover all the great work being done, especially on lesser seen shows that have trouble putting together enough support to be nominated.
As far as who I pick for my B-Team, please disagree with me. I watch a lot of TV, but I miss much, much more than I see. My B-Team is exactly that: My B-Team. In other words, I'm stacking the deck in the B-Team's favor. If I'm picking the 5-7 shows that I like the best and the B-Team still loses, that means the Nominee list is pretty damn strong.
The Comedy Series B-Teams are perhaps the easiest of all to build. I watch more comedies than anything. The shows often have large casts with plenty of great people in lead and supporting roles. While dramas increasingly move into the "10 hour movie" direction, comedies remain largely episodic, offering more distinct choices for writing and directing spots. With no Veep dominating the Nominee lists and no major dark horse Emmy snub shows this year, it's a weaker batch all around. I'm curious to see which side it favors.
(Final Note: I'm sure that I'll mention this more than a few times, but all my picks are based on who is submitted and in which category. For example, I would've considered the Brooklyn Nine Nine episode "The Box" a lock for my directing B-team, but it wasn't submitted. Thus, I can't include it. Similarly, Mandy Moore would be a great supporting actress in a drama contender on This Is Us. However, she submitted himself as a lead, so that's all I can consider her for)
Previously:
The Scruff
Reality Shows
Variety Series and Specials
Limited Series and TV Movie
* Indicates a show that I haven't watched this season.
# Indicates a show I've seen before, not this season.
Comedy Series
Atlanta
Barry
black-ish
# Curb Your Enthusiasm
GLOW
The Marvelous Mrs. Maisel
Silicon Valley
Unbreakable Kimmy Schmidt
B-Team
Better Things
Brooklyn Nine Nine
Dear White People
The End of the Fucking World
Fresh Off the Boat
The Good Place
The Middle
Speechless
As much as I'd like to, I can't keep up with everything. Comedy is what I've seen the most of though due to taste (Comedy is my favorite genre) and logistics (comedies are generally shorter). Certainly, my B-Team could have highly-praised shows that I haven't seen yet like One Day at a Time or Baskets. Several shows I've seen but haven't caught up with the latest season like Casual, Brockmire, Shameless, and Transparent. The Big Bang Theory can still make me laugh, and that's not nothing. I enjoyed uneven shows like LA to Vegas and Everything Sucks! tremendously. Then there's The Last Man on Earth which plays by different rules than any show on TV. Seriously, that show might be brilliant (or it's zany nonsense).
I'm fine with the B-Team I assembled. Brooklyn Nine Nine makes me laugh as much as anything on TV. The Middle had a fine farewell season. With shows like Fresh Off the Boat and Speechless (which had a terrific sophomore season), I know that ABC's family comedies are in good hands. Dear White People has a great mix of tones and knows just the right time to deflate its characters before they become insufferable. The Louis C.K. connections do Better Things no favors, which is a shame. It's such a personal and specific show and showcase for Pamela Adlon. The End of the Fucking World was a bizarre treat that was never going to get Emmy love. Finally, The Good Place went into another gear in season 2, getting more confident with each episode. I mean, what other show could center an entire episode around the Trolley Problem?
The Nominees are pretty good too. The latest season of Curb Your Enthusiasm got its lowest critical marks of any season, but the bar is set pretty high to begin with. The batch of episodes Unbreakable Kimmy Schmidt released to stay in the eligibility window were a return to form after I lost nearly all interest in season 3. Silicon Valley can still make me laugh, but it's showing its age now. The same jokes don't work quite as well anymore. black-ish had some great episodes, but the marital problems arc at the end of the season left a bad taste in my mouth. Barry, GLOW (season 1, mind you), and The Marvelous Mrs. Maisel all had excellent debut seasons that give me hope for the next generation of comedies. Atlanta's long-awaited Lando Calrissian-delayed second season proved to be well worth the wait.
Winner: B-Team
It's tough to pick against Atlanta, especially with Barry and MMM backing it up. Silicon Valley and black-ish weigh the group down some. Meanwhile, 2 of my 3 favorite comedies (Brooklyn Nine Nine and The Good Place) are in the B-Team, which also gets bonus points for The Middle's final season and Speechless' impressive run.
Lead Actress In A Comedy Series
Pamela Adlon (Better Things)
Tracee Ellis Ross (black-ish)
# Lily Tomlin (Grace And Frankie)
# Issa Rae (Insecure)
Rachel Brosnahan (The Marvelous Mrs. Maisel)
# Allison Janney (Mom)
B-Team
Kristen Bell (The Good Place)
Alison Brie (GLOW)
Minnie Driver (Speechless)
Ellie Kemper (Unbreakable Kimmy Schmidt)
# Emmy Rossum (Shameless)
Constance Wu (Fresh Off the Boat)
Even with a lighter group than in past years, Leading Actress in a Comedy is among the deepest categories.
C-Team: Jessica Barden (The End of the Fucking World), Rachel Bloom (Crazy Ex-Girldfirend), Logan Browning (Dear White People), Gillian Jacobs (Love), Peyton Kennedy (Everything Sucks!), Gina Rodriguez (Jane the Virgin)
D-Team: Michaela Watkins (Casual), Patricia Heaton (The Middle), Mindy Kaling (The Mindy Projects), Anna Faris (Mom), Zooey Deschanel (New Girl), Maria Bamford (Lady Dynamite)
And that still doesn't leave room for the likes of Debra Messing in Will & Grace or Aya Cash in You're the Worst. TV is way ahead of film in terms of finding great parts for women.
I'll save you the suspense...
Winner: B-Team
The Nominees are OK. Rachel Brosnahan is a no-brainer. Pamela Adlon is too. Allison Janney and Lily Tomlin ride a lot on reputations. Issa Rae is really good in Insecure from what I've seen of the show. Tracee Ellis Ross got some good acting this season in black-ish but the best of it was wasted on a storyline that focused more on making a point than being good.
The B-Team is full of snubs both new and old. There's no good reason why this should be the season for Ellie Kemper to fall out of the field. Unbreakable Kimmy Schmidt only works because of her. I pretty pissed to see Alison Brie not make the cut. I would've put her nomination as more likely than a series nomination for GLOW. When will people appreciate her as much as she deserves? Speaking of which, it's now year 185 of Emmy Rossum getting ignored for always being amazing on Shameless. The show is getting old now, but my irritation over her snubs aren't waning. I still maintain that Kristen Bell is too likable to not get nominated. I really figured that Frozen and Veronica Mars' cult following would've helped her profile enough. Minnie Driver and Constance Wu are the two best Mamma Bears on TV. I'm not sure what else they need to do to get recognized. It's a shame that Crazy Rich Asians didn't come out sooner. Imagine if that was making good money with Wu on the billboards and late show circuit in the middle of Emmy voting.
Lead Actor In A Comedy Series
Donald Glover (Atlanta)
Bill Hader (Barry)
Anthony Anderson (black-ish)
# Larry David (Curb Your Enthusiasm)
Ted Danson (The Good Place)
# William H. Macy (Shameless)
B-Team
Andy Samberg (Brooklyn Nine Nine)
Dylan McDermott (LA to Vegas)
# Hank Azaria (Brockmire)
Thomas Middleditch (Silicon Valley)
Jim Parsons (The Big Bang Theory)
* Zach Galifianakis (Baskets)
Lead Actor in a Comedy is a little simpler than Lead Actress. Those at the top are a little more obvious. More importantly, I don't think writers are trying as hard with the leading men roles. Or maybe I just don't have a crush on funny men. I haven't done the math, but that probably plays a role in it. I would've liked to make room for Glenn Howerton in A.P. Bio or Jason Bateman in Arrested Development for being the conductors working through the madness on their shows. Alex Lawther made a strong impression on The End of the Fucking World despite not really being funny. Lamorne Morris (New Girl) didn't really have a lead role. Will Forte (The Last Man on Earth) happily demotes himself on his own show.
Andy Samberg is very good on Brooklyn Nine Nine, but he's a lead in a strong ensemble. That tends to elevate the supporting characters and demote the leads. I think people still don't give Thomas Middleditch enough credit for how much of a performance he's giving in Silicon Valley. Perhaps those cell phone commercials are helping. I don't care for Zach Galifianakis as a performer, but I won't deny he's doing something impressive in Baskets. We are all tired of Jim Parsons, but he is a multi-time Emmy winner for a reason. Sheldon Cooper is one of the best performer/character marriages of the last couple decades. Hank Azaria is a force in Brockmire, even if most people don't know how to find the show. Dylan McDermott would've been the team captain of my Supporting Actor B-Team for his scene-stealing work on LA > Vegas. Calling him a Lead Actor is a bit much though. Kim Matula is the only lead in that series even if McDermott is the star.
You'll notice that the one thing missing from my B-Team is an actor who I'm positively gushing about. That's because, those actors are all Nominated already. And it's a short list. Donald Glover and Bill Hader are exceptional in their shows, each with several showcase episodes and scenes. You cannot have a Lead Actor in a Comedy list without them. That said, the rest of the Nominee list is full of caveats. Ted Danson is more of a prominent supporting character in The Good Place. He's good enough to be nominated him either way though. Anthony Anderson and Larry David drive their shows even if I wouldn't call these seasons their best efforts. I'm pretty sure the William H. Macy nominations (still more of a supporting role, by the way) only keep happening to taunt me about the Emmy Rossum snubs.
Winner: Nominees
Glover and Hader are a level or two above everyone else. It's not even close. I'd take them vs. the field.
Supporting Actress In A Comedy Series
Zazie Beetz (Atlanta)
Betty Gilpin (GLOW)
Alex Borstein (The Marvelous Mrs. Maisel)
# Laurie Metcalf (Roseanne)
Aidy Bryant (Saturday Night Live)
Leslie Jones (Saturday Night Live)
Kate McKinnon (Saturday Night Live)
# Megan Mullally (Will & Grace)
B-Team
Melissa Fumero (Brooklyn Nine Nine)
Jameela Jamil (The Good Place)
D'Arcy Carden (The Good Place)
Claudia O'Doherty (Love)
Antoinette Robertson (Dear White People)
Cecily Strong (SNL)
Heidi Gardner (SNL)
Sarah Goldberg (Barry)
At this point, the supporting ranks aren't as deep as in the past. And with 8 Nominees this year, it's hard to miss anyone. There weren't any hard omissions from the B-Team. I'm a little confused why it seems like everyone except Cecily Strong gets nominated for SNL. Heidi Gardner is probably a season away from a nomination too. I feel like they are prepping her for whenever Kate McKinnon leaves. Sarah Goldberg is interestingly likeable, unlikable, and sympathetic on Barry. It's a weird balance. Antoinette Robertson and Claudia O'Doherty benefit from spotlight episodes of their Netflix shows. D'Arcy Carden and Jameela Jamil have honed their characters on The Good Place. Carden has always been funny but lacked depth. Jamil was initially off-putting without enough return in the form of jokes. Both have improved on their early problems greatly. And Melissa Fumero just makes me laugh. I like neurotic characters (I wonder why?).
In the Nominee list, Zazie Beetz, Betty Gilpin, and Alex Borstein are just about the perfect supporting characters for their respective shows. Laurie Metcalf and Megan Mullally are Emmy favorites for a reason, so I don't begrudge their comeback nominations. McKinnon is SNL's current star, so I'm fine with that nomination. It's good to see Aidy Bryant nominated too. I still think Leslie Jones is very funny but a bad live performer. She's better than she used to be, but not among the top 8 supporting performers. Top 8 at being able to get a laugh from an audience but also super likely to miss a mark or look at the wrong camera.
Winner: Nominees
McKinnon, Beetz, Gilpin, and Borstein more than make up for the deficiencies of the others in the group and the B-Team doesn't have the collective firepower to counter them. None of them are unforgivable snubs.
Supporting Actor In A Comedy Series
Brian Tyree Henry (Atlanta)
Henry Winkler (Barry)
* Louie Anderson (Baskets)
Tony Shalhoub (The Marvelous Mrs. Maisel)
Alec Baldwin (Saturday Night Live)
Kenan Thompson (Saturday Night Live)
Tituss Burgess (Unbreakable Kimmy Schmidt)
B-Team
Lakeith Stanfield (Atlanta)
Anthony Carrigan (Barry)
Andre Braugher (Brooklyn Nine Nine)
William Jackson Harper (The Good Place)
Manny Jacinto (The Good Place)
Marc Maron (GLOW)
Zach Woods (Silicon Valley)
Stanfield v. Henry is a draw. Henry has more to do but Stanfield gets "Teddy Perkins". Winkler gets a slight edge over Carrigan. As much as Carrigan made me laugh, he was more one-note. The writing for Alec Baldwin's Donald Trump was lazier this year and he did nothing to help.
Tony Shalhoub needed slightly more to do on MMM. He shined when he got the chance, but it was too minor of a role. Louie Anderson is more of a lead at this point on Baskets, from what I understand, and just as good as he was in his Emmy winning season. I don't care for Tituss Burgess on Unbreakable Kimmy Schmidt, but he is very good at playing the character. The big win for the Nominees is Kenan Thompson finally getting some love. He is quite possibly the platonic ideal SNL cast member and it only took 15 years for people to notice.
Andre Braugher is simply too good to snub. Manny Jacinto makes me laugh for dumb jokes more than anyone should be able to. William Jackson Harper is so good at looking constantly uncomfortable. Surprisingly, Marc Maron playing a character in GLOW came more naturally to him than playing himself on his own show for four seasons. Zach Woods continues to have some of my favorite line reads on TV.
Winner: B-Team
This was super close. The top of both the Nominees and B-Team was pretty even, so it was my fatigue of Baldwin and Burgess than sank the Nominees.
Guest Actress In A Comedy Series
Wanda Sykes (black-ish - "Juneteenth")
Maya Rudolph (The Good Place - "The Burrito")
Jane Lynch (The Marvelous Mrs. Maisel - "Put That On Your Plate!")
Tiffany Haddish (Saturday Night Live - "Host: Tiffany Haddish")
Tina Fey (Saturday Night Live - "Host: Tina Fey")
# Molly Shannon (Will & Grace - "Staten Island Fairy")
B-Team
Vanessa Bayer (Love)
Shelley Long (Modern Family)
Amanda Peet (Brockmire)
Saoirse Ronan (SNL)
Christine Baranski (The Big Bang Theory)
Laurie Metcalf (The Big Bang Theory)
OK, making all these B-Team is getting exhausting. Sykes isn't very memorable on black-ish most of the time. I assume Molly Shannon was good in her Will & Grace episode. Otherwise, I like the Nominees. Maya Ruldolph's The Good Place episode gave her a prominent and funny role. Haddish and Fey were probably the two best female hosts of SNL this season. Jane Lynch was damn good and a little heartbreaking on MMM.
Bayer shows surprising range on Love. Baranski and Metcalf are casually great whenever they show up on The Big Bang Theory. Ronan was a fine host as well for SNL. I really enjoyed Peet as a regular in the first season of Brockmire. If she's that good in a guest spot in season 2, then that's worth a spot on the B-Team. Long was in by far my favorite episode of Modern Family this season. I'm not sure how much of that if any is because of her, but let's pretend it's not a coincidence.
Winner: Nominees
I really liked Bayer in Love. That's matched by Lynch. Rudolph + 2 SNL hots is tough to beat.
Guest Actor In A Comedy Series
Katt Williams (Atlanta - "Alligator Man")
Sterling K. Brown (Brooklyn Nine-Nine - "The Box")
# Lin-Manuel Miranda (Curb Your Enthusiasm - "Fatwa!")
# Bryan Cranston (Curb Your Enthusiasm - "Running With The Bulls")
Bill Hader (Saturday Night Live - "Host: Bill Hader")
Donald Glover (Saturday Night Live - "Host: Donald Glover")
B-Team
Chadwick Boseman (SNL)
Will Ferrell (SNL)
John Mulaney (SNL)
Jason Sudeikis (The Last Man on Earth)
Jon Hamm (Unbreakable Kimmy Schmidt)
Marc Evan Jackson (Brooklyn Nine Nine)
Glover over Boseman in the battle of the SNL hosts promoting a major Disney movie.
Hader over Ferrell in the battle of the SNL hosts who used to be cast members.
Brown over Jackson in the battle of Brooklyn Nine Nine episodes that happened in a confined space.
Mulaney over Miranda in the battle of the nice guys who surely must be hiding some darkness in there, but hopefully not because that might destroy my faith in humanity.
Cranston over Hamm in the battle of the funny guys who won Drama Lead Actor Emmys for work on an AMC show.
Sudiekis over Williams in the battle of the sixth guys that I couldn't find a connection for.
Winner: Nominees
Things would've gone differently had Sterling K. Brown been snubbed.
Writing For A Comedy Series
Atlanta - "Alligator Man"
Atlanta - "Barbershop"
Barry - "Chapter One: Make Your Mark"
Barry - "Chapter Seven: Loud, Fast And Keep Going"
The Marvelous Mrs. Maisel - "Pilot"
Silicon Valley - "Fifty-One Percent"
B-Team
Atlanta - "FUBU"
Better Things - "Graduation"
black-ish - "Juneteenth"
Brooklyn Nine Nine "The Box"
GLOW "Pilot"
The Good Place "The Trolley Problem"
Writing and directing are often lazy categories, because voters can't stop themselves from voting for everything from their favorite show rather than try to look a little harder for deserving episodes. That said, I do like the Nominees this year. I had a harder than expected time putting together a B-Team, since I can only use submitted episodes.
I'll take the MMM Pilot over the GLOW pilot. "FUBU" was a better Atlanta episode than "Alligator Man", although I understand the desire to vote for the absurdity of the latter. "Graduation" was a fine episode of Better Things, although I wish "Eulogy" would've been an option. "Barbershop" is an incredible and frustrating journey in a <30 min. package. "Juneteenth" is the highlight episode of this season of black-ish. Perhaps more of a directing achievement though. The same goes for Silicon Valley's "Fifty-One Percent". "The Trolley Problem" and "The Box" aren't essential episodes of their respective shows. I just really liked them. I don't quite have comparisons for the two nominated Barry episodes. They are dark and have some of the punchlines that I'm most queasy about.
Winner: Nominees
The MMM pilot is the year's strongest pilot. At least one of the Atlanta episodes is as good as anything you'll see this year. The Barry episodes, especially chapter 7 are pretty staggering, even if they aren't incredibly funny.
Directing For A Comedy Series
Atlanta - "FUBU"
Atlanta - "Teddy Perkins"
Barry - "Chapter One: Make Your Mark"
GLOW - "Pilot"
The Marvelous Mrs. Maisel - "Pilot"
Silicon Valley - "Initial Coin Offering"
B-Team
Better Things - "Eulogy"
Barry - "Chapter Eight: Know the Truth"
The Good Place - "Dance, Dance Resolution"
The Middle - "A Heck of a Ride"
Modern Family - "Mother"
black-ish - "Juneteenth"
I want to start by taking a moment to ask how Chapter Seven of Barry or the Brooklyn Nine Nine episode "The Box" weren't even submitted. That must've been an oversight. Those would've clinched things for the B-Team. Oh well.
Pilots are hard to beat, because they get weeks or months of consideration and tweaking as opposed to maybe a week or two for most other episodes of a TV show. That makes the Nominees list formidable. GLOW, Barry, and MMM all have great pilots that establish the worlds effectively. "Teddy Perkins" is the most talked about episode of TV this year among the critics I've listened to. "FUBU" is also a great departure from whatever Atlanta's status quo is. The nominated Silicon Valley episode was fine. I don't have much else to say about it.
The Barry finale (Chapter Eight) was pretty well directed too. "Eulogy" is one of my favorite TV episodes of 2017, largely due to the directing. "Juneteenth" was a big episode of black-ish that tried some things they weren't used to doing. "A Heck of a Ride" wasn't an exceptional episode of The Middle. I just want to mention the show one more time. People give Modern Family a lot of crap these days because it hasn't deserved the Outstanding Comedy Series nomination at least 6 of the 8 years it got one. At this point, it's an older series that is feeling its age. You can rely on one really good episode each season. "Mother" is that episode. This is one well-directed episode that converges all the stories beautifully.
Winner: Nominees
The B-Team put up a good fight, but, "Teddy Perkins".
Casting For A Comedy Series
Atlanta
Barry
GLOW
The Marvelous Mrs. Maisel
Silicon Valley
B-Team
Arrested Development
Better Things
Dear White People
The Good Place
LA to Vegas
This is where I remind you that I don't really know what this category is about. But, neither do Emmy voters, so at least we're on equal footing. I believe the focus is supposed to be on casting within episodes, not for the casting of the series regulars. Most people vote for "what cast do I like the best?", which is similar to what I'll do.
The core casts of all the Nominees are great. The same goes for the B-Team. Let's instead look at how well populated the worlds are. Atlanta introduces great new characters every week, who I could always imagine spending several more episodes with. MMM casts actors to play real people or thinly disguised people and I never have an issue with it. Silicon Valley has a deep bench of recurring characters who fit perfectly into the world. Barry's acting class and the people he runs into as an assassin are all exactly what I expect.
Better Things has a messy collection of friends and associates who fit the show's worldview. The Good Place dips into the well of Michael Schur or SNL regulars who are always good even if they don't fully get lost in the character. Dear White People has a whole campus full of people who we are constantly discovering more about.
Winner: B-Team
LA > Vegas cast Dermot Mulroney to play Dylan McDermott's rival and played up how identical the two actors are. I don't care what else any other show did. None of them will top that.
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The Nominees win again with a narrow 6-4 record. Granted, the Casting win for the B-Team was a bit of a gimme. I feel like this is the weakest overall showing for the B-Teams in a while. Are the Emmy voters getting better, are the shows worse overall this year, or did I just not watch enough TV? Surely it can't be that last one.
