Hello everyone! It’s
Jaime here, ready with my dream Emmy ballot.
Now, let’s start with the obvious caveat: this is totally based on the
shows that I watch, so there are probably going to be some huge
oversights. There are only a few
occasions where I include something on my ballot just because I know it’s a
given that it’ll receive a nomination; otherwise, this is totally based on the
shows that I love that I think deserve recognition. Of course, this entire thing is moot because Hannibal premiered too late to be
considered and thus can’t receive any nominations, even though it deserves to
win everything. But don’t worry, I’m
sure I’ll complain about that a lot throughout this post, so let’s just jump
ahead to the actual categories.
BEST CINEMATOGRAPHY:
It’s Always Sunny in Philadelphia – "Charlie Work"
Jane the Virgin – "Chapter Ten"
Game of Thrones – any episode
Mad Men – "Person to Person"
Marvel’s Daredevil – "Cut Man"
I have a weird mix of contenders here, but hear me out. It’s
Always Sunny created a weird, Birdman-esque
episode that featured one long shot.
Remember last year, how True
Detective won this category? Yeah,
the episode that won had a six-minute tracking shot at the end. It’s
Always Sunny is a single-camera comedy series that essentially did the
exact same thing. That’s just not a move
made on television, let alone on a comedy series. If it doesn’t at least get nominated I will
lose all my trust in the world.
When it comes to Game
of Thrones, I couldn’t narrow it down to a particular episode because I
think any of the ones submitted are deserving of a nomination. I couldn’t remember a particular standout
moment from any of the episodes that might tip the scales; rather, the show
consistently has such high production values and beautiful camerawork that any
episode deserves to make it in this category.
The same could be said for Daredevil,
but they only submitted one episode so it was an easy decision for me. Daredevil
always finds such beautiful, interesting ways to film the action, whether
it’s a fight scene or just basic dialogue.
It’s so wonderful to look at, and hopefully the fact that the show is
relatively low profile won’t detract from it getting a much deserved nomination
here.
This is the first instance where I am going to say that it
is total garbage that Hannibal won’t
be nominated. You cannot have a
conversation about cinematography on television without talking about Hannibal, let alone awarding the best
cinematography. I’m going to move on to
the next category but know that I am not happy.
BEST DIRECTING IN A
COMEDY:
Galavant – Pilot
It’s Always Sunny in Philadelphia – "Charlie Work"
Jane the Virgin – Pilot
The Mindy Project – "Dinner at the Castellanos"
Parks and Recreation – "One Last Ride"
I included Galavant and
The Mindy Project here because each
submitted episode had so many layers and elements working together throughout
the episode. Galavant brilliantly balanced comedy, musical numbers, plot
movement, and establishing the show, while Mindy’s
“Dinner at the Castellanos” featured comedy, plus huge character moments
for Mindy and Danny individually and as a couple, plus the conflict of Mindy
trying to hide her pregnancy, plus Danny dealing with his family coming
together for dinner…It’s a lot to balance, and hard to find the right note
between chaotic and over the top. But
both shows did it perfectly, and in totally different ways. Galavant
established itself as a weird, irreverent little show, while Mindy approached its chaos with the same
quirky voice that has guided each episode.
BEST DIRECTING IN A DRAMA:
Game of Thrones – "Hardhome"
Mad Men – "Person to Person"
Parenthood – "May God Bless You and Keep You Always"
I didn’t even bother to try filling out this category
because drama is so packed every year, and rather than pick through them all, I
went with submissions that particularly stood out to me. Mad
Men’s series finale will almost definitely earn a nomination here; besides
the fact that the Emmys love the show, the finale perfectly balanced so many
individual character elements and managed to wrap up seven chaotic
seasons. Like with cinematography, Game of Thrones submitted a few
different episodes, but here “Hardhome” was a clear standout. The last few minutes with the giant white
walker attack was huge. The amount of
work that must have gone into filming that scene makes my brain hurt,
honestly. As for Parenthood, I’m hoping that the Emmys will pull a Friday Night Lights scenario and finally
give it some well-earned attention for its final season. Parenthood
has always delicately balanced the storylines of its huge cast of
characters, but that’s a daunting task when it comes to creating a satisfying
finale. There’s always a lot going on
with the Braverman clan, but the finale brought everything together and left on
a brilliantly fulfilling note.
LEAD ACTOR IN A
COMEDY:
Andy Samberg – Brooklyn 99
Adam Scott – Parks and Recreation
Jeffrey Tambor – Transparent
Okay, this one’s cheating a little bit because I haven’t
gotten a chance to watch Transparent yet,
but it’s safe to assume that Jeffrey Tambor will get nominated this year (and
probably safe to assume that he’ll win).
Samberg and Scott have both proved themselves to be incredibly strong
and reliable leading men, both portraying goofy guys who you can’t help but
support, both personally and professionally.
And, I mean, come on. Jake
Peralta would be the best boyfriend ever and Ben Wyatt would be the best
husband ever, right? That’s just a fact
we can all accept? Okay, great, moving
on.
LEAD ACTOR IN A DRAMA:
Charlie Cox - Daredevil
Jon Hamm – Mad Men
Bob Odenkirk – Better Call Saul
Cheating a little bit again
because I also haven’t gotten a chance to watch Better Call Saul (despite my eternal love for Breaking Bad), but whatever, this is my ballot, come fight me. But it seems pretty likely that Bob Odenkirk
will score a nomination, and I don’t want to avoid predicting inevitabilities,
so. Charlie Cox might be a longshot, but
he’s so deserving of a nomination. His
performance as Matt Murdock is so complex and yet simple, and you can’t help
but fall in love with him. And I don’t
really need to explain Jon Hamm, do I?
He’s always been overlooked in this category, and maybe he’ll finally
get the attention he deserves for Mad Men’s
final season. Also, again, this category
is totally moot without Hugh Dancy and Mads Mikkelsen.
LEAD ACTRESS IN A COMEDY:
Zooey Deschanel – New Girl
Mindy Kaling – The Mindy Project
Ellie Kemper – Unbreakable Kimmy Schmidt
Julia Louis-Dreyfus - Veep
Amy Poehler – Parks and Recreation
Gina Rodriguez – Jane the Virgin
I don’t think I’ve made any unexpected choices here,
right? I’m sure there will be some
changes between this and the actual category, but I feel comfortable saying
that more than one of the women I have listed here will get a nomination.
LEAD ACTRESS IN A DRAMA:
Tatiana Maslany – Orphan Black
Elisabeth Moss – Mad Men
Taylor Schilling – Orange is the New Black
Again, probably nothing surprising here. Also I finally watched Orphan Black a few months ago so now I can be one of those people
who very loudly declares that Tatiana Maslany deserves this award.
SUPPORTING ACTOR IN A
COMEDY:
Justin Baldoni – Jane the Virgin
Andre Braugher – Brooklyn 99
Tituss Burgess – Unbreakable Kimmy Schmidt
Jaime Camil – Jane the Virgin
Nick Offerman – Parks and Recreation
Chris Pratt – Parks and Recreation
All I have to say here is that if Nick Offerman never
receives an Emmy nomination for playing Ron Swanson, then the Emmys will
officially lose any and all credibility it ever had (which isn’t saying much).
SUPPORTING ACTOR IN
DRAMA:
Jonathan Banks – Better Call Saul
Peter Dinklage – Game of Thrones
Vincent D’Onofrio - Daredevil
Kit Harington – Game of Thrones
Craig T. Nelson – Parenthood
Like I said before, I’m hoping the Emmys bestows some love
on Parenthood, and I think Craig T.
Nelson’s got enough clout and had more than enough to do that he’s got a good
shot out of the show’s huge ensemble cast.
So much of this season focused on Zeek adjusting to all the changes in
his life, and oftentimes featured Nelson in decently long sequences all by
himself. Meanwhile, Vincent D’Onofrio,
like, took acting to another place on Daredevil. Again, I’m not sure how high the show is
on Emmy voters’ radar, but D’Onofrio hopefully has enough name recognition and
respect within the industry that he’ll get the attention he deserves for his
role.
SUPPORTING ACTRESS IN A COMEDY:
Jane Krakowski – Unbreakable Kimmy Schmidt
Andrea Navedo – Jane the Virgin
Aubrey Plaza – Parks and Recreation
Yael Grobglas – Jane the Virgin
This was a hard category for me, but ultimately these four
women stood out the most to me. Yael
Grobglas in particular has created such an interesting character, who
constantly puts herself above everyone else and yet can be so vulnerable and
heart-wrenching when she wants to be.
This category is always so hard to predict, and I can’t even be sure
that any of the women I have listed here will wind up a nominee, but all of
them are so deserving.
SUPPORTING ACTRESS IN
A DRAMA:
Uzo Aduba – Orange is the New Black
Danielle Brooks – Orange is the New Black
Emilia Clarke – Game of Thrones
Lena Headey – Game of Thrones
Christina Hendricks – Mad Men
Kate Mulgrew – Orange is the New Black
Lorraine Toussaint – Orange is the New Black
Mae Whitman – Parenthood
Samira Wiley – Orange is the New Black
Did I go over the allotted number of nominees? Yes, very much so.
Are half of them from Orange is
the New Black? Yes, fight me. Are all of these women deserving of a
nomination? Very much so.
OUTSTANDING COMEDY SERIES:
Broad City
Jane the Virgin
Parks and Recreation
I’ve basically given up on trying to predict this category
because it’s always surprising in terms of how it balances single camera and
multi camera shows, so I’m keeping my picks here very simple. Broad
City is probably a long shot, but I’d love to see it nominated, mostly
because it’s from two awesome ladies. Jane the Virgin and Parks and Recreation will probably both score nominations for their
stellar premiere and final seasons, respectively.
OUTSTANDING DRAMA SERIES:
Game of Thrones
Marvel’s Daredevil
Orange is the New Black
Parenthood
Say it with me, everybody: this category is pointless if Hannibal can’t be considered. Otherwise though, my list is exactly 50% wishful
thinking and 50% real predictions that will probably wind up with a
nomination. I can’t see Game of Thrones and Orange is the New Black not getting nominated, and oh how I wish Daredevil and Parenthood would wind up in this category. Fingers crossed, everyone. Happy thoughts.
So, okay, no Hannibal,
I know, what’s even the point of having the Emmys this year. Still, other than that one huge problem, I’m
excited to see how nominations go this year.
I can think of a few locks, but there are enough variables in every
single category that I really can’t predict how things will turn out. What do you guys think? Are you as mad as I am that Hannibal can’t be represented this
year? If you’re not mad, that’s probably
because you haven’t watched it yet. Do
yourself a favor, go watch it and then read this post again. If it’s your second time reading this post –
this so is not my design.
Thanks for reading, everyone! Hopefully I’ve gotten a few of my predictions
right. Happy Emmy Awards!
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