Primetime Emmy Nominations: Who Will Win

The September 18 Emmys are still a long time away, but the nominations were announced last night. Here’s our expert analysis on who will win, who should win, and who got snubbed.

BEST DRAMA SERIES

Boardwalk Empire
Dexter
Friday Night Lights
Game of Thrones
The Good Wife
Mad Men

Who Will Win: Mad Men. This is there year to break through the Breaking Bad wall. Boardwalk has a strong chance as well, but I think the boys at SCDP are going to be happy come Emmy night.

Who Should Win: Friday Night Lights. The final season of FNL was not its best (season 1 or 4), but was still very good, and getting a symbolic win in its last season would be great to see. Don’t hold your breath though.

Who Was Snubbed: Justified. Seriously, how was this show forgotten?

BEST COMEDY SERIES
Big Bang Theory
Glee
Modern Family
The Office
30 Rock
Parks and Recreation

Who Will Win: Too Close to Call. This is a really tight category, where any of these shows could take the statue, but…

Who Should Win: Parks and Recreation. Hands down the funniest show with the best cast. The show went nuts this year, with no weak episodes, and if it doesn’t win, I’ll go on a hunger strike (or probably just be mad for a few days).

Who Was Snubbed: Community. The show had a few brilliant episodes this season, including a few that were light on the wacky humor that helped build the shows fanbase, but heavy on tremendously done storytelling. A shame it didn’t get a nod.

BEST DRAMA ACTOR

Timothy Olyphant, Justified
Steve Buscemi, Boardwalk Empire
Kyle Chandler, Friday Night Lights
Michael C. Hall, Dexter
Jon Hamm, Mad Men
Hugh Laurie, House

Who Will Win: Jon Hamm. It’s his year to hold the statue before Cranston comes back. And honestly, if you saw the episode “The Suitcase,” you’ll have no problem agreeing with me.

Who Should Win: Kyle Chandler. Like FNL in the Drama Series category, this would be symbolic, though Chandler was pitch perfect in his final season as Coach Taylor, and deserves it outright.

Who Was Snubbed: This category is surprisingly tight. Not much you can argue here.

BEST DRAMA ACTRESS
Connie Britton, Friday Night Lights
Julianna Margulies, The Good Wife
Kathy Bates, Harry’s Law
Mariska Hargitay, SVU
Mirelle Enos, The Killing
Elisabeth Moss, Mad Men

Who Will Win: Elisabeth Moss. If you saw Hamm in “The Suitcase,” you know Moss deserves an Emmy for her work too. She’s past due, and this will be her year.

Who Should Win: Connie Britton. If I had a vote, I’d vote for Moss, but Britton spent five years doing phenomenal work as Tammy Taylor, and it’s sad to see her come away from it all empty handed.

Who Was Snubbed: January Jones, Mad Men. I’m not the biggest January Jones fan, and Betty didn’t have much to do this season, but when she was on screen, the whole mood of the scene changed. Betty was fascinating to watch this year, thanks in large part to Jones.

BEST COMEDY ACTRESS
Edie Falco, Nurse Jackie
Tina Fey, 30 Rock
Laura Linney, The Big C
Melissa McCarthy, Mike & Molly
Martha Plimpton, Raising Hope
Amy Poehler, Parks & Recreation

Who Will Win: Amy Poehler. Tina Fey might surprise, but I think this is Poehler’s year. She was very good all season, and I think that will be hard to ignore.

Who Should Win: Amy Poehler. Seriously. She was great.

Who Was Snubbed: Alison Brie, Community. Annie is one of the sweeter, more fun characters on TV right now. Just watch her try and be someone else in the bar night episode, you’ll see what I mean.

BEST COMEDY ACTOR
Alec Baldwin, 30 Rock
Matt LeBlanc, Episodes
Jim Parsons, The Big Bang Theory
Steve Carell, The Office
Johnny Galecki, The Big Bang Theory
Louie C.K., Louie

Who Will Win: Steve Carell. He hasn’t won an Emmy yet for playing his most iconic roll, and this is the last chance. Voters won’t forget that.

Who Should Win: Louie C.K. It seems like an odd nomination, but it’s sort of Louie‘s consolation prize.

Who Was Snubbed: Joel McHale, Community. The longer he’s on Community, the better he’s getting.

OUTSTANDING SUPPORTING ACTOR, COMEDY
Chris Colfer, Glee
Jesse Tyler Ferguson, Modern Family
Ed O’Neill, Modern Family
Eric Stonestreet, Modern Family
Ty Burrell, Modern Family
Jon Cryer, Two and a Half Men

Who Will Win: Ty Burrell. It’s gotta be someone from Modern Family, and it might as well be the most consistently funny.

Who Should Win: If not Burrell, Eric Stonestreet. After Phil, Cam is among the funniest characters on TV.

Who Was Snubbed: A long list here, including Danny Pudi, Aziz Ansari, Nick Offerman, Rainn Wilson, all of whom did fantastic work this season on shows that were not Modern Family.

OUTSTANDING SUPPORTING ACTOR, DRAMA
Peter Dinklage, Game of Thrones
Josh Charles, The Good Wife
Alan Cumming, The Good Wife
Walton Goggins, Justified
John Slattery, Mad Men
Andre Braugher, Men of a Certain Age

Who Will Win: John Slattery. Like I said, it’s Mad Men’s year to break through the Breaking Bad wall.

Who Should Win: Walter Goggins or Peter Dinklage. Both were fantastic, but will certainly be forgotten come voting time.

Who Was Snubbed: Not to bring in more Mad Men, but the more the show has gone on the more I like Vincent Kartheiser as Pete, who has yet to get a nomination.

OUTSTANDING SUPPORTING ACTRESS, COMEDY
Jane Lynch, Glee
Betty White, Hot in Cleveland
Julie Bowen, Modern Family
Sofia Vergara, Modern Family
Kristen Wiig, Saturday Night Live
Jane Krakowski, 30 Rock

Who Will Win: Kristen Wiig. This will be her anointment into stardom, much the same way Tina Fey (and hopefully Amy Pohler) got her first Emmy en route to a successful movie career. She deserves it too.

Who Should Win: Julie Bowen. Claire isn’t a likable character without her.

Who Was Snubbed: Rashida Jones, Parks and Recreation. Poor, beautiful Anne.

OUTSTANDING SUPPORTING ACTRESS, DRAMA
Archie Panjabi, The Good Wife
Kelly Macdonald, Boardwalk Empire
Christine Baranski, The Good Wife
Margo Martindale, Justified
Michelle Forbes, The Killing
Christina Hendricks, Mad Men

Who Will Win: Christina Hendricks. This is a really tight category full of deserving actresses, but she’ll have the Mad Men luck behind her.

Who Should Win: Margo Martindale. If you’ve watched Justified, you know why.

Who Was Snubbed: No one here. Fantastic group of actresses.

OUTSTANDING MINISERIES OR MOVIE
Cinema Verite
Downton Abbey
The Kennedys
Mildred Pierce
The Pillars of the Earth
Too Big to Fail

BEST VARIETY SERIES
The Colbert Report
Conan
The Daily Show with Jon Stewart
Late Night with Jimmy Fallon
Real Time with Bill Maher
Saturday Night Live

OUTSTANDING REALITY PROGRAM
Antiques Roadshow
Undercover Boss

OUTSTANDING REALITY COMPETITION
The Amazing Race
American Idol
So You Think You Can Dance
Top Chef

The Office – “Threat Level Midnight”

At its best, The Office is about the gap between the person we dream of being and the person we are. It is not really about office drones, but the plans and fantasies that those drones had put in a box to work at Dunder-Mifflin. It is about Dwight the beet farmer or Pam the artist or Jim the sportswriter or, of course, Michael Scott: friend first, boss second, entertainer third. The most brutal and memorable moments on the show always come from the damage the characters’ egos take when they realizes that they are never going to get where you thought they were going. But because it is, at its core, an optimistic show, The Office is as much about accepting that person and finding victories and satisfaction in the real world. Its why Jim and Pam mellowed out so much after they hooked up and why Dwight kind of ran out of steam a while ago and why Daryl is such a tragically funny character and why my favorite Michael Scott moments are the ones that show just how good he is at doing his job.

 

It is also the reason why “Threat Level Midnight,” improbably, worked. Because the episode and the show have found a quiet satisfaction in giving up on the impossible and incredible in favor of the real. In a weird way it felt like it said so much about Michael Scott and where he has gone that it almost feels anticlimactic that the guy actually still has to leave.

Writing a literal plot recap seems weird and unnecessary since, on a basic episode, this episode was nothing but pure fan service. After a startling eleven years in the making, Michael Scott has finally finished Threat Level Midnight; a film about the adventures of secret agent Michael Scarn (Jim and Pam held a reading of the screenplay way back in the stone ages of season 2). Because it had been filming for as long as there’s been a documentary crew in Scranton, a lot of old faces showed up, including Jan and Karen. Jim was the villain, Daryl was the President (because years ago he thought it would be good for his daughter to see a black President), and Toby was the animal rapist whose head gets blown off.

On a purely logical level, this episode made even less sense than Goldface’s plot to blow up the NHL All-Star Game. It made no sense that everyone has been filming the movie for years and no one has mentioned it before now. It made no sense that so many apathetic people who can barely contain their disdain at the office agreed to do the movie and looked so enthused doing it. As an episode of television, I’m not sure how funny I found it, since the “its funny because we know its bad” element of it felt a little worn out (and I say this as someone who has annoyed others for years with my support of The Room).

But none of that really matters, because “Threat Level Midnight” was sweet and goofy and kind of adorable. And, more than that, it felt like such a perfect note for the show to hit. Early on, The Office to decide to make Michael Scott less of a dire, hopeless figure and more like the goofy dad who you laugh at for being a doofus but ultimately he’s kind of a lovable doofus. And if he has struggled with anything over the past seven seasons, it has been accepting that role and being okay with the fact that other people laugh at him.

In the end, Michael Scott got to be an entertainer and bring joy to people like he always wanted. He didn’t do it intentionally, necessarily, and he didn’t do it in the way he thought he would, but nonetheless he actually made that movie and people actually watched it and he accepted it for what it was. That is the show in a nutshell and that is the reason why The Office has always managed to be so upbeat and why viewers seem to be so drawn in by the employees of Dunder-Mifflin and why I’ve always had a hard time getting as onboard with it as I was with the British version and why this episode feels kind of like the perfect emotional note to begin winding down Michael’s storyline. Objectively, I have mixed feelings about this episode but, of course, you shouldn’t listen to your critics; you should listen to your fans.

Jonah’s Score: 70

TUiW Grade: B

A Moment of 30 Rock (since we aren’t reviewing it regularly anymore): “Meeting Magazine called it ‘The Most Important Meeting of the Decade'”

The Office – “The Search”

Well it was kind of an odd road to get there, but the payoff was nice enough to be worth it. One of the best things about the Michael-Holly relationship is how low-key it is. Here are two people who simply get each other and, thanks to the writing and Steve Carell and Amy Ryan’s performances, their chemistry is convincing enough to carry the entire storyline.

So I’m glad to see them back together, even if I didn’t love the process of getting them there. Jim and Michael are out on a sales call but Michael is upset because Holly doesn’t want to date him right now. Michael makes Jim stop at a gas station to pee, but Jim gets a call that Pam’s mom locked the baby in the car so he takes off immediately to save the kid. Michael, with no phone or wallet, is unaware of the APB (Ask Pam Beesly) out for him and decides to go on a walkabout. I thought Michael’s antics in this episode were a little too broad and cartoony. I prefer Michael when he remains at least somewhat grounded in reality, so stuff like his negotiation with hot dog guy fell a little flat for me. The whole set-up was so sitcomy that I had a hard time buying into it.

Meanwhile, Holly, Erin, and Dwight set off in search of Michael. Despite Erin’s misgivings about Holly (who only rates a 16 on her 40-point scale), Holly thinks exactly like Michael and thusly leads them on his trail. They follow him to a cell phone sign-up tent giving away free stress balls (Holly’s fake name is “Fanny Smellmore” while Michael’s is “Orville Tootenbacher”), a Chinese restaurant that promises egg rolls so big that one could feed the entire nation of China (where Michael unsuccessfully attempts a dine-and-dash) and a rooftop, where Holly finally catches up with Michael and the two of them kiss. So, here’s the thing, Holly and Michael reuniting was a great moment but everything leading up to it was kind of a mess. Their relationship works so well that seeing them together makes up for a lot of the episode’s shortcomings (the less said about Dwight’s attempts to communicate with the Chinese waiter the better), but a lot of the A-story was dire.

Meanwhile, in the B-story, a picture Pam drew inspires a couple of amusing captions (“Hahaha, gloves” – Creed Bratton) so she draws another picture (this one of two dogs on an island) and wants to have a caption contest. Unfortunately, the captions are all mocking Sabre, so Gabe has to institute some ground rules that ruin the competition. Everyone starts IMing each other their captions, but Gabe finds them, prints them off, and then reads them out loud. The winner: “Is that a palm tree or did Gabe get skinnier? Either way, let’s pee on it.” The culprit is Angela, in a good twist, who says that it was easy once she knew she “wanted the dog to piss on Gabe.”

For being such an important episode in this season’s story, “The Search” was relatively low-key, and I kind of like that. But too many of the jokes fell very flat, so as strong as the ending was, I can’t totally let the show off the hook for an otherwise weak episode. Still, I’m very glad to see Michael and Holly back together and I hope that their recoupling adds some spark to the season.

Jonah’s Score: 58
TUiW Grade: C+

Other Notes:

-I saw Somewhere the other night and I didn’t realize Ellie Kemper was in that movie. She was funny too, essentially playing Erin.

-Daryl must be some kind of comic genius if he can make Family Circus funny.

-I didn’t touch on Kelly and Ryan’s marriage and divorce, but my favorite part was Meredith scrambling for the free ring. Also, I don’t care what the rumors say, I’m still voting for Kelly to be the new boss.

The Office – The Seminar

“Comedy is a place where the mind goes to tickle itself.”

The lighting in the US Office is so much brighter than the UK Office. I’ve never really thought about it that much before but it seems Important. There’s an brightness to the US show that, depending on your point of view, either gives the characters a bit more dignity or represents how our version has had to soften the bleakness of its UK counterpart due to the length of its run and the demands of American television. Honestly, I go back and forth depending on the episode.

All of which is to say that it felt just a little weird to see David Brent under such bright, yellow lighting (to me anyway, because I think about these things too hard). But David Brent is so uncompromisingly dire, so desperate and pitiful and lacking in any sort of self-awareness that he feels uniquely human in a way that no one else on television is allowed to be. Even the shows influenced by The Office have had a hard time creating a character as simultaneously vulnerable and hilarious as Brent (who wants DESPERATELY to be liked, but is so tragically bad at being likable). Even Michael Scott seems relatively well-adjusted next to him (or at least a little cuddlier).

What I’m trying to say (very poorly) is that as much as I loved it in theory, I was always going to be irrationally underwhelmed by Michael Scott’s face-to-face meeting with everyone’s favorite Golden Globe host. It was nice to see Ricky Gervais as David Brent again and I loved seeing the two of them hit it off like old friends so I don’t know what the problem is. There was even a subtle nod at Steve Carell’s departure and the rumors that Gervais would replace him, but ultimately I think it was that damn lighting. David Brent is really a tragic character (Christmas special catharsis aside), and seeing him laughing alongside Michael Scott at some indelicate stereotyping felt more like fan fiction than something that was actually happening on everyone’s television.

Meanwhile, in the show’s real A-story, Andy decides to try boosting his sales (he is currently last on the sales chart, behind ringers like Madge, Glenn, and Hidetoshi) (thanks DVR!) by hosting a small business seminar inspired by the world’s most depressing vacation to Boise. But Andy has trouble when Jim drops out for mysterious reasons and the rest of the sales team follows suit when they see the disappointing pool of potential clients (they were promised whales, and are not swayed by Andy’s insistence that the clients are like baby whales “which are cuter”). I’m just going to knock out the rest of Jim’s story right now because oh man it was not very good at all! It turned out that Jim knew one of the people at the seminar when he was younger but they stopped being friends when Jim told him he was too dumb to be Jim’s friend. They end up meeting anyway, awkwardness ensues.

Anyway, Michael is the plant at the seminar and has decided to fully commit to his character, a cartoonish Greek named Michalos. He enlists Holly’s help (she does have experience with men who are pretending to be Greek) and she tells him to build a character history (Tom Hanks does that). Meanwhile, Andy recruits Kevin, Ryan, and Creed to fill in at the seminar. This goes about as well as you would expect. Kevin runs around to “Thunderstruck” (a moment that reminded me  of David Brent’s own try at motivational speaking) and vomits in the trash can (between that and the broccoli last week they sure are writing a lot of gross, physical stuff for Kevin) and Creed gives an incoherent speech about the Loch Ness Monster. However, the highlight is Kelly, who steps in for Ryan, proclaims herself the Business Bitch (it is important to brand yourself) and calls a sleazy professor for the ten keys to a successful business. I vote we make Kelly the new boss at Dunder-Mifflin.

Despite the speakers, it turns out that the seminar is going well and some of the attendees actually seem like real clients. Dwight, Phyllis, and Stanley try to get back in but Daryl stops Andy and tells him to bring it home. Still, it looks like Andy is going to blow the sale so Michael gives him a nice pep talk (I like it when the show lets Michael be a good boss), giving Andy the confidence to go back and close with at least a few of them (the rest are dead to him). Dwight acknowledges that he was wrong about Andy, and Michael makes an awkward pass at Holly while in character.

The Nard Dog also gets a win in the night’s slightest plotline. Erin is playing Scrabble with Gabe to determine who picks which movie they watch, and Pam and Oscar help her out. Ultimately, she loses, playing ape instead of apoplexy. Gabe tries to acknowledge Erin’s desire to see Wall-E by picking a movie about a killer robot. At the same time, Andy loans Erin Shrek 2. Also this storyline had my two favorite jokes of the night. First there was Erin’s insistence that she had tried everything: “I’m playing moo, I’m playing milk, whatever it takes.” Second, there was Gabe, who was surprised by Erin’s success and decided that it could only be through some sort of Slumdog Millionaire scenario.

Despite the David Brent cameo, it was kind of a minor episode this week, albeit one that was a little funnier than last week’s. There was some nice stuff for Andy, Erin, and Kelly and it was nice to see Michael and Holly being friends again, even if the scenes between them are still a little too Significant for my taste.

Either way, since I don’t know how to embed NBC videos on WordPress, here’s the link to video of the universe folding in on itself:

http://www.nbc.com/The_Office/video/Ep-714-Michaels-New-Friend/1277371

Jonah’s Score: 64

TUiW Grade: B-

Will Ferrell, Ricky Gervais To Visit Dunder-Mifflin

The Steve Carell Exit Tour just got a little more star power. Will Ferrell has signed on to do a multiple episode arch on The Office as a visiting branch manager from Dunder-Mifflin’s main office. Quipped writer Paul Lieberstein, “We found Steve Carell when he was nothing but a movie star and we turned him into a television star. We are proud to continue The Office’s tradition of discovering famous talent, and we hope that once America gets a good look at Will, they’ll see what we see: tremendous raw sexuality.” Could Ferrell secretly be Michael Scott’s replacement? I guess we’ll have to wait and see. At least it’s a reunion of this winning team.

In other Office guest star news, be sure to tune in tonight to see a brief appearance by none other than David Brent himself. Ricky Gervais, the man who created the original British show, will reprise his role for a brief cameo. No word on what it will entail, but this has been a long time in the making, so it’ll be worth it either way.

The Office – “Ultimatum”

Believe it or not, The Office is still pretty much the only scripted hit NBC has. Despite being lapped creatively by 30 Rock, Community, and Parks and Recreation, The Office still routinely beats all those shows in the ratings and, aside from the large piece of the NBC pie chart taken up by The Biggest Loser, there’s really not much else that the network has going for it right now. So I imagine NBC execs were positively thrilled to hear that Steve Carell is leaving.

Honestly, I can’t help but wonder if it would have been better for both him and the show if Carell had left a few years ago. His film career is certainly not as robust as it looked during the glory days of The Office. Meanwhile the show itself may have been able to survive a shift in bosses when it was still rock solid creatively, but at this point it can’t help but feel like losing Michael Scott is losing the show.

Still, I want to approach this with an open mind. The reason I wanted to cover the show now is because A.) Michael Scott’s Last Stand feels like an important moment for television, B.) I think sending Michael off could reignite the show creatively, and C.) I’m really curious to see what’s going to happen on The Office, which is something I haven’t felt in a while. I’m not sure how he’s going to leave, although I suspect the way they’ve gone about humanizing Michael these past few years and the show’s optimistic and sentimental streak (which is the biggest distinction between our version and the UK’s version) will lead to a happy ending. In fact, we probably saw the fibers of that happy ending start to come together tonight.

Amy Ryan’s Holly came back in the last episode before winter break and promised to issue Rob Huebel an ultimatium: propose by New Years’ or get dumped. It wasn’t surprising that she didn’t go through with it – Holly is not the type for ultimatums – but Michael was still slightly crushed. If I had a problem with this episode, it was that it mostly followed the exact same action as the Christmas one; Michael mistakenly assumes he can get back together with Holly, he finds out he can’t, he lashes out at her. This time, it ended a little happier, with Michael making a heartfelt apology (by proxy) and Holly tell Rob Huebel that they needed to take a break, but it still felt a little redundant.

That being said, it was also quite funny. My favorite moment was Michael’s celebration, which had confetti, noisemakers, and a dance-off with a video recording Michael made earlier. I also enjoyed the bit where Erin and Phyllis tried to talk to Holly.

As for the subplots, I didn’t really love either one, but they both still kind of made me laugh. While I was initially kind of annoyed by Pam’s New Years’ Resolutions board, it made for some entertaining sniping between the co-workers (especially Angela’s). And I can safely say that I never expected to see chewed up broccoli in Kevin’s mouth on TV. Meanwhile, I enjoyed Darryl’s ruse to get a ride to the bookstore (and the general grouping of Andy, Dwight, and Darryl), but that plotline lost a lot of steam once they headed to the skating rink.

So “Ultimatum” may be a good starting place for our coverage of The Office since it is a pretty good example of where the show stands right now. It still has plenty of laughs, but it is hard to argue that the show hasn’t lost a step or two. Can the impending departure of one of the most popular characters of the last 20 years revitalize the show? Can his absence do it? Or am I being too hard on a show that is still better than 90% of what’s on TV?

Jonah’s Score: 60

TUiW Grade: B-

P.S. Michael will have a review up of Parks and Recreation soon, but I just wanted to remind all of you to WATCH PARKS AND RECREATION.

TUiW Best of 2010: The 15 Best TV Episodes of 2010

Presented in no particular order, our 15 favorite episodes of TV from 2010.

Mad Men – The Suitcase
If there was one episode of television that may have won its stars an Emmy, it was “The Suitcase,” a beautifully performed, perfectly written hour of television. Jon Hamm and Elizabeth Moss were extraordinary, their chemistry never better, as Peggy and Don spend a night battling and bonding in the SCDP offices. Mad Men has had several top notch episodes, but few can rival “The Suitcase.” (M)

Community – Modern Warfare
Community had several solid episodes leading up to “Modern Warfare,” but it was there that the show reached the creative peak of its first season. “Modern Warfare” is part parody, but there is also a lot of reverence to the source material thrown in. There are so many hilarious little details and references throughout the episode, which gets better and better with each viewing. (M)
Read Michael’s original review here.

Lone Star – Pilot
The big comment most critics had regarding the pilot for Lone Star was that it was a great idea for a movie, but maybe not a TV show. Given the show’s swift demise, we’ll never know, but the first episode was about as entertaining as any TV show or film you’ll find. Great performances from Jon Voight and newcomer James Wolk drove a compelling, self contained episode that unfortunately will have to stand on its own as a great piece of TV. (M)
Read Michael’s original review here.

Boardwalk Empire – Boardwalk Empire
When you hire Martin Scorsese to direct the first episode of your TV series, this is what you get. The extra-long series premiere of Boardwalk Empire was jam-packed with gangland violence, political intrigue, and fascinating historical tidbits, all administered at such a quick pace that viewers understandably got whiplash once the show settled into a slightly more sedate weekly pace. From the apocalyptic ringing-in of Prohibition to the staccato, rim-shot scored stick-up sequence, “Boardwalk Empire” was a tense, exciting glimpse into a world that I couldn’t wait to spend more time inside. (J)
Read Jonah’s original review here.

The Walking Dead – Days Gone By
One of the most anticipated new shows of the fall, The Walking Dead delivered a chilling, highly entertaining first episode that instantly won it a legion of fans. Functioning just as well as a standalone story as it did a pilot, “Days Gone By” is about as cinematic as you can get on television. If nothing else, “Days Gone By” did a fantastic job of quickly luring in a loyal fanbase that made the show one of basic cable’s biggest. (M)

Party Down – Party Down Company Picnic
“Party Down Company Picnic” takes the show’s cast out of their bowties only to find that there is no escape from the tedious cycle of boredom that is their lives. Henry breaks up with Uda and steps down as Team Leader, Ron’s attempts at climbing the ladder put him right back where he started – occupying the now vacant Team Leader job – and Party Down gets their asses kicked by Valhalla. In an inspired second (and tragically, final) season, few episodes wrung as much laughter out of as much pain as this one did. (J)
Read Michael’s original review here.

30 Rock – Brooklyn Without Limits
People (like myself) who were ready to give up on 30 Rock after a substandard season were jumping the gun, as the show has come roaring back in 2010. Nowhere was the resurgence clearer than “Brooklyn Without Limits,” a piece of vintage 30 Rock mayhem, complete with a guest star (John Slattery) who feels put to use well without dominating the episode. Add to that Lemon’s new jeans and Jenna’s insecurities and “Brooklyn Without Limits” was another worthwhile addition to the series. (J)

Better Off Ted – Lust in Translation
We decided that there weren’t really enough Better Off Ted episodes in 2010 for us to put it on the series list, so this will have to stand as our tribute to one of our favorite fallen shows. “Lust in Translation” featured a premise that was classic Better Off Ted, complete with an angry-voiced multi-translator, a talking frying pan, and a panoply of Three Stooges references. From Phil and Lem’s realization that they are evil scientists to the triumph and heartbreak of Lindabagel, “Lust in Translation” is a reminded of how sharp and funny Better Off Ted could be and how sad it is that its gone. (J)
Read Jonah’s original review here.

Lost – Happily Ever After
The joy of Lost is the joy of discovery and adventure, the feeling that the boundries of the show’s world are limitless and ever-expanding. Every time a new piece of mythology was introduced or a new question asked, viewers’ minds started racing, imagining all the possibilities that existed. It is not shocking that the best episodes of the show, then, are the ones that asked questions, not the ones that answered them. So “Happily Ever After” gets our vote over the still-terrific-no-matter-what-anybody-says finale because it was vintage Lost: Desmond and the audience stranded in a strange world whose very existence was a mystery to us. And by grounding that mystery in the show’s sweetest love story, Lost made “Happily Ever After” as moving as it was intriguing. (J)
Read Jonah’s original review here.

Parks and Recreation – Telethon
“Telethon” worked in everything from a harrowing look into Jerry’s sex life (shudder) to ex Indiana Pacer small forward Detlef Schrempf while maintaining its focus on classic P&R elements like Leslie’s boundless enthusiasm and Ann and Mark’s relationship. The series of callbacks (Pawnee Today, Sweetums, Mouse Rat) and the endless parade of one-liners (“there are two kinds of diabetes but only one kind of caring: type one caring”) make “Telethon” feel like a summation of everything that made season two so special. (J)
Read Michael’s original review here.

The Office – Niagra
Jim and Pam have always been at the emotional center of The Office, so it’s not a huge surprise that their wedding would be the best episode in a season of the show that was less than stellar. It was a sweet, funny episode that was reminiscent of the show’s peak, and helped remind us why we fell in love with The Office in the first place. (M)

Breaking Bad – One Minute
Breaking Bad does tension like no other show currently on TV. So when the twin assassins who seemed to be the season’s main concern turned their attention to DEA agent Hank, all while Hank’s life is collapsing around him. From his violent confrontation with Jesse to his heartbreaking confession to his wife, Hank finds himself coming to the sad realization that he can no longer be a cop anymore, which only makes it that much more tense that two reapers are coming for him. Then a mysterious phone call and a Breaking Bad-style chain of causation turn the tables on the cousins. The fact that, while all this is going on, the show still manages to find time to take Jesse and Walt’s relationship to a new place and work in some vintage Saul Goodman smarm is icing on the cake of what may be the most tense episode of television ever. (J)

How I Met Your Mother – Rabbit or Duck
With a plethora of call backs and references and classic HIMYM troupes throughout, “Rabbit or Duck” was a classic episode of the show that helped salvage a lackluster season. The main story of Robin falling in love with co-worker Don bringing the emotional thread and the b-story of Barney and his always ringing cell phone bringing the laughs, “Rabbit or Duck” is a complete episode, one that can be enjoyed from all angles. (M)
Read Michael’s original review here.

Modern Family – Truth Be Told
Modern Family deserved all the praise it got for its first season, as highlighted by “Truth Be Told,” an episode in which all of the show’s strengths are put on display. There aren’t many weak links, and the physical comedy of Phil evading his ex-girlfriend while Claire remains oblivious was one of the funniest bits the show did. Coming in the second half of the season, “Truth Be Told” solidified Modern Family as the best new comedy of they year. (M)
Read Michael’s original review here.

Justified – Pilot
More pilots should be like Justified’s zippy and thrilling introduction. Of course, most pilots don’t have the benefit of being adapted from Elmore Leonard short stories. Portraying US Marshall Raylan Givens gives Timothy Olyphant a character right in his wheelhouse, an easy-going man of righteousness and violence with a seething anger burning underneath the surface. Raylan returns home and quickly butts heads with Boyd Crowder, an old coal-mining buddy of his played perfectly by Walton Goggins. The pair’s cat-and-mouse game unfolds over the course of the hour and comes to an exciting conclusion that wisely keeps both men around to antagonize each other for the remainder of the season. As an introduction to Justified’s world or just as an hour of TV, “Pilot” works on just about every level. (J)

Golden Globe Nominations Announced

It’s that magic time of year again where the Golden Globe nominations come out and get us excited for the Oscar race, and remind us of all that good TV we’ve been watching. The big guns movie wise got a plethora of nods in the categories that mattered, though True Grit was shut out, perhaps because no one has seen it yet, though it hasn’t stopped some other awards. Thanks to the odd Musical or Comedy category at the Globes, we get a nomination for The Tourist, the “thriller” that got nearly universal critical scorn which made nothing at the box office. Boy, the Hollywood Foreign Press Association sure are tastemakers! The TV nominations are also fairly predictable, but the results should be interesting. Ricky Gervais will host the ceremony January 16. The nominations:

Best Picture, Drama
Black Swan
The Fighter
Inception
The King’s Speech
The Social Network

Best Director
Darren Aronofsky, Black Swan
David Fincher, The Social Network
Tom Hooper, The King’s Speech
Christopher Nolan, Inception
David O. Russell, The Fighter

Best Actress, Drama
Halle Berry, Frankie & Alice
Nicole Kidman, Rabbit Hole
Jennifer Lawrence, Winter’s Bone
Natalie Portman, Black Swan
Michelle Williams, Blue Valentine

Best Actor, Drama
Jesse Eisenberg, The Social Network
Colin Firth, The King’s Speech
James Franco, 127 Hours
Ryan Gosling, Blue Valentine
Mark Wahlberg, The Fighter

Best Musical Or Comedy
Alice In Wonderland
Burlesque
The Kids Are All Right
Red
The Tourist

Best Actress, Musical Or Comedy
Annette Bening, The Kids Are All Right
Anne Hathaway, Love & Other Drugs
Angelina Jolie, The Tourist
Julianne Moore, The Kids Are All Right
Emma Stone, Easy A

Best Actor, Musical Or Comedy
Johnny Depp, Alice In Wonderland
Johnny Depp, The Tourist
Paul Giamatti, Barney’s Version
Jake Gyllenhaal, Love & Other Drugs
Kevin Spacey, Casino Jack

Best Supporting Actress
Amy Adams, The Fighter
Helena Bonham Carter, The King’s Speech
Mila Kunis, Black Swan
Melissa Leo, The Fighter
Jacki Weaver, Animal Kingdom

Best Supporting Actor
Christian Bale, The Fighter
Michael Douglas, Wall Street: Money Never Sleeps
Andrew Garfield, The Social Network
Jeremy Renner, The Town
Geoffrey Rush, The King’s Speech

Best Screenplay
Aaron Sorkin, The Social Network
Christopher Nolan, Inception
Lisa Cholodenko and Stuart Blumberg, The Kids Are All Right
David Seidler, The King’s Speech
Danny Boyle and Simon Beaufoy, 127 Hours

Best Original Song
“You Haven’t Seen The Last of Me,” Burlesque
“Bound To You,” Burlesque
“Coming Home”, Country Strong
“I See The Light,” Tangled
“There’s A Place For Us,” Voyage Of The Dawn Treader

Best Animated Film
Tangled
Toy Story 3
How To Train Your Dragon
Despicable Me
The Illusionist

Best Foreign-Language Film
I Am Love
Biutiful
The Concert
The Edge
In A Better World

Best TV Drama
Boardwalk Empire
Dexter
The Good Wife
Mad Men
The Walking Dead

Best Actress, TV Drama
Julianna Margulies, The Good Wife
Piper Perabo, Covert Affairs
Elisabeth Moss, Mad Men
Katey Sagal, Sons Of Anarchy
Kyra Sedgwick, The Closer

Best Actor, TV Drama
Steve Buscemi, Boardwalk Empire
Bryan Cranston, Breaking Bad
Michael C. Hall, Dexter
Jon Hamm, Mad Men
Hugh Laurie, House

Best TV Comedy
30 Rock
The Big Bang Theory
The Big C
Glee
Modern Family
Nurse Jackie

Best Actress, TV Comedy
Toni Collette, The United States Of Tara
Edie Falco, Nurse Jackie
Tina Fey, 30 Rock
Laura Linney, The Big C
Lea Michele, Glee

Best Actor, TV Comedy
Alec Baldwin, 30 Rock
Steve Carell, The Office
Thomas Jane, Hung
Matthew Morrison, Glee
Jim Parsons, The Big Bang Theory

Best Supporting Actress, TV
Hope Davis, The Special Relationship
Jane Lynch, Glee
Kelly Macdonald, Boardwalk Empire
Julia Stiles, Dexter
Sofia Vergara, Modern Family

Best Supporting Actor, TV
Scott Caan, Hawaii 5-0
Chris Colfer, Glee
Chris Noth, The Good Wife
Eric Stonestreet, Modern Family
David Strathairn, Temple Grandin

Best TV Miniseries
Carlos
The Pacific
Temple Grandin
You Don’t Know Jack
Pillars Of The Earth

NBC Brings Back Parks and Rec, Adds Extra Hour of Comedy to Thursdays

If a new, free Girl Talk record wasn’t enough good news for you Monday, how about the news that NBC is bringing back Parks and Rec this January as part of a new three hour block of comedy? Works for us! The show will come back January 20 as part of an interesting move by NBC to put half hour comedies into the 10:00 hour, giving their Thursday comedy night six shows. Community will still lead off the night at 8, followed by a new show, Perfect Couples, about three different couples who are at various stages of their relationships. The Office stays at 9:00 and will lead into Parks and Recreation at 9:30, which should benefit from the larger audiences tuning in for Steve Carell’s final episodes as Michael Scott. 30 Rock will move to 10:00 and Outsourced will round out the night. It’s going to be interesting to see how the move plays out, but above all, it’s going to be great to see the folks of Pawnee back on TV.

2010 Emmys Round-Up

Alright TV fans, this was an Emmy’s for the ages! Here’s our rundown of winners, losers, and surprises!

Winners

The biggest winner of the night was ABC’s breakout Modern Family, who won big and easily won the media created battle between it and Glee, pulling in awards for Best Supporting Actor in a Comedy (Eric Stonestreet, well deserved for the episode “Fizbo”), Comedy Writing, and the big one, Best Comedy Series. Glee got a big win though from their most recognizable star, Jane Lynch, who got a long deserved award for Best Supporting Actress in a Comedy. Like Glee or not, Lynch is a terrific comedienne that has worked her way up the ladder the last 10 years, so it was great to see her win. Also pulling out a surprise win was Aaron Paul, who finally got his Best Supporting Actor in a Drama Emmy for Breaking Bad. Neil Patrick Harris also got his Emmy breakthrough, though for for Best Guest Actor in a Comedy for Glee, losing out on Supporting Actor for How I Met Your Mother yet again. The biggest winner on the night though? Host Jimmy Fallon, who was in his element and hopefully won over some of those people who thought he laughed too much on SNL.

Surprises

This year’s Emmy’s had  a few tricks up their sleeves, among them being Edie Falco’s win for Best Actress in a Comedy, beating out several heavy hitters. Falco herself seemed surprised, proclaiming, “I’m not funny!” from the podium. The other big surprise was The Good Wife’s Archie Panjabi’s win for Best Supporting Actress in a drama, upsetting favorites Elizabeth Moss and Christina Hendricks, both from Mad Men. Jim Parson’s of The Big Bang Theory also had a smaller surprise win for Best Actor in a Comedy, beating out Alec Baldwin, Steve Carrell, and Larry David, though Big Bang has had the adoration of viewers and critics to make it less of a left field choice.

Losers

After doing so well in the Golden Globes, Glee lost out, taking home Best Comedy Writing alongside Lynch’s win. Another big show, Breaking Bad, only took home awards in teh acting categories for Aaron Paul and Bryan Cranston, losing to network pal Mad Men in the Best Drama category. Many thought this would be Breaking Bad‘s year, but evidently, they’ll have to wait a little bit longer. The final season of Lost failed to take home any Emmys, though they were up against stiff competition in every category. After getting nominations for Coach and Mrs. Coach, Friday Night Lights was predictably shut out once more from Emmy glory. A couple of comedy surprises led to loses for Amy Pohler in Parks and Recreation‘s sole nomination and Steve Carell, who has yet to win for his iconic role of Michael Scott with just one year left to go.