Dream Emmy Ballot 2012: The Unsubmitted

It's well past time to get this show on the road. Ideally, I like to get these done and posted before the nominations get announced. We'll see how far we get before tomorrow morning.

Andrew Scott - "Jim Moriarty", Sherlock

Here's where I wish for a site that focused on the mechanics of how the television academy votes, because I'm not sure whether PBS electing to submit "A Scandal in Belgravia" for Sherlock precluded Scott from submitting his work in "The Reichenbach Fall". (It's a curious decision overall, as I think "Reichenbach Fall" is a stronger episode all around, especially for the central actors.) If that isn't the case, it's not surprising, necessarily, that Scott didn't submit, given that Cumberbatch and Freeman didn't get nominated last year, but his performance was such a standout that it's disappointing regardless. (He just won a BAFTA, for goodness' sake.) The scene where Moriarty insists he's actually an actor was eerie perfection in sowing little seeds of doubt.

Indeed, there's a whole chunk of British actors who I was surprised to see unlisted in the ballot of prospective nominees. Underinformed management teams across the pond?

Jack Gleeson - "Joffrey Baratheon", Game of Thrones
Charles Dance - "Tywin Lannister", Game of Thrones

More than the others, I think these two being absent from the ballot represents someone asleep at the wheel in compiling HBO's submission package. Gleeson and Dance helped the show's writers demonstrate a sense of scope in depicting the Lannisters and their thirst for power - Tywin as the craftiest guy in the room, but also a man who recognizes the potential inherent in being the one pulling the strings instead of the public face, and Joffrey as the rotten manifestation of all his family's foibles.

Laura Carmichael - "Lady Edith Crawley", Downton Abbey
Zoe Boyle - "Lavinia Swire", Downton Abbey

The Downton Abbey-as-convalescent-home storyline gave Carmichael an opportunity to grant some much-needed shading to Edith as she discovered a sense of purpose in helping others. (And Carmichael pretty much single-handedly kept that whole potential-heir/burn-victim story from going too far off the rails.) I think the fundamentally good-hearted but ultimately doomed young woman (Beth March, Melanie Wilkes, etc., etc.) is a deceptively difficult role, but Boyle performed hers capably.

Anna Chancellor - "Lix Storm", The Hour

An old-school character for a period show, Chancellor's savvy, experienced newswoman provided good low-key balance to the energies brought by Ben Whishaw and Romola Garai. (And her character feels more and more valuable the more I watch of The Newsroom. Another rant for another time.)

Alex Karpovsky - "Ray", Girls
Andrew Rannells - "Elijah", Girls

Both Karpovsky and Rannells performed admirably in their roles as the blunt truth-tellers of the Girls universe, keeping the show on an even keel by tempering the self-absorption of other characters. They also had my absolute favorite moments in the finale - Karpovsky's scenes with Zosia Mamet (there is like not even enough material there to get shipper-y over, and yet I am slightly obsessed with the concept of Ray and Shoshanna together. I need it to happen in Season Two) and Rannells' line reading of "Girls who huff." (The tone of which is difficult to communicate here, but it cracks me up every time.)

Matt Ross - "Dr. Charles Montgomery", American Horror Story

I already think Ross was criminally underrecognized for his work on Big Love, so that's probably giving him a boost here. But he made Dr. Montgomery's Frankenstein-esque forays into medical experimentation some of AHS's best trips over the top.

Lamorne Morris - "Winston", New Girl
Dan Byrd - "Travis Cobb", Cougar Town

I tend to take a sort of "Throw your hat in the ring! Why not?" attitude towards most potential submissions, especially when most or all of the other members of an ensemble present as contenders. It took New Girl's writers longer to "find" Winston than it did for Nick and Schmidt, but by the end of the season, Morris had turned in some good moments too. (Like the Theodore K. Mullins speech). And some of Byrd's best work on Cougar Town came this year in their exploration of Travis and Laurie's relationship.

Taran Killam - "Mr. Rad", Community

Maybe Community's best one-off, grounding the show's Glee parody in crazy-eyed mania and subtly sending up Matthew Morrison's performance as Will Schuster.

Roger Bart - "Mason Treadwell", Revenge
Ashton Holmes - "Tyler Barrol", Revenge

Bart was the best of the characters against whom Emily sought revenge, showing the cracks in his man-about-town facade where his image of himself as a journalist comes into conflict with the knowledge of how he sold his soul and screwed the Clarkes over. And Holmes' performance fit perfectly into the vein of classic crazy soap villains, from quiet menace to devourer of scenery.

Jay Jackson - "Perd Hapley", Parks and Recreation

Jackson has become Parks and Rec's most valuable tertiary player over four seasons, representing the heart of Pawnee's absurd media culture. The fourth season's depiction of the election cycle gave him ample opportunities for more examples of Perd's affable cluelessness - my favorite might be his running out the clock on Leslie's response in "The Debate."

Morena Baccarin - "Isobel Swift", The Good Wife
Mary Beth Peil - "Jackie Florrick", The Good Wife
Parker Posey - "Vanessa Gold", The Good Wife

Baccarin held her own as a foil to Dylan Baker's Colin Sweeney, a character who is essentially designed to suck all the air out of the room. Peil was great both in shrouding Jackie's machinations in a faux-innocent "who, me?" exterior, and in muddling her motivations as potential mental issues came into play in the latter episodes of the season. And maybe it's residual Josie and the Pussycats love, but I thought Posey and Alan Cumming were delightful together as politically minded exes.

Kate Burton - "Vice President Sally Langston", Scandal

Burton had twice as many potential submissions as ultimately ended up on the ballot, so I'm not surprised that her Scandal role fell by the wayside. Nevertheless, her scenes as the evangelical Christian VP of Scandal's universe didn't veer over into caricature when they easily could have and suggested that the show going forward may have some very interesting things to say about women in politics. (And as a lover of troupe-building creators, I love that Shonda Rhimes gave her such a different character from Ellis Grey to play here.)

Alison Brie - "Trudy Campbell", Mad Men
Embeth Davidtz - "Rebecca Pryce", Mad Men
Christine Estabrook - "Gail Holloway", Mad Men
Sam Page - "Greg Harris", Mad Men

None are terribly flashy performances, but all contribute to the fully realized world of Mad Men, particularly in the interplay and contrast between home and office beyond whatever Don's situation is in any given year. I've always been disappointed not to see Page submit his name for consideration - true, most (if not all) Mad Men fans hate Greg, but Page has always done a great job of presenting him without judgment, with all his weaknesses. You want Greg to accept responsibility for why things in his life are the way they are, but also understand why he doesn't feel the need to be introspective. I don't think Page gets enough credit for that.

Dream Emmy Ballot 2011: Lead Actress in a Comedy

Toni Collette - "Tara Gregson", United States of Tara

Courteney Cox - "Jules Cobb", Cougar Town

Tina Fey - "Liz Lemon", 30 Rock

Laura Linney - "Cathy Jamison", The Big C

Martha Plimpton - "Virginia Chance", Raising Hope

Amy Poehler - "Leslie Knope", Parks and Recreation

As always, Collette demonstrated fantastic range in portraying Tara and all her alters - this season in particular, she made Bryce feel like an honestly scary, tangible threat every time he surfaced. Cox rode out the refining of her show's premise last season, and this year she took advantage of the second season in showing Jules in all her loving and crazy shades. 30 Rock as a whole feels less novel as time goes on, but Fey continues to do great work, especially in episodes like "Double-Edged Sword" and "TGS Hates Women." (Since it'll probably be a factor for at least some voters, sure: I'm totally giving her bonus cred for Bossypants.) Linney infused The Big C with energy even when the material didn't feel quite up to the standard she set. Plimpton was ideally suited to Raising Hope's combination of sweetness and weirdness. Poehler would get on this list for "Flu Season" alone, but the whole season really served as a showcase for Leslie Knope and her bottomless drive.

Honorable Mention: Lea Michele, Glee

I wouldn't be surprised to see: Kaley Cuoco, The Big Bang Theory; Edie Falco, Nurse Jackie; Patricia Heaton, The Middle; Melissa McCarthy, Mike and Molly; Mary-Louise Parker, Weeds

Who knows about Desperate Housewives? My gut tells me that even though it's still kicking, that its buzz, at least in the awards-relevant sense, is mostly gone.

Dream Emmy Ballot 2011: Supporting Actress in a Comedy

Yvette Nicole Brown - "Shirley Bennett", Community

Busy Phillipps - "Laurie Keller", Cougar Town

Aubrey Plaza - "April Ludgate", Parks and Recreation

Naya Rivera - "Santana Lopez", Glee

Yvonne Strahovski - "Sarah Walker", Chuck

Sofia Vergara - "Gloria Delgado-Pritchett", Modern Family

Pregnancies involving suspect paternity can seem awfully cliched, but Brown did great work with Shirley struggling to maintain her cheery optimism in the face of a situation over which she has no control. I think Phillipps might best embody what's great about Cougar Town - the show's capacity for both deep silliness and emotional heartbreak. Plaza's arid deadpan is becoming a trademark, but the way she shows the flickers of April's affection for Andy and her coworkers makes her performance great. Rivera got the best material of this season of Glee in communicating both Santana's razor-sharp snarkiness and her roiling internal conflict. Strahovski is always great, but this year in particular she did a great job with Sarah in both action mode and in coming to terms with embracing a domestic commitment she hadn't previously envisioned for herself. Vergara moderates beautifully, letting Gloria be big without feeling too manic or shrill.

Honorable Mention: Julie Bowen, Modern Family; Alison Brie, Community; Rosemarie DeWitt, United States of Tara; Gillian Jacobs, Community; Brie Larson, United States of Tara; Christa Miller, Cougar Town; Heather Morris, Glee; Amy Ryan, The Office; Phyllis Somerville, The Big C; Casey Wilson, Happy Endings; the Perfect Couples ensemble of Mary Elizabeth Ellis, Olivia Munn and Christine Woods

I wouldn't be surprised to see: Jane Adams, Hung; Eve Best, Nurse Jackie; Mayim Bialik, The Big Bang Theory; Jenna Fischer, The Office; Anne Heche, Hung; Ellie Kemper, The Office; Jane Krakowski, 30 Rock; Jane Lynch, Glee; Anna Deavere Smith, Nurse Jackie; Betty White, Hot in Cleveland; Kristen Wiig, Saturday Night Live; Vanessa Williams, Desperate Housewives

Dream Emmy Ballot 2011: Guest Actor in a Comedy

Robert Clendenin - "Tom", Cougar Town

Darren Criss - "Blaine Anderson", Glee

Timothy Dalton - "Alexei Volkoff", Chuck

Eddie Izzard - "Dr. Jack Hattarras", United States of Tara

Jim Rash - "Dean Pelton", Community

Ben Schwartz - "Jean-Ralphio", Parks and Recreation

I don't think there's another actor or actress who got a better introductory scene this past year than Darren Criss did with "Teenage Dream." It was essentially Glee telling America to meet their new Fake TV Boyfriend, and I think Criss rose to the challenge. (Tangent: The more I think about it, the more I really wish they would do some sort of bit at the Emmys involving Darren Criss, Jon Cryer, and Ducky's lines from Pretty in Pink musing on the name "Blaine.") Dalton was far and away the best thing about Chuck this year, and is probably the best villain the show's ever had, playing Volkoff with a twinkle in his eye that made even psychotic threats of violence seem positively delightful. Clendenin, Rash and Schwartz all proved to be vital oddball contributors to their shows' universes in the second season of all three - Schwartz always throws himself whole-heartedly into Jean-Ralphio's oblivious toolishness, and Rash in particular gets bonus points for multiple costume changes, some involving short shorts. Izzard played well off of Toni Collette, infusing Tara with gravity as he took Hattaras from skeptic to believer.

Honorable Mentions: Will Arnett, 30 Rock; Kevin Corrigan, Community; Matt Damon, 30 Rock; Matt Dillon, Modern Family; Buck Henry, 30 Rock; Ken Howard, 30 Rock; John Lithgow, How I Met Your Mother; James Marsden, Modern Family; Justin Timberlake, Saturday Night Live; Stephen Tobolowsky, Community

I wouldn't be surprised to see: Alan Alda, 30 Rock; Tim Conway, Hot in Cleveland; Richard Dreyfuss, Weeds; Will Ferrell, The Office; Zach Galifianakis, Saturday Night Live; Don Johnson, Eastbound and Down; Michael Keaton, 30 Rock; Nathan Lane, Modern Family; Liam Neeson, The Big C; Carl Reiner, Hot in Cleveland; John Slattery, 30 Rock; John Stamos, Glee

Week in TV: September 19-25

Mad Men

- Only Mad Men would use a scene in a character's love life to distill an issue that still makes the feminist movement seem unapproachable to some women of color. While I sometimes wish that the show would take a more direct line on race in the sixties, it's difficult to fault the subtle portrayal of Peggy's increasingly willful naivete when I've known people who made the same kinds of rationalizations about why their particular milieu is predominantly white. We're heading into the years when militancy started to seem like the most viable option for some activists on the left side of the political spectrum, and I'm interested to see how the show's old-school conservatives react.

- Weiner is so specific about the way he wants things to play out that I'm sure it's not an accident, but I'm really fascinated by the way Kiernan Shipka and January Jones have started to sort of mirror each other in their performances. The subtle way that they've shown Sally picking up on Betty's mannerisms, particularly when she's upset, really distinguishes Shipka's performance from those by other actors around the same age.

- A second viewing didn't make her soup/pot metaphor make any more sense, but Joyce remains delightful.

- The moving of Miss Blankenship's body joins the lawn mower sequence as one of this show's all-time greatest dark yet hilarious set pieces.

How I Met Your Mother

Modern Family

Cougar Town

Community

30 Rock

The Office

- I decided to group these all together because it's difficult to write about comedies without it turning into a quotefest, and these were all good, but not superlative episodes. All ultimately made me happy to see the characters again, and all made me laugh at one point or another. None challenged my feelings from last season that my affections for HIMYM, 30 Rock and The Office are on the wane, but they didn't make me want to completely stop watching either. Solid week all around.

- My favorite line of the week, from Community - Jeff's observation that the message of Twilight is "Men are monsters who crave young flesh."

Glee

- I love Community, but I have to give "Best Meta Reference to Internet Commentary on the Show" to Glee's opener.

- So...Matt transferred out, and Sam and Sunshine transferred in? Does McKinley not have freshmen or graduates? The whole discussion about Will stating that New Directions welcomes everyone audition-free made me think that they could construct a really great episode around someone showing up with lots of enthusiasm and no singing ability. Not saying that this is true of me back in high school, necessarily, but upperclassmen who are established in an extracurricular activity can build up some serious ire towards green, excitable freshmen with no idea what they're doing.

- "Getting to Know You": Using the history of the musical to make a sly wink at criticism of the show's broad handling of minority characters, or just the first song that came to mind when they needed something to sing to a group of Asian children? Also, as much as I like Artie, it's hard to quibble with Tina's call there. Those are, indeed, magnificent abs.

- It's always nice to see the show repurpose show tunes, but I'm a little disappointed at the context surrounding the episode-concluding "What I Did for Love." A Chorus Line is all about people pursuing careers in the arts and the sacrifices they make to do so, and shares a lot with Glee in that respect. If Glee ever elected to do an episode with original songs, I think A Chorus Line's hyper-confessional libretto could serve as an interesting model for the kinds of songs they could do. The titular love is specifically of dance, the love that unites the disparate characters of A Chorus Line, which made it somewhat disheartening to see it turned into Rachel's tribute to her own narcissism. The show can use as much candor as possible in addressing how shallow its characters can be, but I couldn't help but think how much better it could've worked as a group number.

Sons of Anarchy

Robin Weigert! More Deadwood! Can we have John Hawkes next, please?

Terriers

With this third outing, Terriers distinguished itself from other mystery-of-the-week style shows with a dark, unsettling resolution to the episode's central case. The writers are showing that they're unwilling to simply coast on Donal Logue's natural charisma, and as a result he's turning in a standout performance.

Grey's Anatomy

Private Practice

- Good follow-up to last season's Grey's finale, particularly with the layered flashback structure and the use of the therapy sessions. The myriad ways that PTSD impacts the different characters seems like a rich dramatic vein for the show to tap throughout the coming season, with great performances by Sandra Oh, Chandra Wilson and Chyler Leigh in this particular episode. I also liked the way it sort of bled over into PP - they've managed to maintain the ties between the two shows without it feeling too strained.

- With the PP subplot, I had to include a link to Gene Weingarten's amazing, Pulitzer-winning Washington Post piece about parents forgetting their children in the car.

Also Watched: Rubicon, Chuck, Gossip Girl, Parenthood, 90210, Life Unexpected, Hellcats, Top Chef: Just Desserts, Nikita, Bones

Next: I watched allll the pilots...