My reaction to the 2015 Emmy nominations

Well, the knock on the Emmys has always been it’s the same shows vying every year. Not so anymore. Today’s announcement of this year’s nominations make it very clear – we’ve entered a new era, where new delivery systems are recognized, where buzz beats out ratings, and where DVD screeners determine which shows and actors get selected.

Some random thoughts:

You can now be on any network, channel, website, or streaming service and get nominated… except the CW.

JANE THE VIRGIN, on the CW, received one nomination… for Best Narrator.

Lily Tomlin was nominated but not Jane Fonda. That should make for a fun set.

Expect THE DAILY SHOW to win everything. Expect people to say nice things about David Letterman but give Jon Stewart the hardware.

The best drama of the year was not even nominated – THE GOOD WIFE. Considering they have to make 22 a year when the other nominees get to make 13 in two years it’s just not fair.

There were nominated shows that I never heard of, have no idea what platform they’re on, and I have the screeners.

Good job NBC. You had KIMMY SCHMIDT but tossed it out. Much better to keep and air ONE BIG HAPPY.

As I’ve said before, I love TRANSPARENT but it’s not a comedy. That said, there are many worthy candidates for Best Comedy and I would not be upset if any one of them toppled MODERN FAMILY. MF is a great show, has deserved its accolades, but I’m sorry, it’s been on auto-pilot for the last few years.

What does it say when MODERN FAMILY and DOWNTON ABBEY get zero writing nominations?

I was a little surprised BLACKISH didn’t get a nom for Best Comedy. MOM as well. They too are penalized by being on the big delivery services that everyone can see. If BLACKISH were on BET-3 it probably would be in there. If JANE THE VIRGIN were on BET-3 it might have received a nomination.

Why was BROAD CITY ignored?

And why didn't EMPIRE receive more Emmy love? Taraji P. Henson, however, is my one lock this year. Even though Robin Wright deserves to win.

Okay, I have two locks – Jeffrey Tambor.

BIG BANG THEORY is done as far as Emmy is concerned. Even Jim Parsons wasn’t nominated.

I say this every year, THE MIDDLE deserves to be nominated, if not win.

In a very crowded drama category, why the hell is DOWNTON ABBEY still getting nominations?

Tatiana Maslany finally got a nomination… now that her show is no longer good.

As always, the TV Academy loves movie stars. Appear in anything other than a Michael Bay film and you get a nomination.

To be nominated for Best Limited Series you must have AMERICAN in your name. Not so for Best Drama where THE AMERICANS was passed over. (It did get a writing nomination, though.)

Ricky Gervais’ nominated for DEREK, but in the Mini-Series category?  Huh?

Multiple nominations for Alan Alda. So MASH wasn’t just a fluke.

Toughest acting category: Lead Actress in a Comedy Series. All are great except for Lena Dunham. But this is Amy Schumer’s year. (UPDATE:  The list I saw was incorrect.  Lena Dunham was NOT nominated.  Her fifteen minutes are officially up.)

Gee, how come they announce the actor categories on the live stream and not the writer categories? (Yes, that’s a rhetorical question.)

Christina Hendricks just nominated for MAD MEN was fired last week from a new Cameron Crowe upcoming series.

I didn’t see any of the Outstanding Television Movies. I have no idea what’s happening in that category. I binged-watched TRANSPARENT instead.

I love that Paul Giamatti was nominated for Best Guest Actor playing “Juror #10.” That 12 Angry Man sketch on INSIDE AMY SCHUMER was the funniest five minutes of the year.

Jon Hamm was also nominated for Best Guest Actor in a Comedy for a KIMMY SCHMIDT appearance. Wouldn’t it be a hoot if he won for that and never for MAD MEN?

And of course Tina Fey got nominated for Best Guest Actor. If she put herself up for Best Lighting Director she’d be nominated. Same with Jeff Daniels.

And ditto Bill Murray. He gets nominated for everything. When was the last time Bill Murray was actually great?

Jill Soloway is going to easily win the Best Writing in a Comedy Emmy. Her pilot script is sensational. The only thing it’s missing is laughs.

She’ll probably win for Best Directing too, but I have no beef with that.

And finally, Heidi Klum got nominated for an Emmy. Whew!

I’m sure I’m leaving a bunch of stuff out and there are snubs I’ve overlooked, but I wanted to post this as soon as I could.

Congratulations to all the nominees. Most are well deserved. There’s a lot of celebrating today, along with a lot of people saying, “Fuck you, Academy!”

The Primetime Emmys’ are September 20th. I’ll be reviewing them in this space. Andy Samberg will host. You’d think that would be worth a nomination but apparently not.  So the Emmy host is saying, "Fuck you, Academy!"