With
the official nominations being announced on the 14th,
we thought it would be appropriate to put out our own list of picks
for the biggest categories. Far from predictions, these picks are
mainly wishful thinking on our part. However, we don't feel less strongly about our picks just because some of them might not have a very strong chance of actually being nominated and/or winning.
Nick's Picks
Outstanding
Supporting Actor in a Comedy Series:
Ted
Danson - Bored to Death
Charlie
Day - It's Always Sunny in Philadelphia
Garret
Dillahunt - Raising Hope
Rob
McElhenney - It's Always Sunny in Philadelphia
Nick
Offerman - Parks and Recreation
Outstanding
Supporting Actress in a Comedy Series:
Julie
Bowen - Modern Family
Eliza
Coupe - Happy Endings
Kaitlin Olson - It's Always Sunny
in Philadelphia
Aubrey Plaza
- Parks and Recreation
Christine Woods - Perfect Couples
Outstanding
Supporting Actor in a Drama Series:
Peter
Dinklage - Game of Thrones
Walter
Goggins - Justified
Wendell
Pierce - Treme
Brent
Sexton - The Killing
John Slattery - Mad Men
Outstanding
Supporting Actress in a Drama Series:
Khandi
Alexander - Treme
Holliday
Grainger - The Borgias
Christina
Hendricks - Mad Men
Kelly
Macdonald - Boardwalk Empire
Kiernan
Shipka - Mad Men
Outstanding
Lead Actress in a Comedy Series:
Edie
Falco - Nurse Jackie
Tina
Fey - 30 Rock
Mary-Louise
Parker - Weeds
Martha
Plimpton - Raising Hope
Amy Poehler - Parks and
Recreation
Outstanding
Lead Actor in a Drama Series:
Steve
Buscemi - Boardwalk Empire
Michael
C. Hall - Dexter
Jon Hamm - Mad Men
Jeremy
Irons - The Borgias
William
H. Macy - Shameless
Outstanding
Lead Actress in a Drama Series:
Lena
Headey - Game of Thrones
January
Jones - Mad Men
Melissa
Leo - Treme
Elisabeth Moss - Mad Men
Emmy
Rossum - Shameless
Outstanding
Comedy Series:
Bored To
Death
It's Always
Sunny in Philadelphia
Louie
The
Office
Parks and Recreation
Unlike drama, the race for top comedy series is very tight. It's Always Sunny had its best season in three years and was nipping right at Parks and Recreation's heels. Louie was also a strong contender for its breakout season of dark and disturbing comedy. In the end, it would be P+R that earned my vote, as it would have last year despite it not even being nominated. Though it's unlikely any of these comedies will receive much recognition come awards night, a man can only hope.
Outstanding Drama
Series:
The Borgias
Game of Thrones
Mad
Men
Shameless
Treme
The competition in the best drama category is far from heated in my mind. With Breaking Bad out of the running this year, and Mad Men putting up what was possibly its best season, Weiner and company should easily earn the title. This would be their fourth year running picking up the award, and I feel like they've earned every one. In a distant – but nonetheless respected – second place would be the sophomore season of Treme, with Shameless rounding out my top three.
Vincent's Picks
Outstanding
Supporting Actor in a Comedy Series:
Ted
Danson - Bored to Death
Ty Burrell - Modern Family
Danny
Pudi - Community
Charlie
Day - Always Sunny in Philadelphia
Justin Kirk -
Weeds
Outstanding
Supporting Actress in a Comedy Series:
Alison
Brie - Community
Jane
Krakowski - 30 Rock
Katlin
Olson - Always Sunny in Philadelphia
Jane Adams - Hung
Rosemarie
DeWitt - United States of Tara
Outstanding
Supporting Actor in a Drama Series:
Michael
Raymond Jones - Terriers
John
Noble - Fringe
Peter
Dinklage - Game of Thrones
Walton Goggins - Justified
Michael
Pitts - Boardwalk Empire
Outstanding
Supporting Actress in a Drama Series:
Margo
Martindale - Justified
Olivia
Wilde - House
Kelly Macdonald - Boardwalk Empire
Khandi
Alexander - Treme
Regina King - Southland
Outstanding
Lead Actor in a Comedy Series:
Steve
Carell - The Office
Danny
McBride - Eastbound & Down
Alec
Baldwin - 30 Rock
David Duchovny - Californication
Joel McHale
- Community
Outstanding
Lead Actress in a Comedy Series:
Amy
Poehler - Parks and Recreation
Tina Fey - 30 Rock
Toni
Collette - The United States of Tara
Mary
Louise-Parker - Weeds
Edie Falco - Nurse Jackie
Outstanding
Lead Actor in a Drama Series:
Michael
C. Hall - Dexter
Hugh Laurie - House
Steve Buscemi - Boardwalk
Empire
Donal Logue - Terriers
Jon
Hannah - Spartacus: Gods of the Arena
Outstanding
Lead Actress in a Drama Series:
Anna
Torv - Fringe
Katey
Sagal - Sons of Anarchy
Lucy Lawless - Spartacus: Gods of the
Arena
Eva Green - Camelot
Connie Britton - Friday Night Lights
Outstanding
Comedy Series:
Eastbound
& Down
Parks
and Recreation
Community
The Office
It's Always Sunny in
Philadelphia
Part artsy, part vulgar, part immature yet touching, and all comedy gold; the second season of Eastbound & Down was another masterpiece. Kenny Powers on screen doing anything would be entertaining to see, but his journey in Mexico was truly fascinating to watch. Between the great characters, undeniably quotable dialogue, and the short but phenomenal inclusion of Aaron, season two did not disappoint. While there were quite a few great comedies last year such as Community and the other nominees... none of them have the heart or brain of Eastbound & Down.
Outstanding Drama
Series:
Dexter
Spartacus: Gods of the Arena
Fringe
Game
of Thrones
Boardwalk Empire
A first season filled with
nothing but good or great episodes is a rare feat to achieve, but
Game of Thrones did that. This show is written and acted more like a
political drama/thriller than a medieval fantasy show, yet the
setting greatly adds to the epic scale and dramatic tension. The
acting, writing, and production value are all superb, but equally
impressive is its willingness to break certain TV show "laws"
and kill characters who would normally be safe on just about every
other show. All of these different elements culminate into an
excellently crafted show where anything can happen, which is
something that lacks from many recent dramas.
Ali's Picks
Outstanding Supporting Actor in a Comedy Series:
Neil Patrick Harris - How I Met Your Mother
Ken Jeong - Community
Danny Pudi - Community
Azizi Ansari - Parks and Recreation
Rainn Wilson - The Office
Outstanding Supporting Actress in a Comedy Series:
Alison Brie- Community
Julie Bowen - Modern Family
Yvette Nicole Brown - Community
Kristen Wiig - Saturday Night Live
Cobie Smulders - How I Met Your Mother
Outstanding Supporting Actor in a Drama Series:
John Noble - Fringe
Peter Dinklage - Game of Thrones
Josh Charles - The Good Wife
Andre Braugher - Men of a Certain Age
Jonny Lee Miller - Dexter
Outstanding Supporting Actress in a Drama Series:
Julia Stiles - Dexter
Khandi Alexander - Treme
Aimee Teegarden - Friday Night Lights
Christina Hendricks - Mad Men
Deborah Ann Woll - True Blood
Outstanding Lead Actor in a Comedy Series:
Jim Parsons - The Big Bang Theory
Steve Carell - The Office
Joel McHale - Community
Josh Radnor - How I Met Your Mother
Alec Baldwin - 30 Rock
Outstanding Lead Actress in a Comedy Series:
Amy Poehler - Parks and Recreation
Tina Fey - 30 Rock
Toni Collette - The United States of Tara
Mary Louise-Parker - Weeds
Edie Falco - Nurse Jackie
Outstanding Lead Actor in a Drama Series:
Michael C. Hall - Dexter
Sean Bean - Game of Thrones
Jon Hamm - Mad Men
Kyle Chandler - Friday Night Lights
Joshua Jackson - Fringe
Outstanding Comedy Series:
Parks and Recreation
Community
The Office
Chuck
The Big Bang Theory
There really is little point in hoping that Community will get the Emmy win that it so greatly deserves; terrible seasons for shows like The Big Bang Theory will still outshine it based only on popularity. But if people actually paid attention to what they were watching, the outcome would be obvious. Community is a return of the genius mixture of comedy that made Arrested Development a cult titan: physical, meta, and cleverly subtle humor intertwined with a great cast that knows exactly how to deliver.
Outstanding Drama Series:
Dexter
Mad Men
Fringe
The Walking Dead
Friday Night Lights
There is an outside chance for Fringe this year, but if it were up to me, it wouldn’t even be close. I absolutely love every single show on my list, but the third season of Fringe was one of the best things that I have seen in my life. There were “filler” type episodes – as there are always going to be in 22 episode seasons – but the overall story arc was the most perfectly preposterous ride since the best days of Lost. The acting was phenomenal, the production grand, and the renewal so massively deserved.
Feel free to share your own Emmy picks in the comment section below.