4 Thoughts on The Emmys

1. The Host(s) - I love Eugene and Dan Levy - I think they were a good choice to host this year because they are more wholesome and loveable than a lot of comedians would be. They did a decent job - nothing special, but it was ok. I definitely would have preferred more jokes (I think they really only had one good joke: "In the spirit of The Bear, we will not be making any jokes"). The rest of it was just...cute. It was probably a mistake to have the trio from Only Murders in the Building present together because they killed it - and were far funnier than the hosts. They NEED to host an awards show together ASAP. It would be complete chaos but in the best way possible. I did like that the hosts brought out the rest of the Schitt's Creek family to present the last award (giving Catherine O'Hara the final moment). Overall, they played it pretty safe, which is exactly that...safe. 

2. The Show - A solid show! Not as good as the Emmys that aired earlier this year, but a strong follow-up I think. They continued the classic tv reunions and rebuilding familiar tv sets thing, and added a classic tv character trope thing ("tv dads", "tv doctors", "tv lawyers" etc) that made for some fun presenters - like Niecy Nash-Betts bringing back Deputy Raineesha Williams from Reno 911, which was hilarious. I love her so much. I think John Leguizamo gave a really nice speech about the importance of representation in the media that didn't feel contrived or forced - he's naturally passionate about it and did a great job of explaining why it is so vital for people to see themselves represented on screen. I don't know who Jelly Roll is, but he has a nice voice (and I like tattoos but face tattoos are on another level!). Richard Gadd gave THREE very good speeches (what an inspiration!). The worst part was the weird advertisement intro for Johnnie Walker with Ebon and whoever that other guy is. I know the liquor industry is a little panicked right now with sales (my husband is in the industry), but this ad made me not want to buy Johnnie Walker ever again. It doesn't help that they got the two worst people to banter together - they should have had Kristen Wiig and anyone else (she can banter with anyone!). The show seemed to move fairly quickly, with very little hiccups. I just think it could have been funnier. 

3. The Winners - I'm actually fairly happy with the winners - they spread the love slightly more than previous years with wins for The Bear, Hacks, Ripley, Shogun, The Crown, Slow Horses, Baby Reindeer and Fargo instead of last year where only 3 shows got all the awards. I have not seen Shogun yet, so that's the only win I can't really comment on but I've heard nothing but rave reviews, and I've already declared my love for Anna Sawai in Monarch: Legend of the Monsters, so I'm so happy she won. The second season of The Bear was *just* as strong as the first season, which is super rare, so I'm glad for all the winners. I don't think it will get showered with as many awards next year (I still thought it was good, but the third season definitely received mix reactions). But as far as "comedy" goes - Hacks is better. Jean Smart is a LEGEND, so her winning over Ayo is surprising, but also deserving. I was also surprised that a legend did not win the Supporting Actress in a Comedy category - I thought FOR SURE it would go to Meryl Streep or Carol Burnett because WHO CAN COMPETE WITH MERYL STREEP AND CAROL BURNETT???? I was SHOCKED Liza Colon-Zayas won. That's so crazy!! Another shocking win was Lamorne Morris!! It's a weird win among that cast, but he's not undeserving. I think the category was definitely weak (Jon Hamm should have gone supporting because he probably would have won). The only win that really upset me was Jodie Foster over Juno Temple. Foster was the best part of True Detective: Night Country, but that's...not saying much. While Juno BLEW MY MIND in the most recent season of Fargo. I'm not even a big fan of hers - I've actively criticized her acting multiple times on this blog. But a great performance is a great performance - and I will always admit when someone surprises me (and I actually welcome it! Waiting for Elisabeth Moss or Julia Garner to do the same!). 

4. The Fashion - Not going to lie - I was so bored by the fashion this year. There were so many black dresses, with a few pops of red or metallic, but NOBODY took any risks and that's always boring. My favorite dress is, I guess, the metallic, medieval number than Kristen Wiig wore, because at least it felt different. Anna Sawai also looked GORGEOUS. And Catherine O'Hara somehow went backwards in time because she looks younger and younger every time I see her (SHE IS 70 YEARS OLD!!). Everyone else bored me - Jennifer Aniston and Reese Witherspoon wore the exact same dress they always wear. Naomi Watts...blah, Sofia Vergara...blah, Viola Davis...blah. I had high hopes for Ella Purnell, but that look ages her. I wish she wore something more youthful. Ditto for Selena Gomez. The worst dresses were the dress that Sarah Paulson wore - what the heck was happening at the bottom??? Kaitlin Olson - eek. And Greta Lee looks like she's wearing a dollar store version of Bjork's infamous swan dress.