Critics in College's 2016 EMMY coverage continues with the release of our personal ballots. These reflect, based on the category limits and divisions determined by the Television Academy, who David and Andrew would each nominate if given the chance. ICYMI: Drama & Longform
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Comedy Series
A rich season for comedy made the nominating process especially difficult for both of us this time around; among the excellent comedies that didn’t make the cut are Broad City, The Carmichael Show, Black-ish, Casual, Master of None and Unbreakable Kimmy Schmidt. David was too taken with Transparent’s astonishing second season to not give it the top mention here, while Andrew favors a more overtly comic concoction in the brilliantly stylized Jane the Virgin. We're mostly in agreement here, beyond those first choices: the gorgeous final season of Getting On; the blistering Veep, resurgent under new leadership in year five; the howlingly vicious Review; and the deep, wise and ever-sharp Please Like Me. David finishes out his seven with You’re the Worst, which had an imperfect but powerful second season, and Andrew goes with the consistently hilarious Silicon Valley, currently cruising through its third season.
David
1 | TRANSPARENT
2 | JANE THE VIRGIN
3 | GETTING ON
4 | VEEP
5 | REVIEW
6 | PLEASE LIKE ME
7 | YOU’RE THE WORST
Andrew
1 | JANE THE VIRGIN
2 | GETTING ON
3 | REVIEW
4 | TRANSPARENT
5 | VEEP
6 | PLEASE LIKE ME
7 | SILICON VALLEY
Comedy Actor
Again, our differences come down to what we value more in a “comedy series” category: acting prowess or comic ability. Jeffrey Tambor – David’s choice, in case you’re sensing a theme here – is giving a subtle and dramatic but monumental performance in Transparent; Andy Daly’s deranged spin on TV’s favorite life-reviewing host was too delicious for Andrew to deny. Beyond our two winners, there’s plenty of variety including Chris Geere, who deftly balances sarcasm and depth on You’re the Worst, and Thomas Middleditch, who mumbles and stumbles better than anyone on the small-screen right now in Silicon Valley. David’s final two choices are a pair of professional actors showcasing new abilities, in Anthony Anderson – who, while always solid on the comedic side, received a bracing dramatic showcase earlier this year – and William H. Macy. While not trained professional actors, creator-actors Josh Thomas and Jerrod Carmichael make Andrew’s ballot on range of talent alone.
David
1 | JEFFREY TAMBOR, Transparent
2 | CHRIS GEERE, You’re the Worst
3 | ANDY DALY, Review
4 | THOMAS MIDDLEDITCH, Silicon Valley
5 | ANTHONY ANDERSON, Black-ish
6 | WILLIAM H. MACY, Shameless
Andrew
1 | ANDY DALY, Review
2 | THOMAS MIDDLEDITCH, Silicon Valley
3 | JEFFREY TAMBOR, Transparent
4 | CHRIS GEERE, You’re the Worst
5 | JOSH THOMAS, Please Like Me
6 | JERROD CARMICHAEL, The Carmichael Show
Comedy Actress
We talked through this one quite a bit, and yet despite the deep pool of talent to draw from for this category, we were easily set on our winner. Laurie Metcalf received a hell of a sendoff in Getting On as the embattled Jenna James, and she deserves a trophy, at the very least, for her collective work in the HBO series’ three wonderful seasons. In other news, Julia Louis-Dreyfus continued to kill it on Veep; Rachel Bloom and Michaela Watkins startled in complicated, multi-dimensional new roles; Gina Rodriguez anchored a tremendous season of television; and Tracey Ellis Ross never ceased to amaze with her oddball comic energy.
David
1 | LAURIE METCALF, Getting On
2 | JULIA LOUIS-DREYFUS, Veep
3 | MICHAELA WATKINS, Casual
4 | RACHEL BLOOM, Crazy Ex-Girlfriend
5 | TRACEY ELLIS ROSS, Black-ish
6 | GINA RODRIGUEZ, Jane the Virgin
Andrew
1 | LAURIE METCALF, Getting On
2 | RACHEL BLOOM, Crazy Ex-Girlfriend
3 | JULIA LOUIS-DREYFUS, Veep
4 | GINA RODRIGUEZ, Jane the Virgin
5 | MICHAELA WATKINS, Casual
6 | TRACEY ELLIS ROSS, Black-ish
Comedy Supporting Actor
Any viewer of HBO’s dynamic pair of spring comedies – Veep and Silicon Valley – should know that supporting stars Timothy Simons and Zach Woods, respectively, really broke out this year with big storylines and bigger laughs. Tituss Burgess remained the best (and most fabulous) thing about Unbreakable Kimmy Schmidt, scoring extra points for nailing a poignant romantic storyline in season two. And Jaime Camil, our joint winner, has created in Rogelio de la Vega the most singularly uproarious character that TV has seen in recent memory. We diverge from there, with David favoring Louie Anderson’s rich and surprising matriarichal turn in Baskets and David Alan Grier’s continued effortlessness in The Carmichael Show, and Andrew doubling-down on Silicon Valley men with T.J. Miller, and giving a shout out to Getting On’s sole male castmember, Mel Rodriguez.
David
1 | JAIME CAMIL, Jane the Virgin
2 | LOUIE ANDERSON, Baskets
3 | TITUSS BURGESS, Unbreakable Kimmy Schmidt
4 | DAVID ALAN GRIER, The Carmichael Show
5 | TIMOTHY SIMONS, Veep
6 | ZACH WOODS, Silicon Valley
Andrew
1 | JAIME CAMIL, Jane the Virgin
2 | TITUSS BURGESS, Unbreakable Kimmy Schmidt
3 | ZACH WOODS, Silicon Valley
4 | TIMOTHY SIMONS, Veep
5 | T.J. MILLER, Silicon Valley
6 | MEL RODRIGUEZ, Getting On
Comedy Supporting Actress
Is there a deeper field? You could easily fill half of this category with the women of Jane the Virgin, Getting On and Transparent, let alone the multiple worthy contenders from Togetherness, Unbreakable Kimmy Schmidt, Crazy Ex-Girlfriend and so many others. As for what we’re in-sync on: Yael Grobglas (David’s choice) not only thrived as Petra, but embraced Jane the Virgin’s evil twin twist with a killer (pun intended?) turn as Anezka; Niecy Nash (Andrew’s choice) maintained her signature blend of authentic, deadpan and pathos in Getting On; Loretta Devine showed off her veteran skills week-in and week-out on Carmichael; and Amanda Peet was fearless and wild in the otherwise middling Togetherness. As for the rest, David was particularly floored by Gaby Hoffman’s layered and challenging work in Transparent, as well as by Donna Lynne Champlin’s exuberant take on loneliness in Crazy Ex-Girlfriend. Andrew, meanwhile, goes all-in on Jane the Virgin, finding room for Yara Martinez’s joyous recurring work and Andrea Navedo’s grounding maternal presence.
David
1 | YAEL GROBGLAS, Jane the Virgin
2 | AMANDA PEET, Togetherness
3 | NIECY NASH, Getting On
4 | GABY HOFFMAN, Transparent
5 | DONNA LYNNE CHAMPLIN, Crazy Ex-Girlfriend
6 | LORETTA DEVINE, The Carmichael Show
Andrew
1 | NIECY NASH, Getting On
2 | YAEL GROBGLAS, Jane the Virgin
3 | YARA MARTINEZ, Jane the Virgin
4 | AMANDA PEET, Togetherness
5 | ANDREA NAVEDO, Jane the Virgin
6 | LORETTA DEVINE, The Carmichael Show
Comedy Writing
It just missed the cut in several other categories, but Master of None gets top-billing here from David for its evocative, year-spanning romantic play “Mornings.” His runner-up, Girls’ “The Panic in Central Park,” manages to top Andrew’s ballot as a thrilling return to form for Lena Dunham.
David
1 | AZIZ ANSARI & ALAN YANG for “Mornings,” Master of None
2 | LENA DUNHAM for “The Panic in Central Park,” Girls
3 | JOSH THOMAS for “Christmas,” Please Like Me
4 | ABBI JACOBSON & ILANA GLATZER for “Burning Bridges,” Broad City
5 | BILLY KIMBALL for “Congressional Ball,” Veep
Andrew
1 | LENA DUNHAM for “The Panic in Central Park,” Girls
2 | RICH TALARICO for “Murder; Magic 8 Ball; Procrastination,” Review
3 | JOSH THOMAS for “Christmas,” Please Like Me
4 | ALEX GREGORY & PETER HUYCK for “Mother,” Veep
5 | ABBI JACOBSON & ILANA GLATZER for “Jews on a Plane,” Broad City
Comedy Directing
Jill Soloway’s directorial work is consistently among the best in the television, and the compelling “Man on the Land” was perhaps her finest outing yet. And Marc Webb, a feature director of mixed success, reached a definite career high with the ambitious Crazy Ex-Girlfriend pilot, a stunning example of musical comedy.
David
1 | JILL SOLOWAY for “Man on the Land,” Transparent
2 | MARC WEBB for “Pilot,” Crazy Ex-Girlfriend
3 | STEPHEN FALK for “LCD Soundsystem,” You’re the Worst
4 | MIGUEL ARTETA for “Reduced to Eating Boiled Magazines and Book Paste,” Getting On
5 | JAY DUPLASS & MARK DUPLASS for “Hotels,” Togetherness
Andrew
1 | MARC WEBB for “Pilot,” Crazy Ex-Girlfriend
2 | JILL SOLOWAY for “Man on the Land,” Transparent
3 | JOSH THOMAS for “Natural Spring Water,” Please Like Me
4 | MIGUEL ARTETA for “Reduced to Eating Boiled Magazines and Book Paste,” Getting On
5 | LUCIA ANIELLO for “Burning Bridges,” Broad City