My Picks for This Years Emmys: Lead Actress In A Movie/Limited Series

OUTSTANDING LEAD ACTRESS IN A TV MOVIE/LIMITED SERIES

It's rare that the field for this award has dried up so remarkably, but as I said, with no Feud, no Big Little Lies, and no Fargo, the typical big lead for these awards are just not as omnipresent as they seem to be. I can think of more than a few that might fill the roles, and there are probably some obvious ones that I'll leave out. But here are my best choices.

Gillian Anderson, The X-Files

I know she's had her difficulties with this series, and that she won't go forward if the X-Files gets a season 12.  (And Fox, Carter, et al. if Anderson says that she's not going to do another season of The X-Files, for the love of God, don't do one) But none of this changes the fact that Dana Scully has defined my generation by leading the charge for all the strong, female roles that have come in the new millennium. And as Scully went on a journey to find the son she gave up for her adoption, and finally admitted her love for Mulder, it more than justified bringing it back from the dead, no matter what you thought of the series last couple of storylines

Hayley Atwell, Howard's End

Were it not for the fact that this series is on a network that almost regularly gets shafted by the Emmys, I would have been more than willing to give this series more nominations. But I have always been an admirer of Atwell's work, even the stuff that wasn't directly Marvel related, and when given a nearly impossible job - to play the character that Emma Thompson made iconic with her Oscar-Winning performance more than a century ago - and managed to, at the very least, equal that job is one of the more remarkable accomplishments of this impressive season. It's already earned some listing for the Ten Best List. I hope that she can keep pushing for it

Jessica Biel, The Sinner

From the opening moments, when her character seemed to stab a totally random beachgoer and offer no reasons for her actions, Biel delivered one of the most shocking performances of the 2017-2018 season. Of all the potential nominees in this category, her work this season was a radical jump forward from just about everything else we've seen her do. She made an abrupt jump into an already crowded female category at the beginning of awards season, or she almost certainly would've won something by now. I think there's a very good chance that she'll be at the center of this years awards.

Laura Dern, The Tale

Yes, she managed to take an Emmy last season for HBO. And I personally think that she should be considered for another nomination in a different category. (I'll get to that in a bit.) But playing the later version of a woman, trying to deal with a molestation experience in her childhood that she can't, for most of the movie, even admit was abuse was a revelatory performance that I don't think anybody who watched TV this year can readily forget. Never mind the timeliness of the film or the ward, this was another magnificent performance by one of the great actress of our time. If she doesn't get nominated this year, there is no point in  these awards.

Cristin Milioti, Black Mirror: U.S.S Callister

For reasons that are almost certain due to my own failings, I've never given this now legendary British Netflix anthology the time of day. And every time it produces another group of episodes, it seems determined to dare me to ignore it. It would be very silly of me to ignore this brilliant series that perfectly paid homage to Star Trek and The Twilight Zone, particularly considering the work of Milioti as a woman who wakes up on a TV starship, and finds herself in a Serlingesque nightmare.  I've been an admirer of her work since How I Met Your Mother, and thought she was robbed of an Emmy nod for her work in Season 2 of Fargo. This seems like a more than ideal time to recognize her.

Elisabeth Moss, Top of the Lake: China Girl

Between her iconic roles as Peggy on Mad Men and June on The Handmaid's Tale, Moss played a subtler but just as intense role as Robin Griffin, the intense, sexually confused, detective determined to solve one of the more harsh crimes in Jane Campion's memorable Sundance mini-series. And even though the second entry was, perhaps inevitably, not nearly as strong as the first one, Moss remains as charismatic and as dark as ever. Like Dern, I would have no problem with her double-dipping this year.

My Picks For This Year's Emmys: Lead Actor in a Movie/Limited Series

OUTSTANDING LEAD ACTOR IN A TV MOVIE/LIMITED SERIES

After three consecutive years where the strongest lead performances were in the female lead categories, this season has seen a shift to fairly dominant male-led series. (I expect that this trend will only true for this year.) However, given certain limitations, I feel very strongly that there will be more nominees from movies this year. I actually have a couple of preferences from that category as well. Bearing this in mind, here are my choices, knowing full well that Netflix and Hulu will probably drop a couple in.

Darren Criss, The Assassination of Gianni Versace

One of the most dominant and fascinating performances for the entire year, Criss did something that even the greatest television has rarely been able to do: put you in the mind of a psychopath. The reverse unfolding of the series showed us just how Andrew Cunanan went from a gay rent-boy to a serial killer. He never quite earned our sympathy - he was just too deranged a personality to accomplish that - but through Criss' portrayal we saw that in many ways, Cunanan was as broken and damaged as the victims he killed. The fact that Criss managed to do all this while making us forget the memorable portrayal of Blaine in Murphy's Glee demonstrated just how great a talent he is. Probably the front-runner for the Emmy.

Benedict Cumberbatch, Patrick Melrose

One is tempted to draw parallels between Melrose and Cumberbatch's other most memorable TV portrayal - after all, both he and Sherlock Holmes were damaged addicts. But that's practically all that the two have in common. Cumberbatch was so brilliant to watch playing a character, trying to deal with his various addictions, his psychological damage, and his incredible family dysfunction - things that Sherlock, for all his intellect, would not be able to comprehend. This was mesmerizing television, another, and if anything, far greater master class in acting than Cumberbatch has ever accomplished. I really hope that there's some possibility for additional stories about Patrick. He made a compelling journey, and I'd like to see Cumberbatch try and help him heal.

Jared Harris, The Terror

Yes, it was a brilliant performance, seeing Harris playing the captain of a doomed ship at the center of an Arctic expedition, trapped by the snow and ice, pushed by disease... and stalked by something no one can comprehend. But, honestly I've been a fan of this actors calm stoicism, even when led towards villainy, ever since I first saw him on Fringe. And frankly, the man has a track record of dying in TV and movies almost as bad as Sean Bean. I don't think he'll survive til Season 2 (his character was the only one to make it to the end of the series) but I think just for his dignity and class, he deserves a nomination, especially for a series that is likely to dominate.

Michael B. Jordan, Farenheit 451

The voters will more likely choose as their representative from HBO's brilliant TV movies, Al Pacino's work in the title role of Paterno. Pacino has been linked so successfully in his collaborations with the cable network that he gets recognized even when, like here, its a lesser effort.  Far more daring and radical was the interpretation of the groundbreaking Ray Bradbury novel, a work that with each passing days fits our present more and more. Jordan's work as Montag, the firefighter who finds himself gradually embracing the world of literature was so astonishing, you didn't even notice that his character had been made African-American.  The story became simultaneously more dystopian and more optimistic mainly through Jordan's work. And let's be honest, he's been deserving of an Emmy nomination since he burst on the screen as Wallace in the premiere season of The Wire. Normally, I don't like move actors taking up these spaces. For Jordan,  it was a pleasure to watch.

Kyle MacLachlan, Twin Peaks

The only argument I can see against nominated MacLachlan is that he came playing the iconic lead from this iconic series - and then spent the length of that series not being Dale Cooper. This frustrated many people. But really, all of this only adds to this astonishing quality as his work. He played three distinct characters: Cooper, the Chance Gardener like Doug Jones, and the evil incarnate BOB, and played them all so incredibly that you had a hard time believing that they were all being played by the same actor. Maclachlan has always been a versatile actor, even though he's spent decades trying to overcome being Lynch's main lead. This series did a few things wrong, but none of them had to do with MacLachlan's work. If the series had aired a little earlier, he would be a lock for the Emmy.

Bill Pullman, The Sinner

This brilliant character has been laboring in the field so long in anonymity (with the unfortunate exception of Independence Day) that its rather sad that no has ever tried until now to put him in the lead of anything, film or television. As was the case so often, the quiet, dignified performance he gave was obscured by a brighter sun - Jessica Biel's murderer (who we'll get to in the next category). But as always, his deflection mixed with his own problems made him just as interesting watch, and well worth being a figure to build a series around. He deserved an Emmy nomination as much as Bill Paxton, the late character actor he was constantly confused with through their joint careers. Let's hope they don't wait as long this time.

My Picks For This Years Emmys: Outstanding Limited Series

I've felt more enthusiastic about this category the past three years. This year, however, its a bit harder to work up excitement. American Crime is gone.. Fargo won't be eligible til next year (though frankly, I should be grateful its coming back at all) No Feud. No Big Little Lies.. Hell, I'd even settle for Season 3 of True Detective.

That being said, there are still some very valid contenders this season. But, for the record, I'm probably going to be borrowing from the TV Movie categories more heavily than usual. Not that there weren't some brilliant performances there. But we'll get to them.

The Assassination of Gianni Versace

Okay, it wasn't at the level of People Vs. O.J. Simpson. But the second season of American Crime Story did have some of the more memorable performances of the year. And  by operating in reverse chronology, we got to see a lot clearer what drove Andrew Cunanan to become the monster he was - something we never saw for O.J. Simpson. The series took on the issue of homosexuality in a far darker and more realistic way than we've come to expect from Ryan Murphy and company, and in its own way, it was as relevant as Simpson was in 2016. We still had a harder time looking at the title victim, but considering how closely we viewed all the other victims - including Cunanan himself - it was hardly lacking. The odds on favorite to win this year.

Patrick Melrose (Showtime)

A very latecomer to the list of the nominees, that may actually work in its favor. Starting out as a jet-black comedy about the life of a drug-addicted high class Brit, it very quickly veered in even darker territory into such subjects as child molestation, the silence that follows abuses, and how the sins of the father can be visited upon the children.. Of course, all this may be lost on those who came watch the master class of acting that we have come to expect from Benedict Cumberbatch, but it had some brilliant ensemble pieces as well from a very good supporting cast. Ending on the faintest bit of optimism, we can possibly get, this could be one of the great accomplishments of the year.

The Sinner (USA)

Another one of those dark American adaptations of an even darker Scandinavian procedural, the likelihood of this series being nominated  depends on whether the voters can be asked to recall a nominee from as far back as last August. But the fact is, the Emmys should recognize memorable female performances, and its likely that they'll remember Jessica Biel's unforgettable turn as a woman who murdered her own child, and Bill Pullman's solid portrayal of the man who more determined to find the motive than the criminal herself. Considering its coming back for Season 2, I think it very likely that they'll remember it.

Top of the Lake: China Girl (Sundance)

Admittedly, its more likely that any of a half-dozen more popular series will get the nomination than this New Zealand mystery. But Jane Campion's very dark female led series was a surprise favorite among the Emmys when the first movie came out three years ago. And the brilliant work of Elisabeth Moss and Nicole Kidman is more than worthy of Emmy discussion. It's likely that The Terror will take this spot, but one would be hard pressed to find a better group of female performances this season.

Twin Peaks (Showtime)

This is going to be a really hard one to pull for.  It started airing way back in May. It was far, far less popular than Showtime expected. And even the most devoted of fans of this classic series (of which I am one) would have to admit that it was almost, but not entirely, unlike the phenomena that stunned audiences a quarter of a century ago. In a larger sense, though (and when you're dealing with any David Lynch project you have to deal with a larger sense) that's the point. This was a phantasmagorical journey into a world that we only got a taste in the original series. And there were at least three or four episodes that already rank among the greatest of television  in this century. It was remarkable, mirrored only by the fact that Lynch, having a cast of hundreds, managed to get his series on the air, with nobody knowing what the hell was going to happened. In the age on the Internet getting everything three minutes after an episode airs, that's outstanding. And now he wants to do a Season 2. Now that's wondrous and strange.

My Picks For This Years Emmys: Best Supporting ACtress In A Comedy

Anna Chlumsky won't be here. Neither will Kathryn Hahn, and possibly guilt by association will sting the fine ladies of Transparent, though I hope not. There will probably be at least a few nominees from SNL, which I don't object do, and there might be nominees from Roseanne and Will & Grace, which I do. So who would I like to see nominated? So glad you asked.

Zazie Beetz, Atlanta

This talented actress' profile exploded because of Deadpool 2, but even if it hadn't, it would be hard to argue that her superb work in Season 2 is worthy of a nomination. Van got a lot more exposure this season, first deciding to break up with her baby daddy, and then dealing with the problems with social media change, which led to a hysterical episode with a great punch-line about Drake. She flew under the radar, like so many of the cast member. I doubt the same thing will happen this year.

Mayim Bialik, The Big Bang Theory

It keeps getting more ridiculous how hard I have to push for this incredible comedienne and her marvelous talent at work with Amy. As she and Sheldon finally got married, and she realized just how critical she was to him, it makes me realize how the Emmys can some times rob a show just because it's too popular. She's gotten four prior nominations, and she's been recognized by the Broadcast Critics two out of the last three years. How can you not be in love with Amy?

Alex Borstein, The Marvelous Mrs. Maisel

It's a close call between her and the equally astonishing Marin Hinkle as Midge's mother for some kind of nomination. But if I had to pick one of these two remarkable actresses, I have to go with Borstein's work. As the lesbian cafe owner who recognizes the gift that Midge has, and than tries to make a dent in a showbiz world that had a stone ceiling when it came to female performers or managers, there's a level to her performance that is even more relevant title character. Add to this the fact that she's got the gift for Palladino's dialogue and that she's been deserving of some recognition since the early days of MAD TV,  and I think that's enough to win me over. (Though you could recognize both)

Betty Gilpin, GLOW

I've admired her work since I saw her play an upstart doctor on Nurse Jackie. But like so many of the talents assembled for GLOW, Debbie Egan is her finest hour. Watching her first realize the betrayal of her best friend and her husband, her reluctant involvement in a project she initially thinks is beneath her, and her gradual embrace of a character in some of the funniest ways possible, she remains another one of the characters you admire more than like. That's kind of a talent of Gilpin, one that she has been ignored by the Emmys for too long. I don't think there's any risk of that happening this year.

Yael Grobglas, Jane The Virgin

So much has been written by Gina Rodriguez's incredible work on this CW satire that some of the better actresses on this show often get overlooked. Considering how good Grobglas is, there's a certain level of unfairness. For one thing, by playing Petra and Aneska, twins that couldn't be less alike, as well as playing them playing each other, she's demonstrated a gift for performing that I've only seen Tatiana Maslany master in recent years. But when you consider her work as she tried to deal with multiple relationship, and finally found true love - with another woman - clearly surprised even her. I know its very unlikely she'll be nominated, but she's impossible to ignore. As with Bloom, if her series were on Netflix, she'd have an Emmy already.

Kate McKinnon, Saturday Night Live

Considering that her major character has been regulated the dustbin of history, you think this performer would be less relevant. But I can't ignored how incredibly  funny it is watching her play all the embattled figures - most male - in the current administration. Hell, her work as Jeff Session is remarkable enough for her to be included That said, one nominee from SNL is enough. And try to let someone else win this year.

FOR YOUR CONSIDERATION

D'Arcy Carden, The Good Place

Frankly, were it not for generally high level of quality in this category, I'd have ranked her higher. But Carden's work as Janet, the spiritual AI who runs 'The Good Place' has always been one of the more subtle pleasures of this delightful series. Like so many of the other actors in Season 2, she stepped her game up a notch, showing evidence of malfunction, her wonderful reboots, the 'evil Janet', and the possibility she might be falling in love. All done in a cheerful deadpan. How can she not be considered for this?

My Picks For This Years Emmy Nods: Best Supporting Actor In A Comedy

The good news is, with Veep absent, Tony Hale and Matt Walsh will not take up space. (Though maybe Hale will get a nod anyway.)  The bad news is this category will very likely see the return of Sean Hayes.  But even given the level of talent, there are a lot of good possibilities for this category. Here are my choices.

Alec Baldwin, Saturday Night Live

Or rather, Baldwin's portrayal of Donald Trump. I'm still not wild about a nomination going to an actor who plays one character for five minutes in a cold open. Then again, that is closer to the definition of a Supporting Actor then many of the other SNL nominees, and I've been loosening up my definition since other great sketch comedy series have started turning up,. Regardless of your personal opinion of the man, the imitation still makes me laugh, which is a lot more than you can say for many of the other so called comedians.

Andre Braugher, Brooklyn Nine-Nine

There's just something about watching one of the most versatile actors in television history play deadpan so well to the point that technological devices can't tell whether or not he's a human being. But Chief Holt has always been one of the most winning characters on this criminally under-recognized series (which I'm so glad was saved by NBC!) Besides, considering that in one episode Braugher was willing to satirize the interrogation technique his other alter ego Frank Pembleton mastered prove just how hysterically funny he still is. Another nomination would be nice.

Walon Goggins, Vice Principals

I realize trying to push for a nominee just because the Broadcast Critics chose to recognize them is far from a guarantee that they'll be even acknowledged by the Emmys. But considering how deeply the Emmys has owed this incredibly versatile actor (at least since The Shield), it would be nice to acknowledge him once. Add to this the fact that watching Boyd after ascending to the rank of principal ending up watching everything else in his life implode to the point that a tiger nearly killed him in the series finale demonstrates the astonishing gift for comedy I frankly didn't think he had in him. He deserves some recognition, even though I have no doubt he'll soon appear in another brilliant series the Emmys will snub him for.

Brian Tyree Henry, Atlanta

Watching Paperboy try to deal with his sudden fame in surprising ways led to some truly sublime moments throughout Season 2. From trying to get the right kind of weed to ending up taking a surreal walk in the woods to trying to decide whether his cousin was the right time of man to deal with his burgeoning fame, Henry continued to demonstrate that he is perhaps the most underutilized comic talent on the show. He was deservedly recognized with a nomination for his work on This is Us last season.  A comedy nomination would be more than justified.

Marc Maron, GLOW

Without a doubt, the odds on favorite in this category. As the creator of the women's wrestling league/B-Movie Producer/cocaine addict Sam, Maron was the most consistently funny performers on this series. That's not a huge shock considering he's had a nearly quarter-century career as a stand-up comic. But considering that almost all of the work he has done in the medium has involved playing a variation of himself, to see him not only seize on this meaty character but manage to make it his own was one of the more remarkable accomplishment of this incredible series.  He deserves to win the top prize.

Tony Shalhoub, The Marvelous Mrs. Maisel

There have been few limits that this exceptional actor has managed to master in well over twenty years in television. But watching him play Miriam's beleaguered father who seems determined to be fixed in an old world while a revolution is coming led him to levels that, frankly, I really didn't expect from Adrian Monk. As he tries to find some semblance of order in this chaos of this world, one finds him endearing even when he asks like a bastard. I never thought he should have gotten any of his Emmys for Monk. For this show, however, he more than deserves a seat at the table.

FOR YOUR CONSIDERATION

Neil Flynn, The Middle

If there is a series that has been utterly robbed by the Emmys, it is this brilliant ABC comedy. And if there is an actor who is long overdue Emmy recognition, it is Flynn. From the decade he spent as the Janitor on Scrubs, he immediately went into the role of the often muddle but still steadfast father of the keeping-their-head-above water Heck clan. All of the cast members -Patricia Heaton and Eden Sher in particular - deserve some kind of recognition. But as another brilliant undervalued comedy disappears from the airwaves, this improv giant deserves like Heck some nomination.

My Picks For This Years Emmys: Best Actress In A Comedy

OUTSTANDING LEAD ACTRESS IN A COMEDY

Do the Emmys even remember what it was like to give an award in this category to someone who wasn't Julia-Louis Dreyfus? By definition, someone different will win the Best Actress prize this time. (Of course, it's possible they could nominate Debra Messing again, but still...) The prohibitive favorite would appear to be Rachel Brosnahan, who won both the Golden Globe and the Critics Choice. But there's room for a lot of new blood in this category (they did expand it to seven nominees last year). So here's who I'd consider.

Kirsten Bell, The Good Place

As Eleanor slowly began growing after the hundreds of reboots, it became clear that there might have been a decent person (if not a saint) within her. And as she began to realize that Chidi might be her soulmate after all, it actually demonstrated how much she's begun to (albeit against her well) evolve. That aside, Bell is an outstanding talent who's been due an Emmy nomination since Veronica Mars. Can we pull the trigger this time, or does she have to deliver a train of cocaine to the judges?

Rachel Bloom, Crazy Ex-Girlfriend

I feel like I'm beating my head against the wall, considering that the Emmys have basically decided CW series are unworthy of Emmys no matter how brilliant they are. But come on. Rebecca's journey this season was the kind, if it had been on Netflix, would be on the shortlist. She hit rock bottom, somehow managed to drill deeper than that,  nearly committed suicide, was finally diagnosed, and in the finale, finally realized that she could keep blame her problems on other people any more. She did all this while writing songs and dance numbers that basically humiliated her, and continues, as she demonstrates on constant award show cameos, that she should be hosting everything. Give her a nomination. And not just for songwriting.

Alison Brie, GLOW

Ruth is a different kind of character than so many of the ones we see on TV comedies. She's an actress who can't find a role, she auditions for a wrestling show without knowing anything about wrestling, and she has an affair with her best friend's husband, which she still hasn't been forgiven for. And as she finds herself taking on the role of the villain on the show, it becomes clear that she, like so many leads in Kohan's world, is very hard to like. But there's something plucky about Brie as she does more and more to raise the humanity as a fish out of water, forming an intriguing relationship with Sam, and desperately trying to rebuild her friendship with Debbie. Like the lead, she's definitely appealing. And like Ruth,  Brie's overdue recognition. My guess is she'll get noticed this year.

Rachel Brosnahan, The Marvelous Mrs. Maisel

One would be tempting to write Midge off as just another Amy Sherman-Palladino character; after all, she is a fast-talking brunette, albeit one who curses.. But in the hands of this brilliant actress, Brosnahan managed to find the sweet spot between hilarity and poignancy as her character was abandoned by her husband, blamed by her family, and constantly jailed for obscenity, as she delivers her hysterical rants about the life she finds herself locked into. I still don't know which comedienne Palladino has modeled her after, but in the hands of Brosnahan, she has become another brilliant creation on this actress' impressive resume. (And she's still only 27!) It would be good for the series to win an Emmy to make up for the decades of the Palladinos being ignore by the Academy. It would be good for Brosnahan to win because she deserves it.

Issa Rae, Insecure

As the series navigated the second season, Issa (the character) navigated her post-breakup life messily and her career even more timidly, as she dealt with kinds of racism most series don't take into account. Rae, the actress-writer, was just as brilliant, remaining hysterically funny, emotionally raw, vulnerable, angry, and just about any other emotion that she could find. She's already become one of HBO's great unsung talents, on the verge of becoming one of the great creative forces on TV. How about this year we give the mandatory HBO Best Actress in a comedy slot to someone who really has earned it?

Tracee Ellis Ross, black-ish

Bow has always been the soul of the Johnson family, always willing to prick the bubble of Dre's inflated sense of outrage. She always manages to bring the comedy, but the season showed her stretching her dramatic muscles, first in dealing with post-partum depression, then with the struggles of a fragmenting marriage, and finally dealing with the passing of her father. Her journey this season was funny and moving, often simultaneously, and its hard to think of a reason, any reason, to ignore her for a nomination.

FOR YOUR CONSIDERATION

Frankie Shaw, SMILF

It's likely that if there's a seventh nod, it'll go to a veteran actress like Alison Janney, Lily Tomlin or Jane Fonda, but is also possible that it will go to another hyphenate. In my mind, there are two women who worthy of such a nod: Pamela Adlon for Better Things or Shaw for this undervalued Showtime series about a twenty-ish woman living on the poverty, trying to find some kind of way to build a life for herself and her makeshift family. There will brilliant moments of humor, and moves into darker territory as Frankie dealt with sexual abuse of her character as a child. Adlon deserves recognition just as much as Shaw does, but I give the slightest of edges to the latter. It can be at least as experimental as Better Things, and often a bit funnier.

Picks For This Years Emmys: Best Actor In A Comedy

So far, the main competition will probably come down to Ted Danson, Donald Glover and William H. Macy, based on awards given out so far. Aziz Ansari is ineligible and, given his legal trouble, Jeffrey Tambor probably will be ignored It is likely that the Emmys will consider reboots mainly from Curb Your Enthusiasm and Will & Grace, but why not consider some new blood? Here are my contenders

Anthony Anderson, black-ish

I keep thinking how remarkable it is the man so brilliant on dramatic series as The Shield and Law & Order, could return so astonishingly to his comic roots. And in the current season, he managed to merge them both perfectly. Attacking his family on game night, exasperating his co-workers with his social justice, dealing with the loss of his eldest daughter to college - that's the Dre we love. But when he had to deal  with his marriage beginning to crumble from within, forcing him to leave the home he'd built, that's when we saw the dramatic roots. There's no way he's not worthy of another nomination.

Jason Bateman, Arrested Development

We don't give nearly enough credit to straight men in comedy series. (Although considering the Bluths, the better term might be 'least crazy'. But Michael has a sweet spot for dealing with the collective insanity for the rest of the family that still manages to register laughs more than a decade after we first met him. There may be a lot of social reasons to ignore this series and this actor, but the fact is his comic skills remain unmatched. Still sane after all these years.

Ted Danson, The Good Place

The revelation about Michael was the shocker of Season 1's finale. But in Season 2, he actually became even funnier as this omnipotent being, faced with being wiped from existence, found himself, first unwillingly and then almost movingly, became an empathic being willing to challenge the system he'd spent eternity serving. Watching him fight for Eleanor and the others was remarkable - and makes it think the series has a future. Besides, who could resist his helpful bartender routine in the season finale.

Donald Glover, Atlanta

You wouldn't think there was anything more to say about Glover after winning multiple Emmys last year. But he always delights in proving us wrong. As Earn continued to suffer humiliation after humiliation, professionally, personally, and in ways that we probably don't have words for yet, he somehow managed to express so much even though he internalizes everything he does. And that's without counting everything we saw 'Teddy Perkins' do. I'm generally inclined to dislike repetition, but I wouldn't mind in this case.

Bill Hader, Barry

Like so many SNL vets, I was never much of a fan of his characters on the show, but once liberated into comedy series, Hader demonstrates new life. In this case, playing a hitman who wants to become an actor even though he's much better at the former than the latter, Hader managed to express a level of comic timing and real pathos, particularly in the final episodes. One could make the argument that he's is ripping off so many other antihero stories (but HBO is the place to do that), but Barry has a charm and real humanity that so many of those others lack. I'm willing to give him a chance.

William H. Macy, Shameless

This series continues to grow on me with each successive, the same way that Frank has been, incrementally showing signs of growth with each successive year. And in Season 8, Frank showed more humanity than we've seen this entire season, as he dealt with the death of his beloved, by going on a path of reformation (he was sober for half the year!) and trying to become more of a better human being. It didn't last of course (nothing in the Gallagher clan ever does) but it was fun and more entertaining to watch than I've seen in awhile. Macy certainly isn't lacking for Emmys, but I wouldn't mind him winning this year.

FOR YOUR CONSIDERATION

Matt LeBlanc, Episodes

Alright, I know, he didn't grow or change - albeit he finally became part of a successful series again. But in the final season of this criminally undervalued Showtime meta-comedy, Matt continued to demonstrate that he could find new lows to reach, even when dealing with the death of his father, 'masturbating in front of America', and continuing to humiliate poor Sean and Beverly. This is literally the role that Matt LeBlanc was born to play. He should be rewarded for doing it so well.