65th Primetime Emmy Awards Recap

 

The 65th Primetime Emmy's, which aired on Monday, began as any television awards ceremony should, with host Neil Patrick Harris attempting to binge watch an entire season's worth of television, which funny and disorientating results. Throughout the night, Harris, if nothing else, was an enthusiastic host. Often presenters are forced to deliver line after line of bad jokes, and while for Harris it was no different, he seemed to generally enjoy himself, giggling at the bland jokes, like when he had to 'pause' American Horror Story: Asylum on his contact lenses to stop from screaming. I found it a little disappointing that Harris had his opening interrupted by previous host to give him advice on doing the gig, despite the fact he has done it before, although it cultivated in a hilarious performance by Kevin Spacey donna the persona of Frank Underwood from his series House of Cards.

 

 

The extremely funny Tina Fey and Amy Poehler, who always have great chemistry, presented the first award for Outstanding Supporting Actress in a Comedy Series which went to Merritt Wever for her portrayal of Zoey Barkow on Nurse Jackie. A surprising win, but an even more memorable speech. Short, but not so much sweet. At least it saved some valuable running time for the show.

 

 

The Outstanding Writing for a Comedy Series category was pre-empted with a pre-recorded segment in which the writers were asked, 'Who's your favourite cast member to write for?'. Proving that she totally deserved the award, Tina Fey (who also won the award with Tracy Wigfield for their writing on the series finale of 30 Rock), started her recording by thanking the 2009 People's Choice Awards, before releasing it was a recording for the Emmy's and bluntly stating: 'That's going to get cut for time, I'm not doing that.'

 

The Deschanel sisters cleverly introduced the Outstanding Supporting Actor in a Comedy Series my noting the diversity of the category, slyly highlighting the presence of three Modern Family actors who all play fathers. In another surprising win for a supporting actor, none of those Modern Family cast members won this year, bur rather the award went to Tony Hale  for his portrayal of Gary Walsh on Veep. It was heart-warming to see Julia Louis-Dreyfus, the female lead of Veep, look so happy for her co-stars achievement as he accepted the award.

She went on to win, Outstanding Lead Actress in a Comedy Series for her portrayal of Selina Meyer on Veep for the second year in a row, and was equally as humbling with her acceptance speech.

 

Meliss Leo, who won an Emmy for Outstanding Guest Actress in Louie went on to announce the winner of Outstanding Directing in a Comedy Series, which went to Gale Mancuso for Modern Family, and the voiceover thought it important to tell the audience that this was only the second time a woman had won this award.

 

Jimmy Kimmel and Sofia Vegara awarded Jim Parsons Oustanding Lead Actor in a Comedy Series for his portrayal of Sheldon Cooper on The Big Bang Theory, who gave a fast yet emotional speech.

Elton John performed a tribute performance for Liberace, a song he wrote titled 'Home Again', and while he made no effort to hide reading straight from the teleprompter during his introduction, the performance of the hauntingly nostalgic tune was solid.

 

 

Matt Damon and Michael Douglas, stars of the Liberace biopic Behind the Candelabra, presented the Outstanding Lead Actress in a Mini-Series/ Movie to Laura Linney for her swansong as Cathy Jamison on The Big C: Hereafter.

 

Harris, along with his How I Met Your Mother co-stars did a skit as a public service announcement for, EHD - 'Excessive Hosting Disorder', which Harris, having now hosted several award shows, must be rehabilitated in The Ryan Seacrest Center for Excessive Hosting.

 

 

Connie Britton and Blair Underwood honoured to the recently passed Henry Bromell for the Homeland episode "Q&A", which was a most deserving win, and his widow Sarah accepted the award. They also gave Anna Gunn the Emmy for Outstanding Supporting Actress in a Drama Series for her portrayal of Skyler White on Breaking Bad, and again, it was a most deserving win.

 

Although Harris was coy leading up to the Emmy about performing a musical number at the awards, which he has none become know for, during the half-way mark of the show he broke out into a song aptly titled, 'The Number in the Middle of the Show'. While I wanted to role my eyes before it had even become, the number was short, sweet, and was tongue-in-check in its self-awareness so for a musical number, it went down quite well. Plus Nathan Fillion's cameo served as a mini Dr. Horrible's Sing-Along Blog reunion.

Mindy Katling and Stephen Amell awkwardly presented the Outstanding Reality/ Competition Program to The Voice, breaking The Amazing's Race's winning streak.

Kerry Washington honoured Bobby Cannavale for his one season portrayal of  Gyp Rosetti on Boardwalk Empire (who's dating Australia's own Rose Bryne apparently).

Dylan McDermott and Julianna Margulies presented the Emmy for Outstanding Lead Actor in a Drama Series, which surprisingly went to first-time nominee Jeff Daniels for his portrayal of Will McAvoy on The Newsroom.

Six-time Grammy Award winner Carrie Underwood then performed a tribute to the historic events of fifty years ago, 1963, The Beatles 'Yesterday'. It's a great song, but unfortunately I don't think it was the best fit for Underwood's naturally more upbeat twang.

Jimmy Fallon, unhilarously struggling with a moving microphone, honoured Claire Danes with her second win for Outstanding Lead Actress in a Drama Series for her role as Carries Mathison on Homeland.

Outstanding Guest Actor and Actress in a Drama Series, Dan Bucatinsky and Carrie Preston presented Outstanding Directing for a Drama Series to David Fincher for House of Cards.

Jim Parsons and Bob Newhart, who got a standing ovation, honoured The Colbert Report (which also won Outstanding Variety Series as well) with the Emmy for Outstanding Writing for a Variety Series, which is a welcome change from the usual winner Jon Stewart, although I wish his speech would have been as funny as his show usually his. Outstanding Directing for a Variety Series went to Don Roy King for his work on Saturday Night Live.

Harris and the nominees for Outstanding Choreography then performed a dance routine highlighting and using the music from some of the awards most prominent featuring shows, which was a fascinating celebration of both dance and television combined. Tim Gunn and Heidi Klum, winners of the Outstanding Reality Host for Project Runway, then presented the Emmy to Derek Hough for his work on Dancing With The Stars.

Anna Faris and Allison Janney (of which Janney is either really tall or Faris really really short) announced the Emmy for Outstanding Writing for a Miniseries or Movie, which went to Abu Morgan for The Hour, and the Emmy for Outstanding Supporting Actor in a Miniseries or Movie which went to James Cromwell for his role as Dr. Arthur Arden / Hans Grüper on American Horror Story: Asylum.

Andre Braugher and Mark Harlin presented Steven Soderbergh with the Emmy for Outstanding Directing for a Miniseries or Movie for his work on Behind The Candelabra, which also picked up Outstanding Lead Actor in a Miniseries or Movie for Michael Douglas's (who gave a short but hilarious speech) portrayal of Liberace, and Outstanding Miniseries or Movie.

Best Supporting Actress in a Miniseries or Movie went to Ellen Burstyn for her portrayal as Margaret Barrish Worthington on Political Animals.

To present the final two awards Will Ferrell (and his kids because of his inability to find good child care) took to the stage, honouring Modern Family with the Emmy for Outstanding Comedy Series, and Breaking Bad for Outstanding Drama Series. Great to finally see Breaking Bad getting the allocades it deserves.

Overall, the show was nothing spectacular, and could have really done with more skits. But that would mean more time, and until the organisers of shows like this realise the less presenters the more smooth-flowing the show feels, there will likely never me more time allocated to do this. As I said at the beginning Harris was a fine host yet again, I'm not sure about some of the gay jokes made at his expense though, although they were funny, and he seemed to enjoy them too, so I guess that makes it okay? The most interesting moments of the evening though were the many surprise winners, many first-timers, which always makes for refreshing viewing. Because of this I only managed to correctly predict 6 winners for the 15 categories I made predictions on. Anyway, here what I thought were the best/ worst parts of the evening.

Best Speech Award: Michael Douglas (provided some playful banter with co-star Matt Damon who was sitting in the audience).

Worst Speech Award: Gale Mancuso (Said her and her kids were going to listen to Blurred Lines and not Poker Face in the car on the way home. Umm, what?).

Most Deserving Award: Claire Danes (for Outstanding Leas Actress in a Drama Series).
Biggest Upset Award: Jeff Daniels (Outstanding Lead Actor in a Drama Series, which could have gone to many other deserving nominees, like Bryan Cranston or last year's winner Damien Lewis).
Funniest Moment Award: For those that have seen House of Cards, Spacey's bit was hilarious, but otherwise it would be Nathan Fillion and Sarah Silverman's cameo in 'The Number in the Middle of the Show'.
Worst Moment Award: Jimmy Fallon tries to introduced nominees with a moving microphone.

Did everyone else enjoy the show? What was your favourite/ most memorable part of the night?

USA Is Not Interested In Happy Endings

You'd look like this too if your show had just been cancelled.

Back in April Sony TV, the leading studio behind ABC's beloved yet low rated comedy Happy Endings, starting exploring the possibility of another studio network picking up the series for a fourth season if ABC did not decide to renew it. The USA network were of particular interest, wanting to branch out with adding some half-hour comedies to their programming. Having acquired the off-network comedy Modern Family, USA were said to be looking for an orignal comedy to pair with the series. And Happy Endings seemed like a logcial move, it aired behind Modern Family on ABC for two seasons, and did reasonably well in the ratings before it was moved to form a comedy block with the now also cancelled Don’t Trust The B—- At Apt. 23.

In mid-May, ABC did what most people thought they would, cancelled their beloved yet low rated comedy Happy Endings. And last Saturday it was announced that USA had opted not to pick up the show for a fourth season. Although the show was seen as doing well creatively by the cable network, its low ratings on ABC meant that it would involve a large investment in marketing and promotion by USA, and having just ordered two of their own comedy pilots, Sirens and Playing House, thought the money would be better spent on developing them.

Fans are still convinced that there is a home for Happy Endings someone though. Last year another beloved yet low rated comedy series on ABC, Cougar Town, which was also in its third season, was cancelled only to be picked up by TBS, where it has proven successful and earned itself a fifth season, and many think TBS should do the same for Happy Endings. Then's there's the online television streaming services as well. Netflix just debuted a fourth season of critical darling Arrested Development, which was cancelled by Fox eight years ago, and despite mixed reviews, has received a lot of buzz. There's also Amazon, who just ordered two comedy pilots, Alpha House and Betas, as apart of their first attempt at original programming.

There are basically any number of possible networks that could renew Happy Endings, but in my opnion, the show best bet for the show to continue was always on ABC. It's a shame that the news of USA's possible acquistion of the show was discovered before it was even cancelled. I would imagine fans would have fought harder for the show if it hadn't, but instead it seemed many were complacement to the idea that USA would pick it, and that that would be that. Do I hear a Kickstarter anyone? Insert-not-really-witty-comment-here-because-every-single-writer-does-it-relating-to-the-title-of-the-show-and-it's-newfound-irony.

2012 64th Primetime Emmy Awards Recap

Last week the 64th Primetime Emmy Awards were held, and despite my best efforts at predicting which shows and actors would take home a golden statue for their outstanding achievement in television, there were many surprising wins. Which was good, it added a much needed entertainment factor to the often long and dry affairs awards ceremonies tend to be. While many of my predictions were wrong, and even fewer were those I actually wanted to win, looking at the winners, it's good to see that the quality of television and acting was so good among all the nominees. Majority of the time I didn't mind that I had guessed incorrectly, or if my favourite show or actor lost, because it was easy to see the excellent quality of majority of the nominees. Overall, out of the ten categories I made predictions on, I only correctly guessed four, and there were only two categories in which a nominee I wanted to win actually won.

As for the ceremony itself, I always find it fun seeing television world collide when stars come together to do skits for events like this, but while the opening was fun, it could have been better. Jimmy Kimmell did fine as the host, and he most definitely has a touch of pompousness about him that really is necessary for hosts of shows like this to have. I couldn't help but feel a lot of the time though that Kimmell was given lines because he was the host and they had to give them to him. Having him introduce presenters with a usually not all that amusing one-liner just seems like a waste of time, and it goes on to cement my idea that perhaps award ceremonies shouldn't have hosts, or if they do, several of them, so that so producing the event don't feel as thigh they have to throw the host an unnecessary line because he hasn't been on screen in the last five minutes. I really could have done with more skits, and the only really funny one worth mentioning was Modern Family's candid look behind-the-scenes hilariously depicting how Aubrey Anderson-Emmons (who plays Lily on the show) terrorises her older cast members and makes work a living hell for them all.

I quite enjoyed the shorts of nominees being asked questions like how do you overcome writers block? (for outstanding writing for a drama series nominees) and several others similar to it. I wish that insight into the creative people behind the shows is fascinating and all the nominees should have been given the chance to answer questions like that (plus some of the answers were quite funny). As for the speeches, there were none to memorable, other than Julia Louis-Dreyfus and Amy Poehler's obviously planned yet still amusing speech mix up.

And it seems the producers were extremely erratic in deciding who long people would get to speak. The writers of Homeland, Alex Gansa,  Howard Gordon & Gideon Raff, were cut very short, while Julie Bowen of Modern Family was allowed to prattle on for a while. Here's a list of the major winners (again, not all of them, only the main ones which I know a bit about) and my thoughts on the outcomes (winners are highlighted in bold).

Outstanding Drama Series:
Boardwalk Empire (HBO)
Breaking Bad (AMC)
Downton Abbey (PBS)
Mad Men (AMC)
Homeland (Showtime)
Game of Thrones (HBO)

This is what I'm talking about. Other than Mad Men (which I tried to watch and think is incredibly overrated) and Game of Thrones (no where near anywhere as good as the other shows in this category), I would have been okay seeing any of these dramas win. Nice to have some fresh blood take the win after Mad Men's three consecutive years.

Outstanding Lead Actor in a Drama Series:
Steve Buscemi as Nucky Thompson, Boardwalk Empire (HBO)
Michael C. Hall as Dexter Morgan, Dexter (Showtime)
Bryan Cranston as Walter White, Breaking Bad (AMC)
Hugh Bonneville as Robert Crawley, Downton Abbey (PBS)
Jon Hamm as Don Draper, Mad Men (AMC)
Damian Lewis as Nicholas Brody, Homeland (Showtime)

The exact same thing can be said about this category, Damian Lewis got credit where credits due. If an actor can make American audiences sympathise with a terrorist, you know he's doing something right.

Outstanding Lead Actress in a Drama Series:
Julianna Margulies as Alicia Florrick, The Good Wife (CBS)
Michelle Dockery as Lady Mary Crawley, Downton Abbey (PBS)
Elisabeth Moss as Peggy Olson, Mad Men (AMC)
Kathy Bates as Harriet Korn, Harry's Law (NBC)
Claire Danes as Carrie Mathison, Homeland (Showtime)
Glenn Close as Patty Hewes, Damages (DirecTV)

Most deserving win of the night, it would have been a crime if Danes hadn't of won.

Outstanding Supporting Actor in a Drama Series:
Aaron Paul as Jesse Pinkman, Breaking Bad (AMC)
Giancarlo Esposito as Gustavo 'Gus' Fring, Breaking Bad (AMC)
Brendan Coyle as John Bates, Downton Abbey (PBS)
Jim Carter as Mr. Carson, Downton Abbey (PBS)
Jared Harris as Lane Pryce, Mad Men (AMC)
Peter Dinklage as Tyrion Lannister, Game Of Thrones (HBO)

I still would have liked Giancarlo Esposito to win, but it's nice to see something good happen to 'Jesse' for once.

Outstanding Supporting Actress in a Drama Series:
Archie Panjabi as Kalinda Sharma, The Good Wife (CBS)
Anna Gunn as Skyler White, Breaking Bad (PBS)
Maggie Smith as Dowager Countess of Grantham/ Violet, Downton Abbey (PBS)
Joanne Froggatt as Anna, Downton Abbey (PBS)
Christina Hendricks as Joan Holloway Harris, Mad Men (AMC)
Christine Baranski as Diane Lockhart, The Good Wife (CBS)

I like Maggie Smith as much as the next guy, but I think her prudish character/ performance of Downton Abbey is a bit overrated, although I haven't seen all of the nominees in action, so who am I to say she didn't deserve it?

Outstanding Comedy Series:
Curb Your Enthusiasm (HBO)
Girls (HBO)
30 Rock (NBC)
Veep (HBO)
Modern Family (ABC)
The Big Bang Theory (CBS)

Modern Family a solid comedy, so I have no qualms with it's win, even though I prefer to watch 30 Rock and The Big Bang Theory. Nice to see two new female-centric comedies in the mix, I might need to check them out.

Outstanding Lead Actor in a Comedy Series:
Larry David as Himself, Curb Your Enthusiasm (HBO)
Jon Cryer as Alan Harper, Two And A Half Men (CBS)
Louis C.K. as Louie, Louie (FX)
Jim Parsons as Sheldon Cooper, The Big Bang Theory (CBS)
Don Cheadle as Marty Kaan, House Of Lies (Showtime)
Alec Baldwin as Jack Donaghy, 30 Rock (NBC)

This one was a surprise. I'd say most of the other actors in this category were more deserving of the award, but it's nice to see Cryer get some praise after having to play second-fiddle to Charlie Sheen on a mediocre show for eight seasons.

Outstanding Lead Actress in a Comedy Series:
Zooey Deschanel as Jess Day, New Girl (FOX)
Lena Dunham as Hannah Horvath, Girls (HBO)
Edie Falco as Jackie Peyton, Nurse Jackie (Showtime)
Amy Poehler as Leslie Knope, Parks And Recreation (NBC)
Tina Fey as Liz Lemon, 30 Rock (NBC)
Julia Louis-Dreyfus as Selina Meyer, Veep (HBO)
Melissa McCarthy as Molly Flynn, Mike & Molly (CBS)

Again, the talent of all these nominees speaks for itself, it could have easily gone to anyone.

Outstanding Supporting Actor in a Comedy Series:
Ed O'Neill as Jay Pritchett, Modern Family (ABC)
Jesse Tyler Ferguson as Mitchell Pritchett, Modern Family (ABC)
Ty Burrell as Phil Dunphy, Modern Family (ABC)
Eric Stonestreet as Cameron Tucker, Modern Family (ABC)
Bill Hader as Various Characters, Saturday Night Live (NBC)
Max Greenfield as Schmidt, New Girl (FOX)

If a Modern Family actor had to win this (and I mean, who am I kidding, one of them had to, look at those odds), I wanted it to be Stonestreet, he plays a gay man so well. I really cannot wait to see Max Greenfield really show the rest of the world what he's made of, he's performance of Schmidt on New Girl is must see.

Outstanding Supporting Actress in a Comedy Series:
Mayim Bialik as Amy Farrah Fowler, The Big Bang Theory (CBS)
Merritt Wever as Zoey Barkow, Nurse Jackie (Showtime)
Julie Bowen as Claire Dunphy, Modern Family (ABC)
Kristen Wiig as various characters, Saturday Night Live (NBC)
Sofia Vergara as Gloria Delgado-Pritchett, Modern Family (ANC)
Kathryn Joosten as Karen McCluskey, Desperate Housewives (ABC)

Again, could have gone to anyone, although I wish it had been Vergara over Bowen.

Thanks for reading. What was your favourite/ least favourite part of the 64th Primetime Emmy Awards? Happy with the winners? Let me know in the comments.

My 2012 Emmy Predictions

Here are my picks for the 2012 Emmy's, who I think will take home the prize, and who I think should.

Outstanding Drama Series:
Boardwalk Empire (HBO)
Breaking Bad (AMC)
Downton Abbey (PBS)
Mad Men (AMC)
Homeland (Showtime)
Game of Thrones (HBO)

Who I Want to Win: Boardwalk Empire does what a lot of these nominated shows do well. It's based in the past and effectively portrays stories relevant to the present, has a distinct visual style, an anti-hero as a protagonist, and an incredible ensemble cast who each have their own story to tell. It's the combination of all these aspects together that make it so good.
Who I Think Will Win: It arguably had it's best season to date, so Breaking Bad.

Outstanding Lead Actor in a Drama Series:
Steve Buscemi as Nucky Thompson, Boardwalk Empire (HBO)
Michael C. Hall as Dexter Morgan, Dexter (Showtime)
Bryan Cranston as Walter White, Breaking Bad (AMC)
Hugh Bonneville as Robert Crawley, Downton Abbey (PBS)
Jon Hamm as Don Draper, Mad Men (AMC)
Damian Lewis as Nicholas Brody, Homeland (Showtime)

Who I Want to Win: Although I don't think Breaking Bad is the best drama on television, there's no doubt in my mind that Bryan Cranston's Walter White is the best character on television, and Cranston goes above and beyond to portray him.
Who I Think Will Win: Bryan Cranston.

Outstanding Lead Actress in a Drama Series:
Julianna Margulies as Alicia Florrick, The Good Wife (CBS)
Michelle Dockery as Lady Mary Crawley, Downton Abbey (PBS)
Elisabeth Moss as Peggy Olson, Mad Men (AMC)
Kathy Bates as Harriet Korn, Harry's Law (NBC)
Claire Danes as Carrie Mathison, Homeland (Showtime)
Glenn Close as Patty Hewes, Damages (DirecTV)

Who I Want To Win: As much as I love Glenn Close as strong-willed and manipulative Patty Hewes, Claire Danes proved all she's worth as bi-polar CIA agent Carrie Mathison.
Who I Think Will Win: Claire Danes.

Outstanding Supporting Actor in a Drama Series:

Aaron Paul as Jesse Pinkman, Breaking Bad (AMC)
Giancarlo Esposito as Gustavo 'Gus' Fring, Breaking Bad (AMC)
Brendan Coyle as John Bates, Downton Abbey (PBS)
Jim Carter as Mr. Carson, Downton Abbey (PBS)
Jared Harris as Lane Pryce, Mad Men (AMC)
Peter Dinklage as Tyrion Lannister, Game Of Thrones (HBO)

Who I Want To Win: It's hard to go up against Bryan Cranston on screen and outdo him, but Giancarlo Espostio did just that in the last season of Breaking Bad.
Who I Think Will Win: Giancarlo Espostio.

Outstanding Supporting Actress in a Drama Series:
Archie Panjabi as Kalinda Sharma, The Good Wife (CBS)
Anna Gunn as Skyler White, Breaking Bad (PBS)
Maggie Smith as Dowager Countess of Grantham/ Violet, Downton Abbey (PBS)
Joanne Froggatt as Anna, Downton Abbey (PBS)
Christina Hendricks as Joan Holloway Harris, Mad Men (AMC)
Christine Baranski as Diane Lockhart, The Good Wife (CBS)

Who I Want To Win: Unfortunately I've only seen Breaking Bad and Downton Abbey, so from those nominations, Anna Gunn (although I think her performance this season as Skyler will be more worthy on an Emmy next year).
Who I Think Will Win: I hear Christina Hendricks year.

Outstanding Comedy Series:
Curb Your Enthusiasm (HBO)
Girls (HBO)
30 Rock (NBC)
Veep (HBO)
Modern Family (ABC)
The Big Bang Theory (CBS)

Who I Want to Win: I only watch 30 Rock, Modern Family and The Big Bang Theory, and based on their last seasons, I want 30 Rock to win.
Who I Think Will Win: Modern Family seems to have dominated this category since it's debut.

Outstanding Lead Actor in a Comedy Series:
Larry David as Himself, Curb Your Enthusiasm (HBO)
Jon Cryer as Alan Harper, Two And A Half Men (CBS)
Louis C.K. as Louie, Louie (FX)
Jim Parsons as Sheldon Cooper, The Big Bang Theory (CBS)
Don Cheadle as Marty Kaan, House Of Lies (Showtime)
Alec Baldwin as Jack Donaghy, 30 Rock (NBC)

Who I Want to Win: Alec Baldwin continues to make 30 Rock the show it is.
Who I Think Will Win: And so does Jim Parsons.

Outstanding Lead Actress in a Comedy Series:
Zooey Deschanel as Jess Day, New Girl (FOX)
Lena Dunham as Hannah Horvath, Girls (HBO)
Edie Falco as Jackie Peyton, Nurse Jackie (Showtime)
Amy Poehler as Leslie Knope, Parks And Recreation (NBC)
Tina Fey as Liz Lemon, 30 Rock (NBC)
Julia Louis-Dreyfus as Selina Meyer, Veep (HBO)
Melissa McCarthy as Molly Flynn, Mike & Molly (CBS)

Who I Want To Win: I only watch New Girl and 30 Rock, but neither lead role is outstanding, so I'd be happy to see anyone win, perhaps Amy Poehler since she is yet to get an accolade.
Who I Think Will Win: Possibly one of leads of HBO's freshmen comedies, lets say Julia Louis-Dreyfus.

Outstanding Supporting Actor in a Comedy Series:
Ed O'Neill as Jay Pritchett, Modern Family (ABC)
Jesse Tyler Ferguson as Mitchell Pritchett, Modern Family (ABC)
Ty Burrell as Phil Dunphy, Modern Family (ABC)
Eric Stonestreet as Cameron Tucker, Modern Family (ABC)
Bill Hader as Various Characters, Saturday Night Live (NBC)
Max Greenfield as Schmidt, New Girl (FOX)

Who I Want To Win: Max Greenfield upstaged Zooey Deschanel, and made New Girl a much better show.
Who I Think Will Win: As with Jim Parsons, Ty Burrell seems to have this category in the bag.

Outstanding Supporting Actress in a Comedy Series:
Mayim Bialik as Amy Farrah Fowler, The Big Bang Theory (CBS)
Merritt Wever as Zoey Barkow, Nurse Jackie (Showtime)
Julie Bowen as Claire Dunphy, Modern Family (ABC)
Kristen Wiig as various characters, Saturday Night Live (NBC)
Sofia Vergara as Gloria Delgado-Pritchett, Modern Family (ANC)
Kathryn Joosten as Karen McCluskey, Desperate Housewives (ABC)

Who I Want To Win: Modern Family gets a lot of critical acclaim, and the show owes a large part to Sofia Vergara's efforts, so I hope she gets it.
Who I Think Will Win: But Julie Bowen probably will.

I apologise for not previewing the entire list of categories, but my knowledge of the shows represented in them is limited and I didn't want to make any predictions without having seen majority of the programs, although I do hope Jessica Lange wins for Outstanding Supporting Actress in a Mini-series or Movie, American Horror Story, FX. Tune back later in the week for my full review of the Emmy's and my thoughts on all the winners and losers.