NEWS - Emmy per Emmy! Per premiare Rossum e compagnia "Shameless" con una statuetta (meritatissima!), gli Emmy Awards s'inventano di spostare la serie dalla categoria "drama" a quella "comedy" (ma se fa più piangere che ridere!)
Post di Alan Sepiwall per "Hitfix"
For the last four years, "Shameless"
star Emmy Rossum has been giving one of the best
performances in all of television, and yet despite the quality of that work —
and the name that would be a headline writer's best friend — neither she nor
the show she's on has gotten more than a whiff of Emmy recognition. Joan Cusack
has been nominated three years in a row for guest actress in a drama, and
that's it. Nothing for Rossum. Nothing for William H. Macy, who in his non-Frank Gallagher
life has won two Emmys and been nominated for seven more. None for Jeremy Allen
White or Emma Kenney or any of the other superb young actors the show has
discovered, none for the other guest stars or the writing or directing.
The fact that Cusack keeps appearing in the guest category shows you how easy
it can be to game the TV Academy's system — and now "Shameless"
producer John Wells is trying to make like a Gallagher himself and try to game
the system on a bigger scale. Having submitted the show in the Emmy drama
categories the previous three years, Wells and Showtime today announced that
"Shameless" will compete as a comedy at the 2014 Emmys.
Now, on the one hand I cannot blame Wells for trying this. I don't know that
the genre has been the issue for "Shameless." Emmy voters have often
seemed allergic to shows about extremely poor people, especially when they're
not the type who suffer poverty with quiet dignity, but with the kind of
brazen, hustling vulgarity with which the Gallaghers go through life. But odds
are that Rossum was never going to break through in the drama actress category,
not after a year when there were actually seven nominees and still no room at
the inn for her, or for Tatiana Maslany, or several others. At a minimum, the
comedy actress category will have a few openings, since Laura Dern and Tina Fey
aren't eligible again, and Macy should have a much easier time than trying to
crack a drama field that includes Cranston, Hamm, Spacey, and possibly
McConaughey.
On the other hand, this move is, well, shameless. Absurd might be an even
better word for it.
Yes, "Shameless" is a show that blends comedy and drama, and this
year has had room for the usual black humor, like Carl Gallagher aggressively
seeking detention to spend more time with a troublemaking girl he has a crush
on, or Kev discovering what a money pit the bar he inherited really is. I even
had arguments with Showtime executives in the first season that
"Shameless" belonged more in the comedy categories, and not just
because it was an easier path to nominations.
Not this year, though. This has been the darkest, most serious season to date,
and especially for Rossum's Fiona. Never the show's funniest character to begin
with, Fiona's been in a deep, bad spiral all season that included cheating on
her boyfriend, getting high and letting her toddler brother Liam ingest cocaine
(nearly dying and possibly suffering brain damage as a result), becoming a
convicted felon on probation, and in the most recent episode, hitting rock
bottom when being abandoned by fellow junkies at a gas station in Sheboygan.
It's been an impressive arc, and Rossum has again been amazing. I would gladly
see her nominated for any and all awards for what she's doing this year, and
what she's done throughout the show. And it is insane that she would be
competing against performances by Amy Poehler and Melissa McCarthy. It's weird
enough when Edie Falco is up for these things (and won one for the first year
of "Nurse Jackie"), but that's at least a more overtly comic show and
performance, and there's always the half-hour defense.
The rules are the rules, and if Wells can work within them and convince the
Academy to allow "Shameless" to hop categories, then I suppose more
power to him. It's a great show that deserves more recognition than it's
gotten. But I don't know if it'll get substantially more this way, and it'll
feel very strange if it does, all things considered.
That said, new episode Sunday at 9! I expect Fiona to suffer some more!

The fact that
Cusack keeps appearing in the guest category shows you how easy it can
be to game the TV Academy's system — and now "Shameless" producer John
Wells is trying to make like a Gallagher himself and try to game the
system on a bigger scale. Having submitted the show in the Emmy drama
categories the previous three years, Wells and Showtime today announced
that "Shameless" will compete as a comedy at the 2014 Emmys.
Now, on the one hand I cannot blame Wells for trying this. I don't know
that the genre has been the issue for "Shameless." Emmy voters have
often seemed allergic to shows about extremely poor people, especially
when they're not the type who suffer poverty with quiet dignity, but
with the kind of brazen, hustling vulgarity with which the Gallaghers go
through life. But odds are that Rossum was never going to break through
in the drama actress category, not after a year when there were
actually seven nominees and still no room at the inn for her, or for
Tatiana Maslany, or several others. At a minimum, the comedy actress
category will have a few openings, since Laura Dern and Tina Fey aren't
eligible again, and Macy should have a much easier time than trying to
crack a drama field that includes Cranston, Hamm, Spacey, and possibly
McConaughey.
On the other hand, this move is, well, shameless. Absurd might be an even better word for it.
Yes, "Shameless" is a show that blends comedy and drama, and this year
has had room for the usual black humor, like Carl Gallagher aggressively
seeking detention to spend more time with a troublemaking girl he has a
crush on, or Kev discovering what a money pit the bar he inherited
really is. I even had arguments with Showtime executives in the first
season that "Shameless" belonged more in the comedy categories, and not
just because it was an easier path to nominations.
Not this year, though. This has been the darkest, most serious season to
date, and especially for Rossum's Fiona. Never the show's funniest
character to begin with, Fiona's been in a deep, bad spiral all season
that included cheating on her boyfriend, getting high and letting her
toddler brother Liam ingest cocaine (nearly dying and possibly suffering
brain damage as a result), becoming a convicted felon on probation, and
in the most recent episode, hitting rock bottom when being abandoned by
fellow junkies at a gas station in Sheboygan.
It's been an impressive arc, and Rossum has again been amazing. I would
gladly see her nominated for any and all awards for what she's doing
this year, and what she's done throughout the show. And it is
insane that
she would be competing against performances by Amy Poehler and Melissa
McCarthy. It's weird enough when Edie Falco is up for these things (and
won one for the first year of "Nurse Jackie"), but that's at least a
more overtly comic show and performance, and there's always the
half-hour defense.
The rules are the rules, and if Wells can work within them and convince
the Academy to allow "Shameless" to hop categories, then I suppose more
power to him. It's a great show that deserves more recognition than it's
gotten. But I don't know if it'll get substantially more this way, and
it'll feel very strange if it does, all things considered.
That said, new episode Sunday at 9! I expect Fiona to suffer some more!
What does everybody else think? Is the move to comedy fair or foul?
Read more at
http://www.hitfix.com/whats-alan-watching/shameless-to-hop-emmy-categories-from-drama-to-comedy#Ru6WvlY2ZhQq5Yym.99
For the last four years, "
Shameless" star
Emmy Rossum
has been giving one of the best performances in all of television, and
yet despite the quality of that work — and the name that would be a
headline writer's best friend — neither she nor the show she's on has
gotten more than a whiff of Emmy recognition. Joan Cusack has been
nominated three years in a row for guest actress in a drama, and that's
it. Nothing for Rossum. Nothing for
William H. Macy,
who in his non-Frank Gallagher life has won two Emmys and been
nominated for seven more. None for Jeremy Allen White or Emma Kenney or
any of the other superb young actors the show has discovered, none for
the other guest stars or the writing or directing.
The fact that
Cusack keeps appearing in the guest category shows you how easy it can
be to game the TV Academy's system — and now "Shameless" producer John
Wells is trying to make like a Gallagher himself and try to game the
system on a bigger scale. Having submitted the show in the Emmy drama
categories the previous three years, Wells and Showtime today announced
that "Shameless" will compete as a comedy at the 2014 Emmys.
Now, on the one hand I cannot blame Wells for trying this. I don't know
that the genre has been the issue for "Shameless." Emmy voters have
often seemed allergic to shows about extremely poor people, especially
when they're not the type who suffer poverty with quiet dignity, but
with the kind of brazen, hustling vulgarity with which the Gallaghers go
through life. But odds are that Rossum was never going to break through
in the drama actress category, not after a year when there were
actually seven nominees and still no room at the inn for her, or for
Tatiana Maslany, or several others. At a minimum, the comedy actress
category will have a few openings, since Laura Dern and Tina Fey aren't
eligible again, and Macy should have a much easier time than trying to
crack a drama field that includes Cranston, Hamm, Spacey, and possibly
McConaughey.
On the other hand, this move is, well, shameless. Absurd might be an even better word for it.
Yes, "Shameless" is a show that blends comedy and drama, and this year
has had room for the usual black humor, like Carl Gallagher aggressively
seeking detention to spend more time with a troublemaking girl he has a
crush on, or Kev discovering what a money pit the bar he inherited
really is. I even had arguments with Showtime executives in the first
season that "Shameless" belonged more in the comedy categories, and not
just because it was an easier path to nominations.
Not this year, though. This has been the darkest, most serious season to
date, and especially for Rossum's Fiona. Never the show's funniest
character to begin with, Fiona's been in a deep, bad spiral all season
that included cheating on her boyfriend, getting high and letting her
toddler brother Liam ingest cocaine (nearly dying and possibly suffering
brain damage as a result), becoming a convicted felon on probation, and
in the most recent episode, hitting rock bottom when being abandoned by
fellow junkies at a gas station in Sheboygan.
It's been an impressive arc, and Rossum has again been amazing. I would
gladly see her nominated for any and all awards for what she's doing
this year, and what she's done throughout the show. And it is
insane that
she would be competing against performances by Amy Poehler and Melissa
McCarthy. It's weird enough when Edie Falco is up for these things (and
won one for the first year of "Nurse Jackie"), but that's at least a
more overtly comic show and performance, and there's always the
half-hour defense.
The rules are the rules, and if Wells can work within them and convince
the Academy to allow "Shameless" to hop categories, then I suppose more
power to him. It's a great show that deserves more recognition than it's
gotten. But I don't know if it'll get substantially more this way, and
it'll feel very strange if it does, all things considered.
That said, new episode Sunday at 9! I expect Fiona to suffer some more!
What does everybody else think? Is the move to comedy fair or foul?
Read more at
http://www.hitfix.com/whats-alan-watching/shameless-to-hop-emmy-categories-from-drama-to-comedy#Ru6WvlY2ZhQq5Yym.99
For the last four years, "
Shameless" star
Emmy Rossum
has been giving one of the best performances in all of television, and
yet despite the quality of that work — and the name that would be a
headline writer's best friend — neither she nor the show she's on has
gotten more than a whiff of Emmy recognition. Joan Cusack has been
nominated three years in a row for guest actress in a drama, and that's
it. Nothing for Rossum. Nothing for
William H. Macy,
who in his non-Frank Gallagher life has won two Emmys and been
nominated for seven more. None for Jeremy Allen White or Emma Kenney or
any of the other superb young actors the show has discovered, none for
the other guest stars or the writing or directing.
The fact that
Cusack keeps appearing in the guest category shows you how easy it can
be to game the TV Academy's system — and now "Shameless" producer John
Wells is trying to make like a Gallagher himself and try to game the
system on a bigger scale. Having submitted the show in the Emmy drama
categories the previous three years, Wells and Showtime today announced
that "Shameless" will compete as a comedy at the 2014 Emmys.
Now, on the one hand I cannot blame Wells for trying this. I don't know
that the genre has been the issue for "Shameless." Emmy voters have
often seemed allergic to shows about extremely poor people, especially
when they're not the type who suffer poverty with quiet dignity, but
with the kind of brazen, hustling vulgarity with which the Gallaghers go
through life. But odds are that Rossum was never going to break through
in the drama actress category, not after a year when there were
actually seven nominees and still no room at the inn for her, or for
Tatiana Maslany, or several others. At a minimum, the comedy actress
category will have a few openings, since Laura Dern and Tina Fey aren't
eligible again, and Macy should have a much easier time than trying to
crack a drama field that includes Cranston, Hamm, Spacey, and possibly
McConaughey.
On the other hand, this move is, well, shameless. Absurd might be an even better word for it.
Yes, "Shameless" is a show that blends comedy and drama, and this year
has had room for the usual black humor, like Carl Gallagher aggressively
seeking detention to spend more time with a troublemaking girl he has a
crush on, or Kev discovering what a money pit the bar he inherited
really is. I even had arguments with Showtime executives in the first
season that "Shameless" belonged more in the comedy categories, and not
just because it was an easier path to nominations.
Not this year, though. This has been the darkest, most serious season to
date, and especially for Rossum's Fiona. Never the show's funniest
character to begin with, Fiona's been in a deep, bad spiral all season
that included cheating on her boyfriend, getting high and letting her
toddler brother Liam ingest cocaine (nearly dying and possibly suffering
brain damage as a result), becoming a convicted felon on probation, and
in the most recent episode, hitting rock bottom when being abandoned by
fellow junkies at a gas station in Sheboygan.
It's been an impressive arc, and Rossum has again been amazing. I would
gladly see her nominated for any and all awards for what she's doing
this year, and what she's done throughout the show. And it is
insane that
she would be competing against performances by Amy Poehler and Melissa
McCarthy. It's weird enough when Edie Falco is up for these things (and
won one for the first year of "Nurse Jackie"), but that's at least a
more overtly comic show and performance, and there's always the
half-hour defense.
The rules are the rules, and if Wells can work within them and convince
the Academy to allow "Shameless" to hop categories, then I suppose more
power to him. It's a great show that deserves more recognition than it's
gotten. But I don't know if it'll get substantially more this way, and
it'll feel very strange if it does, all things considered.
That said, new episode Sunday at 9! I expect Fiona to suffer some more!
What does everybody else think? Is the move to comedy fair or foul?
Read more at
http://www.hitfix.com/whats-alan-watching/shameless-to-hop-emmy-categories-from-drama-to-comedy#Ru6WvlY2ZhQq5Yym.99