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Updated: 2016 Critics’ Choice TV Award Nominees Announced

There’s a lot to be happy about with the latest awards announcement. The Critics’ Choice Television Award Nominations were announced early Monday morning, and there are a lot of new faces. HBO leads with 22 nominations (no surprise there), but ABC and Netflix trail right behind with 14 each.

Atlanta and Fleabag (yay!!!) landed nominations in the Best Comedy category while HBO’s newest epic, Westworld, will go toe-to-toe with three fan favorites: weekly sobfest This is Us, sci-fi phenomenon Stranger Things, and Netflix’s The Crown. Have you forgotten about FX’s The People v. O.J. Simpson? Critics sure haven’t! The true crime saga picked up 6 more nominations this morning.

The Critics’ Choice Awards will be announced in a televised ceremony December 11 at 8pm ET with host TJ Miller.

Here are your 2016 Critics’ Choice Television Award nominees.

NOTE: Mandy Patinkin was removed as Homeland did not air during the eligibility window. He was replaced by Michael McKean from Better Call Saul.

BEST COMEDY SERIES
Atlanta – FX
Black-ish – ABC
Fleabag – Amazon
Modern Family – ABC
Silicon Valley – HBO
Unbreakable Kimmy Schmidt – Netflix
Veep – HBO

BEST ACTRESS IN A COMEDY SERIES
Ellie Kemper – Unbreakable Kimmy Schmidt – Netflix
Julia Louis-Dreyfus – Veep – HBO
Kate McKinnon – Saturday Night Live – NBC
Tracee Ellis Ross – Black-ish – ABC
Phoebe Waller-Bridge – Fleabag – Amazon
Constance Wu – Fresh Off the Boat – ABC

BEST ACTOR IN A COMEDY SERIES
Anthony Anderson – Black-ish – ABC
Will Forte – The Last Man on Earth – FOX
Donald Glover – Atlanta – FX
Bill Hader – Documentary Now! – IFC
Patrick Stewart – Blunt Talk – Starz
Jeffrey Tambor – Transparent – Amazon

BEST SUPPORTING ACTRESS IN A COMEDY SERIES
Julie Bowen – Modern Family – ABC
Anna Chlumsky – Veep – HBO
Allison Janney – Mom – CBS
Jane Krakowski – Unbreakable Kimmy Schmidt – Netflix
Judith Light – Transparent – Amazon
Allison Williams – Girls – HBO

BEST SUPPORTING ACTOR IN A COMEDY SERIES
Louie Anderson – Baskets – FX
Andre Braugher – Brooklyn Nine-Nine – FOX
Tituss Burgess – Unbreakable Kimmy Schmidt – Netflix
Ty Burrell – Modern Family – ABC
Tony Hale – Veep – HBO
T.J. Miller – Silicon Valley – HBO

BEST GUEST PERFORMER IN A COMEDY SERIES
Alec Baldwin – Saturday Night Live – NBC
Christine Baranski – The Big Bang Theory – CBS
Larry David – Saturday Night Live – NBC
Lisa Kudrow – Unbreakable Kimmy Schmidt – Netflix
Liam Neeson – Inside Amy Schumer – Comedy Central

BEST ANIMATED SERIES
Archer – FX
Bob’s Burgers – FOX
BoJack Horseman – Netflix
Son of Zorn – FOX
South Park – Comedy Central
The Simpsons – FOX

BEST REALITY COMPETITION SERIES
America’s Got Talent – NBC
MasterChef Junior – FOX
RuPaul’s Drag Race – Logo
Skin Wars – GSN
The Amazing Race – CBS
The Voice – NBC

BEST STRUCTURED REALITY SERIES
Chopped – Food Network
Inside The Actors Studio – Bravo
Penn & Teller: Fool Us – The CW
Project Runway – Lifetime
Shark Tank – ABC
Undercover Boss – CBS

BEST UNSTRUCTURED REALITY SERIES
Anthony Bourdain: Parts Unknown – CNN
Chrisley Knows Best – USA Network
Deadliest Catch – Discovery
Ice Road Truckers – History
Intervention – A&E
Naked and Afraid – Discovery

BEST TALK SHOW
Full Frontal with Samantha Bee – TBS
Jimmy Kimmel Live! – ABC
Last Week Tonight with John Oliver – HBO
The Daily Show with Trevor Noah – Comedy Central
The Late Late Show with James Corden – CBS
The Tonight Show Starring Jimmy Fallon – NBC

BEST REALITY SHOW HOST
Ted Allen – Chopped – Food Network
Tom Bergeron – Dancing with the Stars – ABC
Anthony Bourdain – Anthony Bourdain: Parts Unknown – CNN
Nick Cannon – America’s Got Talent – NBC
Carson Daly – The Voice – NBC
RuPaul – RuPaul’s Drag Race – Logo

BEST SUPPORTING ACTOR IN A DRAMA SERIES
Peter Dinklage – Game of Thrones – HBO
Kit Harington – Game of Thrones – HBO
John Lithgow – The Crown – Netflix
Michael McKean – Better Call Saul – Showtime
Christian Slater – Mr. Robot – USA Network
Jon Voight – Ray Donovan – Showtime

BEST SUPPORTING ACTRESS IN A DRAMA SERIES
Christine Baranski – The Good Wife – CBS
Emilia Clarke – Game of Thrones – HBO
Lena Headey – Game of Thrones – HBO
Thandie Newton – Westworld – HBO
Maura Tierney – The Affair – Showtime
Constance Zimmer – UnREAL – Lifetime

BEST ACTOR IN A DRAMA SERIES
Sam Heughan – Outlander – Starz
Rami Malek – Mr. Robot – USA Network
Bob Odenkirk – Better Call Saul – AMC
Matthew Rhys – The Americans – FX
Liev Schreiber – Ray Donovan – Showtime
Kevin Spacey – House of Cards – Netflix

BEST ACTRESS IN A DRAMA SERIES
Caitriona Balfe – Outlander – Starz
Viola Davis – How to Get Away with Murder – ABC
Tatiana Maslany – Orphan Black – BBC America
Keri Russell – The Americans – FX
Evan Rachel Wood – Westworld – HBO
Robin Wright – House of Cards – Netflix

BEST DRAMA SERIES
Better Call Saul – AMC
Game of Thrones – HBO
Mr. Robot – USA Network
Stranger Things – Netflix
The Crown – Netflix
This Is Us – NBC
Westworld – HBO

BEST GUEST PERFORMER IN A DRAMA SERIES
Mahershala Ali – House of Cards – Netflix
Lisa Bonet – Ray Donovan – Showtime
Ellen Burstyn – House of Cards – Netflix
Michael J. Fox – The Good Wife – CBS
Jared Harris – The Crown – Netflix
Jeffrey Dean Morgan – The Walking Dead – AMC

BEST MOVIE MADE FOR TELEVISION OR LIMITED SERIES
All the Way – HBO
Confirmation – HBO
Killing Reagan – National Geographic
Roots – History
The Night Manager – AMC
The People v. O.J. Simpson – FX

BEST ACTOR IN A MOVIE MADE FOR TELEVISION OR LIMITED SERIES
Bryan Cranston – All the Way – HBO
Benedict Cumberbatch – Sherlock: The Abominable Bride – PBS
Cuba Gooding Jr. – The People v. O.J. Simpson – FX
Tom Hiddleston – The Night Manager – AMC
Tim Matheson – Killing Reagan – National Geographic
Courtney B. Vance – The People v. O.J. Simpson – FX

BEST SUPPORTING ACTOR IN A MOVIE MADE FOR TELEVISION OR LIMITED SERIES
Sterling K. Brown – The People v. O.J. Simpson – FX
Lane Garrison – Roots – History
Frank Langella – All the Way – HBO
Hugh Laurie – The Night Manager – AMC
John Travolta – The People v. O.J. Simpson – FX
Forest Whitaker – Roots – History

BEST ACTRESS IN A MOVIE MADE FOR TELEVISION OR LIMITED SERIES
Olivia Colman – The Night Manager – AMC
Felicity Huffman – American Crime – ABC
Cynthia Nixon – Killing Reagan – National Geographic
Sarah Paulson – The People v. O.J. Simpson – FX
Lili Taylor – American Crime – ABC
Kerry Washington – Confirmation – HBO

BEST SUPPORTING ACTRESS IN A MOVIE MADE FOR TELEVISION OR LIMITED SERIES
Elizabeth Debicki – The Night Manager – AMC
Regina King – American Crime – ABC
Sarah Lancashire – The Dresser – Starz
Melissa Leo – All the Way – HBO
Anna Paquin – Roots – History
Emily Watson – The Dresser – Starz

Will All Hail Netflix’s ‘The Crown?’

Episode 103: The Cooler Gang reviews Netflix’s new series The Crown and weighs in on its Emmy hopes.

This week at the Water Cooler, we’re doling out the Xanax with Prozac chasers. We look past recent political events and focus on politics of a different era. Netflix’s The Crown is an expensive and ambitious series that will eventually explore 60 years of England’s Queen Elizabeth II’s reign. Was the money worth it? Perhaps more importantly, what insights do series creator Peter Morgan and crew give us into one of the most famous women in the world? And will this eagerly anticipated series fill the awards season sweet spot vacated by PBS’s Downton Abbey?

As always, we’ll close with the Flash Forward to the television we’re most anticipating in the upcoming week.

Please accept our apologies for the audio problems encountered at times through the podcast. We record via Skype, and it wasn’t treating us well tonight. Thanks for listening and remember to rate us on iTunes!

04:52 – Saturday Night Live and the 2016 Election on TV
20:07 – The Crown
46:10 – Flash Forward

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Awards Tracker: The Critics’ Choice and a Year of Controvery

Awards season and the Critics’ Choice are upon us and with them comes controversy.

The Fall TV awards season begins next Monday, November 14^th, when the Broadcast Television Journalists Association announce their television nominees for the 7^th Annual Critics’ Choice Awards. This week, as frivolous as it feels in our current American political situation, I’ll dissect the current controversies surrounding the BTJA and end the tracker with some of the shows we’ll likely see recognized when nominations are announced.

Critics’ Choice Controversy

The Critics’ Choice Awards are a relatively new awards group, especially on the television side. Recently, the BTJA ran into a major setback that ended with many of the industry’s top television critics resigning from the association including Ken Tucker and two of the nominating committee’s co-chairs, Michael Ausiello and Debra Birnbaum.

The recent departures from the BTJA stem from the decision to partner with Entertainment Weekly not only with the announcement of their nominations but also linking the awards group to various exclusive Critics’ Choice content featured on the magazine’s website. Many respected critics penned a letter condemning this new partnership, ending the letter with their resignation from the group. TVLine’s Michael Ausiello described his frustrations with the changes as “it seems like it’s becoming a marketing event for a single brand, and that’s something I’m just not comfortable with.”

Over the course of two days, 13 critics in total have resigned from the BTJA, accounting for almost 15 percent of the group’s members. Without critics from websites like Indiewire, TVLine, TVGuide, Variety, US Weekly, and Buzzfeed, the association will have a difficult time earning respect as an awards group originally meant to represent the best of the critical industry honoring the best TV has to offer. This is not the first time some of the members have been loudly critical of the organization. Earlier this year the board announced that they would be moving the awards ceremony to December 11^th, a choice many of its members criticized a publicity stunt to be the first award of the season that detracted from the films and shows they were trying to celebrate.

It will be interesting to see if the award’s seventh batch of nominees consist of peculiar choices without some of the most respected and recognizable critics in the industry or even worse predominately feature only shows that EW championed.

The Top Shows to Look Out For

The Critics’ Choice awards always produce some of the most left-field choices for their favorite series and performances of the year, making their nominations and winners some of the most interesting of the year. These are some of the shows and performances to keep an eye on this year.

Drama Races

The Americans – The (partially) reigning Critics’ Choice winner for Outstanding Drama has been nominated for every season, and, with Season 4 the most beloved by critics yet, there is a huge chance The Americans will be a major player.

Animal Kingdom – The family crime drama fits in with some of the critics’ group past obsessions like Sons of Anarchy, so it wouldn’t be too surprising if BTJA voters make room for the show, especially in the supporting races for actors like Ellen Barkin or Shawn Hatosy.

Bates Motel – BTJA voters have always made room in their nominations for Vera Farmiga and Freddie Highmore, and, after some of their best material, they have a good chance of returning once again.

Marvel’s Luke Cage – A Marvel superhero show might not seem like an obvious awards contender, especially with critics, but critics and audiences have been warming up the Netflix/Marvel partnership, first with an actress nomination for Krysten Ritter last year. Luke Cage is even bigger and even possibly broke down the server for a couple hours, and critics have had a lot of great things to say about the show’s social commentary on gentrification in Harlem.

Mr. Robot – As the other reigning drama champ (and arguably the most accoladed new show of 2015), Mr. Robot shouldn’t be counted out for its sophomore season even if it was one of the most divisive seasons of TV in 2016. No matter what critics are still in love with Rami Malek’s lead performance, and he should remain a frontrunner.

Rectify – Although the Sundance drama hasn’t garnered much attention over the years, it has been a critics darling, especially Aden Young. As the only show (of any genre) to earn a score of 100 on Metacritic, Rectify should be a major contender for its fourth season.

Stranger Things – Stranger Things may appear as more of a pop culture phenomenon than a critical darling, but BTJA voters have always warmed up to genre shows. The popularity surrounding the show should mean good things for actors like Winona Ryder, Millie Bobby Brown, and the show as a whole.

This is Us – As the critics’ darling of network TV, This is Us has a good chance of popping up at this year’s Critics’ Choice Awards, especially in the supporting actor races since this is the awards group that fell in love with the Parenthood ensemble.

Westworld – The TV buzz over the past couple weeks has been almost entirely focused on the mysteries of Westworld, and no other fall drama has come close to attracting the same amount of attention. Depending on how obsessed the BTJA becomes with the show, it could rack up a lot of acting nominations for the show’s ensemble.

Comedy Races

Atlanta – As the best reviewed comedy of 2016, Atlanta should have no problem breaking into the outstanding omedy race as well as Donald Glover becoming a lead actor frontrunner.

black-ish – The Critics’ Choice Awards have always made room in the comedy races for sitcoms, and no other television family is gaining as much attention as ABC’s the Johnsons. As the best sitcom on network TV, black-ish should easily return to all major categories, and in a perfect world might even earn a supporting actress nomination for the legendary Jenifer Lewis.

Broad City – For the show’s first two seasons, BTJA voters made sure to nominate Broad City as one of their favorite comedies of the year as well as singling Ilana Glazer out. It will be interesting if they continue to make room for the MTV comedy now that they are voting at the end of the year as opposed to the spring when the show is fresher in their minds.

Crazy Ex-Girlfriend – Last year, critics took it upon themselves to champion Rachel Bloom and Crazy Ex-Girlfriend as the little show that could throughout the awards season, and it seems that a year later their love for the TV musical has only grown. On top of a second nomination for Bloom, critics just might nominate the show in the outstanding comedy race.

Insecure – It seems that everyone is obsessed with Issa Rae, and she is on her way to earning her first major awards nomination. There’s a good chance Insecure could be recognized as one of the BTJA’s favorite comedies of the year as well.

Lady Dynamite – Netflix had a hard time finding the right audience for Maria Bamford’s show as it was one of the most personal, uncomfortable, and genre defying shows on television. If anyone’s going to embrace one of the strangest comedies of all-time it will be the critics.

Silicon Valley – As the last winner of the Outstanding Comedy award before the television awards timeline was moved to match the film awards, the HBO workplace comedy is probably a major contender once again, even if ADTV wasn’t the biggest fan of the newest season. If their hosting choice (TJ Miller) is any indicator, we might be seeing even more recognition for the show.

Speechless – The BTJA loves the matriarchs of ABC’s comedies and has nominated nearly every one of them since the award’s conception, so the first comedy with a disabled child starring Minnie Driver should have a good chance at receiving some sort of recognition.

Transparent – Even as the show steers further and further away from comedy territory it still seems to dominate with voting groups. This year there seemed to be little buzz surrounding the third season premiere, and whether or not the show is recognized this year will be a good indicator if the show is losing steam.

Veep – In such a rough election year, the silver lining seemed to be Veep‘s fifth season which went on to receive just as much critical acclaim after the switch in showrunners from Armando Ianucci to David Mandel.

You’re The Worst – BTJA voters have always had a soft spot for the FXX comedy, and last year they awarded the show with a best comedy nomination as well as acting nominations for Aya Cash and Kether Donohue.

What shows are you anticipating to be recognized this year by the BTJA at the Critics’ Choice Awards? Will the drop in membership and new partnership with Entertainment Weekly have any sort of effect?

Everybody Loves Political Films! (More Than Actual Politics!)

Episode 102: The Cooler Gang anticipates Tuesday’s election by reviewing and casting political films.

This week at the Water Cooler, we’re changing out the water for vodka as the 2016 election cycle finally draws to an end. To prepare for… well, whatever happens with Tuesday’s vote, we take a look at two important TV political films brought to us by All the Way’s Jay Roach. First up, 2008’s Recount recalls the immediate aftermath of the 2000 Gore/Bush election contest. Then, 2012’s Game Change tackles the 2008 election year which brought Sarah Palin onto the world stage. We take a deep look at both political films and consider how their stories resonate in the modern political cycle. Finally, we’ll play a much-beloved ADTV game: Cast the TV Movie! This week, we’re casting the inevitable film version of the 2016 election. That’s right, we’re casting Trump, Hillary, Melania, Bill, Kellyanne Conway, Billy Busy… The whole damn sick and twisted crew.

As always, we’ll close with the Flash Forward to the television we’re most anticipating in the upcoming week.

Thanks for listening and remember to rate us on iTunes!

04:56 – Recount
27:21 – Game Change
44:02 – Cast the Trump Movie!
01:22:00 – Flash Forward

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‘The Fall’ Returns With Mixed Results

Netflix’s The Fall returns for a third season? Does the acclaimed drama match its intense first two seasons?

We open the third season of the so-far acclaimed, but somehow still under the radar, British drama The Fall with serial killer Paul Spector (Jamie Dornan) driving and then crashing. Hasn’t he been through enough? Nah, fuck that, he’s a killer of women – and a man – and a generally awful person. We closed Season 2 with Paul laying bleeding to death in the arms of his hunter, police superintendent Stella Gibson (Gillian Anderson). So the driving / crashing sequence was a mind mirage, a thought process of the semi-conscious Spector. It’s an odd choice as the first two outings offered no fantasy scenes or at least sequences that delve directly into the thoughts of the characters for its audience to see. A later scene with Spector in a dark tunnel hearing his the voice of his mother, and then his daughter, kind of confirms this dream-like notion. The dynamic shift is a little distracting in all, but does not carve a huge dent in your attention span. Some of the out-of-reality scenes don’t quite fit here, given the down to Earth, gritty realism of the first two seasons. Perhaps it would have been a worse thing to simply draw the story out, omitting such fallacies. Perhaps not.

Once the initial dust has settled, the hospital, Belfast General I believe, becomes the main setting. Spector and Anderson – another detective who was cuffed to the killer at the time – both were shot. And Rose Stagg, the poor woman captured and tormented by Spector, is also in hospital following her ordeal. Stella’s concern for Spector is alarming at this point, considering a fellow member of the police force, Anderson (who she fucked I might add), was also shot, and Rose lies out elsewhere in the hospital. Anderson later asks why Stella ran to Spector after the shocking shooting, and he has a point. There’s hardly a lot of empathy with this in mind when Stella’s role in the investigation is put into jeopardy. So much attention given to Spector’s revival (I mean, he is not the Prime Minister) is somewhat diverted by the head surgeon’s over the top, know-it-all commentary. The same character later appears a hard-working family man. Did I misjudge or did the writers cool it on the elaborateness?

So Spector, then. He is having memory problems it seems, questions asked to him, and his answers, suggest his head is a few years behind. Maybe six. It is not clarified. When his legal representatives explain the police charges to him, the murders of women, Spector is either playing one of the strongest poker faces ever seen on TV or he is discovering he is in actual fact a monster via his amnesia. We can’t read him, what is going on in his head, what he intends to do, or how he feels. And this is a credit to the character of Spector, more than we can praise the performance of Dornan.

There appears to be a gender behavioral distinction too here, as well as the emergence of marginal characters and sudden back-stories. As Stella often plays the woman card or claims to know what a man would do in this scenario or how a woman would act in that scenario. Gillian Anderson is playing the clearly wounded woman much more sedate as her voice is low and soft, often a little hoarse, practically whispering at times. It is still a stellar performance from Anderson. Stella is picked and poked at by colleagues and the like for her apparent negative influence on the whole affair, which means her character appears and acts worn down and often nonchalant – an effective persona for a deep-thinking, smart detective, but we know there is more to her than that.

There are many nooks and crannies either pasted over or left too open. As a huge fan of the first two seasons, I don’t want to be negative critically. Many of these what’s and why’s are merely observations on the third season’s ever-so-slight experimenting with dramatic dynamics when it could have just left well alone. It is glaringly obvious that the night nurse by Spector’s bedside is a brunette, very much his type of victim – a spitting image of Rose too. But this is not addressed further than the audience perhaps noticing that. And the psychiatrist-type flown in to evaluate Spector is a so-called expert, and the Scandinavian accent just feels synonymous with clinical healers stereotypes. There’s more. New evidence in the forms of journals suggesting there could be nine other murders by Spector seems like a back-track. A confession from Rose later also feels like a history rewrite. Much of the back-story heads the drama a little in the rear direction rather than moving things forward.

There is also hefty attention given to the discovery of another killer, Alvarez, who attended the same school as Spector and seems to follow the same patterns. When Anderson receives a call from the assistant chief constable Burns (who is well on his way to losing his own shit), it is made apparent that the institute that held Spector and Alvarez when they were boys subjected them to acts of masturbation and other such sex crime horrors. As information for the viewer, and the characters of the story, it feels just a little too much. The Fall has gradually lost much of its subtlety and composure, but you can’t forget that this is still a solid drama in its own right.

And what of Katie, the teenage girl with whom Spector had sexual relations? When Katie finds out about Spector’s shooting she flips out, a much more understandable reaction of concern (than, say, Stella’s). Her involvement is far more subtle, a teenager with a poetic, crushingly unhealthy love for Spector having pushed aside her friends and family for the idea of this man. Her final appearance as Stella gives her a life lesson in self-harm and wounds of the heart and is sweet enough but gives no closure whatsoever to Katie. She may be a big fool for love, but she deserves much more credit and respect than that.

While some of the dialogue is following a crime genre formula, there are some truly captivating moments on show here. For instance, Stella’s reassuring monologue to Tom, Rose’s husband, is a great moment both for acting and writing. And there are several of these. This is certainly not a dull affair. Generally good performances right across the board, but Gillian Anderson and Jamie Dornan are handed a huge majority of the expectation to deliver high tension and maintain the grounded and compelling nature of the drama built in the first two seasons. And they do so. The problems are not with the performances or much of the execution, but rather the method in which the third season tries to change the colors of the pallet a little to keep the momentum.

The Fall‘s final episode sees the shaken can open and the fizz of violence and broken emotion spray all around. Not enough that perhaps the slow-paced first five episodes worked up to this, but he had to come or else the whole season would come away looking flat and uninspired. Such a shame that following some unexpected violence, the show concludes with a whimper rather than a bang. Stella didn’t want Spector dead because that would be too easy. He was meant to suffer for what he had done while he was alive. It is slightly unfortunate that neither Stella nor us, the viewing audience, got the justice we deserved.

Revel In These November Netflix Niceties

November Netflix offerings include the dramatic The Crown and the cult-favorite-to-be Gilmore Girls: A Year in the Life.

Here are the highest profile November Netflix releases. We’ve already reviewed The Crown, but, chances are, you’re rabidly anticipating Gilmore Girls: A Year in the Life. That’s coming just in time for your post-Thanksgiving coma.

The Crown (November 4)

The Crown tells the inside story of two of the most famous addresses in the world — Buckingham Palace and 10 Downing Street – and the intrigues, love lives and machinations behind the great events that shaped the second half of the 20th century. Two houses, two courts, one Crown.

World of Winx (November 4)

The reality show “WOW!” engages the Winx in their mission, starting an undercover, worldly journey in order to make talented kids’ dreams come true.

Danger Mouse (Season 2) (November 9)

The world’s greatest superspy returns to save the world with the help of hapless hamster Penfold and a collection of state-of-the-art gadgetry.

Case (November 11)

A smart lawyer whose drinking and recklessness send him on a path of self-destruction finds new purpose investigating a teenager’s apparent suicide.

Paranoid (November 17)

Set in the small fictional town of Marshwell, detectives Michael Niles (Neil Stuke), Nina Suresh (Indira Varma), Alec Wayfield (Dino Fetscher) and Bobby Day (Robert Glenister) begin to piece together what happened on the fateful morning Doctor Angela Benton took her three-year-old son Luke to the playground.

Watching Luke play alongside other Mums and their toddlers, Angela is set upon and brutally stabbed by a man whose face is covered from view. His bizarre and disturbing behavior is noticed moments before the attack by eyewitness Lucy Cannonbury (Lesley Sharp). Lucy’s version of events instantly rings alarm bells with dedicated and compassionate cop Nina Suresh, but fellow seasoned detective Bobby Day is more willing to accept Lucy’s account of Angela’s tragic murder.

As the investigation deepens – and darkens – detectives realize they are in a mammoth battle with a formidable global foe whose dark dealings reach into every corner of the world.

3% (November 25)

A post-apocalyptic thriller set in near-future Brazil, where a select few are allowed to join a privileged society after undergoing an intense and competitive process.

Gilmore Girls: A Year in the Life (November 25)

A return to the cult-favorite WB/The CW series featuring most of the original cast. It’s Emmy chances are outlined here.

Awards Tracker: HBO or FX – Which Network Will Come Out On Top?

Who has the greatest 2017 awards buzz: HBO or FX? Here are some series from both cable giants that could see future attention.

This time last year, awards buzz around 2016 focused on Martin Scorsese’s Vinyl and Cameron Crowe’s Roadies, and that goes to show you how much can truly change in a year. Instead, a new class of HBO programming struggles to stand out against the new gold standard of television, FX. In a year where strong networks like Showtime floundered, FX and even USA are looking to take their place as the new future of television (well besides streaming). These are the seven shows and performances to look out for this awards season.

Divorce

After twelve years, Sarah Jessica Parker comes home to prove that she is still the silver screen queen even though she’s a year older than Wilford Brimley in Cocoon. Divorce may be divisive among critics, but the HBO dramedy aligns perfectly with the Hollywood Foreign Press Association’s TV sensibilities. They loved middle aged actresses on premium dramedies (Laura Dern, Toni Collette, Laura Linney, Mary-Louise Parker), and Sarah Jessica Parker is a 4-time Golden Globe winner for Sex and The City, which won three best series awards in a row. On top of Sarah Jessica Parker, Divorce has so many HFPA-friendly elements that the show is poised to be nominated as one of their favorite comedies of the year and possibly even a lead actor nomination for Thomas Haden Church, especially with so little competition.

Other voting groups like the critics and the guilds might be a little more hesitant to reward the show. With a 60% score on Metacritic and Rotten Tomatoes, critics are unabashedly disappointed with the show, and guild members, especially the WGA, are more likely to reward showrunner and Emmy-nominee Sharon Horgan (Catastrophe) if at all. If the Critics go for a left field choice, they might nominate Molly Shannon in the supporting race for what is probably the flashiest performance on the show.

Best Bet

Lead Actress in a Comedy, Sarah Jessica Parker: Golden Globes

Possible Contenders

Comedy Series: Golden Globes

Lead Actor in a Comedy, Thomas Haden Church: Golden Globes

Worth Mentioning

Supporting Actress in a Comedy Series, Molly Shannon: Critics Choice

Actress in a Comedy, Sarah Jessica Parker: SAG Awards

Insecure

Insecure may not have the weight of star power or a gimmicky plot behind it, but it became HBO’s best reviewed new show of 2016 by simply being great. Insecure is the most relatable comedy on premium cable, and awards groups are going to jump at the chance to be the first to recognize Issa Rae. The Golden Globes love to pretend they discovered new talent before any other group, and Issa Rae is bound to follow in the footsteps of Gina Rodriguez and Rachel Bloom. Unfortunately, Insecure might be too small of a show, especially in ratings, for the HFPA to recognize it in any other category.

Critics, on the other hand, have been championing Issa Rae as a creative talent ever since her webseries Awkward Black Girl and there’s a good chance they’ll jump at the opportunity to award the show as a whole, especially since they chose another auteur-esque comedy last year, Master of None.

Best Bet

Lead Actress in a Comedy, Issa Rae: Golden Globes, Critics’ Choice

Comedy Series: Critics’ Choice

Possible Contenders

Comedy Series: Golden Globes

Worth Mentioning

WGA Award

Westworld

HBO struggled over the past few years to build their next big drama now that Game of Thrones is coming to an end. The network failed to find the right audience for The Leftovers, embarrassed themselves with the second season of True Detective, and flat-out pretends Vinyl never existed. Now Westworld seems to be their only hope and appears pretty likely to be embraced throughout awards season. The HFPA loves to reward almost every major HBO show, and this is the perfect opportunity for the Foreign Press to ditch Game of Thrones, a show they have never been enthusiastic about. The large ensemble cast could easily sneak into the SAG ensemble race since there are a couple of open slots, especially since SAG voters have embraced HBO fantasy shows like GoT and even True Blood.

The biggest question regarding Westworld is whether or not the fantasy ensemble will be recognized for its individual performances. No one from the ensemble has stood out in a Peter Dinklage or Uzo Aduba manner, so it’s hard to tell which actors will be recognized (if any) especially after HBO made some interesting submission decisions. Evan Rachel Wood and Thandie Newton were both submitted as lead actresses while four men have to fight it out in supporting, although Anthony Hopkins is the sole lead actor representation. As of now, Ed Harris is likely to stand out in the supporting actor race, especially in a year where that category is so up in the air.

Best Bet

Drama Series – Golden Globes, Critics’ Choice

Drama Ensemble – SAG Awards

Possible Contenders

Lead Actress in a Drama, Evan Rachel Wood: Golden Globes

Supporting Actor, Ed Harris: Golden Globes

Worth Mentioning

Lead Actor in a Drama, Anthony Hopkins: Golden Globes

PGA, DGA, WGA

Atlanta

Until Atlanta, Donald Glover received a television outlet in comedies that never really seemed to fit him creatively from his breakout role on Community to his short stint on Girls to offset the show’s white Brooklyn problem. Now that he seems to be in complete creative control, his first starring role emerges as the best reviewed new show of 2016. It feels like an obvious Critics’ Choice contender/frontrunner for lead actor and series in the comedy races, especially since this is the same voting body who has repeatedly awarded a showrunner/star like Louis CK and even championed Glover’s first show Community.

The Foreign Press could go either way with a show like Atlanta by celebrating it the same way they did Lena Dunham and Girls in its first year, or they could completely ignore the show the way they have other auteur-driven comedies like Master of None and Louie. In the end, HFPA voters will probably realize there is too much hype around the show to ignore and, if anything, the cinematography will make Atlanta stand out as more cinematic than any other comedy in contention.

Best Bet

Lead Actor in a Comedy, Donald Glover: Golden Globes, Critics’ Choice

Comedy Series: Critics’ Choice, Golden Globes

Possible Contenders

WGA Award, PGA Award

Queen of the South

The Foreign Press loves international stars, so, although Queen of the South comes across as a little too mainstream to be an awards contender, Alice Braga could easily sneak into the drama actress race. The USA drama might not have as much buzz as other shows, but throughout the summer it did have consistently stronger viewership than Mr. Robot. The Brazilian star came to fame after a role in the Oscar winning City of God and is now the star of a show about an international drug cartel, a theme that helped Narcos earn two major nominations last year. From Ugly Betty to Jane the Virgin, Globes voters have always had a fascination with telenovela-inspired shows, and Queen of the South might just be the next obvious pick.

Possible Contenders

Lead Actress in a Drama, Alice Braga: Golden Globes

Baskets

Louie Anderson won the first major award of his career this year for his work on Baskets, and he might just be able to ride that wave of support into the fall awards season. Golden Globes voters have the impossible task of narrowing down the supporting races to five performances with complete disregard to genre. As of recently they’ve used the Emmy winners as a jumping off point even if Baskets barely made an impact last winter.

Possible Contenders

Supporting Actor, Louie Anderson: Critics’ Choice, Golden Globe

Worth Mentioning

Lead Actor in a Comedy, Zach Galifinakis: Golden Globes, Critics’ Choice

Vice Principals

The most surprising fact about the Critics’ Choice Awards just might be that the current record holder for the most nominations isn’t an Emmy favorite like Allison Janney or Julia Louis-Dreyfuss. Instead, that honor goes to Walton Goggins. They couldn’t get enough of him in Justified and Sons of Anarchy, and, if the voting body had been around throughout The Shield, he’d probably have even more nominations. Vice Principals may be a divisive show (I have an equal number of friends who found it outright offensive as found it hilarious), but Goggins’ southern flamboyancy/Christley Knows Best character is flashy enough to stand out in such an underwhelming lead race, at least with BTJA members.

Best Bet

Lead Actor in a Comedy, Walton Goggins: Critics’ Choice

Of course there are a dozen more shows that could potentially break out as well. The Golden Globes almost always nominate Showtime somewhere, and maybe they’ll feel bad for the network in its odd year and throw a bone to Billions. Critics have always adored Louie, so maybe they’ll embrace his creative partner and star of Grease 2 Pamela Adlon in her new show Better Things. Hell, maybe the Foreign Press will decide to punish us for Donald Trump and bring back Roadies. Anything can happen.

‘Fleabag’ is the Best Show You’re Not Watching Today

Amazon’s Fleabag offers an amusing look at one woman’s struggle with grief

Amazon’s Fleabag is the best new comedy that you’re not watching. Hell, it might be the best new comedy that you’ve never even heard of. While the streaming network houses one of the most critically lauded comedies in Transparent, other Amazon shows fly very discreetly under the radar. Catastrophe has received acclaim, but only one Emmy nomination thus far, for example. Fleabag‘s dark humor is enough to bring people in, but if you dig into this short first season, you will find a complicated examination of one woman’s personal struggle with grief.

One of the things you’ll notice about Fleabag is how much its lead, played by Phoebe Waller-Bridge, speaks directly to the camera. Her character’s name is never uttered, but she shares the name of the series. Constantly talking to the audience is a device that grows tiresome in most shows (looking at you, early years of Sex and the City!), but you realize that you are not an audience she’s trying to impress or titillate. We, as an audience, are her friend. Fleabag winks at us while she flirts with guys on the bus, giggles at the comments she makes about her sister, and even comments mid-thrust on the sex she’s having.

The show is described as a young woman navigating her life through London, and that generalization might not interest the casual viewer. Waller-Bridge’s interactions with every single character is reason enough to watch Fleabag. While her hook up scenes are hilarious, the best back and forth is between her and Olivia Colman who plays her godmother. Colman’s grand artist invaded the family soon after Fleabag’s mother died and she married into the family. Fleabag now feels like a visitor in the home she grew up in, and Colman’s sugary sweet smile is present almost every moment on screen. How did her face not hurt after filming her scenes? No disrespect to Imelda Staunton, but she makes a real case that she should have played Dolores Umbridge in the Harry Potter franchise.

While Fleabag is painfully and awkwardly funny at times, there is a sadness to it that permeates through the final two episodes. Our central character is flailing–her and her devoted (and too nice) boyfriend have recently broken up, her sister is up for a promotion in another country, and her business is floundering. She runs a guinea pig themed cafe, but after her business partner (and best friend) accidentally kills herself, she quite literally spends most of her workdays in an empty space with animal pictures plastered all over the walls. Any more about the plot would give too much away, so we will leave it at that.

At the glorious center is Waller-Bridge, a fiercely smart comedic talent. Adapting Fleabag from her own one-woman show, she is able to imbue her character with a lovable ease and charming bite. She’s the type of friend you’d like to have at a party when you don’t know anyone, but you’d subconsciously be watching how many drinks she downs. Fleabag has a tendency to wreak some havoc, but any observer might be taken back by her quick wit and dark delivery.

Fleabag‘s first season is only six episodes, but it has a totally packaged feel to it. If it didn’t continue with a second season, it would still be a well-done exploration of a young woman’s scrappy quest to find what makes her happy. Watch this show. Be a fleabag.

‘The Crown’ Appears To Be a Jewel For Netflix

Peter Morgan’s latest take on Queen Elizabeth II – The Crown – is a sumptuous and well acted awards contender.

Netflix’s latest prestige series, The Crown, comes to Netflix via the UK’s Peter Morgan. It lands with the dubious fanfare (much like The Get Down) of being a Very Expensive Series. The good news is that the money arrives onscreen backed by Morgan (The Queen, Frost/Nixon) and his amazing talent for royal dialogue. The Crown is an ambitious project – an expected six seasons will follow Elizabeth’s 60+ year reign. Based on the pilot, it will be completely worth the ride. Morgan’s significant contributions are backed by a excellent cast and stunning visuals. At this point, this series looks to be Emmy’s cure for the Downton Abbey blues.

The Crown begins with stuttering King George VI (Mad Men‘s Jared Harris) and his persistent, nagging cough which, of course, develops into lung cancer. Unaware of his condition, Elizabeth (Claire Foy, Wolf Hall) marries Philip (Doctor Who‘s Matt Smith) with all the expected pageantry of a royal wedding – a great way to start the series, honestly. Finally, we’re introduced to Winston Churchill (John Lithgow) as he regains the position of Prime Minister.

Directed by Stephen Daldry, the pilot offers a stately, deliberate pacing that you admire more than love. It almost certainly by intent lacks the juicy, gossipy thrill that propelled many through Downton Abbey Season 1. That and Dame Maggie Smith. Still, The Crown has all the markings of a potently binge-worthy series. While the set design, costumes, etc., all provide top-notch period sensibilities, it’s the cast that really reels you in. Foy manages to balance charisma with Elizabeth’s inherent reserved nature and timidity. She has a very nice moment during her nuptials where you can hear her nerves in her quick, shallow breathing. It’s the kind of thing that goes a long way toward humanizing such a legendarily stoic figure. I can only imagine that, as Elizabeth ascends to the throne, Foy’s stamina in the role will push her to the upper ranks of Emmy’s dramatic actresses.

Matt Smith provides an amusingly robust Prince Philip. Again, his characterization opens a window to the man always seen just behind the Queen of England. Plus, we find out that he sleeps in the nude, which is both bizarre and provides a fairly hilarious quick scene. The rest of the production is peppered with something of a “who’s who” of the British acting class. Best, for me, is American actor John Lithgow’s Winston Churchill. Initially, I feared he was playing to the rafters, making Churchill a gross caricature rather than a fully realized character. He quickly erased those concerns, though, as he assumes a surprisingly large role within the pilot. He was so prominently featured that I’m starting to wonder if he would place in Best Supporting Actor or Best Actor at the 2017 Emmys. Make no mistake, though. He will be there.

As will many of The Crown‘s cast and crew, I suspect. This series feels like it could prove to be everything we wanted it to be – an intelligent and elegant (but still a little soapy) exploration of one of the more fascinating women of the post World War II era. This series will undoubtedly unfold in insightful and intelligent ways. Let’s just hope it continues to pull back the British stiff upper lip from time to time. It could prove to be a major threat in coming 2017 awards season.

Benjamin Hollingsworth Talks Eric Roberts’s Return to ‘Code Black’

Code Black‘s Benjamin Hollingsworth talks to Megan about Wednesday’s harrowing episode.

Remember when NBC’s E.R. would crank out a very special, everything-goes-wrong episode (like when a helicopter fell on Dr. Romano, after it already took his hand!)? Well, that’s every episode of CBS’s Code Black, where every day at Angels Memorial Hospital is disastrous. (“Code Black” signifies a hospital that is overcrowded with patients and understaffed with resources.)

Benjamin Hollingsworth plays Mario Savetti on the series, and in November 2’s episode titled “Landslide,” you guessed it, a landslide sends an influx of patients to the Los Angeles hospital. But one patient Savetti doesn’t count on seeing is his father, played by Eric Roberts, who returns after appearing in the episode “Life and Limb.”

I had a chance to speak with Hollingsworth about this episode, what’s in store for Mario, and whether my favorite character will survive.

Mario is a little rough around the edges. Do you think this episode will give audiences more perspective on why he is the way he is?

I don’t think you’ll get a full dictionary about Mario, but you definitely get to see him deal with how he responds to his father.

How do you tackle playing a character that’s not necessarily always likable? That has to be challenging as an actor.

It’s both challenging and rewarding, to not have to worry about the way your character is perceived. I think sometimes you get hung up trying to make your character likable. Real people aren’t always likable. A character like Mario doesn’t have the same social awareness. He doesn’t care what people think of him. It’s actually freeing.

What was it like working with Eric Roberts in this episode?

He’s such a powerful actor, one that’s been around for a very long time. He’s magnetic. He brings something that I really get to play off of. You see this connection that a father and a son have, both of them want the same thing. Eric has a very charming, charismatic way of playing Vince. I think it’s going to make for great TV.

Mario and his father both have a history with substance abuse. Do you think that’s something he’s even more resentful of, being that he shares this quality with his father?

Of course. It’s something Mario resents that his father wasn’t more of a role model for him. Maybe he’s better off for it. I don’t know if Mario believes this, but I believe that the best lessons are learned the tough way. What’s part of what makes Mario so interesting is that he’s a lot like the patients he sees come in to the hospital. He’s never had a silver spoon lifestyle.

In “Life and Limb,” the episode Mario’s father appears in, Mario also treats a patient who’s a transgender woman. Why do you think he connects with her?

He sees her as someone that’s been misunderstood by society, that has had to struggle. I think that’s Mario’s fight, too. He puts up a lot of borders with people.

What else is in store for Mario this season? Can you give us any sneak peeks?

Richard Lewis comes in and Mario’s paired with him. And also an interesting relationship develops between him and Dr. Noa Kean (Emily Tyra).

What about the bromance between Angus (Harry Ford) and Mario?

Of course! Harry Ford and I have a lot of fun playing those scenes out. As characters on the show, we’re kind of frenemies.

You had that nice little moment with him in “Demons and Angels” when you told him to stand up to his father (Angus’s brother is currently in a coma on the show). Speaking of which, Mike Leighton (Tommy Dewey) is my favorite character. Can you tell me anything about his future? (In “Demons and Angels,” it ends with some signs of life for Leighton.)

I can’t. You’ll have to tune in to see.

Code Black airs on CBS on Wednesdays at 10 p.m. ET.