10 Nominations That Would Make the Emmys Awesome

Joey Moser keeps his fingers crossed for some positive surprises for tomorrow’s nomination announcement.

More often than not, the Television Academy breaks your heart. There is so much great content that some stellar work is bound to get left out, and you are left wondering how something you truly love managed to miss at the year’s biggest television awards.

The Television Academy does sometimes surprise us. Last year, Issa Rae wasn’t on a lot of people’s final predictions list, and she managed to nab a Lead Actress in a Comedy Series nomination for the second season of Insecure. Good things do happen! So, let’s keep that positive vibe going, shall we? Here are just a select few mentions that would make a bummer morning a little brighter.

Outstanding Drama Series – Succession

There is a huge possibility that HBO’s drama could land in competition for the night’s biggest awards. Standing in its way, however, are Bodyguard and Killing Eve–two dramas that had a lot of buzz when they first dropped. Succession, on the other hand, has been slowly building a loyal fanbase thanks to smart writing and a unified, solid ensemble. With Game of Thrones ending its awards dominance, Succession would be an appropriate heir to the HBO Emmy throne.

Outstanding Supporting Actress in a Comedy Series – Rita Moreno, One Day at a Time

I will never stop beating this drum. How One Day at a Time didn’t catch on at the Emmy Awards from day one is beyond me, and Moreno should get nominated this season as an apology for omitting her for 2 years. I don’t need to make much of an argument for this legend. If you can’t see the humor in Rita Moreno getting high on pot gummies while at the opera, you don’t deserve it.

Outstanding Lead Actor in a Limited Series – Chris Pine, I Am the Night

We take Chris Pine for granted, and that’s a shame because his Jay Singletary in TNT’s I Am the Night is the greatest performance of his career. Pine has been saddled with a lot of pretty boy roles, but Singletary carries a darkness and an anger that Pine hasn’t been tasked to convey before. He brings a level of scrappy confidence and humble humor to a man who thought he was lost in the darkness of his own making.

Outstanding Drama Series – Sex Education

A show about horny teens grappling with the awkwardness and humiliation of getting off isn’t a novel concept, but Sex Education grounds its characters’ raging had problems with nimble humor. It embraces the mess. This isn’t a show that could’ve been made 10 years ago. Instead of hiding sex or cutting away, Sex Education confronts the problems head on. It also features winning performances from Asa Butterfield, Gillian Anderson, and Ncuti Gatwa. If this was campaigned in Comedy Series, it might have a chance.

Outstanding Limited Series – The Haunting of Hill House

I’d personally be happy if The Haunting of Hill House received any Emmy love tomorrow morning. It’s biggest shot, unfortunately, might be Outstanding Main Title Design. Dark horror has never been a magnet for awards bodies, but Hill House features the most solid ensemble of the year. Carla Gugino, Victoria Pedretti, and Oliver Jackson-Cohen deserved more of a fighting chance than half of the people being seriously considered in the Limited Series acting races. Good horror isn’t always about making you jump out of your seat and The Haunting of Hill House provided a fascinating study of grief, addiction, and redemption wrapped in the gnarliest of scares.

Outstanding Writing for a Comedy Series – The Other Two – “Chase Gets the Gays”

It took me a good 2 or 3 times of watching all of The Other Two for me to hear all of the jokes–I always laugh too much while watching the series. Writers Chris Kelly and Sara Schneider have created such a shrewd take down of how we consume and bypass pop culture that you may not realize that it’s the real world we live in. The next time a celebrity drops a seemingly earnest music (about, say, loving your gay brother) just take a second and think about the frantic PR people trying to make sure it gets to the right people and enough favorites on Twitter.

Outstanding Costume Design – Now Apocalypse

Many have scoffed at my inclusion of Gregg Araki’s horny romp of a comedy series, but you can’t deny one strength the show has–the costume design. Trayce Gigi Field’s orgy of color and textures is candy for your senses, and it transports you to another world. Maybe to a place where we aren’t so rigid about out of the bost shows being seriously considered for major awards? I want to go to there.

Outstanding Supporting Actor in a Limited Series – Eric Lange, Escape at Dannemora

Many people do plenty of bad things in Ben Stiller’s limited series, but Eric Lange’s Lyle Mitchell isn’t one of them. As the husband to Patricia Arquette’s Tilly, Lange was tasked to play the clueless and loyal victim to his wife’s indiscretions. It’s hard for your heart to not go out towards Lyle even though he’s too stuck in his personal routines to discover what his wife is up to.

Outstanding Lead Actress in a Drama Series – Mj Rodroguez, Pose

As it stands right now, most people are predicting Billy Porter to snag the only acting nomination for Ryan Murphy’s opus. I would love to see Porter nominated–he’s so deserving. But so its Mj Rodriguez as the matriarch of the Evangelista family. There is a quietness to Rodriguez’s performance that makes her so magnetic to watch. She can put someone in their place without any assistance from another family member, and her strength is written all over her gorgeous face. Rodriguez is defiant, passionate, and so worthy of a nomination. Every day should be Mother’s Day thanks to her.

Outstanding Lead Actress in a Comedy Series – Catherine O’Hara, Schitt’s Creek

The face. The voice. The wigs. Nuff said. Honor her.