NO category better illustrates the bizarro world of the Emmy Awards than this year’s nominees for Outstanding Lead Actor in a Comedy Series.
They are: A non-actor (Larry David, “Curb Your Enthusiasm”); a dead guy (John Ritter, “8 Simple Rules”); a past winner whose best work was many seasons ago (Kelsey Grammer, “Frasier”); an actor who played the same character in the same way for 10 seasons (Matt LeBlanc, “Friends”); and an actor whose murder-mystery series doesn’t qualify as a comedy (Tony Shalhoub, “Monk”).
Who will win? By process of elimination, probably Matt LeBlanc, for sentimental reasons.
Where the mix of comedy actor nominees is downright odd, the dramatic actor category seems strangely desperate – as if the TV Academy ran short of nominees.
How else to explain the repeat nominations of James Gandolfini (“The Sopranos”), Martin Sheen (“The West Wing”), and Kiefer Sutherland (“24”)?
Anthony LaPaglia’s nomination for “Without a Trace” feels like filler. And the fifth nominee – James Spader for “The Practice” – is the only one who actually deserves to win, but Gandolfini seems like the favorite.
The comedy actress categories is just as dull, as if the Academy rules prohibit surprises, long shots and dark horses.
For Outstanding Lead Actress in a Comedy: Patricia Heaton (“Everybody Loves Raymond”), Jennifer Aniston (“Friends”), Bonnie Hunt (“Life with Bonnie”), Jane Kaczmarek (“Malcolm in the Middle”) and Sarah Jessica Parker (“Sex and the City”). Who will win? Who cares!
For Outstanding Lead Actress in a Drama, the list of nominees offers at least two new faces: Mariska Hargitay (“Law & Order: SVU”) and Amber Tamblyn (“Joan of Arcadia”), along with Jennifer Garner (“Alias”), Edie Falco (“The Sopranos”) and Alli-son Janney (“The West Wing”).
The newbies won’t win, though, since Falco had such an incredible season on “The Sopranos.”
The last go-round of “The Sopranos” could just as easily be called the season of Adriana, who so famously crawled to her death in the New Jersey woods. Drea De Matteo should win for Outstanding Supporting Actress in a Drama Series.
It would be poetic for her co-star, Michael Imperioli, to win for Outstanding Supporting Actor in a Drama.
If that happens, this year’s Emmys have a chance to be remembered as the season of “The Sopranos,” although, if there’s anything predictable about the Emmys, it’s their unpredictability.
THE 56TH ANNUAL EMMY AWARDS
Sunday, 8 p.m., ABC