The Bests, Worsts, Mosts, and Leasts of the 2024 Emmys

It was actually a super fun night?!?

It is definitely possible that we are feeling extra charitable because the recent VMAs set the bar so low that we can’t actually find it. But, friends, the Emmys were... good. Really good. The best we can remember. An hour and twenty minutes into the show, Jessica had fallen behind because she had to walk the dog, and she didn’t even want to skip anything she missed. This is huge.

We likely are reaping the benefits of ABC roping in seasoned and delightful and beloved presenters, like Billy Crystal and Candice Bergen, and letting them tell stories and reflect humorously on their careers. They put Steve Martin and Martin Short and Selena Gomez, the hottest generation-spanning trio on TV, at the top of the show. They let a group of SNL favorites from over the years roast Lorne Michaels a little. They recreated classic sets, like ER and SNL and Happy Days -- complete with Ron Howard and Henry Winkler! -- and included a tribute to TV moms, and used classic theme songs to go in and out of commercial breaks. All of that made the event feel EXACTLY like the celebration of the medium it should be -- and the Emmys really needs that loving, nostalgic sense of fun to deflect from the perception that it just rewards the same old people over and over again (which at times it did, ahem, Billy Crudup, Jeremy Allen White, etc). And yet, we also had some first-timers up on stage -- Jessica Gunning, Lamorne Morris, a statue for Slow Horses -- which made it feel fresh, too.

So thank you, Emmy producers, for turning out a fun three hours where we only checked our watches to see how far behind we were on our work. That’s rare.

BEST HOSTING DECISION: We don’t mind Jimmy Kimmel, but it’s wise to give the same-olds a break -- if we’re tired of it with winners, we’re equally fatigued of it with host energy -- and ABC was wise to swap in Eugene and Dan Levy. We know they’re funny; Eugene’s comedy bona fides are long and strong, all the way back to SCTV, and of course we came to love Dan on Schitt’s Creek (though he’s also hosted The Great Canadian Baking Show). But they have great chemistry, presumably partly thanks to their genetic bond, and the right level of self-deprecating humor. They don’t punch down, but they know how to land a jab. Their best line of the night: “In the spirit of The Bear, we will not be making any jokes.”

WEIRDEST BLOCKING: Often, when they had presenters come out, those people would stand several feet apart in a spacing that felt eerily reminiscent of Covid times. Is the TV academy just giving the Flirt variant a LOT of respect -- understandable; it is also a bear that is unfunny -- or was this for sound reasons, or... usage of... space... reasons... or...? However, we are pleased this is basically the night’s only real mystery. 

NICEST PRE-SHOW DEVELOPMENT: There was so much crying at Laverne Cox’s station on E!, some of it from her, and it was so nice. She cried when she interviewed Nava Mau, who is the first transgender actress nominated in her category; Laverne herself is the first transgender actor nominated ever. Anna Sawai also wept when she got to Laverne, because it was such a moment for her to be there at all. (When she thrillingly won Best Actress later, she sobbed, “I was crying before they said my name. I’m a mess today.”) Dakota Fanning and Laverne sweetly reminisced about when they first met, when Dakota was a child and Laverne was not yet famous. We have always said that Laverne -- who is much improved from when she first got this gig -- has a very kind and supportive vibe, and never was that more on display than last night.

BIGGEST AND BEST SERVICE TO COMEDY: Thank you, Hacks, for rising up and using actual humor to win Best Comedy (and also Best Writing!). Apologies to The Bear for harping on this because goodness knows, there has been a lot of hand-wringing -- none of which is their fault -- about where it belongs, and conventional wisdom means they aren’t putting their half-hour dramedy in the same bin as an hour-long drama. But The Bear has mauled enough worthy, witty comedies in its short life that it was extremely affirming to see Hacks -- not even a frothy show itself, but a funny one for sure -- sweep in and reclaim the category. We have to think that, at some point, many Emmy voters paused “Fishes,” the episode of The Bear where everyone had a breakdown at Christmas, and angrily snapped, “I’m having A PANIC ATTACK, I’m not voting for this!”

MOST SURPRISING WIN: We were rooting hard for Lamorne Morris, whom we’ve loved since he was a puzzle-obsessed lover of fruity drinks on New Girl. He was great in Fargo, but could he beat Robert Downey Jr., or Lewis Pullman, or the late Treat Williams? Turns out YES. And he was delightful, at one point thanking his daughter by flipping the usual script and saying, “I told you I would do it. You’ve always doubted me,” then asking RDJ to sign the poster that’s in his house, and concluding, “If you have my number, I love you.” He also thanked his management company -- which, earlier in the night, he told Laverne had once tricked him into thinking he was having lunch with Nicolas Cage. “What a bunch of assholes,” he joked. Or, “joked.” They might need to make that happen for him now. (Nic Cage seems like he’d be up for it.)

BEST WAY TO REP HER DAY JOB: Sheryl Lee Ralph plays a kindergarten teacher on TV, and she honored that profession in a very funny AND ACCURATE way on ABC’s red carpet: “A whole lotta people got a whole lotta BAAAAD children, and these teachers are just giving themselves, giving time, eight to nine hours a day, to your BAAAD children, from the bottom of their hearts.” Damn right. Pay teachers more. They get all of the B.S. and nowhere near enough of the laurels. 

BEST REDESIGN: People made a stink about the blocky FOX FOX FOX backdrop at January’s telecast, and clearly, someone listened. Allow Lamorne Morris to show you last night’s effort:

Lamorne looks great! Photo courtesy of Dior.

The purple stands out, but won’t gobble up anyone’s outfit; the gold branding and logos are subtle but for the occasional large EMMY, and the pink stripe is visually zippy. And the star on the carpet representing his mark manages to match the wall, which is something we imagine a P.A. somewhere got REALLY excited about making happen, and we support that. On the whole, very classy, everyone.

MOST RELATABLE: A quick cut-away shot to Saoirse Ronan and her husband Jack Lowden showed them snacking on something. Never have we seen ourselves more reflected in an Emmys moment.

MOST RELATABLE, RUNNER-UP: Ayo Edebiri told Laverne Cox that she freaked out when she saw Reba McEntire and then sang a large portion of the theme song to Reba. The real question is, who wouldn’t freak out when confronted with Reba McEntire, American Treasure, in the flesh? Again: Ayo is all of us.

BEST RED-CARPET SHOW: Well, we had two nominees, E! and ABC. For as much as the former has made itself a punching bag over the years, ABC -- from the snippets we saw -- got no fashion credits from anyone. So, yes, they had Robin Roberts and the handsome son of Superman, Will Reeve, and those two are both competent professionals, but we do want to know what people are wearing and the stylists and designers who brought it all together would also likely appreciate this info being made public. Additionally, Laverne Cox seemed much more prepared this go-round than in years past; she didn’t even reflexively call anyone an icon, that we heard. We can’t believe we’re saying this, but E! takes this one! There are upsets everywhere tonight!

HOTTEST TAKE, MAYBE: Having just picked a winner between two choices, we humbly wonder if perhaps there shouldn’t BE an Emmy given out in a category if there are only two eligible nominees -- as was the case for Outstanding Scripted Variety Series, which is where John Oliver’s show and Saturday Night Live both land. Not that we want to deny either of them some Emmys, but what weird category monkeying got us to a place where they’re in a box NO ONE else belongs in? And with THAT being said...

BEST IN-YOUR-FACE TO THE PLAY-OFF MUSIC: ... obviously we DO still need John Oliver winning stuff because something worthwhile happens every time he does. Here, Oliver was finishing his speech by thanking his dog, when the orchestra struck up a morose tune to get him to wrap up. Oliver started laughing and said what an accidentally brilliant pick that dirge was because he’d been about to say the dog recently died, and in the ensuing laughter he cracked that he was feeling “like Sarah McLachlan” up there. The music duly stopped and he turned it into an honestly emotional tribute to man’s best friends. They’re all the goodest boys and girls!

MOST IMPRESSIVE GAUNTLET: It was a thrill to see Liza Colon-Zayas honored for The Bear, all the usual complaints about its category aside. But to win your first Emmy in a long, heretofore unheralded career, and to be able to say you beat legends Meryl Streep, Sheryl Lee Ralph, and Carol Burnett, plus Janelle James and Hannah Einbinder? If we were her, we honestly might get that as a tattoo.

BEST SPEECH, LONG-FORM: Greg Berlanti received a career award for his impressive contributions to TV, which include Dawson’s Creek, Everwood, the entire DC multiverse on The CW, Brothers and Sisters, You, Riverdale, All-American, The Flight Attendant... He’s a gay man who came up in the industry when that life wasn’t reflected on-screen, and he’s done yeoman’s work to change that; his speech was heartfelt and moving. Here’s a snippet, but treat yourself to more at that link: “There wasn’t a lot of gay characters on television back then, and I was a closeted gay kid, and it’s hard to describe how lonely that was at the time […] To have traveled that distance from that scared kid years ago to this stage with my husband in the audience and our two beautiful children, Caleb and Mia, watching at home, when I think about how much the world had to change to make the life I’m living now possible, even in hindsight, it’s unimaginable to me.”

BEST SPEECH DOUBLING AS SAVVY PR: John Leguizamo delivered an excellent piece about the progress made in making room for stories about -- and performances by -- marginalized groups. “Turns out not complaining doesn’t change anything. So for the past few years I’ve been complaining,” he said, pulling up a shot of a full-page ad in the New York Times that he used to criticize the Television Academy for lack of diversity in nominees. It was good to see this discussed in that room — and it was also a bold, smart move by the Emmys to allow it, because it turned a complaint into (at least partially) a compliment about their progress... and not for nothing, new Academy president Cris Abrego got to come out and use it to tactfully deflect some of the blame to the studios. 

BEST SPEECHES, SHORT-FORM: Honestly, there were so many, but let’s give a nod to the Baby Reindeer crew. Richard Gadd said, “Follow your heart and the rest will fall into place,” which is a great message. And his co-star Jessica Gunning, who said she was lost for words to express herself, nailed the delivery of, “So I’m gonna sing.” (She did not.) And as much as Baby Reindeer was a critical favorite and therefore this wasn’t a TOTAL surprise, we’re pleased to see first-time winners, for content that -- as Gadd noted when the series won -- represents the kind of risk that TV should be taking.

WORST PRODUCT PLACEMENT: Johnnie Walker shelled out to support the telecast, but it was very weird to come back from commercial to Ebon Moss-Bachrach ordering one on the cheesy recommendation of a bartender and then being joined by Taylor Zakhar Perez for a weird and joke-free convo about how it’s okay to drink and present if you do it responsibly. They finally had to walk out on-stage to some voice-over about Johnnie Walker, while Moss-Bachrach tried very hard to bite back a laugh at how awkward it all was. Just spare us the weird false verité and hand out a Johnnie Walker Award for Best On-Screen Drinking or something. Jon Hamm honestly could be your first lifetime achievement winner for Mad Men, although we think Joan Collins has a real case for herself. Let’s cross our fingers they’ll take this tip next year.

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Housekeeping Note!

The plan was to send out the second Emily in Paris plot recap on Wednesday, but the VMAs rolling into the Emmys and a touch of the Covid and other various time constraints severely inhibited Ye Olde Binge-Watching (much less note-taking and typing). Ergo, that’s likely getting bumped to next week, for sanity’s sake. It IS coming. We would NEVER abandon you, and certainly not when Emily Cooper is in freaking Rome.

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Last Call

— If you’re in the mood to eyeball Emmys’ fashion, we’ll be doing complete coverage over at Go Fug Yourself today; come on by! We’re happy to report that almost everyone looked…really good? Way to go, TV people. You pulled it together on all fronts last night.

— This is an entertaining piece from our friends at Vulture: 18 TV Archetypes the Emmys Should’ve Honored. I would pay straight cash to see Jenna Maroney and Miss Piggy together. How has that not happened yet? — J

— Vanity Fair is still on top of my most pressing question of the year: Are Meryl Streep and Martin Short Dating? COME ON. WE DESERVE THIS. (Respectfully.) (If they want to, you know.) — J

— Speaking of: Don’t forget, we’re recapping Only Murders in the Building, and I am VERY concerned that we haven’t had ANY dip yet this season. One of you wisely pointed out that perhaps Oliver is on a dip-less diet following his heart attack last season, but Oliver knows as well as I do that heart-healthy dips exist. IT’S CALLED SALSA. Anyway, catch up here! — J