Skip to main content

BENJAMONSTER AWARDS 2021: Outstanding Lead Actress in a Comedy Series

Today's award is Outstanding Lead Actress in a Comedy Series!

Check out the nominees and winner from 2020!

This year's nominees are:

KALEY CUOCO as Cassie Bowden in The Flight Attendant (HBO Max)













HANNAH EINBINDER as Ava in Hacks (HBO Max)












RENEE ELISE GOLDSBERRY as Wickie Roy in Girls5Eva (Peacock)











ANNA KONKLE as Anna Kone in PEN15 (Hulu)













JANE LEVY as Zoey in Zoey's Extraordinary Playlist (NBC)













NASIM PEDRAD as Chad in Chad (TBS)













JEAN SMART as Deborah Vance in Hacks (HBO Max)













HAILEE STEINFELD as Emily Dickinson in Dickinson (Apple TV+)











And the Winner Is...
KALEY CUOCO
The Flight Attendant (HBO Max)
This was a real tough choice but I went with Kaley Cuoco because of how much the success of The Flight Attendant hinged on her performance. The Flight Attendant is an ambitious show that got a lot of things right but was a little bit up and down with execution at time. It tonally jumped between being a comedy and drama, sometimes very quickly. The reason it worked as well as it did was because of Cuoco. She completely nailed the dark comedy (she is a riot in the "Funeralia" episode among others) but she also nailed the dramatic elements. And most impressively, she was able to navigate the two genres. It didn't feel as jarring as it could have because Cuoco was so believable as a mess of a character. If you're talking about giving credit to one performer for making the difference in a show's success or failure, this is it.

Thoughts on the Rest of the Nominees:
I was pretty sure for a long time that Cuoco would be my winner but there was a late and very strong push from Jean Smart for Hacks. Smart was absolutely brilliant in her role as Deborah Vance and if she beats Cuoco for the Emmy, I can get behind that. I ultimately went with Cuoco because I thought she was a little more responsible for the overall success of the show. One reason is Smart had another of my nominees, Hannah Einbinder as a very solid co-lead (she's category frauded in Supporting at the Emmys). Einbinder got stronger as Hacks went along. Among the other nominees, Renee Elise Goldsberry was the MVP for the first season of Girls5Eva with some very funny line deliveries and of course powerhouse performances. I know not everyone is a fan of Chad but I found Nasim Pedrad's portrayal of a 14 year old boy to be delightfully cringey. Anna Konkle and Maya Erskine are both great in PEN15 but I think Konkle was slightly stronger and she made my cut while Erskine just missed it. Hailee Steinfeld has carried Dickinson very well and kicked it up a notch in the second season. Finally, the charm of Zoey's Extraordinary Playlist hinged a large part on returning nominee Jane Levy.

Tomorrow: Outstanding Lead Actress in a Drama Series!

Labels

Labels:

Comments

Post a Comment

Popular posts from this blog

SEASON IN REVIEW: 2017-18 Miscellaneous Awards

As usual, I am ending the season with a few miscellaneous awards. The blog will be quiet this summer but I will continue to do the week ahead posts with broadcast TV news as it happens this summer. Then I'll be back for previews, pilot reviews, and more in the fall! BEST RETURNING COMEDY Superstore (NBC) - Superstore was awarded my "Best Returning Comedy" last year, but it only got better in season three. The funniest ensemble on TV took another step forward with some truly hilarious moments (the season premiere, the Golden Globes party, and the Christmas episode to name a few) and some major plot points moving forward. It also has the potential to be surprisingly sentimental at times. I think back to the first year of the show and how I felt like it had so many funny elements but didn't always bring it completely together. Well now it does on a weekly basis and it is one of those shows that just seems to be in the sweet spot of what will hopefully be a long run. ...
Post a Comment
Read more

EPISODE GUIDES: Happy Days Season Five (Part 1)

On Thursdays, I take a detailed and critical look at a TV show by season. Today I am looking at Season 5 (Part 1) of  Happy Days ! HAPPY DAYS: SEASON FIVE 1977-1978 27 episodes Season Five is the year where Fonzie infamously jumps the shark. It happens at the beginning of the season and while  Happy Days  does eventually decline in quality, it is not this season. In fact, this season graded out slightly higher than the previous season even though it doesn't feel as strong. I think that's because there's not a lot of outright stinkers in this season. It's a very solid season with the show continuing to hum along. There are some signs of the troubles to come but it doesn't happen on a regular basis in the fifth season. Starring Ron Howard as Richie Cunningham  (27 episodes) Henry Winkler as Arthur Fonzarelli  (27 episodes) Tom Bosley as Howard Cunningham  (27 episodes) Marion Ross as Marion Cunningham  (27 episodes) Anson Williams as Potsie Webber  ...
Post a Comment
Read more

EPISODE GUIDES: That 70s Show Season Seven

On Thursdays, I go through classic series with a critical look at each season. Today I am looking at Season Seven of  That 70s Show ! THAT 70s SHOW: SEASON SEVEN 2004-2005 25 episodes The seventh season of  That 70s Show  is the final season with Topher Grace as a series regular and also the final full season for Ashton Kutcher. Despite still having both of those cast member, the show finds itself flailing especially with Topher Grace's Eric, who is stuck in a terrible arc for most of the season. The show also brings many characters back at one point or another but everything just feels tired. This season actually graded out the worst for me. Even worse than the often maligned final season (more on that next week). Every title this season is named for a Rolling Stones song. Starring Topher Grace as Eric Forman  (25 episodes) Mila Kunis as Jackie Burkhart  (25 episodes) Ashton Kutcher as Michael Kelso  (25 episodes) Danny Masterson as Steven Hyde  (25 e...
Post a Comment
Read more