Benjamonster's TV

I hope you enjoyed my month of awards! Check back September 6 for the return of regular blog posts, which I will be running Tuesdays through Fridays. Here's a recap of all the awards, check below this post for each individual award post! Outstanding Comedy Series: Abbott Elementary (ABC) Outstanding Drama Series: This is Us (NBC) Outstanding Limited/Anthology Series: The White Lotus (HBO) Outstanding Lead Actress in a Comedy Series: Jean Smart, Hacks (HBO Max) Outstanding Lead Actress in a Drama Series: Mandy Moore, This is Us (NBC) Outstanding Lead Actress in a Limited/Anthology Series: Michelle Pfeiffer, The First Lady (Showtime) Outstanding Lead Actor in a Comedy Series: Jason Sudeikis, Ted Lasso (Apple TV+) Outstanding Lead Actor in a Drama Series: Adam Scott, Severance (Apple TV+) Outstanding Lead Actor in a Limited/Anthology Series: Michael Keaton, Dopesick (Hulu) Outstanding Supporting Actress in a Comedy Series: Janelle James, Abbott Elementary (ABC) Outstanding Supporting ...

We've arrived at the final award - Outstanding Comedy Series. Check back tomorrow for a recap of all the awards! Check out past results for this category from  2020  and  2021 ! This year's nominees are... ABBOTT ELEMENTARY (ABC) BARRY (HBO) GHOSTS (CBS) HACKS (HBO Max) THE MARVELOUS MRS. MAISEL (Amazon) ONLY MURDERS IN THE BUILDING (Hulu) THE OTHER TWO (HBO Max) SCHMIGADOON! (Apple TV+) TED LASSO (Apple TV+) And the Winner Is... ABBOTT ELEMENTARY ABC This was a really tough decision that I agonized over for quite awhile but I ultimately went with the freshest and funniest new sitcom to hit the broadcast network airwaves since the great early days of Modern Family (before it all went awry for that show). I was excited for Abbott Elementary back when I saw the trailer well before it became a sensation. I thought the pilot was a little underwhelming but then it just found its footing and got better and better each week with great episodes like "Desking" and the season f...

Today's award is Outstanding Drama Series! Check out past results from  2020  and  2021 ! This year's nominees are... AS WE SEE IT (Amazon) EUPHORIA (HBO) SEVERANCE (Apple TV+) SUCCESSION (HBO) THIS IS US (NBC) WINNING TIME: THE RISE OF THE LAKERS DYNASTY (HBO) YELLOWJACKETS (Showtime) And the Winner Is... THIS IS US NBC As I mentioned in my Mandy Moore post, This is Us was not on a great trajectory after its very strong first couple seasons. The fifth season (the "COVID" season) in particular was a mess. It did get nominated last year by me because of a strong ending and lack of better competition. This year, it earned its nomination and win with a very compelling and focused final season. The show did great service to its many characters. Major arcs like the Kate/Toby divorce and Rebecca's death were handled beautifully and given the time to breathe (benefits of a network episode count!) while one-off episodes (such as the Nicky episode, the Beth episode & t...

We're into the big awards. Today is Outstanding Limited/Anthology Series! Check out past results from  2020  and  2021 ! This year's nominees are... DOPESICK (Hulu) GASLIT (Starz) IMPEACHMENT: AMERICAN CRIME STORY (FX) MAID (Netflix) THE SHRINK NEXT DOOR (Apple TV+) THE WHITE LOTUS (HBO) WHY WOMEN KILL (Paramount+) And the Winner Is... THE WHITE LOTUS HBO This award winner should come as no surprise if you've been reading my blog this month. The White Lotus was probably my favorite thing I watched on TV in the last year. It was such a breezy yet fascinating summer watch. I liked everything about it from the expert directing to the witty writing to the great use of music throughout the series. But the best part was the standout cast. There were very few redeeming characters on the show and I didn't want the story to end for any of them. The show explored very interesting dynamics between the haves and the have-nots and yet it was handled in a very satirical way. More tha...

Today's award is Outstanding Lead Actress in a Comedy Series! Check out past results from  2020  and  2021 ! This year's nominees are... PAMELA ADLON as Sam Fox in Better Things (FX) RACHEL BROSNAHAN as Midge Maisel in The Marvelous Mrs. Maisel (Amazon) QUINTA BRUNSON as Jeanine Teagues in Abbott Elementary (ABC) KALEY CUOCO as Cassie Bowden in The Flight Attendant (HBO Max) HANNAH EINBINDER as Ava Daniels in Hacks (HBO Max) ELLE FANNING as Catherine the Great in The Great (Hulu) SARAH LANCASHIRE as Julia Child in Julia (HBO Max) JEAN SMART as Deborah Vance in Hacks (HBO Max) HELENE YORKE as Brooke Dubek in The Other Two (HBO Max) And the Winner Is... JEAN SMART Hacks (HBO Max) Last year, I narrowly chose Kaley Cuoco over Jean Smart for this award and my reasoning was I thought Cuoco was more integral to the success of The Flight Attendant whereas Hacks was a better show. This year, it tilted more considerably in Smart's favor after she turned in another pristine season o...

Today's award is Outstanding Lead Actress in a Drama Series! Check out past results from  2020  and  2021 ! This year's nominees are... JENNIFER ANISTON as Alex Levy in The Morning Show (Apple TV+) LAURA LINNEY as Wendy Byrde in Ozark (Netflix) BRITT LOWER as Helly Riggs in Severance (Apple TV+) MELANIE LYNSKEY as Adult Shauna in Yellowjackets (Showtime) CHRISSY METZ as Kate Pearson in This is Us (NBC) MANDY MOORE as Rebecca Pearson in This is Us (NBC) ZENDAYA as Rue Bennett in Euphoria (HBO) And the Winner Is... MANDY MOORE This is Us (NBC) I have maintained for years that Mandy Moore was underrated for her performance in This is Us and thrilled when she finally got an Emmy nomination in 2019. Then when I started doing my own awards, I nominated her in 2020 but not last year as she had very little to do (due in part to her real life pregnancy) and the show was sort of a mess, especially with her character. But Moore and This is Us rebounded in a big way for the show's fi...

Today's award is Outstanding Lead Actress in a Limited/Anthology Series! Check out past results from  2020  and  2021 ! This year's nominees are... LILY JAMES as Pamela Anderson Lee in Pam & Tommy (Hulu) SARAH PAULSON as Linda Tripp in Impeachment: American Crime Story (FX) MICHELLE PFEIFFER as Betty Ford in The First Lady (Showtime) MARGARET QUALLEY as Alex Russell in Maid (Netflix) JULIA ROBERTS as Martha Mitchell in Gaslit (Starz) AMANDA SEYFRIED as Elizabeth Holmes in The Dropout (Hulu) ALLISON TOLMAN as Alma Fillcot in Why Women Kill (Paramount+) And the Winner Is... MICHELLE PFEIFFER The First Lady (Showtime) Michelle Pfeiffer's performance is worthy of a win in its own right but it's especially worthy of a win when considering what a mess the show is. The First Lady is one of my biggest disappointments of the year with bad writing and bad acting. But Pfeiffer is a glowing exception. I only kept watching the show because of her stirring depiction of Betty Ford...

Today's award is Outstanding Lead Actor in a Comedy Series! Check out past results from  2020  and  2021 ! This year's nominees are... ANTHONY ANDERSON as Andre Johnson in Black-ish (ABC) IAIN ARMITAGE as Sheldon Cooper in Young Sheldon (CBS) BILL HADER as Barry Berkman in Barry (HBO) NICHOLAS HOULT as Peter III of Russia in The Great (Hulu) STEVE MARTIN as Charles-Haden Savage in Only Murders in the Building (Hulu) DANNY MCBRIDE as Jesse Gemstone in The Righteous Gemstones (HBO) KAYVAN NOVAK as Nandor the Relentless in What We Do in the Shadows (FX) JASON SUDEIKIS as Ted Lasso in Ted Lasso (Apple TV+) DREW TARVER as Cary Dubek in The Other Two (HBO) And the Winner Is... JASON SUDEIKIS Ted Lasso (Apple TV+) We have our first repeat winner in the comedy category with one of the best new sitcom characters in recent years. I think the weird little backlash that Ted Lasso experienced during its second season was pretty ridiculous and unfounded. Ted Lasso the character, as pla...