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BENJAMONSTER AWARDS 2023: Outstanding Writing of a Comedy Series

Today's award is Outstanding Writing of a Comedy Series!

Past Awards in This Category: 2022   2021   2020

This year's nominees are...

LIZ FELDMAN, Dead to Me "We've Reached the End" (Netflix)











WILL GRAHAM, A League of Their Own "Stealing Home" (Prime Video)











RIAN JOHNSON, Poker Face "Dead Man's Hand" (Peacock)













CHRIS KELLY & SARAH SCHNEIDER, The Other Two "Cary Gets His Ass Handed to Him" (HBO Max)











CINCO PAUL, Schmigadoon! "Welcome to Schmicago" (Apple TV+)












AMY SHERMAN-PALLADINO, The Marvelous Mrs. Maisel "Four Minutes" (Prime Video)













BEN SMITH, Only Murders in the Building "The Last Day of Bunny Folger" (Hulu)












JORDAN TEMPLE, Abbott Elementary "Educator of the Year" (ABC)











And the Winner Is...
JORDAN TEMPLE
Abbott Elementary "Educator of the Year" (ABC)
Working in the education profession, I am often hyper critical of shows set in schools because of how many things they get wrong. So something I have always appreciated about Abbott Elementary is how much they strive to get right. And the episode "Educator of the Year" really resonated with me. It wasn't because of the main plot, which was a funny plot about Gregory winning Educator of the Year for all the wrong reasons. It was because of a side plot where a parent rips into Janine. Having seen colleagues devastated by similar situations, it all felt so real and was portrayed beautifully and truthfully. The dialogue played exactly the way a real conversation in a real school could. That poignant plot along with the very funny A plot made this a standout episode of Abbott's second season.

Thoughts on the Rest of the Nominees:
There were lots of great comedy writing efforts this year but a lot of these entries, like the Abbott episodes, also had some dramatic beats. I didn't love the final season of Dead to Me, but I thought the final episode had some great scenes between Christina Applegate and Linda Cardellini. The "Stealing Home" episode of A League of Their Own was uplifting and heartbreaking. Rian Johnson got Poker Face off to a great start, setting the tone for the show with his writing (and directing). The Other Two had a brilliant parody of "The Truman Show" with an episode that also had some surprising dramatic beats. The first episode of the new season of Schmigadoon very effectively showed us how the world continues past its very distinct first season. The "Last Days of Bunny Folger" episode of Only Murders of the Building was the type of show I wish Only Murders was more regularly. Finally, the biggest competitor was the series finale of The Marvelous Mrs. Maisel, which was highlighted by a wonderful comedic routine for Midge Maisel.

Tomorrow: Outstanding Directing of a Comedy Series!

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