Skip to main content

BENJAMONSTER AWARDS 2024: Outstanding Guest Actor or Actress in a Comedy Series

Today's award is Outstanding Guest Actor or Actress in a Comedy Series!

Past Awards in This Category: 2023   2022   2021   2020

This year's nominees are...

MATTHEW BRODERICK as Himself in Only Murders in the Building (Hulu)












HELEN HUNT as Winnie Landell in Hacks (Max)











KEEGAN-MICHAEL KEY as Superintendent Reynolds in Abbott Elementary (ABC)











BEBE NEUWIRTH as Dr. Lilith Sternin in Frasier (Paramount+)











KAITLIN OLSON as DJ Vance in Hacks (Max)











JOHN SLATTERY as Himself in What We Do in the Shadows (FX)











J. SMITH-CAMERON as Kathy Vance in Hacks (Max)













And the Winner Is...
KAITLIN OLSON
Hacks (Max)
Kaitlin Olson has been a guest star in all three seasons of Hacks so far, but she really came into her own with the third season. She was given her best material and knocked it out of the park. Every appearance she made was strong but her best performance was easily the roast episode. Her character seemed destined to fail at the roast only to knock it out of the park and Olson was so effective at leading that sleight of hand. She is able to go toe-to-toe with Jean Smart in a much different way than Hannah Einbinder does and the show uses her in very smart ways. If she was a series regular, I don't think she'd be as effective. It is great casting and is a great performance.

Thoughts on the Rest of the Nominees:
Olson had the most competition from another guest star as a family member of Deborah Vance. J. Smith-Cameron joined this season as Deborah Vance's sister and also had some great scenes with Jean Smart. I hope they continue to explore that relationship in the fourth season. Another great Hacks guest star was Helen Hunt, who reminded us all she has great comedy chops in a fun pickleball scene. Among non-Hacks guest stars, Keegan-Michael Key was great as a bumbling superintendent on Abbott Elementary. Matthew Broderick and John Slattery both played versions of themselves on Only Murders in the Building and What We Do in the Shadows respectively and they both seemed to have a ton of fun doing it. Finally, the great Bebe Neuwirth returned for an episode of Frasier as Lillith and she and Kelsey Grammer haven't lost a step with each other.

Tomorrow: Outstanding Writing of a Limited/Anthology Series!
Labels:

Comments

Post a Comment

Popular posts from this blog

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

EPISODE GUIDES: Rhoda Season Five

On Thursdays, I go through classic series with a critical look at each season. Today I am looking at Season Five (the final season) of  Rhoda ! RHODA: SEASON FIVE 1978 13 episodes Rhoda' s final season was a truncated one as the show was cancelled in December 1978 after only 13 episodes had been produced (and only nine had aired). This feels like a continuation from season four in many ways except with the ill-advised split between Ida and Martin (more on that below). While  Rhoda  has an occasional good moment and even a couple decent episodes, it is a show that seems so wildly different from season one and not in a good way.  Rhoda  could never figure out what it fully wanted to be and only made it four and a half seasons as a result. Starring Valerie Harper as Rhoda Morgenstern  (13 episodes) Julie Kavner as Brenda Morgenstern  (13 episodes) Ray Buktenica as Benny Goodwin  (11 episodes) Kenneth McMillan as Jack Doyle  (9 episodes) Nancy Wa...
Post a Comment
Read more

SCHEDULES OF THE PAST: 1995-1996 Thursdays

On Tuesdays, I take a look at schedules from yesteryear. Here's a look at Thursdays in the 1995-96 season! ABC 8:00 8:30 9:00 10:00 Sep Charlie Grace The Monroes Various Programs Oct Murder One Nov Various Programs Dec Various Programs Thursday Night Movie Jan Feb World’s Funniest Videos Before They Were Stars! Mar Apr May NBC was the powerhouse on Thursday nights but ABC still gave it the old college try in the Fall of 1995 with a trio of new dramas that they hoped would help them cut into the Peacock's dominance. Headlining their night was Murder One , a high profile new show from Steven Bochco that received much of the network's attention before the season started. The series focused on one murder case for an entire season, whi...
Post a Comment
Read more