Okay, here we have the 2020 version of the Primetime Emmy Awards as you can see from the title and this is already the 72nd edition, so really many editions already and you must be really old to have been alive to see them all and even older to actually remember seeing them from day one. props to you if you are. I certainly am not and now I would like to give my thoughts on this most recent edition that aired less than a week ago. The key director, one of four here, is Hamish Hamilton. And there are no less than 24(!) writing credits listed here. One of them that you can also read here on the title's front page on imdb is Jimmy Kimmel and he of course was also the host that night. Looks like after two Oscar editions, he seems to take everything he can get. I cannot say I like him at all, but then most other hosts I did not like either because they always pick somebody who is literally liberal Hollywood (or the liberal television industry) come to flesh. Just my taste though and you have a right to see it differently, but I personally want equal unbiased coverage or, even better, politics to be completely kept out of these awards shows. Not just the Emmys. But that is probably a scenario that is never going to happen. This show runs for easily over two hours nd if they showed commercials that night, then the full show probably came close to three hours. There was again the distinction in five sub-categories overall with drama series, comedy series, limited series, talk series and competition program. Pay attention to how tehy called the categories "outstanding" and not best, just caught my attention. Anyway, from those five sections, there is not too much to say about the final three. John Oliver and RuPaul won like basically every year and I will keep them out from the rest of my review. Also not watching either, so no personal opinion although I think there could have been worse winners for talk series like Noah or Kimmel. The latter's brief section about him losing afterwards was also as unfunny as every year. What will they do if he eventually wins? Hopefully noithing because he never will. Still good to see his hosting job did not give him an unfair advantage. I also think that Masked Singer could have been a solid winner for competition program. The show came to Germany too not too long ago and it is a creative take on the casting show boredom. Again, just my opinion. So yeah, Kimmel hosted and of course there were no guests in the room and all the people you see early on are from previous Emmys. At least I hope so and they did not pick people from the Globes, Oscars etc. However, it as really obviously because gently-speaking the editing was not top-notch. A blind man could see it did not fit and I am not sure it was intentional. Still, the "big revelation" by Kimmel when we see him in front of the empty room and the light goes on was kinda nice and one of the better moments of the show. Another better moments was when he have that gigantic wall showing us all the nominees at home waiting for the announcement being made. What I liked about this too was that this was every time a category was announced we really saw all nominees, also for non-acting. This was good and worthy. What was strange though was that apparently they really got an Emmy to every household? Now that is a bit ridiculous. Sure it's nice to see the Emmy when they give their speech, but so much unnecessary effort and by the way, does that mean there was somebody constantly with them getting the Emmy there. Not exactly in the sense of stopping the pandemic.
Alright, now about the winners. I am not familiar with most of them or I have only een older seasons just like with Modern family for example that eventually ended this year. A bit sad. A lot happened in those ten years since it started and I still like it. Anyway, the big winner for comedy was "Schitt's Creek" this year basically sweeping the ceremony overall. I like Eugene Levy, so good for him, but his son Dan I found unlikable since the first time I saw him, so not too happy with his massive success as he won a lot more this night than supporting actor. Seems to go a bit ham and over the top constantly, but well, maybe I need to see the show to appreciate him. Sooner or later, I will. And for drama, things did not look too different as there was also one defining show winning most key categories, even if it was not as much of a sweep as for comedy. I am talking about "Succession", another show I would like to start at some point. And finally, as for limited series, we have Watchmen taking home the glories and even if I repeat myself, gotta check that one out too. Regina King won big there, already an Oscar winner before that, and I must admmit this show's success surprises me a bit because superhero shows for big wins are not exactly something happening too often. But yeah, this and Succession took home four trophies each. One win I definitely have to mention is Maria Schrader's because this really made the headlines here in Germany and I like dit, even if I have not seen Unorthodox. I think, even if this show managed multiple nominations too, her win was a bit of a surprise. Really unusual to see a German actor/director win an Emmy and not an International Emmy or Daytime Emmy, but the real thing. Props to her, I am not sure if I like her as an actress, but as a director she won me over already with her recent Josef Hader film for example. So great win for her here. Another massive surprise was probably Zendaya winning Drama Actress. But yeah, she has been around for years and I always wondered why because she has not really been in anything where she gave a strong performance, but seems this changed now. Oh well, the kid from Glee was really successful for his turn as the antagonist in the Versace movie, so why not Zendaya. Maybe a sign of thed next generation stepping it up. Least likable moment? Ruffalo maybe. Man, I liked him a lot like a decade ago, but really he has gone down so much since then. Always about politics, so frequently ham in his performances and nothing feels authentic about him anymore. His big surprise when his name was announced was also poor acting for sure and his wife seems even less likable than him. All other moments when people tried to make statements about the upcoming American election were also bummer in my opinion. You could see they wannted to say "Vote Biden!", so hard, but they just couldn't. Well, let me be precise: I support the other candidate. Four more years! Anyway, the by far best moment of the show came from David Letterman. Nice to see him living the life now with his massive beard and bald head still being intact. American television needs him so bad with the talk show crap that is on nowadays, but if he is happy, then so am I. Leno too by the way, but he was not part of the Emmys now. So yeah, Letterman's segment about some of the politically incorrect jokes he made decades ago was absolutely hilarious and I wish he would host the show. Another okay moments came from Tracy Morgan telling us about solidarity between people with the same name and it was actually pretty hilarious he was there. For Ullman I think. Certainly not for Tracee Ellis Ross, she would not give her moment in the limelight to anybody, even if it was just a potential win. With King getting her expected win and Aduba and Yahya Abdul-Mateen II scoring minor upsets, Black folks also cannot complain that there are not enough winners of their breed this time. The latter took the win in a category where BBT's Jim Parsons was the slight favorite. Will be interesting to see how the BBT cast members will do in coming years and if we will maybe see some of the others nominated too at some point. Funnily enough, the Howard actor was not too far away from an Osccar nomination not too long ago. But back to this one here. Well, there is not too much to say anymore I suppose. Nice to see "Curb Your Enthusiasm" still running and nominated though. Gotta catch up on that again Sadly no nomination for Larry David this time in the acting categories. Anthony Anderson, however, was nominated and also there, just like Jennifer Aniston, but he really becomes less likable every time I see him. But Jason Bateman was fine actually being there and not justg make-believe haha. Certainly, one of not too many pretty funny moments that night, but no surprise that Kimmel with his usual lackluster talking destroyed a lot there. No enthusiasm means no fun. And you don't have to go over the top at all. So, like I said in the title of my review, the better choice here may have been to cancel the show or just announce all the winners in a way like the one when all the nominees are announced. It may not be great, but also not worse than an uninspired show like the one they made the other day. Really weak material. Thumbs-down and if the 2021 edition is held on a big stage again with everybody in the audience, please make sure you get a better host. Honestly, this was, also "thanks" to Kimmel, closer to one star out of five than three stars out of five (and a positive recommendation). Stay away from the broadcast here and just check if any of your favorites won. Oh yes, two more weak moments: RBG has no connection to the television industry, therefore she should not be included. Another area where Kimmel messed up. The in memoriam sequence was pretty nice at least, one of the better moments, but yeah, like I said, for every good moment there were three moment on the opposite end of the quality scale and another one there would be the Governor's Award for Tyler Perry, basically the lifetime achievement award with another name. Also did not like his speech at all. Okay, that is really all now. Nothing more to say, except I truly hope next year's Emmys will not be as bad as the 2020 version.
Alright, now about the winners. I am not familiar with most of them or I have only een older seasons just like with Modern family for example that eventually ended this year. A bit sad. A lot happened in those ten years since it started and I still like it. Anyway, the big winner for comedy was "Schitt's Creek" this year basically sweeping the ceremony overall. I like Eugene Levy, so good for him, but his son Dan I found unlikable since the first time I saw him, so not too happy with his massive success as he won a lot more this night than supporting actor. Seems to go a bit ham and over the top constantly, but well, maybe I need to see the show to appreciate him. Sooner or later, I will. And for drama, things did not look too different as there was also one defining show winning most key categories, even if it was not as much of a sweep as for comedy. I am talking about "Succession", another show I would like to start at some point. And finally, as for limited series, we have Watchmen taking home the glories and even if I repeat myself, gotta check that one out too. Regina King won big there, already an Oscar winner before that, and I must admmit this show's success surprises me a bit because superhero shows for big wins are not exactly something happening too often. But yeah, this and Succession took home four trophies each. One win I definitely have to mention is Maria Schrader's because this really made the headlines here in Germany and I like dit, even if I have not seen Unorthodox. I think, even if this show managed multiple nominations too, her win was a bit of a surprise. Really unusual to see a German actor/director win an Emmy and not an International Emmy or Daytime Emmy, but the real thing. Props to her, I am not sure if I like her as an actress, but as a director she won me over already with her recent Josef Hader film for example. So great win for her here. Another massive surprise was probably Zendaya winning Drama Actress. But yeah, she has been around for years and I always wondered why because she has not really been in anything where she gave a strong performance, but seems this changed now. Oh well, the kid from Glee was really successful for his turn as the antagonist in the Versace movie, so why not Zendaya. Maybe a sign of thed next generation stepping it up. Least likable moment? Ruffalo maybe. Man, I liked him a lot like a decade ago, but really he has gone down so much since then. Always about politics, so frequently ham in his performances and nothing feels authentic about him anymore. His big surprise when his name was announced was also poor acting for sure and his wife seems even less likable than him. All other moments when people tried to make statements about the upcoming American election were also bummer in my opinion. You could see they wannted to say "Vote Biden!", so hard, but they just couldn't. Well, let me be precise: I support the other candidate. Four more years! Anyway, the by far best moment of the show came from David Letterman. Nice to see him living the life now with his massive beard and bald head still being intact. American television needs him so bad with the talk show crap that is on nowadays, but if he is happy, then so am I. Leno too by the way, but he was not part of the Emmys now. So yeah, Letterman's segment about some of the politically incorrect jokes he made decades ago was absolutely hilarious and I wish he would host the show. Another okay moments came from Tracy Morgan telling us about solidarity between people with the same name and it was actually pretty hilarious he was there. For Ullman I think. Certainly not for Tracee Ellis Ross, she would not give her moment in the limelight to anybody, even if it was just a potential win. With King getting her expected win and Aduba and Yahya Abdul-Mateen II scoring minor upsets, Black folks also cannot complain that there are not enough winners of their breed this time. The latter took the win in a category where BBT's Jim Parsons was the slight favorite. Will be interesting to see how the BBT cast members will do in coming years and if we will maybe see some of the others nominated too at some point. Funnily enough, the Howard actor was not too far away from an Osccar nomination not too long ago. But back to this one here. Well, there is not too much to say anymore I suppose. Nice to see "Curb Your Enthusiasm" still running and nominated though. Gotta catch up on that again Sadly no nomination for Larry David this time in the acting categories. Anthony Anderson, however, was nominated and also there, just like Jennifer Aniston, but he really becomes less likable every time I see him. But Jason Bateman was fine actually being there and not justg make-believe haha. Certainly, one of not too many pretty funny moments that night, but no surprise that Kimmel with his usual lackluster talking destroyed a lot there. No enthusiasm means no fun. And you don't have to go over the top at all. So, like I said in the title of my review, the better choice here may have been to cancel the show or just announce all the winners in a way like the one when all the nominees are announced. It may not be great, but also not worse than an uninspired show like the one they made the other day. Really weak material. Thumbs-down and if the 2021 edition is held on a big stage again with everybody in the audience, please make sure you get a better host. Honestly, this was, also "thanks" to Kimmel, closer to one star out of five than three stars out of five (and a positive recommendation). Stay away from the broadcast here and just check if any of your favorites won. Oh yes, two more weak moments: RBG has no connection to the television industry, therefore she should not be included. Another area where Kimmel messed up. The in memoriam sequence was pretty nice at least, one of the better moments, but yeah, like I said, for every good moment there were three moment on the opposite end of the quality scale and another one there would be the Governor's Award for Tyler Perry, basically the lifetime achievement award with another name. Also did not like his speech at all. Okay, that is really all now. Nothing more to say, except I truly hope next year's Emmys will not be as bad as the 2020 version.
