The 66th Emmy Awards | 8 Takeaways from the Evening

The Emmys aired on Monday to their biggest audience in 8 years. Below Eclectic Pop makes 8 observations about the night's festivities.

Few Surprises | “Breaking Bad” dominated yet again and the only good news is that this will be the last Emmy’s they will qualify for. For the past 5 years, there have been many other worthy shows passed over during the Emmys' "Breaking Bad" fixation. No more streaks, please. There should be a limit to having a show lead to this degree.  Julianna Margulies star of "The Good Wife" took home the award for Best Lead Actress, winning over usual Emmy darling, Claire Danes. Both actresses have dominated their category since starting their respective series, alternating it back and forth ever since.

The Snubs | There was one surprising win as Benedict Cumberbatch beat heavy favorite Billy Bob Thornton for Best Lead Actor in a Mini-Series. It’s always tough to watch an actor lose when they only have one shot at the prize. Thornton’s portrayal was a one-off meaning that he won’t be reprising this particular role again. Cumberbatch’s "Sherlock" is an annual mini-series event so he’ll have more opportunities. There needs to be a category distinction between an anthological mini-series that reboots with a new cast each season and a mini-series that maintains the same one.

Remembering | Billy Crystal’s touching tribute to Robin Williams was deeply affecting, as was Sara Bareilles’ performance of “Smile”.

Very Important People | Amy Poehler provided a lot of crucial comedic moments as a sidekick of sorts to host Seth Myers. A bit taking audience questions had its share of awkward moments, only to have Melissa McCarthy save the day. Funny or Die’s Billy Eichner did a special Emmys edition of “Billy on the Street”, as he and Seth Myers walked around asking unassuming citizens Emmy-related questions. It was by far the funniest bit of the night.

The Presenters | Matthew McConaughey and Woody Harrelson provided some natural and unstilted banter before presenting their category. Jimmy Fallon added significant exhuberance to the evening. He seemed genuinely excited to be there and it was nice to see. 

Random Thought | Would someone please explain what “Glee” did to earn the ambivalence it has received come awards season? It has its rough spots like any other series but when it’s outstanding, it stands admirably lofty. 

Best Speeches | Allison Janney’s win for “Mom” led to a sweet acceptance speech shout out to her co-star Anna Farris. “Modern Family” director Gail Mancuso hilariously couldn’t keep her eyes off of Matthew McConaughey during her winning speech.

Misc Notes and Hopes for the Future | Weird Al Yankovic’s song send-up to the nominated series was fun. Unfortunately, the sound mixing made his banter hard to decipher. Not hard to decipher was Bryan Cranston and Julia Louis-Dreyfuss’ hysterical lip lock that occurred during her walk up to receive her award.

A future wish for the Emmys is that there is a wider assortment of winners. Recognizing a worthy program once or twice is only right. Recognizing them for a concerted block of time that inhibits other series from receiving their due is not.

[Image by Emmys/NBC]