Generous Emmys and Laughable Censorship

Last night on Fox the 59th Annual Primetime Emmys aired with glitz, glamour and some random expletives. As it was hosted by Ryan Seacrest, I can only assume Fox and the Academy were hoping to get a younger crowd in on the Emmy fun last night.

I’m not so sure it worked, but the awards weren’t nearly as bad as they have been in the past. The music – while obvious – was a very nice way to remind the winners that there was a schedule (and ad dollars to keep).  Some went a bit overboard but, for the most part, everyone stayed within the limit.

Just as the Oscar’s apparently adopted the practice a couple of years ago, Emmy Awards were given to nearly every series that was represented last night. Neither The Sopranos nor Ugly Betty swept the awards like perhaps some people thought, which in a way is nice. The love was certainly spread pretty evenly. I don’t know about anyone else, but I felt like the miniseries or movie categories really dominated the evening.

There were some funny moments, like Rainn Wilson and Kanye West battling it out over one of Kanye’s songs with the host of Don’t Forget The Lyrics, Wayne Brady. Some not-so-funny moments, like Seacrest suggesting that his American Idol co-star smokes weed. And then there were just some downright embarassing moments, like when Sally Field went a bit bonkers at the end of her speech, and ended up babbling for 30 seconds before letting loose what I can only imagine was a string of swears that Fox’s speedy-fingered directors edited out.

Of the winners, here are my faves:

Jeremy Piven, Outstanding Supporting Actor in a Comedy Series – I love this guy, plain and simple; he’s a comedic genius. 

Katherine Heigl, Outstanding Supporting Actress in a Drama Series – Though I don’t watch Grey’s Anatomy very much, I do know that Heigl, Sandra Oh and Chandra Wilson are all very talented, so it was a toss-up. I don’t blame her for mouthing, “sh*t!” when her name was announced over theirs.

Late Night With Conan O’Brien, Outstanding Writing for a Variety, Musical or Comedy Program – Sir Conan was up against other legendary funny men, Jon Stewart, Stephen Colbert and David Letterman, but he’s my fave… it may be the crazy hair.

Helen Mirren, Outstanding Lead Actress in a Miniseries or Movie – The way-too-talented British actress was gracious enough to call Americans “generous,” while somewhat alluding to both our positive and negative attributes, but she was forgiven. So she now has two huge awards in one year – an Oscar and an Emmy (that she can add to her other two, apparently). Bloody brilliant. 

America Ferrera, Outstanding Lead Actress in a Comedy Series – She’s officially Hollywood’s Golden Girl now, and she really deserves the attention. She’s handled herself well alongside other veteran actors.

The Sopranos, Outstanding Drama Series – Yeah, I stopped caring four seasons ago, but I do appreciate the series for its creative value. I wouldn’t go so far as to say it’s the best series ever as some would say, but I do think it deserved this final award as a proper send-off. Especially since James Gandolfini was snubbed for James Spader of the aging Boston Legal. I really hopethis is their last season.

30 Rock, Outstanding Comedy Series – I didn’t think they were gonna get anything this year, even with all of the nominations, but Tina Fey’s brain child deserved the kudos. Known as an “on the bubble series” (according to TV Guide) 30 Rock really needs to up its game this season. Hopefully this will give them the boost they needed.

Tonight is the season premiere of Prison Break and the series premiere of K-Ville. I’m curious to see how a series about New Orleans will fare in a country that forgot about Hurricane Katrina after only a few months. If nothing else, it should make for some good drama. We’ll see.

School’s In Session, Fall TV’s Coming… Go TiVo, Go!

During my freshman year at Arizona State University, I used to scoff at the two girls down the hall from my dorm who religiously used their brand new TiVo to record such oh-so-stimulating shows like “The O.C.” and “American Idol”. At the time, I didn’t understand how anyone could possibly be so addicted to television – or even their favorite shows – that they’d need to record something 24/7.

Three years later, I’ve definitely seen the error of my ways. While there are only a choice few series on television that make the cut on my Season Pass list, I have to admit that the opportunity to record anything at any time of the day has its advantages. Between early morning repeats of the old military/legal show JAG and late-night showings of Conan O’Brien, my TiVo gets the occassional workout. And with the Fall 2007 semester now in full swing, escapist entertainment is more necessary than ever.

Unlike three years ago, I now realize that TiVo is not just for the typical couch potato. In fact, TiVo allows you to NOT watch television all the time, as you can essentially pick and choose what shows you like, disregarding the rest, and watching them all (either in their entirety or not) whenever you can. In essence, you can be intelligent about what you watch, without suffering through the various, mindless forms of entertainment on the tube. It’s a lovely tool that I’m glad I finally embraced.

The past two weeks have given everyone a chance to catch up on old favorites or shows that we happened upon by accident over the summer. Starting next week, networks all across the board, from CBS to SciFi to MTV will try to get our attention – and keep it for the remainder of the season.

Now, I know that there’s no accounting for taste, so hopefully I’ll be able to get the opinions of some random Sun Devils around campus. Let’s see how “smart” the general consensus is when it comes to regular viewing habits.