OUTSTANDING ORIGINAL MUSIC AND LYRICS

“Keep it Low Key”, Central Park (Music and Lyrics by Alyssa Samsel & Kate Anderson)

“B.P.E.”, Girls5Eva (Music and Lyrics by Ava Coleman, Jeff Richmond & Meredith Scardino)

“Save the City”, Hawkeye (Music by Marc Shaiman; Lyrics by Scott Wittman and Marc Shaiman)

“Tribulations”, Schmigaddon! (Music by Christopher Willis; Lyrics by Cinco Paul)

“Am I Gay?”, Ziwe (Music and Lyrics by Jen Goma & Zine Fumodoh)

AND THE WINNER IS:

"B.P.E.", GIRLS5EVA (MUSIC AND LYRICS BY AVA COLEMAN, JEFF RICHMOND & MEREDITH SCARDINO)

This is the first win and nomination for Ava Coleman. This is the sixth win and fourteenth nomination for Jeff Richmond. This is the second win and fourth nomination for Meredith Scardino. Richmond previously won for producing 30 Rock (2009), composing the theme music for Unbreakable Kimmy Schmidt! (2015), writing the music and lyrics 30 Rock (2013), Unbreakable Kimmy Schmidt! (2015) & Girls5Eva (2021). He was also nominated for producing 30 Rock (2007-2008, 2011-2013), Unbreakable Kimmy Schmidt! (2016) & Girls5Eva (2021) and writing the music and lyrics Unbreakable Kimmy Schmidt! (2017, 2019). Scardino previously won for writing 72nd Golden Globe Awards (2015) and was nominated for producing Unbreakable Kimmy Schmidt! (2016), Girls5Eva (2021)

For the second year in a row now I had to go with a song from the great Peacock musical comedy series Girls5Eva. This year that winning song is B.P.E. which rightfully stands for Big Pussy Energy. The song had such a presence during the series that there were multiple version of it and honestly based on the greatness of the song I'd take a season only consisting of this great song. The women did a great job singing it and a team of songwriters led by Jeff Richmond did a great job creating the song. Seriously television music would not be the same without Richmond's inclusion.

OUTSTANDING GUEST ACTRESS IN A DRAMA SERIES

Hiam Abbass as Marcia Roy for (“Mass in Time of War”) in “SUCCESSION”

Sanaa Lathan as Lisa Arthur for (“Secession”) in “SUCCESSION”

Jane Lynch as Madeline Starkey for (“And the Court Had a Clerk…”) in “THE GOOD FIGHT”

Elaine May as Ruth Bader Ginsburg for (“And the Two Partners Had a Fight…”) in “THE GOOD FIGHT”

Harriet Walter as Lady Caroline Collingwood for (“Chiantishire”) in “SUCCESSION”

Lee Yoo-mi as Ji-yeong for (“The Man with the Umbrella”) in “SQUID GAME”

AND THE WINNER IS:

ELAINE MAY AS RUTH BADER GINSBURG FOR ("AND THE TWO PARTNERS HAD A FIGHT...") IN "THE GOOD FIGHT"

This is the first win and nomination for Elaine May. She wins for her performance as Ruth Bader Ginsburg on The Good Fight.

Elaine May showing up on this most recent season of The Good Fight playing Ruth Bader Ginsburg was a moment from television this last year that I had no idea was going to happen and post viewing it I was so thankful that it did happen. May is an industry legend who has accomplished so much through her decades long career and this late career performance was so effecting. She played a dream like version of the recently deceased RBG and in her scenes opposite Diane Lockhart was stunning to behold. She played RBG as I'd want her to be played but also played past the true woman and created a character on this great show that I'd almost welcome back in upcoming seasons if possible.

OUTSTANDING GUEST ACTOR IN A DRAMA SERIES

Richard E. Grant as Classic Loki for (“Journey into Mystery”) in “LOKI”

Justin Kirk as Jeered Mencken for (“Going For What it Takes”) in “SUCCESSION”

Delroy Lindo as Adrian Boseman for (“Previously On…”) in “THE GOOD FIGHT”

Jonathan Majors as He Who Remains for (“For All Time. Always.”) in “LOKI”

Michael Mando as Nacho Varga for (“Rock and Hard Place”) in “BETTER CALL SAUL”

Gong Yoo as Recruiter for (“Red Light, Green Light”) in “SQUID GAME”

AND THE WINNER IS:

MICHAEL MANDO AS NACHO VARGA FOR ("ROCK AND HARD PLACE") IN "BETTER CALL SAUL"

This is the first win and nomination for Michael Mando. He wins for his performance as Nacho Varga on Better Call Saul.

It's hard to talk about Mando without getting into spoilers for the latest season of Better Call Saul so before I get any further,

SPOILER ALERT!!!

Now that I've done that I can openly discuss Mando and his thrilling finale to Nacho on this season of Better Call Saul. He's been spectacular on every season of the show and Nacho's finale was so well played by Mando that no matter the performance he's competing against he was bound to be my winner once I watched the season and early episode in which he starred. The hour I've highlighted for Mando focuses solely on him and showcases the actor at his best. The above clip highlights his greatness and honestly while I'm devastating by his characters early departure in this final season I'm glad I could use this winning choice as a moment to praise him.

OUTSTANDING HOST OF A REAILTY COMPETITION PROGRAM

Nicole Byer for Nailed It!

RuPaul Charles for RuPaul’s Drag Race

Phil Keoghan for The Amazing Race

Padma Lakshmi for Top Chef

Jeff Probst for Survivor

AND THE WINNER IS:

NICOLE BYER FOR NAILED IT!

This is the second win and fourth nomination for Nicole Byer. She won last year for Nailed It! (2021). She was also nominated for Brooklyn Nine-Nine (2019) and hosting Nailed It! (2020).

Nicole Byer continues to be such a unique voice in the comedy world and having Nailed It! on yearly gives her the opportunity to go off and I'll be thankful with each new season spotlighting her incredible work and hosting skills.

OUTSTANDING MUSIC COMPOSITION FOR A SERIES, MINISERIES OR MOVIE

Max Richter for (“The Treatment”), My Brilliant Friend

Nico Muhly for (“Chapter One”), Pachinko

Theodore Shapiro for (“Half Loop”), Severance

Cristobal Tapia de Veer for (“New Day”), The White Lotus

Theodore Shapiro for (“The Dollhouse”), Yellowjackets

AND THE WINNER IS:

CRISTOBAL TAPIA DE VEER FOR ("NEW DAY"), THE WHITE LOTUS

This is the first win and second nomination for Cristobal Tapia de Veer. He was previously nominated for composing Humans (2016).

It's almost impossible to describe how effective and addictive the music on White Lotus was. So I'll just let the music speak for itself with the above clip. I will say if you can watch please watch the show with the music rather than listen to the music separately, both work but the music in context is the greatest.

OUTSTANDING ANIMATED PROGRAM

Big Mouth (“The Shane Lizard Rises”)

Central Park (“Central Park”)

Pen15 (“Jacuzzi”)

Rick and Morty (“Rickternal Friendshine of the Spotless Mort”)

What If? (“What If... the World Lost Its Mightiest Heroes?”)

AND THE WINNER IS:

PEN15 ("JACUZZI")

This is the first win and nomination for Pen15 in this category.

The final episodes of Pen15 was sorely lacking this year but the mid season animated special from the show was one of the series strongest and gave me the opportunity to award the show for a final time. The animation while not as flashy as some others on the list felt in tune with the live action show and only provided some imaginative story telling to build on what had come before.

OUTSTANDING CASTING FOR A SERIES, MINISERIES OR MOVIE

Daniel Edwards for Heartstopper

Mary Vernieu & Michelle Wade Byrd for for Pachinko

Abdelrahman N. Fawzy for Squid Game

Meredith Tucker & Katie Doyle for The White Lotus

Libby Goldstein & Junie Lowry-Johnson for Yellowjackets

AND THE WINNER IS:

LIBBY GOLDSTEIN & JUNIE LOWRY-JOHNSON FOR YELLOWJACKETS

These are the first wins and nominations for Libby Goldstein & Junie Lowry-Johnson.

The great casting achievement of the year was on Yellowjackets with the perfect versions of the past and present of the Yellowjacket survivors cast. By achieving this one task Yellowjackets was gonna be my winner no matter who else i even considered nominating alongside it. So I'll leave you with that and encourage you to watch Yellowjackets and experience these great casting choices.

OUTSTANDING VOICEOVER PERFORMANCE

Julie Andrews as Lady Whistledown for (“Capital R Rake”) in “BRIDGERTON”

Chadwick Boseman as T'Challa / Black Panther for (“What If... T'Challa Became a Star-Lord?”) in “WHAT IF?”

Nick Kroll as Nick Birch / Maury the Hormone Monster / Lola Skumpy / Coach Steve / Rick the Hormone Monster for (“The Shane Lizard Rises”) in “BIG MOUTH”

Tara Strong as Miss Minutes for (“The Variant”) in “LOKI”

Jeffrey Wright as The Watcher for (“What If… Ultron Won?”) in “WHAT IF?”

AND THE WINNER IS:

TARA STRONG AS MISS MINUTES FOR ("THE VARIANT") IN "LOKI"

This is the first win and nomination for Tara Strong

Tara Strong for those familiar with voiceover artists is a very recognizable name so the opportunity to award her here was an opportunity I simple could not passover. Strong played Miss Minutes an animated character on the live action Loki and everytime her character showed up I was sold solely based on the work of Strong. If you were a kid of the 90's/00's you know the voice of Strong because she has voiced many iconic characters that I grew up with that this casting made me so happy as it provided the usual big audience for Marvel products to experience the brilliant voiceover work of Tara Strong.

OUTSTANDING SOUND FOR A SERIES, MINISERIES OR MOVIE

Only Murders in the Building (“The Boy from 6B”)

Schmigadoon! (“Schmigadoon!“)

Squid Game (“Red Light, Green Light”)

Stranger Things (“Chapter One: The Hellfire Club”)

Yellowjackets (“F Sharp”)

AND THE WINNER IS:

SQUID GAME ("RED LIGHT, GREEN LIGHT")

This is the first win and nomination for the sound team of Squid Game.

The pilot episode especially the final sequence of Squid Game relies heavily on sound. The final sequence which many are familiar with features the sound of death, song and chaos. As the sound team's job is done so well it makes the scene even more horrofying that you can't help but feel it all when every contestant is killed and that large doll sings out the red light green light theme. Truly this sequence is stunning and the episode features enough great sound design for me to easily award it based on the one episode and season overall.

OUTSTANDING EDITING FOR A SERIES, MINISERIES OR MOVIE

Sofie Alonzi for (“Kiss”), Heartstopper

Jacob Craycroft for (“Chapter Four”), Pachinko

Ken Eluto for (“Too Much Birthday”), Succession

Melissa McCoy for (“Goodbye Earl”), Ted Lasso

John M. Valerio for (“New Day”), The White Lotus

AND THE WINNER IS:

KEN ELUTO FOR ("TOO MUCH BIRTHDAY"), SUCCESSION

This is the first win and nomination for Ken Eluto.

Succession season 3 had a lot to live up to based solely on the greatness of the shows second season which was peak television drama for that year. Thankfully the showed continued to excel in its third year and with the penultimate episode of the season came a truly excellent hour of television filled with comedy, drama and all the elements that could make an hour of anything incredible. This episode featured a lot of wild moments and the word of the credited editor Ken Eluto helped to craft this beautiful and perfect episode.

OUTSTANDING COSTUME DESIGN FOR A SERIES, MINISERIES OR MOVIE

Kasia Walicka-Maimone for “Never the New”), The Gilded Age

Sharon Long for (“Five Days”), The Great

Antonella Cannarozzi for (“The Fever”), My Brilliant Friend

Kyunghwa Chae for (“Chapter Two”), Pachinko

Jo Sang-gyeong for (“Red Light, Green Light”), Squid Game

AND THE WINNER IS:

KASIA WALICKA-MAIMONE FOR ("NEVER THE NEW"), THE GILDED AGE

This is the first win and nomination for Kasia Walicka-Maimone.

While the majority of The Gilded Age was disappointing one element that constantly amazed with each passing episode was the shows costume design. I like many an awards voter is a sucker for well done period costuming but really when you look at the work done by Walicka-Maimone and her costume team how could you not fall in love with it. This pilot episode introduced all the characters to us showing them in impressive costuming that it almost made me look past the weak scripting of the show which was present from the beginning.

OUTSTANDING CINEMATOGRAPHY FOR A SERIES, MINISERIES OR MOVIE

Ivan Casalfrandl for (“The Fever”), My Brilliant Friend

Florian Hoffmeister for (“Chapter One”), Pachinko

Jessica Lee Gagné for (“In Perpetuity”), Severance

Lee Hyeong-deok for (“Gganbu”), Squid Game

Ben Kutchins for (“Arrivals”), The White Lotus

AND THE WINNER IS:

FLORIAN HOFFMEISTER FOR ("CHAPTER ONE"), PACHINKO

This is the first win and nomination for Florian Hoffmeister.

How doest one describe the visual beauty of Pachinko without using the most basic of descriptive words such as stunning and magnifcent? This task is impossible because the photography of Pachinko is all of these things which is why once I saw a second of the series I knew it would rule this category of cinematography for me no matter who it was nominated alongside. Many of the sequences where beautiful in this first episode and set a lot of the visual deliveries of story telling that would continue through the rest of the series. I especially liked how different yet connected the timelines where when this series was mostly told through three different timelines.

OUTSTANDING PRODUCTION DESIGN FOR A SERIES, MINISERIES OR MOVIE

Production Design by Nina Ruscio; Set Design by Matt Callahan for (“No Exit”), The Flight Attendant

Production Design by Francesca DiMottola; Set Design by Monica Alberte for (“Heads It’s Me”), The Great

Production Design by Bo Welch; Set Design by Carol Lavallee for (“Suddenly”), Schmigadoon!

Production Design by Jeremy Hindle; Set Design by Andrew Baseman for (“Good News About Hell”), Severance

Production Design by Chae Kyoung-sun; Set Design by Kim Jeong-gon for (“Red Light, Green Light”), Squid Game

AND THE WINNER IS:

PRODUCTION DESIGN BY JEREMY HINDLE; SET DESIGN BY ANDREW BASEMAN FOR ("GOOD NEWS ABOUT HELL"), SEVERANCE

These are the first wins and nominations for Jeremy Hindle and Andrew Baseman.

Severance was a show I knew nothing past it was a sort've reunion between director Ben Stiller and actor Patricia Arquette after their major success of Escape from Dannemora and to my eyes this series was nothing like the previous and quickly established itself into one of the best new series of the year. This mysterious workplace drama/comedy was so thrilling to watch weekly and I had such a good time experiencing the surprise every week. The show was designed so pointedly and the set design was so crisp and matched the coolness of the show adding to the overall universe of this workplace. Each new location introduced provided great design to the show and it was a great job by these set designers.

OUTSTANDING MAKEUP FOR A SERIES, MINISERIES OR MOVIE

A Black Lady Sketch Show (“Bounce Them Coochies, Y'all!”)

Squid Game (“Red Light, Green Light”)

Stranger Things (”Chapter One: The Hellfire Club”)

What We Do in the Shadows (“The Escape”)

Yellowjackets (“Flight of the Bumblebee”)

AND THE WINNER IS:

STRANGER THINGS ("CHAPTER ONE: THE HELLFIRE CLUB")

This is the first win and nomination for the makeup team of Stranger Things.

Stranger Things season 4 wasn't this great series that many have built it up to be but even with it's weaker moments came a lot of strong elements and like with any season of the show it is a well produced show on a production level and the element that stood out most this season was the work by all makeup artists. The major monster on this season was less based on visual effects this season and in a more human looking evil. The makeup creation was frighteningly good this season and every time he appeared I was afraid for my life again. Truly some great work by those in the makeup department of Stranger Things.

OUTSTANDING HAIRSTYLING FOR A SERIES, MINISERIES OR MOVIE

A Black Lady Sketch Show (“It's a New Day, Africa America!”)

Colin in Black and White (“Cornrows”)

The Great (“The Devil's Lunch”)

The Marvelous Mrs. Maisel (“Everything Is Bellmore”)

Russian Doll (“Nowhen”)

AND THE WINNER IS:

A BLACK LADY SKETCH SHOW ("IT'S A NEW DAY, AFRICA AMERICA!")

This is the first win and nomination for the hairstyling team for A Black Lady Sketch Show.

The amount of great sketches Black Lady Sketch Show produces during its 6 week long seasons continues to impress even during the third year of the series. What makes many of the sketches standout is the design teams who add to make the characters created good looking. The hairstyling team especially stand out for how unique they make their characters look with the above clip highlighting such a hair creation that makes me enjoy the sketches so much. Thankfully the show continues to get renewed so we can all enjoy the beauty of the shows hairstyling team.

OUTSTANDING MAIN TITLES DESIGN

John LePore and Doug Appleton for Hawkeye

Elastic for Only Murders in the Building

Angus Wall and Nadia Tzuo for Pachinko

Oliver Latta for Severance

Mark Bashore and Katrina Crawford for The White Lotus

AND THE WINNER IS:

ANGUS WALL AND NADIA TZUO FOR PACHINKO

This is the fourth win and sixth nomination for Angus Wall. This is the second win and nomination for Nadia Tzuo. Wall previously won in this category for Big Love (2006) & Game of Thrones (2011, 2019) and was nominated for Carnival (2004) & Rome (2006).Tzuo previously won for designing Feud: Bette and Joan (2017).

What I love most about Pachinko's opening credits is how joyful the entire sequence is which while slightly opposite to that of the general tone of the show which deals much more in the dark themes the sequence still makes sense with the series overall. Seeing these actors you love on the show dance together in this brightly coloured casino hall is so entertaining and not once when watching the series did I skip this title sequence because i was invested in it each time it aired.

(Seeing as this category marked the only Primetime Emmy nomination Pachinko received this week I will pulling hard for the show to win that category not only because I consider it the best of the year but I want the show to be an Emmy winner in anyway possible.)

23RD "An Irish Person" TV Awards ANNOUNCEMENT!!!

Welcome yet again to my rundown of what I consider to be the best in television of this past year. This time it's for the 2021-2022 TV season. I watch and love a lot of tv so my nominees usually cover a variety of different shows. I will be starting to announce nominees and winners in all categories daily leading up to the actual Primetime Emmy Awards which this year will air on September 13th. I will start tomorrow with "Outstanding Main Titles Design".