Fri-Yay: Primetime Emmy Results for Comedy; AFV Gets 30th Anniversary Special

Friday, September 27, 2019

Fri-Yay: Primetime Emmy Results for Comedy; AFV Gets 30th Anniversary Special

It's time for another edition of Fri-Yay! That means we will take a look back on some sitcom happenings in recent days or weeks or other fun sitcomy stuff. It's a sitcom lover's paradise! Happy Fri-Yay!

Phoebe Waller-Bridge - Fleabag

by Vincent

Well, a week ago I tried to predict the Emmys winners, thinking, as usual, the Emmys voters would play it fairly safe. Needless to say, I was quite wrong! This was, apparently, one of those years the Emmys voters have every 3 years or so where they decide to go a little left field, which, well, sort of messed up my predictions. Let's go back through each of my picks just to see how wrong I really was...

Outstanding Lead Actor in a Comedy Series
My Prediction: Ted Danson
Winner: Bill Hader
I thought Ted Danson would take this one, but in reality, it went to Bill Hader, for HBO's Barry. Truthfully, I thought it was kind of a dead heat between the two actors, but because I prefer The Good Place, I went with my own tastes for this one. Clearly, it steered me wrong. However, Bill Hader is totally deserving as well and Barry is a great, unique series, so this was certainly not an unpleasant way for me to get a category wrong.

Outstanding Lead Actress in a Comedy Series
My Prediction: Julia Louis-Dreyfus
Winner: Phoebe Waller-Bridge
I was not expecting the Emmys to show as much love for Fleabag as they did, but they sure did. Phoebe Waller-Bridge gets the nod here, and it's incredibly deserving, although I'm still frankly shocked JLD didn't get the nod as Selena one last time. Voters didn't seem to love Veep's final season - I guess the year off really did hurt it with Emmys audiences, and it was also arguably the show's weakest season yet. So, again, not displeased with this choice.

Outstanding Supporting Actor in a Comedy Series
My Prediction: Tony Shaloub
Winner: Tony Shaloub
Hey, I got one right! It wasn't as big of a night for The Marvelous Mrs. Maisel as many predicted it would be, but Shaloub still easily wins this category, not surprising given he's probably the biggest name of the bunch. Again, a deserving win even if Maisel's second season was a little inconsistent.

Outstanding Supporting Actress in a Comedy Series
My Prediction: Olivia Colman
Winner: Alex Borstein
Well, the one category that I actually picked Fleabag to win, it didn't. Go figure. Mrs. Maisel ruled the Supporting categories, but I still think Borstein is kind of a surprising choice here. She's great, but it feels like her performance on Mrs. Maisel is one of the more undersung ones, so I'm (pleasantly) surprised that Emmy voters rewarded her, especially since overall the night wasn't a rousing success for the show.

Outstanding Comedy Series
My Prediction: Veep
Winner: Fleabag
Again, I wasn't predicting the Emmys to sour on Veep as much as they did, given how Game of Thrones manages to come back and sweep every year despite taking off years. I also wasn't expecting Fleabag to be as big of a winner as it was, although I did see it as a potential dark horse candidate if the Emmy voters tired of Veep and Mrs. Maisel (which it seems like they did). It's a fun, good win, though - one that hopefully will bring more attention to a show that was critically beloved but didn't get the same amount of audience love. All in all, it was a pretty interesting night, at least as far as the Emmys go.

AFV: America, This is You!

In celebration of AFV's milestone 30-year anniversary, ABC will air AFV: America, This is You!, on Sunday, Dec. 8 from 8:00-9:00 p.m. EST on ABC, following an all-new episode of AFV. It can also be viewed the next day on ABC.com, the ABC app and Hulu. The special retrospective will take a closer look at the history of the iconic series, including how it originated, the evolution over 30 seasons and its significant influence on pop culture, as well as how changes in technology impacted the show. Additionally, the episode will unlock some of the most memorable video clips in AFV's coveted vault, revealing interviews with past contestants all grown up and how their appearances affected their lives. Audiences can also expect to see some familiar faces, including current host Alfonso Ribeiro and former hosts Bob Saget and Tom Bergeron, reminiscing about AFV's legacy and their individual styles of hosting.

Sitcoms Airing Tonight / Sitcom Stars on Talk Shows

Tuesday, April 1

St. Denis Medical - "Anything to Push Zaluva" (NBC, 8:00PM ET/PT)
Ron's teasing makes Joyce question whether her friendship with a pharmaceutical rep is genuine; Alex has trouble letting Serena take on a new task; Matt finds a mentor in Bruce.

Night Court - "Hot to Trot" (NBC, 8:30PM ET/PT)
Abby's friendship with her ex-boyfriend's mother leads to romantic complications; when Julianne's wealthy aunt passes away, the gang vies for a piece of her inheritance.

Tyler Perry's House of Payne - "Love At First Swipe" (BET, 9:00PM ET/PT)
C.J. and Janine receive marital advice from an unlikely source; Peanut seeks help with his newfound online lover.

Tyler Perry's Assisted Living - "Failure 2 Launch" (BET, 9:30PM ET/PT)
Assisted Living is the new situation comedy by Tyler Perry about three generations who must make a new start in the rural backwoods of Georgia.

Complete TV Listings

Sitcom Stars on Talk Shows (Week of March 31)

Tuesday, April 1

Adam Scott (Ghosted/Veep/Parks and Recreation/Party Down) - Catch Adam on a repeat of Jimmy Kimmel Live! at 11:35pm on ABC.
Kevin Bacon (I Love Dick) - Kevin is a guest on The Tonight Show Starring Jimmy Fallon at 11:35pm on NBC.
Amanda Peet (Brockmire/Togetherness/Bent) - Amanda appears on The Tonight Show Starring Jimmy Fallon at 11:35pm on NBC.
Paul Rudd (The Shrink Next Door/Living with Yourself/Wild Oats) - Paul stops by Late Night with Seth Meyers at 12:36am on NBC.
Ike Barinholtz (The Studio/The Afterparty/Bless the Harts/The Mindy Project/Eastbound & Down) - Ike appears on Late Night with Seth Meyers at 12:36am on NBC. He will also be on Watch What Happens Live with Andy Cohen at 9:30pm on Bravo.
Vinny Thomas (Platonic), Paul F. Tompkins (The Great North/BoJack Horseman/DAG) and Aparna Nancherla (The Great North/Lopez vs Lopez/Corporate) - Vinny, Paul and Aparna are guests on After Midnight at 12:37am on CBS.
Chase Sui Wonders (The Studio/Bupkis) and Kathryn Hahn (The Studio/Tiny Beautiful Things/Central Park/Happyish/Transparent/Free Agents) - Chase and Kathryn are guests on Watch What Happens Live with Andy Cohen at 9:30pm on Bravo.
Will Ferrell (The Office) and Jennifer Coolidge (2 Broke Girls/Joey) - E! News has interviews with Will and Jennifer at 11pm on E!.
Román Zaragoza (Ghosts) - Román talks about Ghosts on CBS Mornings sometime between 7-9am.
Jenny Slate (The Great North/Big Mouth/Married/Bob's Burgers) - Jenny talks about Dying for Sex on ABC's Good Morning America sometime between 7-9am.
Michael Angarano (Laid/I'm Dying Up Here/Will & Grace) and Michael Cera (Life & Beth/Arrested Development/I Was a Sixth Grade Alien) - Michael and Michael talk about Sacramento with the ladies of The View on ABC at 11am ET/10am CT-PT.
Olivia Munn (Perfect Couples) - Olivia guest co-hosts NBC's Today in the 10am hour.
Hannah Einbinder (Hacks) - Hannah talks about Hacks on NBC's Today in the 10am hour.
Tasha Smith (Survival of the Thickest/Tyler Perry's For Better or Worse/The Tom Show/Boston Common) and Tone Bell (Survival of the Thickest/Fam/Disjointed/Truth Be Told/Bad Judge/Whitney) - Tasha and Tone talk about the new season of Netflix’s Survival of the Thickest on Sherri, so check your local listings.
Kathryn Hahn (The Studio/Tiny Beautiful Things/Central Park/Happyish/Transparent/Free Agents) - Kathryn is dishing on her new comedy series The Studio on The Drew Barrymore Show, so check your local listings.
Wilmer Valderrama (That '70s Show) - Wilmer and Freddy Rodriguez chat about their podcast Dos Amigos on a repeat of Access Daily with Mario & Kit, so check your local listings.
Brenda Song (Running Point/Dollface/Dads/The Suite Life on Deck/The Suite Life of Zack & Cody) - Brenda talks about Netflix's Running Point on a repeat of Access Daily with Mario & Kit, so check your local listings.
Paul Walter Hauser (The Afterparty) - Paul is a guest on PIX11 Morning News on WPIX in New York at 9:40am.