The 2011 Emmy winners were unremarkable in a few ways. As many viewers and critics may have suspected, “Modern Family” wound up topping the comedy categories while “Mad Men” remained the king of drama. But in between the predictability, there were a few results that stood out as noteworthy.
“Modern Family” becomes more dominant than ever
When “Modern Family” became a freshman Emmy winner last year, it won six awards overall and three on the big night. But it became stronger than ever in its second Emmys, winning the first four awards of the evening for writing, directing, Supporting Actress Julie Bowen and Supporting Actor Ty Burrell. After taking home Best Comedy again to end the night, “Modern Family” led the pack with five overall wins.
Although the show broke right out of the gate in 2010, it wasn’t as overwhelming in its victories as it was in 2011. There was room to wonder if Season 2 was better or as good as Season 1, yet the Academy made its opinion clear that it was.
“Friday Night Lights” finally gets noticed before final whistle
Countless critics bashed the Emmys for not nominating “Friday Night Lights” for anything for three years until Kyle Chandler and Connie Britton broke in last year. After its final season, the show finally got a nomination along with Chandler, Britton, and writer/creator Jason Katims. That seemed like a victory unto itself, considering how the show was ignored all this time.
But it turns out ending the series was the best thing awards-wise, as Katims won for writing and Chandler scored a Best Actor upset. After being shut out for four seasons, Katims and Chandler both upset “Mad Men” figures Matthew Weiner and Jon Hamm. Of course, if “Friday Night Lights” hadn’t ended this year, the Emmys would have probably ignored it like always — yet better to do it at the final whistle than never.
Melissa McCarthy crowned Miss Emmy
The Best Actress Comedy nominees stole the show by coming up on stage and huddling together, a la Miss America, before the winner was announced. That made it all the more ironic that Melissa McCarthy scored the upset, as a fuller-figured woman can at least win in a beauty pageant spoof.
Yet if anything other than McCarthy’s talent influenced the results, it was likely her success on the summer movie pageant circuit with “Bridesmaids.” It also helped that McCarthy was on one of last year’s few freshman hits in “Mike and Molly,” as she and Jim Parsons swept the lead comedy actor Emmys for CBS.