To reiterate: the reasons for choosing a Superman statue as it's award, and not something from Star Wars are 3-fold:
1. The Catholic Skywalker Awards will cover movies, television, and comic books. Superman is an icon for all three.
2. The pose he has here, revealing his inner hero, is symbolic of the revelation of truth and beauty that we should find in all good art.
3. It's a statue I actually own, so I can use this photo on my blog.
(My appreciation and judgment of a TV show should not be taken as a recommendation. Choosing to watch any of these films is the reader's responsibility)
And now we here at Catholic Skywalker would like to celebrate the best in Television this year.
There are a lot of wonderful (so I'm told) programs out there that, unfortunately, time has not permitted me to see such as The Punisher, Ozark, Jessica Jones, etc.
There are a lot of wonderful (so I'm told) programs out there that, unfortunately, time has not permitted me to see such as The Punisher, Ozark, Jessica Jones, etc.
Shows we watch:
COMEDY | DRAMA | REALITY |
Best Drama:
This Is Us
Runners-up
-Dirk Gentley's Holistic Detective Agency
-Doctor Who
-God Friended Me
-The Flash
-Doctor Who
-God Friended Me
-The Flash
Best Comedy
The Middle
The Middle did something that not enough TV shows do: they gave us a proper ending.
Understanding that they had one final season, this show was able to wrap up all their loose ends and build everything towards a final cathartic episode. I was particularly wrapped up in the Sue/Sean romance that was teased out week after week. And when they came around the finale, the brought the entire story full circle to Frankie going nuts in the middle of an empty street over her wonderfully dysfunctional family. We got a chance to say goodbye, to see how the characters had grown over the years, and we were left knowing that this family that we spent nearly a decade watching was going to be okay.
Runners-up
The Big Bang Theory
Single Parents
Last Man Standing
The Goldbergs
The Goldbergs
Best Actor in a Drama
Milo Ventimiglia - This Is Us
One of the great challenges of this show is jumping across all points in a character's lifetime. Milo Ventimiglia has been so effortless in his ability to go from responsible, heroic father to young, haunted, and brooding Vietnam veteran just beginning to fall in love. Throughout our lives we become different sorts of people but we are still ourselves. Ventimiglia lets us see the core of Jack in everything he does, but we can feel the differences in every subtle look and mannerism that he brings. Every week he never ceases to impress me.
Runners-up
Elijah Wood - Dirk Gently's Holistic Detective Agency
John Krasinski - Jack Ryan
Samuel Barnett - Dirk Gently's Holistic Detective Agency
Elijah Wood - Dirk Gently's Holistic Detective Agency
John Krasinski - Jack Ryan
Samuel Barnett - Dirk Gently's Holistic Detective Agency
Andrew Lincoln - The Walking Dead
Best Actress in a Drama
Mandy Moore - This Is Us
Runners-up
Jodie Whittaker - Doctor Who
Hannah Marks - Dirk Gently's Holistic Detective Agency
Hannah Marks - Dirk Gently's Holistic Detective Agency
Jade Eschete - Dirk Gently's Holistic Detective Agency
Dannai Gurrera - The Walking Dead
Dannai Gurrera - The Walking Dead
Best Supporting Actor, Drama
Joe Morton could have played his preacher character as a holier-than-thou foil to his main character atheist son. But Morton brings such a relaxed subtlety to his character. He struggles so hard with seeing his son reject everything that is important to his own life. But Morton plays him with a cool, but not cold ease. The pains and the hurts and the doubts all bubble beneath the surface. And he is not a flawless caricature. Morton jumps into this incredibly complicated relationship and makes it feel incredibly real.
Runners-up
Justin Hartley - This is Us
Sterling K. Brown - This is Us
Sterling K. Brown - This is Us
Jesse L. Martin - The Flash
Jeffrey Dean Morgan - The Walking Dead
Best Supporting Actress, Drama
Susan Kelechi Watson - This Is Us
For a few seasons, Susan Kelechi Watson has been the film emotional anchor to the craziness of the other Pearsons' lives. But this past season, we have been allowed to see the emotional toll that this is taking on Watson's Beth. Strong and confident are difficult to play on screen. But flawed and broken are always more interesting. And right now we are beginning to see the cracks in her perfect exterior. The burden of being that solid foundation is beginning to show. Watson takes us behind the curtain to see Beth's inner struggles while putting on that same strong exterior for her family. Now he brave face reminds us that she is hanging on by a thread. Watson makes us feel like the emotional dam is about to break and she holds us in horrible anticipation.
Runners-up
Chrissy Metz - This is Us
Fiona Dourif - Dirk Gently's Holistic Detective Agency
Fiona Dourif - Dirk Gently's Holistic Detective Agency
Emily Tennant - Dirk Gently's Holistic Detective Agency
Melissa McBride– The Walking Dead
Melissa McBride– The Walking Dead
Best Actor, Comedy
John Goodman - Roseanne/The Conners
John Goodman is one of the few actors that is amazing at both drama and comedy. With the reboot of Roseanne and the spin off The Conners, Goodman has been able to show us his mastery of both. I don't think there has been a better comedic performance on television this year than the episode where Dan yelled at Roseanne in order to win an argument, only to see him collapse into a lump of jelly under her withering demeanor. It is a moment that takes us on a full emotional and comedic arc in the space of a few seconds and most of it is non-verbal. And watching Goodman's Dan struggle with home disasters and the loss of his wife has been heartbreaking. While The Conners has lost most of the magic of Roseanne, Goodman is keeping this television life-raft afloat.
Runners-up
Jim Parsons - The Big Bang Theory
Tim Allen - Last Man Standing
Neil Flynn - The Middle
Jeff Garlin - The Goldbergs
Jeff Garlin - The Goldbergs
Best Actress, Comedy
Patricia Heaton - The Middle
(The following last year's award, which Heaton also won. All of it still holds up)
This will be the last time that Heaton will win this award on this site for The Middle. But I refuse to pick someone else to win simply because Heaton is often the top actress. She should not penalized for doing excellent work. The energy it must take to play a character like Frankie Heck is enormous. And she has a lot of courage to allow Frankie to be a little cloying, to be a little intrusive, and to risk the audience being turned off by her antics. But Heaton always makes sure to show you that Frankie is ultimately always motivated by her love for her family. And that love sometimes makes her do silly and embarrassing things. Watching it all converge in the final goodbye of the final episode made me realize how much I am going to miss this TV mom.
This will be the last time that Heaton will win this award on this site for The Middle. But I refuse to pick someone else to win simply because Heaton is often the top actress. She should not penalized for doing excellent work. The energy it must take to play a character like Frankie Heck is enormous. And she has a lot of courage to allow Frankie to be a little cloying, to be a little intrusive, and to risk the audience being turned off by her antics. But Heaton always makes sure to show you that Frankie is ultimately always motivated by her love for her family. And that love sometimes makes her do silly and embarrassing things. Watching it all converge in the final goodbye of the final episode made me realize how much I am going to miss this TV mom.
Runners-up
Wendy McLendon-Covey – The Goldbergs
Kaley Cuoco – The Big Bang Theory
Roseanne Barr - Roseanne
Mary McCormick - The Kids Are Alright
Mary McCormick - The Kids Are Alright
Best Supporting Actor, Comedy
Charlie McDermott - The Middle
McDermott grew up a lot on this show. His Axel was always a slacker who cut every corner, which is something that we saw all the way until the end. But this past season, much of the story was about Axel's transition into adulthood and all the pain and humor therein. McDermott had to straddle the line between adorable, merry prankster and frustrated, stunted millennial. We had to enjoy his antics while feeling like he needed to grow up. McDermott showed us both of these world but he also did it with a wonderful amount of comedic talent in order to get us to laugh at his journey every step of the way.
Runners-up
Brad Garrett - Single Parents
Kunal Nayar - The Big Bang Theory
Atticus Shaffer - The Middle
Simon Helberg - The Big Bang Theory
Kunal Nayar - The Big Bang Theory
Atticus Shaffer - The Middle
Simon Helberg - The Big Bang Theory
Best Supporting Actress, Comedy
Marlow Barkley - Single Parents
Most child performers are simply funny because of their precociousness. And to be sure, young Barkley is as precocious as they come. But she has a delivery and expression that is beyond her years. Her child co-stars are fine at the level of children. Barkley is able to act toe-to-toe with more seasoned performers like Taran Killam and Brad Garrett. All of the adults interact with her as if she is as smart as they are. And even though she can play the part as silly child, Barkley projects an adult understanding that is used to maximum comedic effect, especially when foiled against Killam's Peter Pan-like father.
Runners-up
Sara Gilbert - Roseanne/ The Conners
Melissa Rauch - The Big Bang Theory
Eden Sher - The Middle
Melissa Rauch - The Big Bang Theory
Eden Sher - The Middle
Mayim Bialik - The Big Bang Theory
Stay tuned next week for the CatholicSkywalker Awards for Best Movies of 2018
No comments:
Post a Comment