Wednesday, August 5, 2020

Emmy Predictions 2020 - Which Program Will and Should Win for Animated Series?

The nominations have been announced for The 72nd Annual Primetime Emmy Awards. So now, it's time to speculate on which shows will and should win in each major category. Next up for analysis is Animated Program.






The Nominees Ranked By Which Should Win:
  1. Netflix's BoJack Horseman - "The View From Halfway Down"
  2. Netflix's Big Mouth - "Disclosure the Movie: The Musical!"
  3. Adult Swim's Rick and Morty - "The Vat of Acid Episode"
  4. FOX's Bob's Burgers - "Pig Trouble in Little Tina"
  5. FOX's The Simpsons - "Thanksgiving of Horror"

For years, I've been singling BoJack Horseman out for being a terrific show. It hasn't gotten the love it so richly deserves in this category. And yet, it remains one of the best shows on television. The final season delved deep into the complexity of the characters and the inevitability of them drifting apart from one another. The narrative aged and deepened so well as it went along without losing any of its absurdist humor. It was still dark and welcomed the despair. That made some of the storytelling decisions more divisive. But it's still deserving of recognition for six seasons of great creative work. Similarly, Big Mouth and Rick and Morty are offering such rewarding takes on the genre. They go for big laughs while always engaging in an extra layer developing the characters and pushing them to their brutal yet epic limits. Meanwhile, The Simpsons and Bob's Burgers are reliable players in the field that cemented their legacies a long time ago. They continue to field new comedic achievements decades into their respective runs. Their ardent fans will always sing their praises which basically ensures this category is filled from top to bottom with exceptional entertainment.

The Nominees Ranked by Which Will Win:
  1. Adult Swim's Rick and Morty - "The Vat of Acid Episode"
  2. Netflix's BoJack Horseman - "The View From Halfway Down"
  3. FOX's The Simpsons - "Thanksgiving of Horror"
  4. FOX's Bob's Burgers - "Pig Trouble in Little Tina"
  5. Netflix's Big Mouth - "Disclosure the Movie: The Musical!"

The Simpsons won here a year ago. That was a major surprise. It was shocking because the show had comfortably become the perennial nominee. It has been nominated 29 times in this category. It has won 11 times. Before 2019 though, it's last win was in 2008. In that time, Bob's Burgers and Rick and Morty have both gone on to win. As such, those three should be seen as formidable contenders. And yet, one also has to assume that this category will get hit with the Netflix buzz at some point. BoJack Horseman has never won. Big Mouth has never won. They may have to deal with the unfortunate reality of cancelling each other out because the voters can't choose decisively between them. That may be different this year because it was BoJack's final season. The voters are sometimes sentimental. They aren't always reliably so though. That makes it difficult to make predictions. This has to be one of the more competitive categories of the year. The race is completely up in the air. Any of these shows could win. That should make the race exciting. It mostly ensures that there will be at least one surprise during the ceremony. That is appreciated. But again, I'm struggling to handicap this race because I have no idea how voters are possibly feeling about this group. BoJack could have urgency on its side. And yet, that was apparent in previous years as well and it didn't prevail. That means I just have to throw my hand's up in the air and accept that the voters will do whatever crazy or unexpected thing they want to do.


What do you think? Do you agree or disagree with my predictions? Let me know in the comments below!