Emmy Nominations will be out soon and every TV fan right now are making their predictions. This was certainly a rich year of television. Homeland wilted, Boardwalk Empire blew audiences away, Mad Men's Don Draper got fired, and Game of Thrones' Red Wedding shocked audiences with one of the most tragic events in television. I know that it will be a hard year for those Emmy judges and for me as well as we break down the good, the bad, and the ugly that 2013 brought us for Drama.
Best Lead Actress
This one actually isn't a tough one for me because I feel pretty confident in my choice of Elizabeth Moss from Mad Men. Moss has consistently given an amazing performance as Peggy Olsen on the show and this season was no different, as we got to see the man known as Don Draper degenerate through our eyes. Her character has truly gone through a change from being the shy secretary she was almost 6 seasons ago and Olsen has been masterful at showing that change. She has yet to win this award, but I feel like this is Moss' year. She was given a lot of rich material to work with this season and really captured her character's essence. I would be very surprised to see someone else win. However, that doesn't mean there aren't other worthy candidates. Despite the fact that this season of Homeland was nowhere near as good as the previous one, the fault for that lies not with Claire Danes, who still manages to make her character very human and real in the face of everything around her. The fact that her show dropped in quality makes it unlikely that she will win this year, but she still deserves a mention. Also likely to be nominated is Julianna Margulies, who has already won an Emmy for her performance as Alicia Florrick in The Good Wife. However, the fact that she has already won an Emmy for the role makes it somewhat unlikely that she will win it again. Still, she is the only actress likely to be nominated from a primetime network. Robin Wright should be nominated for House of Cards and a nomination for Michelle Dockery for this season of Downton Abbey is pretty obvious. The likelihood of them actually winning is low to due to House of Cards being a new and not very beloved show, at least by some critics. And Downton Abbey, though a great show, has not been as good this season. Plenty was happening, but it wasn't at its best. That all these actresses deserve nominations is clear, but only one can win.
My Prediction: Elizabeth Moss
Nominations: Julianna Margulies, The Good Wife Elizabeth Moss, Mad Men Claire Danes, Homeland Robin Wright, House of Cards Michelle Dockery, Downton Abbey