Emmys 2024 Review: 9 Ups & 7 Downs

Downs...

7. The Delayed Show Feels Dated

This year's Emmys - or rather, last year's - had an undeniably awkward air about it given that it was delayed from its usual September airdate due to the WGA and SAG-AFTRA strikes.

And while delaying was absolutely the right thing to do, it did result in this year's show feeling overwhelmingly dated, as the eligibility window for the broadcast closed in May 2023.

And so, audiences couldn't be blamed for assuming that The Bear was nominated here for its second season, when in fact it was still receiving plaudits for its first, which aired all the way back in June 2022 and just barely missed out on eligibility for that year's show.

Given that The Bear's second season picked up Golden Globe wins literally days before this ceremony, the belated 2023 Emmys couldn't help but feel majorly out of time - because that's precisely what it was.

While some might argue that it would've made more sense to simply wait until September and deliver a mega-sized Emmys honouring two years of TV, that would've been a messy can of worms in its own right. Basically, they were damned no matter what they did.

There's probably a very strong argument for shifting the Emmys' eligibility window to the calendar year, though, rather than running from June to May of the next year.