Welcome to my coverage of the 2013 Primetime Emmys. As it’s less than a month away, I’ve decided to start a series in which I offer up my dream ballot for each major category. Then, I’ll look at the actual Emmy ballot and offer a “Who should win?” and a “Who Will Win?” for each. I hope you enjoy! Today, we’ll be looking at….
OUTSTANDING SUPPORTING ACTOR IN A DRAMA SERIES
Dream Ballot
MICHAEL CUDLITZ, “Southland”
This is one of the best performances I have ever seen. The underrated TNT show “Southland” contained a slew of Emmy worthy performances, the best of which was Cudlitz’s. He perfectly portrayed the downward spiral of his character, culminating in a shocking and heartbreaking final scene of the series.
JONATHAN BANKS, “Breaking Bad”
Although not as showy a performance as Paul’s or Esposito’s, Banks was brilliant as the cold, yet sympathetic Mike. His performance in “Say My Name” revealed the deeper facets of his character, and it was wonderful and sad to watch unfold.
NIKOLAJ COSTER-WALDAU, “Game of Thrones”
Peter Dinklage gets more recognition, but this season was Coster-Waldau’s. Jaime Lannister started off as a despicable character, but this season, I started feeling sympathetic for him. His relationship with Brienne was perfection.
MANDY PATINKIN, “Homeland”
Homeland completely went off the rails at the end of last season, but Patinkin kept his character grounded. Saul’s character became more complex, becoming the emotional center of a show that was doing a disservice to the rest of the characters. We saw deeper into his relationship with Carrie, and the final scene of the finale was beautiful.
AARON PAUL, “Breaking Bad”
Aaron Paul’s been a consistent force in the show, and his work in Season 5 was as brilliant as ever. We started to see the signs of dissent from Walt, and Paul conveyed so much through his body language. His performance in “Buyout” was wonderful and hard to watch all at once.
WALTON GOGGINS, “Justified”
Goggins has always been an absolutely essential part of the show, and while he is badass, there are also layers to his character. His war of words with Preacher Billy was an amazing thing to watch, and his relationship with Ava was beautiful.
Who should win?
This is probably the hardest category for me in terms of picking a winner. Just for that last spot, I had to choose between Noah Emmerich, Corey Stoll, Walton Goggins, Peter Dinklage, Charles Dance, and Mads Mikkelsen. They could be the nominations and I’d still be happy.
Others considered: All those mentioned above ^….and Guillermo Diaz, John Slattery, Vincent Kartheiser, Bobby Cannavale, Freddie Highmore, Larry Hagman, Sam Waterston, Jeff Perry, David Morissey, John Noble (how he never has been recognized eludes me), Steve Zahn, Jordan Gavaris, Josh Charles, Ron Perlman, Kim Coates, Michael Shannon, Dean Norris, David Harewood, David Morse, Norman Reedus, Ryan Hurst, Dax Shepard, Michael Kenneth Williams
On to the real nominations…
Jonathan Banks-Breaking Bad
Bobby Cannavale-Boardwalk Empire
Jim Carter-Downton Abbey
Peter Dinklage-Game of Thrones
Aaron Paul-Breaking Bad
Mandy Patinkin-Homeland
Who should win?
Banks
Who will win?
Patinkin
Analysis
Not only is it Banks’s last chance to win, he was absolutely brilliant as Mike. However, even considering Patinkin’s snub last year, I think the voters will give him the nod over Paul. However, I’d put their chances neck and neck, with Banks right behind.
Credit to AMC, Showtime, TNT, HBO, FX, Justified, Homeland, Breaking Bad, Southland, and Game of Thrones for all pictures. I own nothing.
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