Critic’s Notebook: Emmys 2015: The praise and outrage are signs of TV’s good health

Scrambling to accommodate the Great Screen Sprawl of the 21st century and the growing influence of TV fandom, the Television Academy recently made all manner of adjustments to its awards rules and regs. An extra nomination slot was added to the comedy and drama series categories. And, in a nod to the increasing importance of social media on both coasts, the nominations announcement was moved from its historically hideous 5:30 a.m. call time to the much more humane 8:30 a.m.

Alas, the extra hours didn’t improve the mood any more than the modifications solved the problem. Just as dead characters are beginning to outnumber the living in shows like “Game of Thrones” and “The Walking Dead,” perceived snubs are beginning to outnumber the nominees on Emmys morning.

But if outrage fuels social media, and social media are the new target audience, well, some of those who didn’t make the cut wound up getting as much attention as those who did.

FULL COVERAGE: Emmy nominations

This may be the first year two black women, Taraji P. Henson and Viola Davis, were nominated for lead actress in a drama, but those expecting an “Empire” sweep in drama and a biggish “black-ish” presence in comedy were disappointed. Henson’s was the only major “Empire” nomination, as was Anthony Anderson’s for “black-ish.” And despite many predictions, neither show was nominated for a series award in their categories.

Some critics and fans objected to the inclusion of embattled warriors “Homeland” and “Downton Abbey” in the drama series category at the expense of new shows, but others were miffed that Mandy Patinkin and Michelle Dockery from those series were overlooked in the acting categories.

Indeed, across the board, one hand applauded nods to niche newbies like Amazon’s “Transparent” and Netflix’s “Unbreakable Kimmy Schmidt,” while the other was wrung in consternation over the exclusion of longtime favorites, including and especially “The Big Bang Theory” and its star, Jim Parsons, plus “The Good Wife” and its star, Julianna Margulies.

Emmy Nominations: Complete list | Snubs/Surprises | Social media reaction | Diversity | Drama | Comedy | PHOTOS: Nominees | Reactions

Ms. Amy Schumer — with comedy acting and variety sketch series nominations coming on top of over-the-moon publicity for her upcoming film “Trainwreck” — is having a moment that seems to make the announcement of her presidential candidacy seem all but inevitable. And “Orange Is the New Black” remarkably became the first show to be nominated in comedy (last year) and drama categories (this year). But once again, and with feeling, many feel the academy has a whole lot of explaining to do.

Wisely, the academy had announcers Uzo Aduba (“Orange Is the New Black”) and Cat Deeley (“So You Think You Can Dance”) open with the good news. But the cheers for Henson, Davis and “Orphan Black’s” Tatiana Maslany (overlooked the previous two years) were quickly replaced by groans and bafflement as the rest of the categories rolled out.

“The Walking Dead,” which is, apparently, too scary for Emmy voters, was ignored once again, but where were “The Americans,” “Justified,” “Masters of Sex” or “Rectify”?

Terrence Howard, Constance Wu, Timothy Olyphant, Lizzy Caplan, Eden Sher, Tracee Ellis Ross and Eva Green were MIA, as was Gina Rodriguez, who won a Golden Globe this year for “Jane the Virgin.” Do members fear that honoring the CW will jump-start the apocalypse?

And exactly how long is “American Horror Story” going to get away with calling itself a “limited series” anyway?

All awards involve some spread-the-wealth curation — supporting actor and actress categories, for example, take more chances than lead categories at any performing arts awards — and this year’s Emmy nominations had a definite wedding-planner vibe. Another snub for Maslany would have done serious damage to the academy’s rep (she plays, like, 10 characters a season and is amazing!), while voters obviously felt that Parsons and “The Big Bang Theory” were in danger of winding up on “Hoarders: Statuette Edition.”

Likewise, “Modern Family” seemed asked to make some room at the supporting table, while the recent revelation that Margulies and costar Archie Panjabi were involved in a years-long feud so embarrassingly absurd they had to be green-screened together for their final scene may have cost Margulies her long-standing slot.

TIMELINE: Emmy winners, year by year

As for “Empire,” well, maybe Lee Daniels shouldn’t have referred to his show as “the black ‘Dynasty’”; nighttime soaps don’t get Emmys, unless they are historical, British and star Maggie Smith. Still, how did the show not get a nomination for its music?

Everything in the world is political, but when it comes to the Emmys, the most galling omissions and additions may come down to mathematics. There is simply too much good television in too many diverse forms to fit into the confines of an awards show.

No matter how it’s configured, the Emmy broadcast would have to resemble a telethon for justice to be done, and though I nominate Jane Lynch to host, no one wants to watch an Emmy telethon.

Instead, we will just have to continue to congratulate and complain. Overabundance is a quality problem (remember when scripted drama was on life support?), and the conversation about the Emmys has become just as, if not more, important as the awards themselves.

Fan devotion is what drives screen sprawl, and nothing makes fans more devoted than feeling that their favorite show has been slighted.

So, yes, it is an honor just to be nominated, but increasingly, it’s just as big an honor to have a bunch of people screaming because you weren’t.