By: Stephen Hladik

Saturday Night Live did various election inspired skits, photo via Business insider — Saturday Night Live did various election inspired skits, photo via *Business insider*

This Years Emmy Nominations were announced this Thursday July 13th, and as always, were filled with snubs and surprises. The most nominated shows were HBO’s Westworld and Saturday Night Live, each receiving a whopping 22 nominations. This is coming on the heels of an especially major season for SNL, after receiving endless attention and higher ratings during the election season. With Game of Thrones out of the way (it wasn’t eligible during this voting period) it made way for some potential fresh new nominees on the drama side of things.

Here’s the general breakdown:

The Good:

- Donald’s Glover’s Atlanta received 6 nominations in major categories such as Outstanding Comedy Series, Lead Actor, Writing, and Directing.

- Blackish is nominated for Outstanding Comedy Series, Outstanding Lead Actress in a Comedy Series (Tracee Ellis Ross), and Outstanding Lead Actor (Anthony Anderson). Even with its comedic format, Blackish found a way to intertwine various racial and political issues into the show.

- Kathryn Hahn received her long overdue first Emmy nomination for her role as Rabbi Raquel on Transparent. Hahn, who has often been the best thing in almost any movie or television show she is in, has been pretty underrated in the industry when it comes to awards. Her nomination for Outstanding Supporting Actress in a Comedy Series is richly deserved, especially for her gorgeous and heartbreaking work this past season.

- Big Little Lies scored 16 nominations, and every single one was extremely deserved. I’ll be rooting for to take home the gold in pretty much every category, but especially Outstanding Miniseries and Outstanding Lead Actress in a Miniseries or TV Movie for Nicole Kidman, who was absolutely devastating and unforgettable as a battered Monterey housewife trying to hold together her life.

- The Handmaid’s Tale has officially put Hulu on the map as a major player in award show competitions, and has positioned itself as the frontrunner for Outstanding Drama Series. It received 13 nominations (tying with The Crown) and could very well take home a statue for its leading star Elisabeth Moss, who delivered one of the best performances of the year. Moss has been nominated 7 times previously but hasn’t taken home the gold. This might finally be her chance.

- Aziz Ansari and Lena Waithe were nominated for Outstanding Writing for a Comedy Series for the “Thanksgiving” episode of Master of None. The episode chronicles the coming out of Waithe’s character Denise to her mother, played by an also-nominated Angela Bassett. In a season filled with episodes worthy of a nomination, it feels extra special to see this moving and utterly personal episode, and to see a major awards body acknowledging the story and talents of a black queer woman.

- Other exciting nominees include Riz Ahmed for The Night Of, Claire Foy for The Crown, Keri Russell and Matthew Rhys for The Americans (and Rhys’s nomination for Girls), all the love for Stranger Things, Anthony Anderson and Tracee Ellis Ross for blackish, and Black Mirror: San Junipero nominated for Outstanding TV Movie.

But, for all the nominees that we’re excited about, there’s plenty of snubs to be angry about too. Now, of course, to consider something a “snub” is a subjective thing, and in such a major time for television, there’s bound to be deserving shows left off the list. But some of the ones we really couldn’t get over:

- 1 nomination for The Leftovers. Yes, the Emmy voters did neglect to nominate one of the greatest seasons in television drama history for any major categories outside of one nomination in Guest Actress for Ann Dowd. The third season of The Leftovers received such overwhelming critical acclaim and buzz that while it was sadly expected it would be left out come nomination morning, it still stung, especially for Carrie Coon, who delivered the best performance on television this year (although Coon was deeply deserving of her Lead Actress Miniseries nod for Fargo.)

Issa Rae's Insecure, photo via HBO — Issa Rae's *Insecure*, photo via HBO

- Issa Rae’s Insecure was also another deeply deserving HBO show totally left out in the cold. The first season of Insecure was unlike any of the stuff you see on television, especially in its freshman year. Self-assured, hilarious, and a rare and basically revolutionary depiction of black women on television, which makes it all the more frustrating it didn’t receive any nominations.

- For all the love Stranger Things received, its biggest star Winona Ryder didn’t receive a nomination. Her role as Joyce Byers, the mother of the missing boy at the center of the show, was a major comeback for the actress, and it would have been sweet to see her rewarded with a nomination.

- Transparent didn’t receive a third consecutive nod for Outstanding Comedy Series, while stalwart Modern Family received its eighth nomination.

- Dear White People was completely shut out. Ugh.

What shows were you rooting for in this year's Emmy's?