by Julian Spivey Every year since The Word on Pop Culture began in 2010 we have awarded the best in network television in something we like to call The Broady Awards. The theory behind the Broadys was that there was still a lot of good and worthwhile TV on the original big broadcast networks that were mostly forgotten about come time for the annual Emmy Awards, which had begun to focus mainly on cable, premium cable and later streaming series. Well, the times have changed a bit since we introduced these awards. Now, network TV (and more and more TV in general) is regressing after the era known as “peak TV.” Networks and streamers alike are beginning to cut costs leading to less scripted television and a weakening of shows. But these days the state of network television, in particular, seems dire. I can’t remember a lesser slate of network television shows than we’ve seen this season. So, partially due to this factor and the 2023-2024 network season being cut in half due to the writer’s and actor’s strikes of 2023, we decided it was time to pare down the Broady Awards, at least for now. So, instead of nominating five or so individuals and shows in each category like usual, we’re simply going to choose our winners this year. We will unveil these winners in three parts: Drama, Comedy and our 2024 TV Hall of Fame recipients. You can find our 2024 Drama Series winners HERE. Network comedy is arguably as weak as ever with networks cutting back on the number of sitcoms each airs. Only 11 non-animated sitcoms aired on network TV this season and, let’s face it, only a handful of those 11 were any good – and some of the best of those featured their weakest seasons yet – I’m looking at you “Abbott Elementary.” So, with that bit of depression out of the way, let’s get to our 2024 Broady Comedy Series recipients: Best Comedy Series: The Conners (ABC) ABC’s long-running “The Conners” was the most consistent sitcom on network TV this season earning it its first win in this category in its sixth season. The season, announced as its penultimate one, saw the Conners dealing with their typical blue-collar struggles such as paying off a mortgage, losing a business and making sacrifices to send a kid to college. The tight-knit cast led by Sara Gilbert, John Goodman, Laurie Metcalf and Lecy Goranson always provides laughs, even in (and often especially so) the toughest moments of life. Best Variety/Talk Show: Late Show with Stephen Colbert (CBS) All of the late-night variety shows have their strong points. “Saturday Night Live” had a somewhat resurgent year compared to recent ones. Taylor Tomlinson brought something new and interesting to late-night television with CBS’s “After Midnight.” But for the fifth straight year and seventh out of the last eight years our winner is “Late Show with Stephen Colbert” on CBS. Colbert’s ‘Late Show’ does everything well you’d want from a late-night talk/variety show. Colbert has solid monologues, good comedy bits like “Meanwhile,” interesting and different interview methods like his “Colbert Questionert” and a smart take on the political goings on of the day. What sets Colbert apart from some of his late-night brethren is his being the best interviewer – something his predecessor David Letterman always did better than the rest. Best New Comedy: None There was exactly one new sitcom of the 2024 network TV season, NBC’s “Extended Family,” starring Jon Cryer, Abigail Spencer and Donald Faison. I watched the pilot episode and couldn’t force myself to go any further. So, for the first time, there will be no winner in this category – though the show winning by default wouldn’t have been great either. Best Episode: Ryan Gosling Hosts (Saturday Night Live) It’s rare that “Saturday Night Live” has a perfect episode because such things are so hard to do when it comes to sketch comedy and humor, which is always a hit-or-miss thing. Even the best episodes of the almost half-century-old NBC show have a downer or two of a sketch. But for the third time in the last five years, an episode of ‘SNL’ has won this honor – this time the show hosted by actor Ryan Gosling on April 13. Gosling has often been a great host of the show because he seems to be having a blast and is game for everything. This episode included the return of Kate McKinnon’s alien abductee Colleen Rafferty, which always leaves Gosling breaking character, and Gosling and Mikey Day’s instant classic Beavis and Butt-Head sketch that caused one of the most memorable breaks in the show’s history from cast member Heidi Gardner. Best Lead Actor: Joel McHale (Animal Control) Joel McHale’s sarcastic, wry humor fits perfectly as a veteran animal control officer on Fox’s underrated “Animal Control” – a show good enough to have earned a third-season pickup but one that seems like it should’ve caught on more by now. McHale has now earned this honor from us for both seasons of the show where he serves as the put-upon partner to a much younger, always-peppy partner named Shred (Michael Rowland). McHale’s whole gig has always been these sarcastic jerks but, you know what, he’s made his Frank Shaw into a lovable one – something I’m not sure you could say for his more notable role as Jeff Winger from NBC’s terrific “Community” a decade before. Best Lead Actress: Sara Gilbert (The Conners) Sara Gilbert, who also won this honor in 2021, is the glue that holds ABC’s “The Conners” together. Her Darlene Conner has almost become the forefront of the series, although you could argue it’s truly a collaborative cast without leads. Gilbert plays so well off of every other character on the show with her witty, acerbic humor that is perfect for finding the humor in what can often be the darkness of the downtrodden, blue-collar family. Best Supporting Actor: Jay R. Ferguson (The Conners) Jay R. Ferguson has arguably had the hardest time during his run on “The Conners,” as the one adult regular we didn’t already know from “Roseanne” coming into the series. He fits in super well with the show’s humor as someone exasperated with the personalities of the Conner family. He’s the perfect foil and partner for Sara Gilbert’s Darlene. Best Supporting Actress: Laurie Metcalf (The Conners) It’s somewhat shocking that Laurie Metcalf’s performance as Jackie Harris-Goldufski on “The Conners” hasn’t yet earned her this honor from us – part of the problem is for some of those seasons she was outshined by her castmate Lecy Goranson as Becky Conner. Metcalf’s character is the absolute G.O.A.T. on network TV right now when it comes to outrageously hilarious one-liners. You can always count on Metcalf to have you in stitches while watching ABC’s longest-tenured comedy series. Best Guest Actor: Ryan Gosling (Saturday Night Live)
The best thing about Ryan Gosling when he hosts “Saturday Night Live,” and he’s been one of the most memorable hosts over the last decade, is that he’s so obviously game for any and everything, something not every Academy Award-nominated actor would be willing to do. You can just see on your TV screen he’s having the absolute time of his life each time and he can barely contain (and sometimes he doesn’t) his laughter. His hosting stint in April not only featured the memorable Alien Abduction and Beavis and Butt-Head sketches but also him playing a boyfriend who has proposed and realizes he’s made a huge mistake and tries to figure his way out of it in one of the season’s most underrated sketches. Best Guest Actress: Estelle Parsons (The Conners) One of the most touching moments in any sitcom this season was what will likely be 96-year-old Estelle Parsons's final appearance on “The Conners” as Beverly, the mother of Jackie (and Roseanne). The character had been suffering from dementia in the previous season, which also earned Parsons this honor last year, and the show handled the situation in a beautiful, if not real-world probable way letting Bev choose to go out on her own terms in the episode “Moms and Rats” by hopping a train to sights she’s never seen. This came after spending the day in Chicago with Jackie (Laurie Metcalf), giving the relationship that had always been problematic a nice bow of a sendoff.
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