Paris Olympics (Peacock) – Friday, July 26 – Sunday, August 11
Don’t let Olympic fatigue set in so soon! There’s still plenty of the Games to go and you can see every event on Peacock between now and Sunday, August 11. The games have already seen a bunch of memorable moments, but there are plenty more left, from team sports like basketball, volleyball, and soccer to individual sports like gymnastics and track & field. 

Mr. Throwback (Peacock) – Thursday, August 8
NBA superstar Stephen Curry is making his foray into acting with Peacock’s “Mr. Throwback,” which sees him playing himself in a six-episode mockumentary from “Happy Endings” creator David Caspe and writing duo Matthew Libman and Daniel Libman. Adam Pally will play a down-on-his-luck memorabilia dealer who looks for redemption with the help of Curry, his former sixth-grade teammate. 

Dark Winds & Monsieur Spade (Netflix) – Monday, August 19
A slew of AMC drama series will be making their Netflix debuts on Monday, August 19, including two I’m thrilled will have the chance to receive a bigger audience. The Netflix factor is real, as we’ve seen shows from other networks have a second life or become big again once added to the world’s most popular streamer – look at what the former USA Network drama “Suits” did on Netflix. The series I’m most excited to gain viewers is “Dark Winds,” which has had two fantastic seasons – especially its first – on AMC following the cases of Navajo tribal policeman Joe Leaphorn. The show will return to AMC for a third season in 2025, and my hope is it will gain enough viewers from people catching up on Netflix to keep it going on AMC for a while. The other show I’m excited for people to see on Netflix is “Monsieur Spade,” which has been my favorite drama series of 2024 thus far. The series, a partnership between AMC and France’s Canal+, sees Private Investigator Sam Space of “The Maltese Falcon” notoriety essentially retire to France, where he becomes involved in a mysterious case involving a child believed to possess great powers. Clive Owen plays Spade and knocks the performance out of the park, saying a lot, as Humphrey Bogart’s shoes are mighty hard to fill. It’s unlikely more viewers on Netflix would help “Monsieur Spade” receive a second season. Still, it works as a completely wrapped-up miniseries either way. Other AMC shows coming to Netflix on August 19 include “Interview with a Vampire,” “Fear the Walking Dead,” “The Walking Dead: Daryl Dixon” and “Mayfair Witches.”

Only Murders in the Building: Season 4 (Hulu) – Tuesday, August 27
Yep, there are still murders being committed in the building. But season four of the popular Hulu series that pokes fun at while also adoring true crime podcasts will see a big locale switch as our fearless podcaster crime-solvers, played by Steve Martin, Martin Short, and Selena Gomez, travel to Los Angeles to find out who was trying to kill Martin’s Charles. The fourth season will see the return of Meryl Streep, while also adding Melissa McCarthy, Eugene Levy, Zach Galifianakis and Molly Shannon. Season three, which featured the behind-the-scenes of a Broadway musical, wasn’t really my bag, so I’m hoping the show can right itself in season four. 

Kaos (Netflix) – Thursday, August 29
I’ve never been a huge fan of Greek mythology but seeing Jeff Goldblum in a contemporary reimagining of Greek mythology exploring modern themes of gender politics and power with a dark-comedy twist is too good to pass up. Goldblum will play Zeus in the series, co-staring Janet McTeer, David Thewlis, and Billie Piper.

The ENTIRE Outstanding Lead Actress In A Comedy Series Category
When the nominations for this category were being read off, I kept getting more excited! When it ended, I realized I love and adore every actress nominated. Quinta Brunson, Ayo Edebiri, Selena Gomez, Maya Rudolph, Jean Smart and Kristen Wiig. I have watched “Abbott Elementary,” “Only Murders In The Building,” “The Bear” and “Hacks.” I am not entirely caught up on “Abbott Elementary” or “The Bear,” but I know these are all deserving nominees. The two actresses for whom I have not watched the projects for which they are nominated are Maya Rudolph and Kristen Wiig. I, of course, LOVE them so much from “Saturday Night Live” and one of my favorite movies, “Bridesmaids.” I aim to get to “Loot” and “Palm Royale” before Emmy night, but I know from a personal perspective that I cannot be upset with any of these fantastic actresses winning. TG

Reservation Dogs
After two years of being one of the best shows on television without being nominated for anything at the Emmy Awards, “Reservation Dogs” finally received a nomination for Outstanding Comedy Series for its third and final season. The FX production on Hulu probably got in because some Emmy favorites in “Ted Lasso,” “Barry” and “The Marvelous Mrs. Maisel” all ended last year. Still, seeing the show about a group of Indigenous kids in Oklahoma finally get its due is a thrill. There were still many snubs from this show that make me want to scream into the void like Devery Jacobs not receiving a nomination for Outstanding Lead Actress in a Comedy despite being better than most of those nominated, but for now, let’s focus on the fact that the nomination might get many who have never seen this gem of a series to watch. JS

The Bear
“The Bear” is a show that I initially did not get into at all. I watched the first episode months ago and was reminded of all the trauma you experience working in the food industry. I have worked in the food service industry for 20 years and couldn’t believe how accurate it was ... almost too precise for me to enjoy. I decided to give the show another chance, and I’m so glad I did. It may start as rocky as many of my shifts have, but we slowly begin to see a family grow in this family of chefs. I love how the show portrays finding a family with people who aren’t family. I now have the best work experience, and we are a family. We have been there through the death of a co-worker, engagements, birthdays, anniversaries, weddings, pregnancies, births, and team outings. This show makes me smile now; the writing, directing and acting are top-notch. I am so glad it racked up the most ever nominations for a comedy series with 23. TG

Hannah Einbinder
There is nobody on television better than Hannah Einbinder who hasn’t already won an Emmy for their current performances. Einbinder has been a revelation for three seasons on the Max comedy “Hacks” as Ava Daniels, a young writer who helps comedian Deborah Vance (Jean Smart, who has won two Emmys for the role) flesh out her material and make it more relevant to today’s world. Nobody on TV makes me laugh more than Einbinder as Daniels. Einbinder was nominated for the show’s first two seasons, losing to Hannah Waddingham of “Ted Lasso” in 2021 and Sheryl Lee Ralph of “Abbott Elementary” in 2022. I’m not sure I’d consider Einbinder the favorite in the category that includes legends Meryl Streep (“Only Murders in the Building”) and Carol Burnett (“Palm Royale), but she should be. JS

Baby Reindeer
It wasn’t a shock that Netflix’s limited series “Baby Reindeer” racked up 11 Emmy nominations in the limited series categories, as it’s probably the favorite in most of those categories. However, I’m still thrilled to see all the love the show has gotten. “Baby Reindeer” is based on the true story (though a fictionalized version) of how Richard Gadd, who wrote and stars as the lead, was stalked by a woman he met as a bartender in a London pub. The show's performances were terrific, resulting in nominations for Gadd, Jessica Gunning, Nava Mau and Tom Goodman-Hill. It’s a tough watch but a well-made and told one that’ll likely see Gadd as one of the biggest stars come Emmy night. JS

The Morning Show
Apple TV+’s “The Morning Show” received 16 Emmy nominations this year, including many acting nominations. I was thrilled to see many of the cast recognized (Jennifer Aniston, Reese Witherspoon, Billy Crudup, Mark Duplass, Jon Hamm, Nicole Beharie, Greta Lee, Karen Pittman, Holland Taylor and Marcia Gay Harden). I thought the third season of “The Morning Show” was its best yet and it seems the Emmys agree since this is the most nominations this show has ever received for a single season. What I loved about this season is that it took hot-button issues in the United States today and made us look at it from the perspective of: “What if this was our family?” You have your political beliefs and know what is right and wrong and what is reprehensible. How is your judgment changed when someone you love is entangled in something you don’t believe in? Do you abandon all of your beliefs because of your family, or do you stick to your guns about right and wrong? I can't entirely agree with the actions taken by some of the characters in this season, but it is intriguing to see how our moral compass can be changed and what sacrifices we can make for the ones we love. What made this worthwhile, though, is that the truth did come out. TG

Christopher Storer & Joanna Calo  
“The Bear” already got some love in this piece. Still, I have to point out the nomination showrunner Christopher Storer and Joanna Calo received for Outstanding Writing for a Comedy Series for the episode “Fishes,” the sixth episode of the second season. There have been many perfect episodes of “The Bear” in the show’s first two seasons (I’m still currently watching season three, but season two is the one nominated), but “Fishes” might be the best. It’s a devastating flashback episode of a family Christmas dinner at the Berzatto residence that explains what we’ve come to know of Carmy (Jeremy Allen White) and Richie (Ebon Moss-Bachrach) specifically. The episode has become known for its all-star-studded guest cast that includes Jamie Lee Curtis, Jon Bernthal, Bob Odenkirk, Sarah Paulson, John Mulaney, and Gillian Jacobs, most of whom had never been seen on the show. But the ridiculously awesome thing is how Storer and Calo have fleshed these characters out so much that you instantly feel you know them. It’s one of the most heart-pounding episodes of television I’ve ever seen. JS

Late Show with Stephen Colbert & Late Night with Seth Meyers
This year’s Emmy ceremony will mark the second one since the academy broke up the variety series into talk and sketch, which moved HBO’s “Last Week Tonight with John Oliver” to the sketch category, thus opening up the chance for more traditional late-night variety shows to win Emmys. The first winner after that change was Comedy Central’s “The Daily Show,” for Trevor Noah’s final season as its host. I hope frequent nominees “Late Show with Stephen Colbert” and “Late Night with Seth Meyers,” which both have been doing a fantastic job for a decade now, will have the opportunity to see some Emmy love. However, with Jon Stewart returning to host an episode per week of “The Daily Show” this year, I wouldn’t be surprised to see Emmy voters revert to how they once filled out their ballots in the years before John Oliver began to dominate. JS

Red, White, and Royal Blue
I was so excited that four of my Emmy wishes came true. I am beyond thrilled “Red, White, and Royal Blue” was nominated. The film about the son of the President of the United States and the Prince of England falling in love was such a sweet romantic comedy that I feel should be watched repeatedly. The chemistry between actors Nicholas Galitzine and Taylor Zakhar Perez was electric, and this film was so successful that a sequel was announced. Representation is so important in media. I know there are people in America who feel gay people should not be in films, but art should reflect the world we live in. Regardless of personal beliefs, people should be able to watch movies with characters that represent them. We all deserve to be seen and heard. TG

Jane Lynch 
In the early 2000s, I loved watching the original “The Weakest Link” show on NBC with host Anne Robinson. Her biting remarks and lack of emotion always made me laugh. When I heard it was getting rebooted with Emmy-winner Jane Lynch, I could not have been more thrilled. What a perfect replacement. Jane Lynch has carried over her Sue Sylvester persona from the Fox hit show, “Glee” and making America fall in love with her all over again. Lynch was also fantastic as the host of “Hollywood Game Night.” I love her so much and am thrilled to see her nominated here even though the show wasn’t nominated for Outstanding Game Show. That shows that the Academy recognizes her talent and how she elevates everything she is in. TG

The Bear for Everything
The second season of “The Bear,” an FX production on Hulu, was one of the most stunning and greatest seasons of television I’ve ever seen. It will be nominated for almost every category it submitted for, including Outstanding Comedy Series, both lead actor/actress, supporting actor/actress, guest actor/actress and directing/writing. So, it’s taking up a spot here that I could’ve used for more of a “dream” nominee, like with the other four of my picks on this list. But I couldn’t ignore perfection and that was what season two of “The Bear,” the season that’s eligible, was. However, the question could be whether it will garner enough votes to win many awards. The third season aired before voting for season two and some folks finding it less than the first two seasons could impact voting. But the thing that I think could more so affect the voting is the constant complaining from some about how the show has been mischaracterized as a comedy. To that, I say, the show may not be your typical sitcom, but it certainly has comical moments, and do you want to not award a show simply because you don’t think it makes you belly laugh enough? There may be enough voters that feel that way to keep it from winning, but tomorrow, it’ll probably be the most overall nominated series on television. JS

Hacks for Outstanding Comedy Series
Throughout television history, many shows have had stellar first and even great second seasons but tend to fall apart in their third season. It takes an incredible writing team to keep the momentum going for a show and to continue to tell stories that captivate the audiences and deliver quality television. Max’s hilarious show, “Hacks,” is one of these shows that continues to get better and better. The comedic duo of two-time Emmy winner Jean Smart and Emmy nominee Hannah Einbinder remains fresh and hilarious. The show continues to evolve the characters and move them into different aspects of the entertainment business, keeping us on our toes with how these complex women will handle their careers and relationships. This is one of the rare shows I binge-watch when a season comes out, and then I feel incredibly sad that it is over. This show has been nominated for its first two seasons and should be nominated again. I know “The Bear” is the favorite to win this year, but I would love to see “Hacks” win for Comedy Series. TG

Reservation Dogs for As Many Comedy Categories As It Can
“Reservation Dogs,” another FX production that streamed on Hulu, has been right up there with “The Bear” as the best TV show of the last few years. And for some reason, one I can only chalk up to voters not caring about the lives of Native Americans (seriously, watch the show, and you tell me why), it hasn’t received the universal love that “The Bear” has. In fact, “Reservation Dogs” didn’t receive a single major Emmy nomination for its first two seasons despite appearing on numerous critical “best of” lists. The third season, the show’s last, which aired last fall, was a perfect sendoff for this quietly perfect series about a group of Native kids living in Oklahoma. The third season became more about the community, and it was beautiful. I would love for “Reservation Dogs” to receive as many nominations as possible, but Outstanding Comedy Series would be my No. 1 choice. I’m also hoping for Outstanding Lead Actress for Devery Jacobs, Outstanding Supporting Actress for Paulina Alexis, and a handful of guest acting nominations, but I know those are less likely.  JS

Selena Gomez for Outstanding Lead Actress In A Comedy Series for “Only Murders In The Building”
There is no doubt that the Primetime Emmys have taken notice of Hulu’s “Only Murders In The Building.” It was nominated for Outstanding Comedy Series for both seasons so far. Steve Martin got a nomination for Outstanding Lead Actor in A Comedy Series for the first season, while Martin Short was nominated in the same category for both seasons. The show has won Outstanding Guest Actor In A Comedy Series for Nathan Lane and been nominated for Guest Actress In A Comedy Series for Jane Lynch. While this has been great for the show, the one glaring omission is for the other trio member: Selena Gomez. Selena Gomez got Golden Globe nominations for Outstanding Lead Actress In A Comedy Series for both seasons but has not managed to break into this category at the Primetime Emmy Awards. Gomez has shown just how great of an actress she is as Mabel Mora, holding her own against two industry giants: Martin and Short. It is time for Gomez to be given her due date, and I hope she can finally pull out an Emmy nomination this year. TG

Ncuti Gatwa for Outstanding Lead Actor in a Drama Series for “Doctor Who”
You can file this one under “never going to happen,” and while I’d love to see Ncuti Gatwa nominated for his first season as The Doctor on the long-running British sci-fi-drama “Doctor Who,” it would also be somewhat bittersweet since some of my favorites like Matt Smith and David Tennant were never nominated for their fantastic performances. Gatwa has helped revive and revolutionize The Doctor by being the first LGBTQ+ and black actor to play the Time Lord. That isn’t reason enough to nominate Gatwa, but his melding of care, fun, and carefree behavior mixed with righteous anger, many of our favorite The Doctor qualities, has put some much-needed life back into the character and show. JS

Carrie Preston for Outstanding Lead Actress In A Drama Series for “Elsbeth”
In 2013, Carrie Preston won the Emmy for Outstanding Guest Actress in A Drama Series for portraying eccentric lawyer Elsbeth Tascioni on CBS’ “The Good Wife.” She was nominated again in that same category in 2016. Preston has carried this show onto the Paramount Plus spin-off, “The Good Fight,” and now, she is getting the chance to be the star of her own show, “Elsbeth” on CBS. Elsbeth Tascioni is a fascinating character to watch as a supporting character, but many felt she could be “too much” when she was the main star. “Elsbeth” has a fascinating take on murder mysteries by letting us know the murderer at the beginning of each episode and then watching Elsbeth piece it together. While Preston has already won an Emmy for this role, she deserves a nomination as a Lead Actress in  A Drama Series. The Academy needs to let Preston know that she continues to excel in this role, and we look forward to even more. TG

Clive Owen for Outstanding Lead Actor in a Limited Series for “Monsieur Spade”
Despite airing in the U.S. on AMC (which once was the favorite place for drama lovers) and having favorable reviews from critics, it seems almost no one watched “Monsieur Spade.” The show follows Dashiell Hammett’s private detective Sam Spade to France, where he saves the daughter of a past love, falls in love and becomes content with the French way of life before being thrust back into a case a decade later. It’s a slow burn of a show, but I found it fascinating, primarily because of Clive Owen’s turn as Spade. I’m a huge fan of Humphrey Bogart’s performance as Spade in the 1941 film noir classic “The Maltese Falcon” and couldn’t see anyone else playing the character, but by God, Owen chews the scenery with Spade perfectly bringing out the sarcastically witty character for the modern age. Why is no one talking about it?! JS

Ego Nwodim for Outstanding Supporting Actress in a Comedy Series for “Saturday Night Live”
I would’ve figured that if Ego Nwodim were going to break through for an Outstanding Supporting Actress in a Comedy Series nomination, it would’ve been for the 2023 Emmys following the debut of her character Lisa from Temecula, one of the funniest debut characters in years on the show. I don’t quite understand why Nwodim hasn’t broken out like cast members in the past have, some even winning this category, and honestly, she’s not the only one from the show (I could easily have placed Heidi Gardner here). Nwodim is a scene stealer and a terrific team player on the long-running NBC sketch comedy show. The odds of her being nominated are very long, but hopefully, someday. JS

Kristen Wiig for Outstanding Guest Actress In A Comedy Series For “Saturday Night Live”
Kristen Wiig is one of my favorite performers to have starred on the NBC variety series, “Saturday Night Live.” From 2009 to 2012, Wiig racked up four consecutive nominations for Best Supporting Actress In A Comedy Series. Wiig has been nominated for nine Emmy Awards but has not brought home the hardware yet. Wiig might also get a nomination for the Apple TV+ series “Palm Royale,” as the Lead Actress In A Comedy Series. I hate that a comedic gem such as Wiig has not yet won an Emmy. When she hosted the show this past year, it was one of my favorite recent episodes of ‘SNL.’ My favorite moment in the episode was when Wiig brought back her famous Aunt Linda character to recap “Barbie,” “Oppenheimer” and “The Bear.” While it looks like the frontrunner for this category is Jamie Lee Curtis for a guest-starring role on “The Bear,” I would love to see Wiig get a nomination, and hopefully, she can pull out a surprise win! TG

“Red, White, and Royal Blue” for Outstanding TV Movie
Prime Video’s “Red, White, and Royal Blue” MUST  be nominated for Outstanding TV Movie, and I believe it should win. It is such a beautiful romantic comedy following the son of the President of the United States, Alex Claremont-Diaz (Taylor Zakhar Perez), as he falls in love with Prince Henry (Nicholas Galitzine), a member of British royalty. When an accident sends the countries into a PR crisis, they rush to do damage control. What they do not expect, though, is that they will fall in love with each other. Representation is so important in media. Everyone should be able to see themselves. This film is one you can watch over and over again. It will be one to watch for years and years and should win the Emmy. It was one of my favorite films of the year. TG

​Beverly Hills Cop: Axel F (Netflix) – Wednesday, July 3
One of our favorite cops of the ‘80s, Axel Foley (played by Eddie Murphy) has returned after 30 years for the fourth installment of the “Beverly Hills Cop” series. In 1984’s “Beverly Hills Cop,” Murphy played the street-smart Detroit cop who travels to Beverly Hills, California to investigate a crime out of his jurisdiction. “Beverly Hills Cop: Axel F” will see Foley returning to Beverly Hills after his daughter’s life is threatened. The film sees the returns of Judge Reinhold, John Ashton and Paul Reiser, as well as newcomers Joseph Gordon-Levitt, Kevin Bacon and Taylour Paige. “Beverly Hills Cop: Axel F” premieres on Netflix on Wednesday, July 3 and should make for a humorous holiday watch. 

Shark Week (Max) – Sunday, July 7 – Saturday, July 13
Shark Week enters its 35th year on Discovery Channel, premiering on Sunday, July 7 and running through Saturday, July 13. But never fear if you’re a cord-cutter as all of the newest Shark Week programming will also be streaming on Max. Hosted by pro wrestling star and actor John Cena, the newest Shark Week programming includes shows titled: “Jaws vs. Leviathan,” “Makozilla,” “Big Shark Energy,” “Deadliest Bite,” “Shark Attack Island” and “Mothersharker: Hammer Time,” among others. 

Sunny (AppleTV+) – Wednesday, July 10
The latest AppleTV+ original is “Sunny,” a sci-fi dark comedy starring Rashida Jones as an American ex-pat living in Japan, who receives a domestic robot following the deaths of her robotist husband and son in a plane crash. When Sunny starts to malfunction, Jones’ character begins to wonder what her husband’s company is up to. Kaiya Shunyata of RogerEbert.com has called “Sunny” a “Summer T.V. standout.” “Sunny” premieres on AppleTV+ on Wednesday, July 10. 

Simone Biles Rising (Netflix) – Wednesday, July 17
Simone Biles is the greatest Olympic gymnast of all time but following her mental health battle at the 2020 Tokyo Games, it was never a given she would return to Olympic action. Biles, however, feels like she has unfinished business and a documentary crew follows her on her journey back to the top spot of her sport. “Simone Biles Rising,” directed by Katie Walsh, will premiere on Netflix on Wednesday, July 17, the week before the 2024 Paris games. 

Lady in the Lake (AppleTV+) – Friday, July 19
One of the year’s highest-profile limited series is “Lady in the Lake,” premiering Friday, July 19 on AppleTV+. The drama, based on Laura Lippman’s 2019 novel, stars Oscar-winner Natalie Portman as an investigative journalist in 1960s Baltimore working on an unsolved murder who clashes with a woman, played by Moses Ingram, who’s working to advance the agenda of the city’s black community. 

Paris Olympics (Peacock) – Friday, July 26 – Sunday, August 11 
Peacock will be incredibly important for those excited to watch the 2024 Summer Olympics from Paris, beginning Friday, July 26 with the Opening Ceremony and culminating on Sunday, August 11. You’ll be able to watch the opening and closing ceremonies and the most popular events on NBC, including some of the biggest names of the games like Simone Biles, Katie Ledecky and Sha’Carri Richardson, but every event will be included live on Peacock. 

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.

You can find our 2024 Comedy Series winners HERE.

Each year during our Broady Awards we like to honor all-time great shows and legends from the television medium – again focusing on those that aired on the major networks.

Our past recipients of our Hall of Fame Show honor are: “The Twilight Zone” (CBS), “M*A*S*H” (CBS), “The West Wing” (NBC), “Late Night/Late Show with David Letterman” (NBC/CBS), “Saturday Night Live” (NBC), “I Love Lucy” (CBS), “Seinfeld” (NBC), “The Tonight Show” (NBC), “Cheers” (NBC), “Will & Grace” (NBC), “Gunsmoke” (CBS), “Frasier” (NBC) and “30 Rock” (NBC).

Our past recipients of our Hall of Fame Legend honor are: Alan Alda, Rod Serling, Andy Griffith, David Letterman, Lorne Michaels, Lucille Ball, Edward R. Murrow, Johnny Carson, Mary Tyler Moore, Ted Danson, Norman Lear, Betty White and The Writers (during the 2023 writer’s strike). 

Hall of Fame Legend: Andre Braugher
Andre Braugher was always one of our favorite television actors here at The Word on Pop Culture. He’s also one of the most nominated and honored actors in our annual Broady Awards for excellence on network television. His nine nominations are the second most of any actor in the 15 years of us handing out these honors. His four wins, all for his glorious portrayal of Capt. Raymond Holt on the Fox/NBC sitcom “Brooklyn Nine-Nine,” are tied for the most all-time at these honors. It was Braugher’s portrayal of Holt that made us fall in love with him but Braugher was one of TV’s best dramatic actors multiple decades before his comedic turn on “Brooklyn Nine Nine.” His performance on NBC’s crime procedural “Homicide: Life on the Street” from 1993-1999 is hailed as one of television’s greatest and won Braugher an Emmy Award in 1998. Due to the series not appearing on streaming, it's a performance that hasn’t been widely seen and appreciated by people of my generation. I’ve purchased the entire series on DVD and hope to get to it soon! We’d hoped we’d get to see Braugher act for years to come in other terrific roles but were shocked when the veteran actor died from lung cancer at 61 years old last December. Braugher was always destined for this particular honor we just wish it had come a few years down the road. 
​

Hall of Fame Show: "The Andy Griffith Show" (CBS) 1960-1968
One classic TV show that seems to be losing steam unfortunately and without much explanation over the last decade or more has been “The Andy Griffith Show.” I can’t recall how many lists of “Greatest TV Shows of All-Time” lists I’ve perused online over the last five-plus years and have been completely dismayed by their omission of the classic ‘60s small-town comedy. We honored Andy Griffith the actor as our third annual Hall of Fame TV Legend in 2013, the year following his death, but haven’t gotten around to celebrate the show itself. Our last two recipients of this honor – “Frasier” and “30 Rock” – have been more modern TV classics, so we felt it was time to dig a bit deeper into the history of great network shows and “The Andy Griffith Show” with its downhome, family-friendly and good-natured humor seemed like the perfect choice. The show was definitely of its time, trying to make you laugh, while also teaching a moralistic story, but it probably succeeded in this style of show better than any other of its time. The tight-knit cast of Griffith, Don Knotts, Ron Howard, Frances Bavier and others continue to make me laugh to this day, even though I’ve seen my favorite episodes time-and-time again (thanks Dad!). I don’t think there are too many shows from its era that hold up as well as “The Andy Griffith Show” does.  
​

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. 
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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.  
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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.   

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.
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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 our usual nominating five or so individuals and shows in each category 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.

Today features our 2024 Broady Drama Series recipients: 

Best Drama Series: Will Trent (ABC)
ABC’s crime procedural “Will Trent,” our best New Drama Series winner last year, continued to impress in its sophomore season with interesting storylines, terrific acting and unique characters. Ramon Rodriguez’s titular lead is one of the more interesting characters on network television over the last few years and the supporting cast of Erika Christensen, Iantha Richardson, Jake McLaughlin and Sonja Sohn is tight-knit and adept at mixing the show’s gritty crime drama with humor.  

Best New Drama: Elsbeth (CBS)
Robert and Michelle King have me in their clutches. Anything these showrunners create will have my undivided attention because everything they’ve done (at least the four series I’ve seen) has been terrific – “The Good Wife,” “The Good Fight,” “Evil” and now “Elsbeth.” “Elsbeth” was admittedly the King show I was most leery of – taking a known, likable, but wacky and only sporadically used character from a couple of their previous shows and insert her into a crime procedural. But when you have someone as talented as Carrie Preston, the typical strong writing of any King-led team and a nice mixture of drama with wry humor tossed in it’s going to be a winning combination. 

Best Episode: This Storm Will Pass (Fire Country)
CBS’s drama series “Fire Country” is a lot of fun even though it can seem ridiculous at times – how many fires can this small town and surrounding area of California possibly face? The season two episode “This Storm Will Pass,” written by David Gould and directed by Eagle Egilsson, is the perfect encapsulation of those these when an out-of-control fire turns into a fire tornado, which is an actual thing, comes toward the town – all while the show’s lead Bode (Max Thieriot), his old ex and potential mother of his child and the current boyfriend of his most recent ex and still current love are all trapped in a wrecked ambulance. It’s an action-packed episode that doesn’t let up throughout its entire runtime and eventually ends in a tragedy that will impact the remainder of the season. 

Best Lead Actor: Ramon Rodriguez (Will Trent)
Ramon Rodriguez’s performance at George Bureau of Investigation Special Agent Will Trent in the ABC crime drama that shares the character’s name is one of the more unique performances of a law enforcement character in network TV history. Will Trent doesn’t quite look like he should be in law enforcement and his dyslexia and troubled past as an orphan are perhaps strikes against him. But he’s the smartest person in the room and his adeptness for finding things others might miss and his keen sense of morality make him the best at his job. It’s a performance that Rodriguez makes feel lived in – something you don’t always get from these crime of the week procedurals.

Best Lead Actress: Carrie Preston (Elsbeth)
I loved Carrie Preston’s performance as attorney Elsbeth Tascioni on “The Good Wife” and later “The Good Fight.” She was kooky and scatterbrained but also whip-smart and astute. Her personality often led to her being underestimated on those shows. She appeared often on those shows but ultimately less than 20 times. I was worried how a kooky character that only appeared occasionally on dramas filled with terrific casts as a side character might work out as the lead of her own show. Those fears were laid to rest quickly. In the show’s debut season, Preston’s Tascioni finds herself working with the NYPD as part of a consent decree and it turns out she’s as good of a pseudo-detective as she was an attorney.  

Best Supporting Actor: Simon West (All Creatures Great & Small)
Simon West’s performance as the cantankerous but with a heart of gold veterinary surgeon Siegried Farnon on PBS Masterpiece’s “All Creatures Great and Small” has been one of my favorites on TV over the show’s four-season run but has always been passed up for other supporting performances in these awards. You could make the argument that season four wasn’t even West’s finest season of the series but the often talent-packed category was thinned out a bit with the ending of some shows and the delay of others due to the writer and actor strikes that shortened the 2024 TV season (though did not affect this particular series). West’s performance as Siegfried is key to the feel of the whole series, mixing in a lot of humor via his curmudgeonly personality while also being moralistically kind and good. West plays it all effortlessly.  

Best Supporting Actress: Anna Madeley (All Creatures Great & Small)
This is the second consecutive win in this category for Anna Madeley, who plays Mrs. Audrey Hall on the PBS Masterpiece drama “All Creatures Great and Small.” Mrs. Hall is the housekeeper of Skeldale House, where the main characters and veterinarians live in the quaint, feel-good drama set in the late 1930s/early 1940s Yorkshire Dales area of England. Mrs. Hall has often been the quiet heart of the drama but never more so than in the show’s fourth season when she must choose between love and her found family. Madeley plays the character with a sure hand, perhaps the warmest of a series of warm characters and moments. 

Best Guest Actor: Malcolm Jamal-Warner (9-1-1)
Malcolm Jamal-Warner was one of my favorite performers in the Fox medical drama “The Resident” over the last few years. He even received a nomination for Best Supporting Actor in a Drama once for his role from this site. He might always be known mostly as a child actor from “The Cosby Show” in the ‘80s but he’s shown that he’s right at home playing confident men in network dramas like his multi-episode arc in the seventh season of ABC’s “9-1-1.” Jamal-Warner plays a traveling nurse Amir, who lost the love of his life in the tragic apartment building fire in Minnesota started by firefighter Captain Bobby Nash (Peter Krause) before he turned his life around in Los Angeles. The two bump into each other on the job, resulting in Bobby looking to make amends for a trauma Amir could never forgive. The eighth episode of the season, “Step Nine,” is a true highlight for Jamal-Warner, Krause and the show’s season in general as it sees the two essentially start in a two-hander that focuses on saving each other from a cartel. Jamal-Warner plays the part of a man hating someone he has to depend on to save him perfectly. Hopefully, he’ll be back to a regular series role soon.
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Best Guest Actress: Eliza Taylor (Quantum Leap)
Eliza Taylor wound up appearing in about half of the second and ultimately final season of the NBC sci-fi reboot “Quantum Leap” as Hannah Carson, an intelligent waitress in 1949 New Mexico when the show’s time-jumper lead Ben Song (Raymond Lee) first meets her. Unusually, Ben will continue to meet Hannah throughout his jumps as the two fall in love, despite him inhabiting a new person’s body each time. It was a fascinating side plot to the season with Taylor making us fall instantly for Hannah to the point where we didn’t so much care that Addison (Caitlin Bassett) might still have feelings for him.   

Clipped – Hulu – Tuesday, June 4
“Clipped” is FX/Hulu’s telling of the scandal involving the Los Angeles Clippers owner Donald Sterling and his team during the early 2010s when racist remarks from him were captured on tape and caused a firestorm. The series has some good actors in somewhat questionable casting: Laurence Fishburne as then-Clippers basketball coach Doc Rivers and Ed O’Neill as Sterling. But I’m curious to see if they and the six-part miniseries can pull off the story. 

Hit Man – Netflix – Friday, June 7
When we look back on the year in pop culture at 2024 we may realize it was the “year of Glen Powell.” His rom-com “Anyone but You” with Sydney Sweeney was a bit of a sleeper hit at the box office, despite mixed reviews and the genre not having had much box office success in recent years. In July, his action/disaster film “Twisters,” co-starring Daisy Edgar-Jones, is sure to be a hit. But this month sees “Hit Man,” directed by Richard Linklater, premiere on Netflix on Friday, June 7. “Hit Man,” based on a 2001 Texas Monthly article, sees Powell playing a college professor and tech guy who becomes an undercover mole as a hitman. The film, a romantic-action-comedy, has received terrific reviews. 

Bridgerton (Season 3, Part 2) – Netflix – Thursday, June 13
Dear Most Gentle Reader,
The time is FINALLY coming upon us to find out if Penelope Featherington and Colin Bridgerton will end up together. Will these best friends take a chance on love and can their love survive Penelope's bombshell secret? Almost every "Bridgerton" fan I know was upset that Netflix split the third season into two parts, leaving us all thirsting for more. The third season of "Bridgerton" is proving so far to be its best yet by telling us the love story that has been building since the very first season. I'm sure the events of part two of the third season of "Bridgerton" will give Lady Whistledown a lot to write about! 

House of Dragon (Season 2) – Max – Sunday, June 16
The heavily anticipated second season of HBO's Emmy-nominated drama series, "House of the Dragon" is almost here! In this prequel series to HBO's massive hit, "Game of Thrones," King Viserys has died and his son, Aegon has been crowned the King despite Viserys' wishes for his daughter, Princess Rhaenyra to ascend to the Iron Throne. War is coming! "House of the Dragon" brings all of the drama, betrayals, scandals, deaths, love, and dragons, of course, that its predecessor did. Season one did a great job setting everything up but I feel season two is going to bring it even harder. It gives me chills. After all, winter is coming.

The Bear (Season 3) – Hulu – Thursday, June 27 
“The Bear,” Christopher Storer’s FX/Hulu production dramedy about the restaurant industry, has been the best series on television since its 2022 debut. The first season of the show, featured Carmy (Jeremy Allen White), a chef who’s come back to Chicago to overtake his deceased brother’s fledgling restaurant. In the show’s second season, Carmy and company's dreams come to fruition with a new, upscale restaurant. In season three, premiering on Thursday, June 27, we’ll see if Carmy, Sydney (Ayo Edebiri), Richie (Ebon Moss-Bachrach) can keep the new restaurant afloat and see if “The Bear” can complete the trifecta of perfect seasons. 

Dear Most Gentle Reader,
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All the members of the ton are abuzz with the latest scandals and gossip. They all seek to discover the identity of the anonymous whistleblower, Lady Whistledown. This author knows her identity and has waited far too long to learn what is to come next. Be rest assured, dear reader, everything reveals itself with time.

That time is about to come, "Bridgerton" fans, but not just yet. While it is such an exciting time for new episodes of "Bridgerton" to be streaming, Netflix decided to release the third season of their hit series in two parts.  Four episodes were released on May 16, leaving us with a massive cliffhanger. The last four episodes will be released on June 13.

Fans have criticized the move feeling they have waited long enough already. We are all anxious to know if our favorite best friends, Colin Bridgerton (Luke Newton) and Penelope Featherington (Nicola Coughlan) will end up together and what will happen once her massive secret is revealed. Will it ruin any chance that the couple could have to live happily ever after? We will know soon.

Netflix's "Bridgerton" has been an enormous hit for the streaming service. In its first season, it was the most-watched original series launch at the time of its premiere. The second season would go on to become the most-watched English-language series in a single week at the time. I'm sure the third season will also hit very high numbers as well.

The critics have also given the show favorable reviews throughout its run so far. The series is based on the books by Julia Quinn. Every season has and will follow each of the eight Bridgerton children: Anthony, Benedict, Colin, Daphne, Eloise, Francesca, Gregory, Hyacinth, Violet and Edmund as they find love in London during the Regency Era in the 1810s and 1820s.

The first season followed Daphne (Phoebe Dynevor) and the second season followed Anthony (Jonathan Bailey). Now it is Colin Bridgerton's turn and this season is the one that I have anticipated the most. One thing this show does incredibly well is capture the longing and yearning for someone. Circumstances come in life that make it complicated to be with a person. This show makes us feel the intensity of the character's feelings through great writing and strong performances. While the first and second seasons captured this feeling of yearning so well, the third season is much more amplified. The show has been setting up this love story since the very first season. We have been waiting to see if our beloved  Penelope can get Colin to see her as something more for much longer. That is why the split of the season has divided fans.

It is a new courting season but the Queen seems to be having a difficult time trying to find the Diamond of the Season. All of the ladies and their Moms are trying their absolute best to get the Queen to see their daughters as the one to be the star of the season. It is to no avail though. Of the Bridgerton ladies, it is Francesca Bridgerton's (Hannah Dodd) first time to try her hand at landing a husband. Hannah Dodd took over the role of Francesca this season from Ruby Stokes, who portrayed her in the first two seasons. Dodd is a true catch for the show. She matches the elegance, curiosity, beauty and extreme intelligence of Daphne. Also, Penelope is looking to find a husband. She sees herself as a spinster even though it is only her third season out. She was devastated to overhear Colin saying he would never marry her. She decides to be a realist and just go for what is expected of her, forgetting love.

The first part of the third season is binge-worthy television. You are left on the edge of your seat with every twist and every turn. Penelope's best friend, Eloise Bridgerton (Claudia Jessie) learned her friend's dirty secret and has severed ties with her but not divulged her life-changing bombshell to the ton. Francesca quickly finds herself in a dilemma and is Colin starting to see that he loves Penelope as more than a friend? This storyline is why I think the show is so successful. Most of us have had someone at some point in our lives that we loved but could not have. In some cases, we are with that person and sometimes, we have to let them go. Shows like this help us to believe that love can overcome any obstacle. A lot of times those obstacles could be societal pressures. If that is what is holding you back, go for them!

Let's give Lady Whistledown something to write about!

10. Beach Day
Andrew Dismukes is always so good as the “guy who just wants to be noticed but pretends to be put off” character. One of the best examples of this from season 49 came in the season opener hosted by Pete Davidson when he plays a guy who’s been buried by his friends in the sand at the beach up to his head for a photo op and something tragic happens before the photo can take place. His insistence that the photo happens before everybody leaves is Dismukes at his best. 

9. Giant Horse 
When Timothee Chalamet made his hosting debut on ‘SNL’ in 2020 and appeared in the Tiny Horse musical sketch about a boy and his beloved miniature (as in toy-sized) horse it made me laugh so hard I nearly passed out. So, when he returned to host this season deep down I hoped for a sequel but didn’t expect it. You don’t often get sketch sequels from hosts of the shows. The show was pretty clever in that when the sequel sketch began it wasn’t clear what it was going to be as we were thrust into the middle of a science fiction battle, whose villain’s biggest killing machine happens to be a Giant Horse, the Tiny Horse from before who’s turned to the dark side. It’s a ridiculously wild concept that doesn’t quite live up to the original, the sequels seldom do, but Chalamet crooning about a tiny horse is wacky enough to crack me up every time.

8. Immigrant Dad Talk Show
Marcello Hernandez has been one of the standouts among the featured players on the ‘SNL’ cast over the last couple of seasons and he’s at his best when playing up his Hispanic heritage and background, especially when he does the speaking so fast he becomes intelligible – both in English and Spanish – thing he does so well. The idea for him to pair with host Ramy Youssef, a Muslim comedian, as a couple of immigrant dads who hold a talk show in a backyard about how much they love their daughters and are disappointed in their sons, was perfect. The best part is when they invite their white American neighbor over as a guest and are so confused by his admiration of his son, especially when the father and son kiss on the lips. I hope this becomes a recurring bit for Hernandez with any future hosts of ethnic backgrounds. 

7. Little Orphan Cassidy
Rarely do freshmen cast members of ‘SNL’ have breakout sketches as big as Chloe Troast’s Little Orphan Cassidy in the third episode of season 49 hosted by Timothee Chalamet. The sketch sees Troast as Cassidy, an orphan who can’t find a home who pines to Mr. Moon, Chalamet’s face as the man in the moon, to be wanted and loved. Troast breaks into song, something we’re going to see a lot from here based on her first season of the show, and when we find out she’s actually 27 years old the crowd loses it. Chalamet’s responses as Mr. Moon the more and more weird stuff we find out about Cassidy are terrific, as well. 

6. Jumanji
When Kristen Wiig returned to host the show for her fifth time since leaving as a cast member this season she appeared in what has to be one of her all-time greatest sketches (though I never was the biggest fan of her characters when she was on the cast) as a woman scared of being “Jumanji’d” during a game night with her friends. It’s the most absurd sketch ideas I’ve found myself enjoying the most in this current era of ‘SNL.’ Wiig’s exasperated fear of being sucked into a board game world mixed with the annoyance of the rest of the group of friends, particularly the one played by Andrew Dismukes, makes for a wildly creative and funny sketch. 

5. Close Encounter
I never expected to see Colleen Rafferty again after the character was taken to space by alien abduction in Kate McKinnon’s final episode as a ‘SNL’ cast member two years ago. It seemed to be the perfect finale for Colleen and the Close Encounter sketches that highlighted McKinnon’s ‘SNL’ Hall of Famer tenure. McKinnon even returned to host the show for the first time in season 49 and the character didn’t appear. So, it was a pleasant surprise when host Ryan Gosling’s episode opened with a Close Encounter sketch. Gosling was the host when the sketch debuted in 2015 and also appeared again in the recurring sketch in 2017. He seems to be a favorite of McKinnon’s Colleen to mess with and you can tell Gosling gets a kick out of it too. Anytime this wacky sketch involving Colleen’s wacky and weird alien encounters appears I’m going to love it. It’s truly one of the rare recurring sketches that loses little the more times they do it. 

4. I'm Just Pete
One of the biggest pop culture phenomena of the summer of 2023 was the “Barbie” movie so even though season 49 of ‘SNL’ premiered months later you had the feeling the show would work something “Barbie” into its premiere – I just didn’t realize it would be this good. One of the highlights of the film was Ryan Gosling as Ken singing the song “I’m Just Ken.” When ‘SNL’ turned the song into “I’m Just Pete” for former cast member Pete Davidson returning to host the season premiere it was one of the best examples of the show parodying pop culture. 

3. Lake Beach
Each year for the last two decades now ‘SNL’ has released some incredibly funny songs and this year had no shortage of them, but my absolute favorite from this season was “Lake Beach” during the episode hosted by comedian Nate Bargatze – likely because I enjoy country music, making fun of modern pop-influenced country music and have always lived in the South. James Austin Johnson and Andrew Dismukes have proven to be quite the tandem when paired together on the show, both seeming to really gel when the ideas are at their wildest. Johnson, Dismukes and Bargatze play a trio of country singers paying homage to the Lake Beach party life and if you’ve ever lived in the South and have been around redneck types you will recognize nearly every damn thing in this song as being potentially a bit too on the nose.  

2. Beavis & Butt-Head
Sometimes it’s the way out in left field ideas that make for the funniest sketches on ‘SNL’ these days, especially when all those involved know it’s way out there to the point where they struggle to contain their composure on the live show. When Ryan Gosling hosted late in season 49, such a moment occurred in a sketch where Kenan Thompson is playing a professor being interviewed by Heidi Gardner’s anchor about artificial intelligence and a couple of people in the audience catch his attention for looking stunningly like the animated TV characters Beavis and Butt-Head. It’s a funny idea, especially as Gosling as Beavis and Mikey Day as Butt-Head play the town hall guests as clueless to the fact that they resemble these characters. But the sketch truly becomes an instant classic when Gardner turns to face Day as Butt-Head and has one of the greatest breaks in the history of ‘SNL,’ especially as a cast member who rarely seems to break on air. 

1. Washington's Dream
Nate Bargatze might be the funniest stand-up comedian in the business today but when it was announced he would host a season 49 episode of ‘SNL’ I was a bit concerned that his lack of acting might hurt him when it came to sketch comedy. At times throughout his episode, it was a bit jarring but I think that aspect, mixed with his style of making the mundanities of life hilarious truly helped the best sketch of the season fly. Co-head writer Streeter Seidell and cast member Mikey Day had been trying to get their George Washington pep talk sketch on the show for some time but it never quite fit the week’s host. But the humor of the sketch, which pokes fun at how many things differ in America from the rest of the world, really fits Bargatze's style. Bargatze plays Washington during the Revolutionary War giving a pep talk to dejected soldiers, played by Day, James Auston Johnson, Bowen Yang and Kenan Thompson. The sketch received a lot of “best sketch in years” treatment from the media in the days following it.