My Female Fab Four at this year's Emmys

The Emmy nominations were announced last week and for once, I'm actually excited. Don't get me wrong, there's a lot of good TV out there but when it comes to award shows, they rarely highlight programs that I watch.

Part of my joy comes from certain ladies being nominated and on top of that list is Leslie Jones, up for Outstanding Supporting Actress in a Comedy series, along with her SNL co-stars Kate McKinnon and Vanessa Bayer(who, ironically enough, is leaving the show).

Leslie is one of my favorite people on Saturday Night Live,due to her strong comedy timing(yes, she gets a little nervous during the skits every now and then but who hasn't on that show,seriously?) and full commitment to whatever concept is being presented, whether it's flirting with Colin Jost during a Weekend Update bit or a short film following her fictitious relationship with a fellow cast member.

In fact, I do wonder why Leslie isn't given more time on SNL. Sure, Kate McKinnon is amazing but they are giving her some major overtime there and Leslie has the chops to create a reoccurring character or two here, come on, Lorne Michaels! She is one of your star players, take her off the bench!:

SNL has a record number of nominations this year, due strongly in part to Melissa McCarthy, who is in the Outstanding Guest Actress in a Comedy Series category for her spot-on Sean Spicer impersonation.

I've always been a huge Melissa McCarthy fan yet this incredibly uncanny take on the press secretary has truly exceeded any and all expectations. Those skits have become a humor highlight for those of us dismayed by current events and gave us a good opportunity to release our collective tension through laughter.

No doubt she'll win and probably Alec Baldwin, who was also nominated for his Trump skits this season (although, if you ask me, there is someone else on another channel that is doing a way better job in that department) will get an award that night. It would be shocking if she didn't win but I find it hard to believe that would happen. Any entertainer who can make such a major media impact as her performance has deserves to be honored by her peers indeed:

In the drama categories, the Netflix series Stranger Things has garnered a good chunk of Emmy noms, including one for Millie Bobby Brown in the Outstanding Supporting Actress section(yes, Barb got nominated,too, for Guest Actress).

Her role as Eleven, the enigmatic girl with a taste for Eggos, is one of the main heart beats of this story and for such a young performer to create a character as vivid as this one with a minimum of dialogue is quite a feat. I haven't seen acting on this level for some time now, on the big screen as well as the small, and hopefully, this is the start of a wonderful long term career for this talented young lady:

Meanwhile, the third season of Fargo was the first one for me, as I gave this F/X series a try and boy,howdy, this show was definitely worth watching.

Apparently, the Emmys agree as S3 was given a solid number of nominations in the Limited Series categories, including one for Carrie Coon as Lead Actress. Playing Gloria Burgle, the steadfast police woman with little faith in technology, she was a heartfelt heroine whose moments were subtle yet supremely breath taking to behold:

That category is going to be tough, as Carrie Coon is up against both Susan Sarandon and Jessica Lange as the leading ladies of Feud: Bette & Joan. I have to say that F/X is certainly becoming a powerhouse when it comes to ground breaking and quality TV these days.

The Emmy awards will be handed out in September, giving many of us a chance to catch up on some of the shows being touted here. Feud in particular is a grand character study on the perils of Hollywood for women, which is still sadly relevant today and a major must-see in my opinion.

Overall, what I'm really happy about are the many opportunities for women on the small screen, whether it's network, cable or streaming. Sure, many more strides need to be made and it would be nice if the silver screen followed suit but for now, let us hope that someday in the future, a series like Feud: Bette & Joan is a depiction of a bygone era that's truly gone for good: