If this is the golden age of TV, then the Emmy nominations were crowded with repeat nods, making occasional space for only a few things — HBO’s “True Detective” and its two stars Woody Harrelson and Matthew MacConaughey in drama, “House of Cards” and its star Taylor Schilling for “Orange is the New Black” and peeking into the miniseries category, “Fargo” on FX.
Also new among nominations, a quieter Netflix entry, Ricky Gervais as lead for his comedy “Derek,” and and among comedies, HBO’s nerdy triumph “Silicon Valley.” But that bumped out, say, “Parks and Recreation” in a comedy list that included repeat nominees “Big Bang Theory,” “Louie,” “Modern Family” and “Veep” (as well as “Orange”).
Amy Poehler of “Parks” did get on the best actress list for comedy, alongside Julia Louis-Dreyfus and a slew of women whose shows did not make the comedy category: Lena Dunham of “Girls”, Edie Falco of “Nurse Jackie,” and Melissa McCarthy of “Mike & Molly.”
Overall, “Game of Thrones” had the most nominations of any show, 19, but aside from being in the best drama category, and three supporting cast members (Peter Dinklage, Lena Headey and Diana Rigg), the nominations came largely in technical areas such as effects, photography and costumes. Two shows entered as miniseries, “Fargo” and “American Horror Story” tied for next largest number of nominations with 18 each.
Joining “Thrones” in best drama was one new entry, “True Detectives,” amid the returning “Downton Abbey,” “Mad Men,” “House of Cards” and “Breaking Bad,” a sentimental favorite for its final season. Its Bryan Cranston, Anna Gunn and Adam Paul also snared nominations for well regarded final season.
But there were clear omissions in the list, as Tatiana Maslany who plays several roles on the Canadian import “Orphan Black,” received no nomination.
And poor Mindy Kahling, called to make the Emmy announcements before dawn in Hollywood, didn’t get a nomination, though Carson Daly, who also stood up to read the main categories, did, for hosting “The Voice.”
The Emmy Awards will be broadcast on a different night — Monday instead of Sunday — a little earlier than usual, Aug. 25, on NBC.