There’s a word for it.
Actually, there are two: tropophobia and metathesiophobia.
The abnormal and persistent fear of changes.
And nobody I know has a worse case of it than the Emmys.
There were a few baby steps this morning when the nominations for the 57th Annual Emmy Awards were announced. But there are still too many old-timers milling about, and not enough new faces to look at.
You get the feeling that if Emmy ever threw a party, she wouldn’t ever kick anybody out and you’d be left with about a dozen of the most boring people on Earth hanging around until 4 a.m.
That’s what these nominations are like. “Everybody Loves Raymond,” “Will &Grace,” “The West Wing” and “Six Feet Under” are all examples of once-great shows (OK, maybe not “Raymond,” but still…) that are simply staying around too long. As we saw with “Frasier” over the past few years, Emmy won’t show them the door until they leave on their own.
The biggest sham is the absense of Dennis Leary for his lead role in the F/X drama, “Rescue Me.” Others include the snub of “Gilmore Girls” and its lead actress, Lauren Graham, as well as the star of “Veronica Mars,” Kristen Bell.
On the upside, NBC’s best comedy, “Scrubs,” and its lead actor, Zach Braff, were finally recognized, and while Showtime’s drama “Huff” didn’t get a series nomination, its lead actor Hank Azaria, supporting actor Oliver Platt and supporting actress Blythe Danner all got nods.
Another huge victory — given Emmy’s general aversion to hip, new shows — was Jeremy Piven’s nomination for best supporting actor in a comedy as a loud-mouthed Hollywood agent on HBO’s “Entourage.”
Here’s a look at some of the major categories. For a complete list of the nominees, www.emmys.org:
“Deadwood” and “Lost” absolutely deserve to be in the mix, while “24’ is marginal and “Six Feet” and “West Wing” are complete absurd. Both shows are well past their peaks, although I have faith that “Wing” will soar again this season with Jimmy Smits and Alan Alda squaring off for the presidency. “House” and “Huff” should have found a home in this category.
Unfortunately, not many surprises here. “Housewives” was a deservingly obvious choice, while “Arrested” and “Scrubs” are great picks. “Gilmore Girls,” at least, should have taken the place of “Will &Grace” as there was no reason to believe “Raymond” would get bumped in its farewell season.
In the weakest category of the lot, it’s at least good to see Bateman and Braff get well-deserved nominations.
Biggest upset of the year is Dennis Leary (“Rescue Me”) not being on this list, at least in place of Sutherland, whose one-dimensional act is still compelling to watch but no longer deserving of statuettes. Michael Chiklis (“The Shield”) simply falls victim to what is a very strong category.
No surprise, but a big relief that the three most worthy “Housewives” are in the mix. With Heaton’s nomination, we at least have the security in knowing she won’t be around again, and someone needs to tell Emmy that the “Malcolm” pick isn’t hip anymore. “Gilmore Girls” star Lauren Graham easily fills that spot.
Only major beef here is Conroy over up-and-comer Kristen Bell of “Veronica Mars” — a prime example of Emmy’s tilt toward the, shall we say, more mature audience.
I only mention this one because while I don’t hold out much hope for a “Runway” victory, it’s great to see Bravo’s little fashion designer show among “Idol,” and the Jerry Bruckheimer and Mark Burnett heavyweights. Speaking of heavyweights, Burnett’s other gem, “The Contender,” should have bumped the stale “Survivor” off the island.
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