The 73rd Primetime Emmy Awards, hosted on Sunday evening at the L.A. Live complex, sent home numerous television shows with a variety of awards: some deserved, and some I would have awarded… differently. Though I agree with most of the award decisions, I also have some diverging thoughts. Here’s to the 73rd Emmys, and congratulations to the winners! 

Outstanding Comedy Series

Starting off with one of the biggest awards of the night, “Outstanding Comedy Series”! And the winner is “Ted Lasso,” an Apple TV television show about an American football coach who travels to Britain to coach a soccer team. The first season of the show premiered in August of last year, and the episodes for season two are currently being released on a weekly basis. 

Though I personally have never watched “Ted Lasso,” the show sure was a prominent winner for the night with a total of 7 Primetime Emmy and Creative Awards, including Outstanding Lead Actor in a Comedy Series (Jason Sudeikis as Ted Lasso), Outstanding Casting for a Comedy Series and Outstanding Sound Mixing for a Comedy or Drama Series (Half-Hour) and Animation. 

I’m looking forward to watching “Ted Lasso” sometime soon, and I’m just glad that “Emily in Paris,” a comedy-drama series that was also nominated for this category, didn’t win! 

Outstanding Limited or Anthology Series

Next up, we have the “Outstanding Limited or Anthology Series” award! Netflix’s chess hit “The Queen’s Gambit” took home the prize, which I one hundred percent agree with. “The Queen’s Gambit” follows a young female chess prodigy, Beth Harmon, and her grapples with genius, madness and substance abuse, all while she travels the world for tournaments. 

What I loved about the show was its portrayal of Beth as an independent female in a male-driven world of chess in the 1960s, while also introducing the complexity of her struggle with drug and alcohol addiction. Individual episodes (which were wonderfully titled after the different phases of a chess match), display unique costumes, makeup, set and music that perfectly matched the time period! The Emmys judges seem to agree since the show won a total of 11 awards, including Outstanding Production Design For A Narrative Period Or Fantasy Program (One Hour Or More), Outstanding Writing For A Limited Or Anthology Series Or Movie, Outstanding Music Supervision and Outstanding Period Costumes. 

The costumes especially caught my attention: Beth transitioned from awkward fashion to chic and trendy while still unique through the episodes that reflected her chess background, such as black and white patterns or checkers. 

Another strong contender in the Outstanding Limited or Anthology Series category was “WandaVision,” from the Marvel Cinematic Universe, which definitely would have been my second place choice, simply because of the tremendous popularity of Marvel productions as well as the top-notch acting and writing.   

Outstanding Variety Special (Pre-Recorded)

Now let’s take a look at the “Outstanding Variety Special (Pre-Recorded)”, awarded to “Hamilton” on Disney+, a live stage recording of Lin-Manuel Miranda’s Broadway musical, which itself already is an 11-time-Tony Award winner. 

I must say that I understand why “Hamilton” won this category, because the live version production is spectacular, though I don’t necessarily agree with its Emmy win. Maybe it’s because watching a recorded musical on film just isn’t the same as watching it live in a hundred or thousand-seat theater since I didn’t enjoy it as much as others seemed to have. Instead, I was really rooting for comedian Bo Burnham’s Netflix special “Bo Burnham: Inside” to take the award. 

Though it failed to win, “Bo Burnham: Inside”—a realistic yet comedic one and a half-hour film meant to showcase the course of the pandemic months—really captured the different monotonous, eccentric, peaceful, confused tones that I, along with many others, experienced over the last year and a half. The various scenes and songs played off each other while each contributing their own new aspect of quarantine, and it’s even more impressive that it was directed, written and edited by Burnham. Fortunately, this variety special did end up winning “Outstanding Directing For A Variety Special,” “Outstanding Writing For A Variety Special” and “Outstanding Music Direction. 

Outstanding Drama Series

Another big award for the night goes to “The Crown,” and deservedly so. “The Crown,” a Netflix series about Queen Elizabeth II and the politics and romance surrounding her life, was one of the biggest winners of the night, with 11 Emmys this year and 21 Emmys total. I haven’t finished all four seasons, but I’ve heard from enough people gushing about the show and its gorgeous set design and dramatic plot twists to know that it deserved its win. 

Also nominated in this category included “Bridgerton,” another Netflix original period drama about courting and family life in 19th century London. Two really outstanding shows about historical Britain’s royalty and upper class! 

Among other awards, “The Crown” also took home “Outstanding Writing For A Drama Series,” “Outstanding Casting For A Drama Series” and “Outstanding Cinematography For A Single-Camera Series (One Hour).” 

Outstanding Competition Program

Lastly, let’s look at the “Outstanding Competition Program” award, which goes to “RuPaul’s Drag Race”! The show’s host RuPaul also won “Outstanding Host For A Reality Or Competition Program.”

In my opinion, the “Outstanding Competition Program” category always proves to be a jovial category. The win for “RuPaul’s Drag Race” did not really surprise me. I support the judge’s decision, although it’s already a very decorated show, with a total now of 24 Emmys. “The Voice,” “Top Chef” or even the other nominees such as “The Amazing Race” and “Nailed It!” could have been remarkable winners as well, and I’m curious to see who will win this award next year!