One of the best things that can happen at an award show is when the suspected front-runner loses and the surprise winner is something everyone can be happy about. While1917was a fine war film with impressive cinematography, it was so much more exciting thatParasitewon the Oscar for Best Picture. The small film from South Korea seemingly had no chance of winning a major award against something as traditional as a WWI movie and yet, it reigned supreme. Sunday’s Emmy Awards had a similar moment when the night ended withHackswinning Best Comedy Series, a surprise over the heavily favored series,The Bear.
After the shocking surprise win forLamorne MorrisforNoah Hawley’sFargo, the Emmy’s remained fairly predictable.Baby ReindeerandShōgunlargely swept the miniseries and drama categories, with exceptions made forElizabeth Debicki’s turn asPrincess DianainThe Crownand the legendaryJodie Fostertaking home the gold forTrue Detective: Night Country. Early in the night, it seemed the comedy categories might also be swept byThe Bear. After three acting wins forJeremy Allen White,Ebon Moss-Bachrach, andLiza Colón-Zayas, a directing win forChristopher Storer, andseven wins at the Creative Arts Emmys, it made sense to assumeThe Bearwould take home the top prize. However,Hackscame out on top, and the Emmys — and the TV industry — are all the better for it.
‘Hacks’ Has Been Overdue for a Best Comedy Series Emmys Win
Hacksis an incredible comedy about people thatdocomedy. The series pairs Deborah Vance (Jean Smart), a long-time comedian coasting by with her QVC products and a Vegas residency, with a young, unfiltered, and headstrong comedian, Ava Daniels (Hannah Einbinder). Together the two have an uneasy alliance that has both of them producing great comedy, but not without some personal turmoil.It is a fascinating look at the changing nature of comedy, how careers can shift and evolve, and what it takes to survive in this cutthroat business(no better surmised bythe shocking Season 3 finale). But more importantly, it is extremely and effortlessly funny throughout. There are jokes coming at the audience a mile a minute, some of which are situational, some comment on the current moment, and others are deeply rooted in the characters the show has created. It is everything a comedy should be, but until Sunday, it had hit a wall at the Emmys.
‘Hacks’ Season 3 Review: Smarter, Funnier, and More Moving Than Ever
Jean Smart and Hannah Einbinder shine as their characters face interesting evolutions without losing what made us love them in the first place.
It would be unfair to sayHackshas failed at the Emmys. Jean Smart’s win for Best Actress in a Comedy was her third forHacks, in addition to the creative team ofLucia Aniello,Paul W. Downs,andJen Statskyhavingwon for writing and directing in the past(not to mentionLaurie Metcalf’s guest role taking home a trophy). Hannah Einbinder continues to be nominated, but despite getting better every season, hasn’t taken home the Emmy.
Unfortunately, during its run,Hackshas been up against the massive juggernautTed Lasso,which took home Best Comedy Series twice. It only made sense the show that defeatedTed Lassoin its final season,The Bear, would continue its streak andHackswould be snubbed once again. Not only would this have been a shame for failing to honor one of the best comedies on TV, but awardingThe Bearwould be awarding a show that is, well, not a comedy.
Sure, ‘The Bear’ Can Be Funny, But It’s Not a Comedy
Comedy is a tough thing to define. HadBill Hader’sBarrywon more awards, similar questions about its genre may have been raised. WhileBarryis a dark comedy, what about other shows likeTransparent,Cobra Kai, andWednesday? All with humorous elements, but are theycomedies?Orange Is the New Blackwas considered a comedy in its first season, then later a drama.The Bearis the latest to be a part of this confused state of the genre. There are plenty of things to make you laugh inThe Bear:the endlessly growing number of Faks, the comedic chaos that befalls the restaurant, the banter among the bickering coworkers, and not to mention the proliferation of comedic performers in the ensemble (Ayo Edebiri,Lionel Boyce, andAbby Elliottare all primarily comic actors). But comedy doesn’t seem to be in the focus forThe Bear.
As Emmys host Eugene Levy pointed out,The Beardoesn’t have jokes. Similar toHacks, there is comedy that comes from the situations and how the characters react to one another, but that doesn’t seem to be the priority for the FX series.The Beartouches on a wide variety of topicsincluding obsession, restaurant culture, trauma, ambition, family, and the making of one’s identity. It’s a great show, but the comedy seems incidental. More than any of its fellow nominees,The Bearcould function without the comedy that does happen. Not to say that it should, as comedy is a part of even the most stressful lives andThe Bearmight be hard to watch without moments of levity, but are these moments enough forThe Bearto be considered a comedy?
The Bearis funny, but the drive of the show isn’t the humor. WhileHacksmay infuse some dramatic elements into its story,the overall thing pushing the story scene to scene is the comedy. Part of the construction ofHacksis what is the funniest approach the characters can go through to get out of a situation, or what comedic challenges an obstacle presents. For the story ofHacksto work, the comedy has to work. Meanwhile, for the stories ofThe Bearto work, they can completely avoid the jokes if they so choose.Hacksis many things — hilarious, heartbreaking, tense, emotionally raw, and unpredictable — but, without question,Hacksis a comedy, through and through.
Explores a dark mentorship that forms between Deborah Vance, a legendary Las Vegas comedian, and an entitled, outcast 25-year-old.
Hacksis available to watch on Max in the U.S.
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