HBO’s LGBT History: Television Period Dramas

Manuel is working his way through all the LGBT-themed HBO productions.

Last week we looked at the oh-so-boring if earnest doc The Case Against 8. This week we’re taking stock of three of HBO’s period dramas to see how the network has tackled LGBT characters in robes, frocks, and spurs.

When putting on shows (or films) set in the past, you always have to walk a fine line between keeping it “period” — you want to stay authentic — while also making a case for its existence today — you want it to resonate today. Mad Men is to me, the standard in this regard, ably walking that fine line; never shying away from the rampant sexism of the time, for example, but also never arching its eyebrow to audiences and smirking to itself saying “Can you believe this?” This is particularly tricky when it comes to LGBT issues and even more so when the shows are not about issues of sexuality. Do you push contemporary understandings of gays, lesbians and trans people and risk being called out for anachronisms, or do you simply feed into a narrative of heterosexism that states that gay desire was somehow always hidden and tragic and risk instead being called out for regressive ideas?

Click to read more ...

The Morning After: Creative Emmy Award Winners

Andrew on the Emmy Awards, Round 1

Are there too many Emmy Award categories? On one hand, considering that that they need two separate ceremonies to get through all the winners, it seems a reasonable thesis. It lends a longness to the procedures but how nice that they recognise everything, and appreciate the difference between prostethic and non-prostethic make up, credits music, and title design? 

Yesterday, eight days before the regular Emmys, the Creative Emmy awards were presented with prizes for costumes, choreography, production, design, music, guest acting and even TV movie. The creative Emmys, unlike craft prizes at the Oscars, are rarely a good indicator of what wins the big prizes. But let’s look at the notable winners and ponderwhether some of the surprises of last evening might carry over to next week's official ceremony. 

THE WINNERS AFTER THE JUMP...

Click to read more ...

"Best Shots" from the Emmy Nominated Series

Andrew here with a special Hit Me With Your Best Shot inspired look at the best looking TV shows (according to Emmy voters).

The Creative Arts Emmy Awards are handed on this Saturday (September 12), the precursor to the main ceremony billed for the next week. So, in anticipation of Saturday's ceremony where all technical and visual prizes will be handed out here's a celebration of the cinematographic side of television.

The cinematography side of TV has been divided into two categories, instead of one, since 2000: Cinematography for a Single Camera Series (most, if not all, dramas on TV right now, and many comedies), Cinematography for a Multi-Camera Series (predominantly CBS comedies). (They briefly flirted with dividing the category by episode length in 2008 and 2009 and then returning to this current, which just goes to show how indecisive the Emmy rules committee can be.)

It's easy to see which category Emmy voters consider superior. There are 7 single-camera nominees, and 4 multi-camera nominees, and having watched all eleven episodes we're following their bias and focusing on the single category, too...

CINEMATOGRAPHY FOR A SINGLE CAMERA SERIES NOMINEES

7 nominees across 4 shows to represent the best photograped shows on television. One shot from each show follows to help you decide which to root for on Saturday.

Click to read more ...