67th Emmy Awards

67th Edition y'all

  So last night was the 67th annual Emmy awards and it was a weird combo of obvious picks for some acting awards mixed in with a pretty huge surprise for the top award for Best Drama Series. While it didn't really add up to ratings as it got smoked by the NFL's "Sunday Night Football" it was still a good night that provided some surprises along the way, even though it seems to mark the end of Andy Samberg hosting things because he looked unconfortable on stage all night. Anyway below is a list of all the winners in the major categories and my opinion on what the Emmys got right and where they may have dropped the ball.

Best Drama Series: "Game of Thrones"

   This one surprised me more then alittle bit. Kinda figured "Mad Men" was gonna get this one for old times sake, not to mention that most people myslef included thought "Game of Thrones" had an off year. Would have been nice to see "Better Call Saul" get the nod as the hot new show, or "Homeland" which had a huge return to form this season. Anyway lets hope "Game of Thrones" will up its game and justify this victory going forward.

Best Comedy Series: "Veep"

   HBO pretty much had this one locked up with either "Veep" or "Silicon Valley". Thought "Transparent" had an outside chance to steal the is one and i perosnally have a soft spot for "Unbreakable Kimmie Schmidt" but in the end "Veep" takes it. Soooo wish "Silicon Valley" woulda taken it home though.

Best Actor Drama Series: Jon Hamm "Mad Men"

   This one was decided last year after Bryan Cranston won for "Breaking Bad". Had hope maybe Bob Odenkirk could slide in here and steal one but pretty much everyone knew Hamm was gonna finally win for "Mad Men". Deserved i suppose though never been much of a fan of the show myself. File this under sorta lifetime achievement.

Best Actress Drama Series: Viola Davis "How to get away with Murder"

   History was made as Davis was the first African American woman to win the Best Actress award. Seemed like a 2 person race between her and "Empire" star Taraji Henson. Between those 2 i think they made the correct choice although I'd have like to seen Claire Danes get it for "Homeland". No arguments with the winner though. Certainly deserved it. I do have to say though where was Julianna Marguiles in the nominee pool? Huge snub there

Best Actor Comedy Series:  Jeffrey Tambor "Transparent"

   "Transparent" star Tambor again looked to be the runaway winner here. Both the news climate and the fact his performance basically is only reason the show was renewed meant everyone else might as well not shown up. Dont think it was an undeserved award as Tambor is excellent and fearless in the role in a way none of his competition could match

Best Actress Comedy Series: Julia Louis-Dreyfus "Veep"

   It was a 2 person race between  newcomer Amy Schumer and Dreyfus but ultimately the veteran with the serialized show won out. Dont cry for Schumer though as she did walk away with an award later on but Dreyfus is exceptional on "Veep" as Selina Meyers and adds to her impressive collection of awards. "Seinfeld" curse be damned in her case as she continues to kill it on the small screen.

Outstanding Supporting Actor Drama Series: Peter Dinklage "Game of Thrones"

   Here's one i was really disappointed with. This has nothing to do with Peter Dinklage as he was good as Tyrion lannister but like i said i didn't really think this was a good season of "Game of Thrones" and Tyrion's storyline wasn't exactly engaging stuff for most of the year. I was really hoping Jonathan Banks was gonna take it for "Better Call Saul" as he was the star of what i thought was the best hour of TV this year in "Five-O" and his performance resonanted across 2 shows as it also adds weight to "Breaking Bad".

Outstanding Supporting Actress Drama Series: Uzo Aduba "Orange is the new black"

   Even though it is weird to see "Game of Thrones" go 0-2 in any division this time its certainly warranted. You knew "Orange is the new black" was gonna receive some kind of award love and this one is the most deserving. Her performance is certainly memorable and stands out, not an easy feat with a cast this size.

Outstanding Supporting Actor Comedy Series: Tony Hale "Veep"

   This was my "Sophies Choice" division of the night as i wanted Titus Burgess, Andre Braugher and Tony Hale to somehow share the award. Once it came down to it i found myself pulling for Titus Burgess as i wanted "Unbreakable Kimmy Schmidt" to win something but can't argue with Tony Hale's win either. Like i said really couldn't go wrong no matter who won.

Outstanding Variety Talk Series/Directing/Writing: "The Daily Show with Jon Stewart"

   "The Daily Show" cleaned up on Jon Stewart's way out the door taking all 3 award for variety talk. Lets hope they can keep this quality up once Trevor Noah takes over and not fade away. Still wish Jon Stewart stayed on though, just don't get why he left.

Outstanding Variety Sketch Show: "Inside Amy Schumer"

   Its the year of Amy Schumer so you just knew she wasn't walking away empty handed. She didn't get the Lead Comedy Actress like some people thought she would but her show winning it all in its category might be more validating for her. Either way good for her......i'd have gone with "Drunk History" though.

Game Review: Rare Replay

30 games for $30....Awesome deal but well they all can't be winners

   Re-releases and compilations have become all the rage lately and not to be outdone English developer Rare have jumped in with both feet with a collection of games spanning their entire history. The gimmick here is you get 30 games for $30 and sure enough thats exactly what you get, now if only the quality was consistent.

   So lets start with the good, if you're one prone to nostalgia then your going to be in your glory here. Games like "Perfect Dark", "Battletoads" and the "RC Pro-Am 1 & 2" immediately stoke that feeling. Just seeing these games in action is sure to take you back to your younger days. The "Pro-Am" series in particular still holds up as a solid racing game with a surprisingly well-done upgrade system. "Blast Corps" is still ridiculously fun to play, i mean a game where the point is destroying buildings with various different vehicles? Its just begging for an HD remake/reboot and the "Viva Pinata" games are the same sit on your couch and zone out fun that they've always been.

Just roll one up and turn your brain off

   Not only do these games get those nostalgia flames burning but some of the games are still as fun as you remember them and still hold up quite well today. The previously mentioned "Blast Corps" and "RC Pro-Am" still bring the fun and other games like "Cobra Triangle", "Grabbed by Ghoulies" and "Kameo" are just begging for you to jump back in, especially if you missed them years ago.

Still fun 30 years later......incredible

   Its very interesting to watch the progression of not only the graphics but also the gameplay. This is a collection that spans everything from "Jetpac" and its simple two-button and one screen design all the way up to "Banjo-Kazooie". Its a testament to how far game design has come and also Rare's ability to not only put out solid games but stay profitable long enough to have 30 years worth of quite varied material. This isn't a company that stuck to just one genre and you'll find platformers, RPG's and first person shooters all in here. Like side-scrolling beat 'em ups or fighting games? Got you covered there as well.

   On top of the wide variety of games they are also presented in an excellent old time way with tons of extra content like video histories and interviews with developers. The aesthetic of curtains and old music while selecting games is nice and puts you in the mood to just have fun. Plus all the extras will have you playing along to just unlock everything. There's also the matter of the 4000 gamerpoints for Xbox that are available for relatively minimal effort. You get 15 gamerpoints just for playing a game for the first time and especially on the older games you can grind your way to a massive point pick up relatively easily. Even notoriously hard/cheap games like "Battletoads" can be beaten now thanks to a sort of rewind button built into some of the games. It takes away from some of the hair pulling that would result from some of the more difficult games.

Looking at you pain in the ass hoverbike level

   All that good stuff though means we do have to discuss the bad. There are some GLARING omissions in this collection. Neither "Goldeneye" or "Donkey Kong Country" are on the disc for various licensing reasons and considering the cache those games hold in gaming history their absence is noted. Also a few of the games have either aged horribly or weren't that good in the first place. If you can play "Atic Atac" or "SabreWulf" more the once you're a better man then me. Also "Killer Instict Gold" actually hurt any good feelings i had for those old games. Its by no means unplayable but if you remember it being a good fighting game you're in for a rude awakening.

Not having either of these is SUPER notable as a collection

   These issues shouldn't be taken as you shouldn't pick this game up. If you're a fan of Rare then this is a must have. I mean the sheer volume of gameplay available here makes this a steal at $30. Despite it being a bit uneven at times in terms of quality overall there's more then enough content and fun to be had to recommend that you give this one a chance. 

Overall Score: 7/10