In light of this morning’s Emmy Award nominations, we feel there are some glaring omissions on the list. See our top 10 list of the most outrageous snubs of 2012.

When I saw the list of nominations, naturally I immediately noted the absence of some of the fandoms I cover on Hypable, such as Once Upon a Time, Fringe and How I Met Your Mother. Looking at what the rest of you are saying on Twitter and in the comments as well, I’ve compiled a list of 10 of the worst Emmy snubs of the 2012 season. Do you agree? Sound off in the comments about your reaction to the nominations announcement, and what shows and actors you felt were left off the nominations list!

10. Outstanding Comedy Series: How I Met Your Mother

Maybe Neil Patrick Harris deserves it more for Outstanding Supporting Actor, but How I Met Your Mother had an extraordinary season for more reasons than the antics of Barney Stinson. The season began with Robin and Barney’s epic dance routine, moved through Marshall and Lily’s pregnancy and moving experiences and Barney’s relationships with Nora and Quinn, and ended with Ted running off with Victoria, and the revelation that Robin and Barney end up getting married. It touched on some serious topics like Robin’s inability to have children and the (presumably) final demise of the Ted/Robin relationship, yet kept its uplifting tone throughout.

Standout episodes include “Trilogy Time,” “Symphony of Illumination” and “The Broath,” but there were a lot of solids this year. Perhaps How I Met Your Mother wouldn’t win, but its alternative format and outstanding writing and acting at least earned it a nomination.

9. Outstanding Actress in a Drama Series: Nina Dobrev, The Vampire Diaries

Let’s face it. Emmy voters wrinkle their noses at CW shows, and great quality series like Supernatural and The Vampire Diaries are never going to get the recognition they deserve. That doesn’t mean we can’t recognise them ourselves, though!

The Vampire Diaries gets consistently better and better, and season 3 brought us some epic moments and developments – not least the final episode, which changed the entire nature of the series! Out of all the cast, Nina Dobrev has perhaps always had the most challenging role as playing both Elena and Katherine, but this year Katherine hardly featured. What earns Dobrev the nod is her portrayal of Elena; being torn between Stefan and Damon, who had completely switched roles at the start of the year, and watching her little brother fall to pieces and making the impossible decision to send him away.

Like the show, Nina Dobrev’s performance has steadily improved with each season, and she acts her ass off on this show every single week. Elena’s journey is a thrill to watch, and there is no doubt that Dobrev will do an amazing job at playing a very new side of the character in season 4.

8. Outstanding Supporting Actor in a Comedy Series: Chris Colfer, Glee

Glee received a notably small amount of nods this year, a fact which the fans probably have very mixed opinions about. But whether you believe that the quality of the show has gone downhill this year or if you love it as much as ever, it’s hard to deny that Chris Colfer once again put in a solid performance.

The people who mentioned the snubbing of Glee on Twitter all singled out Chris Colfer as the one most deserving of an Emmy nomination this year. That’s not surprising; Kurt went through a lot with his NYADA rejection, not getting the lead in West Side Story and watching Sebastian move in on Blaine. Chris Colfer played all those scenes with a lot of heart.

7. Outstanding Supporting Actress in a Comedy Series: Zosia Mamet, Girls

As @4lokomotion said on Twitter, “Seriously, no one is funnier.” Lena Dunham received a nomination for Lead Actress, and that’s great, but Girls is (and should be) so much more than Lena Dunham. All the girls add something incredible to the mix and you could make a case for any one of them to be nominated, but Shoshanna has arguably had some of the most memorable, and arguably the funniest, performances in the show’s premiere season.

Remember when she got high accidentally and ran back and forth down the street? Or when (um, censored, censored and censored examples) and she had hilarious reactions to all of them? Girls is a mixed bag and people either like it or they don’t, but if it wasn’t going to get an Outstanding Comedy nod, Zosia Mamet deserved one for her outstanding comedic performance and wonderful awkwardness.

6. Outstanding Guest Actor in a Drama Series: Sebastian Stan, Once Upon a Time

It’s hard to judge guest stars’ chances at being nominated for these things, because more often than not, it seems that nods are awarded based on stunt casting rather than actual importance to the plot of the show in question.

Sebastian Stan was not only hyped up before “Hat Trick” even aired, but there was no doubt that he delivered one of the most memorable performances on the show, which would put most other series’ guest stars to shame. Although Stan only appeared in two episodes of season 1, the Mad Hatter is already one of the most popular characters on the show, and fans have been crying for him to be added as a regular (which sadly other commitments prevent right now).

He is a relatively well known actor, but next to names like Michael J. Fox and Jason Ritter, Stan wouldn’t win on name alone. It would have been great to see his name on that list though, because with the passion and enthusiasm he brought to the relatively small role, he definitely deserved it.

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5. Outstanding Supporting Actor in a Drama Series: John Noble, Fringe

Fringe needed to be on this list, and it was either a spot for Best Drama or for one of the leading stars. Any of those could have made it, but on Twitter you were calling for John Noble, so here he is!

While season 4 of Fringe was very much Peter’s season, and focused more on his relationship with Olivia than with Walter, that didn’t stop John Noble from bringing his usual A+ game. His struggle to accept a Peter that wasn’t his own after having witnessed his son die twice as a child in this new reality was heartbreaking, and when the two Walters finally reconciled in “Worlds Apart” it was one of the best moments of the season.

Noble’s performance in “Letters of Transit” when Walter had lost part of his brain was also outstanding. There is just no lack of praise to give this actor, and we can only hope that Fringe‘s final season will earn the show some long overdue recognition.

4. Outstanding Supporting Actor in a Comedy Series: Nick Offerman, Parks and Recreation

Parks and Rec had a rocky start, but season 4 was phenomenal. The shift in focus to Leslie’s campaign for city council gave the show a fresh feel, and gave the old cast members some breathing room.

Nick Offerman has always been one of the standout stars on the show, but season 4 really gave him a chance to shine. On the surface, Ron is all about the refusal to see the value in government, but his appreciation for Leslie and willingness to help her is one of the most touching things about the series.

This year we saw Ron in a variety of new situations; competing with Leslie’s girl scout group for members, fighting both Tammy 1 and his mother, and helping with Leslie’s campaign. Although arguably he had more to do last season, it would have been fitting to give him the nod this year, considering last year’s forceful outcry both from fans and fellow actors (including Modern Family‘s Ty Burell, who won the award) that he was snubbed.

3. Outstanding Supporting Actor in a Drama Series: Robert Carlyle, Once Upon a Time

The general snubbing of Once Upon a Time cannot be ignored. But looking at the very cable-dominated nomination lists for Outstanding Drama and Actor/Actress, maybe its family friendly tone just disqualified the show from those categories this year.

However, Robert Carlyle not receiving even a nomination is completely baffling. Not only does he tick all the boxes in terms of being “worthy” with his resume and reputation, but few Once fans would disagree with the fact that his performance on the show has been astounding.

Once Upon a Time picked up a few nominations for makeup, prosthetics and visual effects, and fans should appreciate that the show at least got a bit of recognition. But if any one person from this show could have expected a nomination for their standout performance, it was Carlyle. Did they not see “Skin Deep” or “The Return”?!

2. Outstanding Supporting Actress in a Drama Series: Maisie Williams, Game of Thrones

Game of Thrones picked up two significant nominations this year: Outstanding Drama, and Peter Dinklage for Supporting Actor. That’s awesome, but Dinklage is far from the only actor on that show worthy of mainstream recognition.

There were many standout performances this year: Gwendoline Christie, Nikolaj Coster-Waldau, Lena Headey, Charles Dance and Richard Madden come to mind right off the bat. But perhaps above all the rest, the 16-year-old Maisie Williams portrayed such a wonderfully complex Arya, who started her journey this season on her way to the Wall and ended up right under Tywin Lannister’s thumb, torn between wanting to feel safe and wanting to do what she could to help her brother.

On Twitter, a lot of you were calling for Maisie to receive a nomination, and while it’s hard to pick just one actor from the incredible Game of Thrones cast, Arya was featured very heavily in season 2, and this really seemed like her year.

1. Outstanding Comedy Series: Community

This is probably the snub for which the Emmy nominators are taking the most heat this year, yet it’s not really that surprising. Community is continuously snubbed at the big award ceremonies (you could call it the Harry Potter of comedy), gets low ratings, yet remains consistently loved by fans and continues to push the borders of scripted television.

The comedy nominations this year very much went to the old faithfuls like Modern Family and 30 Rock, which have both managed to keep up their consistently high quality, yet didn’t do anything extraordinary this year. Community did.

The episode “Remedial Chaos Theory” did receive a writing nod, but what about “Virtual Systems Analysis” and the incredible 8-bit episode “Digital Estate Planning”? This has been an extraordinary season, and fans are arguably especially vexed by this year’s snub considering it’s Dan Harmon’s last as showrunner.

 

Share your own disappointments about the Emmy nominations in the comments! What shows and actors did the voters overlook?