What do you get when you start with more than half a dozen returning nominees from last year, add almost as many nominated shows back in the Emmy race after not being eligible last year and then throw in a bigger-than-usual crop of worthy new programs?
You get a very competitive Emmy race.
That’s what has happened this year in the Emmys’ comedy and drama categories, where a glut of shows is going to make things very difficult for Television Academy voters. Those voters, though, won’t exactly have to pick and choose the way most awards voters do: Instructions on the voting platform for each category read, “Vote for all entries in this category that you have seen and feel are worthy of a nomination,” which means voters can cast their ballots for as many contenders as they’d like.