The best and worst moments of the 2016 Emmys

Oscars, take note.
 By 
Proma Khosla
 on 
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Original image has been replaced. Credit: Mashable

Most diverse, least boring – the 2016 Emmys deserve awards of their own. Sure, there were the usual suspects – Game of Thrones, Veep, and the elusive Maggie Smith – but the night largely honored new and beloved talent that was adored by critics and audiences alike.

Best: Jimmy Kimmel finds Jeb!

Best: Alan Yang's speech about empowering Asian Americans

"There are 17 million Asian Americans in this country, and there are 17 million Italians," Yang said in his acceptance speech for Outstanding Writing in a Comedy Series. "They have The Godfather, Goodfellas, Rocky, The Sopranos...we got Long Duk Dong, so we've got a long way to go."

In closing, Yang had one request to the Asian parents watching, after thanking his own.


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Worst: Aziz Ansari gets cut off

Ansari was the first to call out Emmy producers ("You're all in big trouble!" he called as he prematurely exited the stage) for playing off the award for Writing in a Comedy Series before he could give his speech. Luckily, he presented later and was able to thank his parents for inspiring the winning Master of None episode – but after Yang's speech about how Hollywood treats Asian Americans, silencing Ansari could not have been more poorly timed.

Best: Jill Soloway tells us to "topple the patriarchy"

Soloway's intersectional speech was a chance to spread her longtime mantra to Hollywood and to the extensive Emmys audience. She was the only woman nominated in her category, and not the only queer woman to win during the night (along with Sarah Paulson and Kate McKinnon).

Worst: The Cosby fake out

During the first hour of the ceremony, the announcer welcomed to the stage "six-time Emmy winner Dr. Bill Cosby." The room balked collectively and celebs looked around with mingled terror and excitement. Obviously, Cosby didn't show, but a smirking Kimmel returned to the stage to see how his prank played out.

Best: Kimmel offers David Schwimmer "Juice? Juice? Juice?"

Best: Diversity wins

Where the Oscars were too white, the Emmys were brilliantly, beautifully diverse. From Aziz Ansari and Alan Yang's writing award for an episode about their immigrant parents to Courtney B. Vance, Sterling K. Brown and Rami Malek winning in major acting categories, it was a great night for toppling all types of hegemony.

Original image replaced with Mashable logo
Original image has been replaced. Credit: Mashable

Best: Trans talent gets a spotlight

Jeffrey Tambor and Jill Soloway spoke lovingly to the trans community, encouraging Hollywood to audition and cast trans actors. Later on, presenter and Emmy winner Laverne Cox echoed the sentiment and kept up the spirit of inclusivity.

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Proma Khosla

Proma Khosla is a Senior Entertainment Reporter writing about all things TV, from ranking Bridgerton crushes to composer interviews and leading Mashable's stateside coverage of Bollywood and South Asian representation. You might also catch her hosting video explainers or on Mashable's TikTok and Reels, or tweeting silly thoughts from @promawhatup.

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