The Primetime Emmy Awards

What saved a by-the-numbers telecast with a host who at times appeared not to want to be there and some terrible presenter copy, was a flurry of upsets, historic moments, and incredible speeches.

Stephen Colbert salvaged the 2025 Emmy Awards, on a night when nobody else could. .... The official host, first-and-last-timer Nate Bargatze, looked like a terrified rookie blinking “help” in Morse code at the camera.

The show opened quite brilliantly — perhaps confusingly, if you had missed Bargatze’s “Washington’s Dream” sketches on “Saturday Night Live” on which the routine was closely modeled. .... There were also some pure delights among the bedrock of desultory scripted banter and unimpressive tributes to old shows. .... The inevitable losses incurred by Bargatze’s charity gimmick provided a sort of running joke at the host’s expense, which he managed quite well.

A lot of his [Nate Bargatze's] jokes felt weirdly dismissive of the very industry the Emmys are supposed to be honoring. I’m all for taking the hot air out of a self-important awards show, but this actually ruined the vibe of the whole show. .... But the ceremony also threw in a few quick nostalgia hits to keep us entertained, like Gilmore Girls stars Lauren Graham and Alexis Bledel reuniting on their Stars Hollow porch. These kind of moments are what the Emmys do best.

This celebration of good TV didn’t make for very good TV. .... For much of the Emmys broadcast the host seemed like a deer caught in the headlights. .... Despite the timer gimmick and the usual platitudes, you could still find genuine moments sneaking through the cracks.

A lackluster affair, the 77th Primetime Emmy Awards were emblematic of an entertainment industry that doesn’t know whether it’s coming or going.

At no point in the ceremony was he able to figure out whether to position himself as a celebrity outsider or insider, and by trying to keep one foot in each camp, he turned in one of the most awkward awards-show hosting performances in recent memory

Bargatze’s standup style is pleasant and all-welcoming, qualities that could have been assets in a moment of massive anxiety and uncertainty. But his first Emmy hosting gig revealed an insistent tone deafness that he could not steer out of, and it made a parade of worthwhile wins into a slog.

Thanks in part to a dearth of entertaining material from not just the host, but also the presenters—the ill-conceived gimmick weighed down an evening that was otherwise stacked with heartening wins (Jeff Hiller!) and headline-making speeches.

From his opening monologue, Bargatze set an almost lackadaisical, apolitical tone for the evening. He lacked the enthusiasm and gumption needed to lead a three-hour-long award program and often seemed stunned to be in the spotlight. .... There were a hodgepodge of good speeches, and some heartfelt moments celebrating PBS and the legacy of “Law & Order.”

The broadcast - usually kind of a yawn - was so bland, while being strenuously policed, that it started to feel a little weird. Less clean and wholesome than correct in the Stepfordian sense. The line readings were stiff, the improvisation dull, and even the merriment seemed dutiful, strained. Things felt off. That was partly due to host Nate Bargatze.

Beyond the misjudged charity gambit, the 2025 Emmys also suffered from a general lack of enthusiasm for its honorees — and fans of awards shows in general. .... Even Bargatze’s opening sketch felt casually slapped together.