HBO Eyes Emmy Comeback with 'Boardwalk Empire,' 'Game of Thrones'

The 2011 Emmy nominations are on the way, with the big announcements to come Thursday morning. On the drama side, the nominations aren't expected to change around much, although there will likely be some differences from past years. Every year, Emmy buzz is dominated by Mad Men, and the show should lead the nominees again Thursday, unless HBO has something to say about it.

AMC has stolen the show at Emmy time lately thanks to Mad Men winning three Best Drama trophies in a row and Breaking Bad racking up awards for Bryan Cranston and Aaron Paul. However, Mad Men has new competition in 2011, and Breaking Bad isn't in the running this time around.

HBO is aiming to climb back into contention this year with two new threats to help it along. When the big night comes, everyone will expect Mad Men and Boardwalk Empire to square off for the Best Drama prize, as they did at the Golden Globes. Empire made a major opening statement back then, taking the Drama Globe away from Mad Men, while Steve Buscemi held off Jon Hamm for Best Actor.

Although critics may still favor Mad Men more than Boardwalk Empire at the moment, HBO's new Prohibition-era hit may be the biggest threat to Don Draper and company since they started winning Emmys. But although it prevailed at the Globes months ago, does it still have enough buzz to repeat at the Emmys? If the Boardwalk gangsters get as many nominations Thursday, it could be a promising sign.

Nevertheless, the show is set to carry the HBO banner in some form during awards season. Yet if it stumbles, then another new HBO epic could be a potential sleeper. Fantasy fans will be anxious to see if Game of Thrones makes any kind of impact with the Academy.

Its first season ended just weeks ago, so the show's late twists and shocking deaths may have a better chance to resonate. Yet the fantasy genre is often ignored by the movie Academy at the Oscars, with the glaring exception of the Lord of the Rings series. But the television body did nominate True Blood last year, although Game of Thrones is an entirely different kind of fantasy.

While Mad Men and Boardwalk Empire are destined to lead the drama field regardless, Game of Thrones can make a notable statement if it does well. At the least, it would give HBO two real contenders to brag about, which it hasn't had since the Sopranos days.

Although HBO always has the most Emmy nominations and wins every year, AMC and Showtime have had the stronger original series in recent seasons. But the 2010-11 season may go down as HBO's comeback, especially if Boardwalk Empire and Game of Thrones steal some buzz from Mad Men on Thursday morning.

Sources

Gather.com- "Emmy Nominations Poised to Honor Mad Men, Boardwalk"

Hollywood Reporter- "Emmys: How AMC Became HBO's Nightmare"