AFT Awards: Best Guest Actor in a Comedy Series

This is the eleventh category of the 9th Annual AFT Television Awards, my personal choices for the best in television during the 2014-2015 season. Finalists and semi-finalists are included to recognize more of the impressive work done on television today. Nominees are pictured in the order I’ve ranked them.

Best Guest Actor in a Comedy Series

Last year’s nominees: Chris Diamantopoulos, Billy Eichner, Sam Elliott, Christopher Meloni, Henry Winkler

Emmy nominees: Mel Brooks, Louis C.K., Paul Giamatti, Bill Hader, Jon Hamm, Bradley Whitford

Semi-finalists: Billy Baldwin (Wilfred), Diedrich Bader (Veep), Hugh Bonneville (Galavant), Jake Lacy (Girls), Jon Bass (House of Lies), Nestor Carbonell (Wilfred), Patrick Fischler (Married), Steven Weber (House of Lies), Zachary Quinto (Girls)

Finalists: Chris Diamantopoulos (Silicon Valley) was perfectly cast as a wild, uninhibited millionaire who managed to sabotage everything he touched with maniacal madness. Sam Elliott (Parks and Recreation) showed up at just the right moment as Eagleton Ron to remind his Pawnee counterpart of everything he held dear and how he contradicted it all. Bradley Whitford (Transparent) turned in a heartfelt and subdued portrayal of a man trying just as hard as Maura to hide the woman he really was. Demetri Martin (House of Lies) was an entertaining egomaniac to drive Marty crazy. Fred Melamed (House of Lies) was a great father figure for Clyde, so dishonest and manipulative that he made his son look enormously genuine.

The nominees:

Jon Hamm (Unbreakable Kimmy Schmidt) was a delightfully deranged cult leader more than capable of concocting a ridiculous defense for himself. Tim Blake Nelson (Unbreakable Kimmy Schmidt) was the epitome of small-town mockery as a deputy who considered himself lower ranking than a police animal. Patrick Fischler (Shameless) was devoted and entertaining as a mourning father who found comfort in the company of the new owner of his son’s liver. Billy Eichner (Parks and Recreation) gave the anger-prone Craig a superb sendoff as he graduated to great and fitting things.

The winner:

Hugh Laurie (Veep) waltzed in as the smoothest talker there ever was, a popular politician who jumped onto the Meyer ticket with stonefaced enthusiasm and a desire to be more involved even though he had no idea what he was getting himself into.

Next up: Best Guest Actress in a Comedy Series