Emmy Voter: Lead Actress in a Comedy Series

ML- In all the acting categories at the Emmys, nominees submit one episode (or "tape") they feel showcases their best work of the season. Ive been watching all the submitted "tapes" and reviewing them critically to help determine which actor/actress is most deserving come Emmy night.

Next up is Comedy Lead Actress

Zooey Deschanel as Jess Day in New Girl
Submission: "Bad in Bed"
A.K.A. The One Where... Jess tries to be "erotic" with Paul after discovering porn because she feels she needs to be better at sex, having only been with Spencer before. 

Lena Dunham as Hannah Horvath in Girls
Submission: "She Did"
A.K.A. The One Where... Finale, where Hannah goes to Jessa's surprise wedding and asks her gay ex to move in with her, after already giving Adam the green light. Adam gets upset and calls her out on all her bull, but gets swiped by a car. He won't let Hannah in the ambulance, so she takes the train to Coney Island and eats on the beach.

Edie Falco as Jackie Peyton in Nurse Jackie
Submission: "Disneyland Sucks"
A.K.A. The One Where... Jackie checks into rehab, nearly quits, asks O'Hara to bring her daughter to visit and saves the life of her elderly roommate when she suffers a stroke.

Tina Fey as Liz Lemon in 30 Rock
Submission: "The Tuxedo Begins"
A.K.A. The One Where... Liz, fed up with people not following the rules, turns into a Joker-like character wielding a smelly gym bag who must be stopped by Jack's new Batman-like mayoral candidate.

Julia Louis-Dreyfus as Selina Meyer in Veep
Submission: "Tears"
A.K.A. The One Where... Season finale where Selina is asked not to back the Ohio governor due to her low polling numbers, but after crying on camera he wants her back again. He flips and flops until the last minute, and eventually word gets out that her tears were manipulated, sending the office into a tailspin.

Melissa McCarthy as Molly Flynn in Mike & Molly
Submission: "The Dress"
A.K.A. The One Where... Molly is determined to lose her last 6 pounds in the week before the wedding to fit into her dream dress. The crash diet makes her wild and an unfortunate encounter at the gym lands her in jail. 

Amy Poehler as Leslie Knope in Parks and Recreation
Submission: "Win, Lose or Draw"
A.K.A. The One Where... Season finale, where the election finally arrives and Leslie wins, delivering a powerful speech to the town and the viewers.

Notes: All 7 of these women were exceptionally funny, but there can only be one winner. I'd say the least funny was McCarthy, but I said that last year, too, and she went on to win. Falco gave an impressive performance, but it was more dramatic than comedic, so her placement in this comedy doesn't really fit. Fey was wild and outrageous, but the concept of the episode was better than her actual material in it. Louis-Dreyfus, one of the front-runners to win, didn't have a lot of standout moments, but the ones she did have were hilarious. Dunham had more humor in the episode than I first remembered, really shedding light onto the flaws of Hannah. 

Verdict: That leaves two funny ladies. I think Deschanel was uproarious in this episode, but still falls short of the emotional/comedic punch that overdue Poehler wallops in an election-themed episode. Did we already get a preview of her victory speech?

HOW MY BALLOT WOULD LOOK:

Winner: Amy Poehler
Runner-Up: Zooey Deschanel
3: Lena Dunham
4: Julia Louis-Dreyfus
5: Tina Fey
6: Edie Falco
7: Melissa McCarthy