Emmy nominations 2014: What we learned

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LOS ANGELES (CNN) — The 2014 Emmy nominations were announced on Thursday, with "Game of Thrones" in the lead with a total of 19 nods, and "Breaking Bad" getting its final round of recognition.

The announcement, made by Mindy Kaling and "The Voice's" Carson Daly, revealed strong competition but few surprises, with series like "True Detective" and "Orange Is the New Black" getting their expected (and deserved) due.

Here's what else we learned from the 2014 Emmy nominations (See the list of nominations here):

1. So many dramas, so little room

This year's drama category name-checks some of the predicted suspects — "Breaking Bad," "House of Cards," "Mad Men" — while welcoming a new player: HBO's "True Detective." The show's inclusion in the category was controversial, since the program is structured more like a miniseries: its second season will tell a new story with a new cast of characters.

But HBO submitted it as a drama, and Emmy voters clearly responded — evidently more than they did for "Homeland," the Showtime series that was once the belle of the Emmys ball. (Last year, 13 nominations. This year? A total of four.)

Yet even with such a strong cast of nominees, fans of "Orphan Black," The Americans" and "The Walking Dead" are somewhere bemoaning the Emmys' oversight of those series once again.

2. Netflix's seat at the table is a lock

What a difference a year makes. With the 2013 Emmys, Netflix was the new kid on the block, breaking ground with its nominations for its shining original series, "House of Cards." But in 2014, the streaming service has locked down 31 nominations, including a nod to Ricky Gervais for outstanding lead actor in a comedy in his new show, "Derek."

3. Plenty of fresh faces — but where's Tatiana Maslany?

With so many first-timers included in the Emmy nominations this year, we would've guessed that "Orphan Black's" star Tatiana Maslany would've been among them, for sure.

But no, it looks like the talented actress — who's been receiving praise from The New York Times to Variety to, yes, CNN — has been passed over once again.

Here's some good news, though: the Emmys didn't forget "Masters of Sex" star Lizzy Caplan, or Lena Headey ("Game of Thrones"), or Taylor Schilling and Kate Mulgrew ("Orange Is The New Black"). Plus, newcomers like FX's miniseries "Fargo" got plenty of love: it was right behind "Game of Thrones" for most nominations, with 18.

4. From the Oscars to the Emmys

As if we needed more proof that some of the best work is being done on TV, two of the standout nominees this year are fresh off their stint at the Oscars in March.

Chiwetel Ejiofor, who was nominated for best actor at the 2014 Oscars for "12 Years A Slave," has picked up his first Emmy nomination for the miniseries "Dancing on the Edge."

And Matthew McConaughey, a.k.a. the guy who just won the best actor Oscar with "Dallas Buyers Club," is nominated for an outstanding dramatic actor Emmy with "True Detective."

He'll compete in that category with his co-star, Woody Harrelson, but if McConaughey wins, he'll become the first actor to win both an Oscar and an Emmy in the same year.

5. The comedy nominees are no laughing matter

"Modern Family" has been the favorite in the outstanding comedy series category for the past four years, but this year the ABC stalwart faces competition from both "Orange Is the New Black" and "Silicon Valley," both of which have earned their fair share of applause.

And when it comes to the best lead actress in a comedy, everyone's hoping this will be Amy Poehler's year. The "Parks & Recreation" star has done some invaluable work on the NBC series, and while she's been nominated for her role as Leslie Knope four times before, she's never won.

While we're talking about comedy, we have to give a tip of the hat to Jimmy Fallon: the "Saturday Night Live" vet just took over "The Tonight Show" earlier this year, but he's competing in the outstanding variety series category along with mainstays "The Colbert Report" and "The Daily Show."

The 2014 Emmy Awards will be hosted by "Late Night's" Seth Meyers, and will air live on NBC August 25 at 8 p.m. ET/5 p.m. PT.

The-CNN-Wire™ & © 2014 Cable News Network, Inc., a Time Warner Company. All rights reserved.

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Breeanna Hare

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