In terms of politics the Emmys join the award-show party late, after the Golden Globes, Grammys, Oscars and Tonys have all taken whacks at the Trump presidency. Yet the president's preferred medium provided fertile terrain for satirizing and commenting upon the political moment, a mood that permeated everything from host Stephen Colbert's monologue to the diverse winners and onstage banter.
Colbert -- a beneficiary of anti-Trump sentiment with the surge in ratings for his "Late Show" -- made Trump a centerpiece of his opening material and song. Indeed, he blamed Emmy voters for depriving Trump of an award during his "Apprentice" days that might have kept him out of politics, saying, "I thought you people liked morally compromised antiheroes," later adding, "Unlike the presidency, Emmys go to the winner of the popular vote."
Trump-themed barbs came from various directions, including a reunion of "9 to 5" stars Lily Tomlin, Jane Fonda and Dolly Parton, who spoke of giving a bigot his comeuppance then and now; and "Veep's" Julia Louis-Dreyfus, who dryly suggested an impeachment storyline was jettisoned because the writers feared someone else might beat the HBO comedy to the punch. Even John Lithgow's praise of Winston Churchill, who he played in "The Crown," had a political tinge to it.
The Emmys also featured a seemingly effortless display of diversity, in a way the Oscars might envy. That aspect of television was celebrated both in a video package and on an impromptu basis by Donald Glover's dual wins for "Atlanta," Sterling K. Brown for "This is Us," and Aziz Ansari and Lena Waithe claiming the writing award -- Waithe being the first African-American woman to receive that prize.