NEW YORK, July 15 — The Television Academy announced the nominees for the 68th Emmy Awards yesterday. HBO once again had the most nominations of any platform, with 94 — though that’s down substantially from last year’s 126. FX and Netflix made up the difference: FX had 56 nominations and Netflix had 54, up from 38 and 34 last year.

But while worthy series, like The Americans, finally received some Emmy recognition, there were also some inevitable disappointments. Our critics take a look at the field — Mike Hale handles the drama and limited series categories, while Margaret Lyons tackles comedy and variety.

Drama series 

Surprises: The Americans — Not actually a surprise, since the drumbeat for FX’s domestic spy thriller had built throughout its fourth season. But it feels like a surprise, since the show, one of the very best dramas on television since its inception, had been inexplicably ignored before this.

Snubs: Happy Valley — There were no real snubs or surprises in the category, though fans of Orange Is the New Black, The Good Wife, Outlander and UnREAL will be disappointed. So we’ll just mention that this taut, emotional British cop drama, carried by Netflix, is the best show no one’s talking about (but a lot of people you know are watching).

Lead actor in a drama 

Snubs: Paul Giamatti and Damian Lewis — The departures of Jon Hamm (Mad Men) and Jeff Daniels (The Newsroom) left spaces open in the category, and the two leads of Showtime’s Billions were among the favourites to grab them. Perhaps they split the vote, but more likely the tide was just too strong for Mr Robot and The Americans, giving the spots to Rami Malek and Matthew Rhys.

Lead actress in a drama 

Surprises: Keri Russell — The Americans and Russell’s co-star, Rhys, were expected to make the field, but she was less of a sure thing. She beat out a couple of frequent former nominees, Julianna Margulies of The Good Wife and Michelle Dockery of Downton Abbey, neither of whom received nominations in their final seasons.

Limited series 

Surprises: The Night Manager — Again, not a true surprise, but this glossy thriller looks a little lightweight in a field that includes fare like American Crime, Roots and The People v. O.J. Simpson: American Crime Story.

Snubs: Show Me a Hero — David Simon’s ground-level-politics drama for HBO deserved a nod, but maybe there were already too many racially and politically charged historical dramas in the field.

Lead actor in a limited series 

Surprises: Cuba Gooding Jr — His performance as O.J. Simpson in The People v. O.J. Simpson: American Crime Story received mixed reviews, but the show’s success carried him into the field over other contenders like Oscar Isaac of Show Me a Hero and Patrick Wilson of Fargo.

Snubs: Anthony Hopkins and Ian McKellen — Casting two lions of the British stage in a prestige project like The Dresser seemed like a formula for at least one nomination. Maybe there were just too many Britons in the category, with Benedict Cumberbatch, Idris Elba and Tom Hiddleston getting nods.

Supporting actor in a drama 

Surprises: Kit Harington — It’s good to be Jon Snow. Harington is tremendously popular for his role as the resurrected hero on Game of Thrones, but he was considered a long-shot for a nomination in this category.

Snubs: Christian Slater — In one of the bigger surprises, the tide that carried Mr Robot and its star, Rami Malek, to nominations wasn’t strong enough to include Slater.

Comedy series 

Surprises: All together now: What in the world is Modern Family still doing on this list? The Emmys’ ongoing infatuation with the show is confounding. The pleasant surprise here is Master of None — not that it doesn’t deserve to be nominated, but more that the Emmys don’t always nominate worthy shows.

Snubs: Crazy Ex-Girlfriend is fantastic, and seemed like it had a real shot. Alas. Catastrophe was sadly ignored, too, as was the consistently brilliant Jane the Virgin. Girls had a marvellous season this year, and while it’s tough to picture Broad City winning an Emmy in this category, it’s fun to dream.

Lead actor in a comedy 

Surprises: Freshman shows often don’t make the cut for Emmy noms, so the biggest surprise here is Aziz Ansari for Master of None. Thomas Middleditch represents the first performer nomination for Silicon Valley.

Snubs: "Snub” is a little strong, but: Jim Parsons has won this category four times for his performance on The Big Bang Theory; for the second year in a row, he’s not even nominated.

Lead actress in a comedy

Surprises: This is Tracee Ellis Ross’ first Emmy nomination; her co-star Anthony Anderson was nominated last year (and again this year), but this is a big day for "black-ish”. Laurie Metcalf has three Emmys for her work on Roseanne, but Going On doesn’t usually get much love or buzz.

Snubs: This is a packed category, but there are a several other performances worthy of at least a nomination: Rachel Bloom in Crazy Ex-Girlfriend is perhaps the most glaring omission, but there’s also Lena Dunham in Girls, Gina Rodriguez in Jane the Virgin, Michaela Watkins in Casual and Constance Wu in Fresh Off the Boat.

Supporting actor in a comedy 

Surprises: This is one of the most competitive categories, so it’s a relief to see Louie Anderson’s under-the-radar performance in Baskets get the nod it deserves. His Christine (Zach Galifianakis’ character’s mother) was one of the most interesting characters and performances of the year.

Snubs: Jaime Camil should be getting more recognition for the depth he brings to his loopy Rogelio on Jane the Virgin. In a less packed era, Kevin Dunn and Gary Cole from Veep should be on there, plus Pete Gardner for Crazy Ex-Girlfriend. T.J. Miller’s stoner bravado on Silicon Valley is essential to the show’s vibe, and Steve Zissis’ work on Togetherness was the best thing about that show. (By a lot.)

Variety talk series 

Surprises: Comedians in Cars Getting Coffee is a perfectly good web series, but seeing it up against legacy shows is a big step. Also a big step: James Corden’s Late Late Show getting a nom — but not its lead-in, The Late Show With Stephen Colbert.

Snubs: The biggest snub is Full Frontal With Samantha Bee, which at least picked up a nomination for outstanding writing for a variety series. Also absent? A post-Jon Stewart Daily Show. This also marks the first year since 2004 that Stephen Colbert isn’t nominated for anything. The Nightly Show, Conan, and Late Night With Seth Meyers are all at least as good as Jimmy Kimmel Live.

Variety sketch series 

Snubs: Billy on the Street With Billy Eichner competes in this category — which doesn’t seem like a perfect fit, which might explain its snub. The overlooked Nathan for You is bizarre and fascinating and hilarious, and W/Bob & David has more to offer than Documentary Now! — The New York Times