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SpoilerTV - TV Spoilers

Performers of the Month - January 2023 Results

13 Feb 2023

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Below you will find the Top 3 finishers for each side listed out in placement order. All of these graphics will be available on my Twitter account as well as the official SpoilerTV Twitter and Instagram accounts. We are happy for you to share them, but please share them from one of these official sources to ensure you are sharing the best quality version of these graphics. For the highest quality, please click on the slides to enlarge them.

STAFF RESULTS

The Staff Choice competition, three stars from the same show, The Last of Us jumped out to an early lead and never looked back. In fact, none of the performers fluctuated from their starting positions. Ultimately, Nick Offerman took the top stop, followed closely by Pedro Pascal, and then Anna Torv. They out-distanced their nearest competitors by over 2 to 1. Nick Offerman’s performance as Bill in The Last of Us has received floods of accolades, and our staff’s valentine to his work is but one drop in the bucket of praise. When a performance is so wildly celebrated, describing the specifics of how well the actor executed their craft starts to feel reductive. Offerman brings such ease and contentment throughout the opening montage of Bill efficiently building his survivalist paradise, effectively selling his character’s celebration of the end of the world. If Bill wants more or ever wanted more, it’s concealed from the audience, at least until something more arrives. Sure, Frank (Murray Bartlett) is the one who falls into the pit, but Bill falling in love is the axis of the episode. And Offerman dishes it out. Some particularly lovely parts of his performance include that wistful stare towards the bathroom door after Frank asks for five more minutes, the way the unflappable Bill all but falls through the kitchen door when bringing Frank his meal, and the ever-so-subtle pride in how Bill rotates Frank’s dish to show off his immaculate plating skills. When Frank goes to the piano later, Offerman does some of his most poignant work in showing Bill’s conflicted attitude towards the piano and how much of his connection to it he should reveal to Frank. His hands clearly itch for the keys, moving in every direction, as Bill tries to not reach for the piano (and Frank and all that Frank represents). It’s much more than just playing a song, and Offerman lets us see Bill’s walls crumbling with each note. He is shaking, trembling, as he finishes playing. “I was never afraid before you showed up,” Bill tells Frank later in the episode (after a scene where Offerman drops the most wonderful, giddy sunbeam of a laugh that has ever existed). One could spend a long, long time talking about all the other things Offerman does well in this episode (the comic timing of “Which gun?”, the breathtaking, beautiful sorrow in the moment when Bill can’t bring himself to look at Frank for a second near the end, the proud smile when he reveals to Frank that he’ll be leaving with him). There are excellent performances, and then there are performances that surprise you by how bright and rich they are. Even though you expected something wonderful, from all the hype, it’s just that much better than the anticipation, like a post-apocalyptic strawberry. Nick Offerman is SpoilerTV's January Staff Choice Performer of the Month.
 
     



READER RESULTS

The race on the Reader’s side was much closer. Chicago PD’s Tracy Spriakados and Ruby Cruz went back and forth the entire voting period. In the end, Cruz held off a final surge of votes to win, defeating Spirakados by a little over 10 votes. The third spot also ended up being a battle, after holding onto the third spot for most of the voting period, Willow’s Erin Kellyman held off a late rally from Fire Country’s Billy Burke and holding on to third by only 3 votes. the start of Willow, Ruby Cruz was playing a deeply wounded version of Princess Kit Tanthalos, one who had encased herself in bravado and arrogance, holding her family and closest friend at a distance. Cruz weaves the assurance and trepidation that comes with a heroic legacy into every step of Kit’s path. She pairs the abrasiveness of Kit’s defenses with a yearning that only burns brighter the closer Kit comes to her deepest fears and insecurities. It’s easy to fathom why her performance in episode 7 struck such a chord with our readers. Kit steps into her hero’s mantle at last (she gets the outfit to match an episode later), asking her love Jade (Erin Kellyman) to train her (for real this time). The affectionate friction between Kellyman and Cruz’s characters formed the romantic backbone for most of the season. Here, when Kit makes her request, Cruz presents it as a deferential challenge, marking the new openness that Kit is able to display towards Jade. When a sunset match turns seductive, Cruz’s performance is a distinct contrast to the casual, guarded behavior between princess and prospective knight in the series premiere. An exquisitely choreographed dance, swords and all, that Cruz leads with confidence. She makes Kit’s declaration for love, delivered in a tone of fierce wonder, the victory that it is for her character. And the tender repetition of the declaration, with Cruz’s hand resting on Kellyman’s heart, is just as swoon-worthy as the kiss that follows. Episode 7 concludes with a scene that pays off Kit’s entire character journey so far and triumphantly moves forward her other major relationship in season 1. Kit’s rivalry with Elora Danan (Ellie Bamber) frequently threatened the success of the entire quest and rescue mission. Bitter dislike thawed into turbulent rivalry (in Kit’s mind at least) which turned over into reluctant admiration. Along the way, Kit and Elora formed a bond far beyond their mutual goal of rescuing Kit’s brother. Cruz delivers the emotional tour de force in the final scene when Kit crouches down beside Elora and gives her fear to the girl she spent her life resenting. The absolute conviction in Cruz’s voice electrifies the scene and makes the character's next actions all the more satisfying. Few character arcs have been as thrilling to watch unfold this TV season as Kit Tanthalos’s, and a lion’s share of the credit must go to Ruby Cruz. Ruby Cruz is Spoiler TV's January Readers' Choice Performer of the Month.




Please join us in the comments and on social media in celebrating winners Nick Offerman and Ruby Cruz as well as the incredible runner-ups. Both winners have secured a place in the 2023 Performer of the Year competition that will take place in January 2024. While the winners are no longer eligible for nomination, all the runner-ups are still eligible to be nominated in 2023.

Come back to Spoiler TV on Wednesday, March 1st at 12 pm ET for the start of the February round.