2013 Emmys: Neil Patrick Harris joined by Jimmy Kimmel, Jane Lynch, Conan O’Brien in opener

Every year when it comes to the Primetime Emmy Awards, there is almost always a temptation for each successive host to try and one-up the next one in terms of crafting an opening that is as fantastic as possible.

Luckily, you have a certain luxury when you have Neil Patrick Harris as the host of your awards show. After all, odds are that he is going to lead the charge for something that is pretty incredible.

The opening started off with what was a spoof of the new show “The Blacklist,” with Neil seemingly going into a room to turn himself in; instead, what we saw was him trying to binge-watch the entire TV season in the past year. However, we have to say that the vast majority of the shows that we saw referenced here air on CBS. Coincidence? We think not! We had him ultimately watching everything from reality TV judges to musical numbers to other craziness. This part of the opening was actually rather weak in that it felt like a clip show rather something that is new or funny, especially after a brilliant and lewd segment from Jimmy Kimmel last year. (Jimmy Fallon’s “Glee” spoof is still a personal favorite.)

Once the second part of the opening began, it was a little bit more star-studded as some of the other former hosts, including Jimmy Kimmel, Jimmy Fallon, Conan O’Brien, and Jane Lynch, came out to offer “advice” on how to best handle the show. There were also cameos from Tina Fey and Amy Poehler, but all of it just fell kind of flat. We have to say that in watching so many shows hosted by Neil, this is the first one that we have felt disappointed.

What do you think about Neil’s opening for the show this week? Be sure to share some of your thoughts below! Meanwhile, be sure to visit the link here to see some more of the latest updates related to the show.

Photo: CBS