Listen, I am no fashion critic, and Movieline's "9 Most Scathing" feature very rarely extends beyond the realm of terrible new films. I also know our female celebrities face an endlessly difficult challenge of finding a balance between classic red-carpet appeal and envelope-pushing couture. So in that regard, I tip my cap to January Jones, whose Emmy look in Versace represented an eye-popping embrace of risk, presence, glamour and about 80 or 90 discarded blue mylar balloons. True, Jones's de-accessorized, bedheaded, train-for-days style had its fans. But its critics are speaking a little louder today, and, well, they're right. Read on for a noteworthy cross-section.
9. "Versace can deliver a true red carpet wow moment like few others [...] but even the best design houses can drop the ball. Sadly January got stuck in one of their worst looks ever." -- Jarett Wieselman, PopWrap
8. "Is January Jones' dress made out of blue coffee filters?" -- Rob Owen, Pittsburgh Post-Gazette
7. "Thumbs down on the dresses of Anna Paquin (oh, horror!) and January Jones (electric blue bleck!)." -- Sheri Reed, The Stir
6. "Anyone else hungry for a cupcake? Since January Jones' dress looks like it was fashioned out of 100s of flattened cupcake papers?" -- Kim Potts, TV Squad
5. "I thought it was an unfortunate example of a gorgeous woman flubbing up big time on the red carpet. The gown borrowed a page from the 'look at the weird stuff on my breasts!' book originally written by Charlize Theron's 2010 Oscar dress. Jones's hair looked as though she'd shown up to the Emmys right after a heated round of Seven Minutes in Heaven. Plus, she apparently was wearing earrings worth more than $1 million, both of which were totally invisible beneath all that frizz. On the plus side: Her shoes were cute." -- Jen Chaney, Washington Post
4. "January Jones' dress comes from an episode of Project Runway where everyone makes outfits out of Dixie cups. Her designer ran out of time, so they skipped doing her hair." -- Maureen O'Connor, Gawker
3. "I really can't figure this one out. The detail on the dress is quite intricate and interesting, but I'm not sure January Jones is really suited for this dress (or if anyone is, for that matter)." -- X17
2. "January Jones doesn't work with a stylist and I applaud her steely nerves. Unfortunately if you make the bold decision to wear a dress resembling a wedding cake accessory dipped in tampon ad dye, you should brush your hair to ensure no one thinks you're an actual crazy person. And the black pumps don't go. J-Jo's choices fill me with turmoil." -- Pedestrian.TV
1. "January Jones is in Versace. She's up after Ryan Murphy, and he almost bumps into her; they shake hands and he struggles to get out without stepping on her skirt. The dress is a mullet cut, with what looks like tons of tiny little pleats. The detailing is interesting, but the long-shot effect is that it's made of Grover, and the parts over her chest look like fanned-out cocktail umbrellas. Which would be so great if she put herself into a pina colada for us." -- The Fug Girls, Vulture
[Photo: Frazer Harrison/Getty Images]