Unbreakable Kimmy Schmidt is about more than just laughter. It’s about having to start a whole new life all over again – something people have to do often after a big event in their lives. It’s something many viewers can probably relate to but watch the show for Kimmy’s constant reminder that life has a lot to offer. She can make a sandwich seem magical, an old building feel modern and acts as if everyday is Christmas.
Throughout the second series, we see Kimmy on her journey to find her mum, who as it turns out, is played by Lisa Kudrow – an actress we all know and love from the TV show Friends. Kudrow, who played Lori-Ann Schmidt, was a perfect fit to the team, with her enthusiasm and well-known acts of weirdness. When Kimmy first finds her mum, it seems that although they both want a good relationship, Kimmy has a lot of questions about why her seemingly sympathetic mother did not find her in the first place. The two characters fit together at first but it turns out that Kimmy has more of a caring nature unlike Lori-Ann, who lives for the rollercoaster records.
Many characters have developed in the series and have begun a new journey in their lives. One of these is the drama queen Titus Andromedon, who meets a man who has not yet admitted to his friends and family that he actually likes men. Titus believes that he can’t ‘take on that project’ but he also learns that Mikey feels the same way about him. Although they are the opposite of each other, that is what keeps them together. Tituss Burgess plays his character well, and the facial expressions are something that gives him his humorous traits. Titus learns what it’s like to let someone into his life, his emotions and his dreams of becoming famous. He’s a big softie, really. But definitely a weird and talented one.
In season two, we meet a whole new character, who seems to have two personalities. Ironic really, considering she’s a psychiatrist. Kimmy works for Uber, and one of her passengers happens to be Andrea Bayden, an alcoholic by night and psychiatrist by day. Oh, and she’s played by one of the creators of the show, Tina Fey. The best thing about Andrea is how different she is when she is drunk and how she makes Kimmy question her attitudes towards life. Tina Fey does a brilliant job at portraying two characters in one and makes the unthinkable become obvious, which leads Kimmy to finding her mum. Kimmy is constantly surprised every time she burps, probably because she does it in the most awkward situations – for example in front of a man who she potentially dates – but simply thinks about it for a moment and then moves on. However, Andrea stresses that her potent burps are perhaps a way of letting out the bad memories that Kimmy is attempting to push behind her. Any ‘normal’ person may be embarrassed to burp in such situations, but Kimmy never really addresses the underlying issues until it is pointed out to her.
Money. Money. Money. That’s how we all knew Jacqueline White, who is played by Jane Krakowski, in the first season of Unbreakable Kimmy Schmidt. At the end of the last series, we saw Jacqueline go back to her parents to try to live the life she was supposed to, but she didn’t fit in and was sent back to her old life. Of course, it takes time to adapt to a life without having the luxury of buying all the expensive clothes, houses, shoes and jewellery but in the second season, we see Jacqueline find out what it’s like to truly love a man, and not just love his money. When Jacqueline is faced with another woman who is still truly rich, we see that she actually had no choice but to wear the same shoes more than once. ‘More than once?!’ I hear you say. Yes, really. Apparently rich people only wear a pair of shoes once. The story begins with Jacqueline trying to get her wealth back by attempting to find another rich man. In doing so, she succeeds but falls for a man who she probably would never have looked upon before. The funniest thing about her is the lengths that she will go to try to look as if she is still rich – the empty boxes in her apartment, the curtain hiding her air-bed and getting into an expensive car that she does not own. Jacqueline is certainly a character that has developed throughout the series and has constantly had a shift in attitudes, life and love.
Season two of Unbreakable Kimmy Schmidt was everything we wanted, from Kimmy finding her family, getting a new job and learning about the person she really is. This was a great series to unveil what Kimmy did not know, but hopefully in the next season we will see her dig deeper. We want to know more about her past and find out what exactly the ending of the series meant… How can Kimmy be married to the man who kept her in a bunker for so many years? Huge bombshell.
The series managed to achieve both laughter and heartache all at the same time. Ellie Kemper is able to play Kimmy to be comedic even when she is upset or angry and this is probably mainly down to the fact that her character is still learning about how the world works, and most importantly – herself.
