Things I love: strong female heroines, laughter, New York City, Tina Fey, earnestness, and a good underdog story. And oh my goodness, they are all part of the new Netflix series Unbreakable Kimmy Schmidt, and it’s available streaming on March 6. That’s today! Kimmy is here, friends!
After watching the first six episodes thanks to the Netflix #StreamTeam, I can tell you that you’re going to love it. Seriously, look at that face – Ellie Kemper makes it impossible to feel anything but love for Kimmy and you’re rooting for her as she re-enters the world as we know after spending 15 years below ground in a cult.
She reminds me a bit of Mary Tyler Moore in this image and with her bright energy and her can-do, positive attitude. Even though Kimmy has been dubbed one the “Indiana mole women” by the media, you know that she’s going to make it after all, and you can’t wait to see how she does it in this show created by Tina Fey and Robert Carlock, of 30 Rock.
It’s so fun to see just how much the world has changed in 15 years, from her not knowing what a “selfie” is to her not realizing that some pretty famous celebrities are no longer with us. Her fabulous roommate, Titus (Tituss Burgess), has Kimmy keep a notebook titled Things People Don’t Say Anymore.
I think most moms can relate to Kimmy and feeling cut off a bit from the modern world, when all the tasks that come with being a mom mean that seeing movies and watching TV that isn’t animated seem like activities from a different lifetime. While that was certainly true for me when I first became a mom, I feel like I experienced a second cultural ice age when I became a single parent a few years later.
I became a single mom as my child was entering school, a time when it felt like I should be rejoining the functioning world and having time for activities that might also be experienced by the general, Entertainment Weekly-reading population. Instead, I was in survival mode. Not like Kimmy, of course. No one around me was making apocalyptic claims like Kimmy’s cult leader.
I was solely focused on adjusting to our new life which was certainly not what I had imagined for the two of us. I’m from the Midwest, just like Kimmy (I loved the episode in which she says she’s from Ohio instead of Indiana to throw people off her trail) and was living in a big city, which felt light-years away from home, and trying to carve a path.
I was all about providing for my child and myself, and when I look back upon it now, the resulting tunnel vision does have a bunker-like quality to it. I felt unmoored, and my sweet daughter was the one who kept me grounded. She was my focus, and that means that I’m far more familiar with kids’ music and Princess movies than pretty much anything that topped the charts or box office for a large portion of the 2000’s. (Translation: I have no idea about any of that stuff.)
There are many reasons for my isolation. While some are more valid than others, and none as good as Kimmy’s. Regardless, like Kimmy, I’ve also rejoined society and am living the life I want to live, one that brings me great joy. Watching the Unbreakable Kimmy Schmidt reminded me that it is awesome to emerge from the bunker (be it literal or figurative) and back into the light. It also reminded me to be grateful that the life I want to live that includes watching fun shows that make me laugh.
Unfortunately, there are still some items that I’m missing. Like Kimmy, I’m still catching up. It it was on television during bedtime, I missed it. I was the last person I know to get a DVR. My husband is working on bringing me up to speed, though he’s still a little surprised by some of the holes. We recently realized that I missed the entire first season of Parks & Recreation because it was during what he calls “the dark days.” (Thankfully, I just caught up on that thanks to Netflix.)
My husband was singing along to some song on the radio last week and was shocked that I didn’t know the words to Daniel Powter’s song, “Bad Day.” I think Kimmy would not only understand, but she’d also change the station. She’s focused on the good to come, and I am too.
I loved that Kimmy is insistent throughout the episodes that I saw that her past not define her. She goes to great lengths to avoid ever mentioning that she is one of the “mole women” and to keep it from Jacqueline Voorhes (Jane Krakowski), the Manhattan socialite with a hilarious backstory for whom Kimmy works, and most others. Titus is one of the few who knows about her past, but she avoids discussing it even with him.
I completely related to wanting to focus on the here and now and not be labeled. More importantly, Kimmy adamantly refuses to be a victim. You can’t help but admire that. She’s strong and inspiring. She is, in fact, unbreakable. She’s also freaking hilarious. It’s been a very long time since I’ve seen a show this funny with this much heart.
I was able to view the first six episodes of Unbreakable Kimmy Schmidt in advance, and I can’t wait to watch episodes 7-13 this weekend. Check it out, and let me know what you think!
I am a member of the Nextflix Stream Team, and look forward to sharing monthly stories and suggestions about using Netflix streaming. I have received a year of Free Netflix Streaming and a Roku. All opinions in this post are my own.
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