Netflix’s UNBREAKABLE KIMMY SCHMIDT! (SEASON 1) REVIEW (Non-Spoiler)

Unbreakable Kimmy Schmidt is a Netflix original with a cult following that screams 30 Rock from both in front and behind the camera, a show I was a fan of despite its high-highs and very low-lows. Both shows were created by Tina Fey and Robert Carlock and it shows. The challenge with this comedy is establishing its own identity instead of becoming the dangerous “spin-off” subtitle to Tina Fey’s superior first child. While this diverse cast is undeniably charming, Unbreakable Kimmy Schmidt’s sugar-coated exterior wears off almost immediately thanks to unoriginal writing that produces light without shine.

Proceed with caution, UKS accomplishes just about everything in spades; tone, characters, and world-building is fully realized almost immediately. But these assets are ultimately ineffective thanks to flat, uninspiring writing that lead to my ocular cavity.

PLOT

Unbreakable Kimmy Schmidt follows Kimmy Schmidt, one of four Indiana mole women rescued from a doomsday cult. She restarts her new life in New York with nothing but her over-the-top determination and her middle school education. Along her journey to rid her helpless perception, she begins work for Jacqueline, while befriending her Brooklyn roommate Titus, and their landlord Lillian.

This premise setup is nothing short of brilliant, the Pilot is paced extremely well and ultimately sets the bar too high. Seriously, what is with Netflix and their deceivingly great pilot episodes?

CHARACTERS/ACTING

This cast is oozing with diversity (I’m not just saying that because there’s a big, black, gay guy), and yet UKS isn’t progressive. This is because the showrunners never act on that diversity. This isn’t a fault of course, it’s never a series’ obligation to push the boundaries of television.

Ellie Kemper is perfect for the role, she embodies the warm, childish, drastic characteristics required. I’m actually a fan of her earlier work on the American version of The Office. I felt her “Kelly” character contributed an essential dose of naivety and quirkiness for that workspace. In a nutshell, Kimmy is Kelly times two, with an adorable wardrobe.

Jane Krakowski plays Jacqueline, who’s essentially her 30 Rock character, Jenna, times two with a husband. Again, I was unfazed by this decision, Jane is almost perfect as the wealthy via association, insecure housewife detached from society. Her delivery was always effective and I found that she made the best of her mediocre writing. She also has the best natural dynamic between Ellie Kemper, I felt that despite the fact their characters were polar opposites, I bought Kimmy and Jacqueline were friends and continuously learn from and compliment each other.

Tituss Burgess (Titus) also has plenty of chemistry with Ellie Kemper from the start, and fits the character description like a glove… that fits. He’s easily the most well-realized character and his warped, exaggerated view of society compliments Kimmy’s adolescent perspective. While initially obnoxious (who isn’t in this show?), Titus eventually grew on me and quickly fell victim to the writers not knowing what to do with him.

Lillian (Carol Kane) shines in spurts throughout the season and contributes to the colorful cast. She’s the most consistent of the bunch behind Jane Krakowski at overshadowing the writing with her performance.

Put simply, nothing is subtle and everyone is performing at a 10. All the time. Every episode, caffeinated voices and all. Thanks to this (acting?) decision, these substantial characters appear to lack depth… Truly tragic.

WRITING/STRUCTURE

Yikes.

At its core, this was Unbreakable Kimmy Schmidt’s biggest weakness. Jokes lack any setup, resulting in humor that eventually boils down to character A asking character B an obvious question and receiving the unbelievable, polar opposite response. This is done with UKS’s trademark bubbly, immature humor that lacks any emotional substance.

Generic plots plague the series with senseless set pieces. For example, the big reveal of an episode was that Kimmy’s mole sister’s new boyfriend was gay. Not only has that been done to death, but who cares? Why would the viewer care about the sexual orientation of a character they just met who’s dating a character they also just met?

There’s also a moment in the fourth episode when we’re introduced to a plastic surgeon who’s had a preposterous amount of plastic surgery done on him or her (another trope explored countless times before). The way this character spoke was so cringeworthy, I had to skip its scenes altogether. That was the joke by the way, that this person was gross.

The season also ends with a really weak story arc that begins developing an episode prior to the finale. While I enjoyed Jon Hamm’s cameo during these episodes, his character is far too unbelievable, even for this show’s standards. It’s hard to believe that anyone believes him… It’s also hard to write vaguely enough to avoid spoilers and sound like I know what I’m talking about (chances are I don’t).

On the plus side, Kimmy has some great banter with herself, showcasing some genuinely witty wordplay. Some of the quirky flashbacks from her time in the bunker also worked well. Episode 7 in particular was fantastic with some amazing visuals and moments that highlighted our lead’s strengths.

TONE

This is where Unbreakable Kimmy Schmidt rightfully basks in its yellows, pinks, and purples. The tone shines from the opening credits I consistently skip, to the exclamation point at the end of every episode title, to the slideshow-esc closing credits. Whether or not you like the obnoxious nature of the show is specific to you, the viewer. I had a unique, strictly personal problem during my viewings: I didn’t know when to watch it. UKS was too sweet for both the morning and evening.

“Tone is where Unbreakable Kimmy Schmidt does Unbreakable Kimmy Schmidt best.”

Its cohesive, light nature compliments the brisk pace. In fact, it achieves this goal so well that it masks a lot of the writing flaws, and attributes flat jokes under the “oh-well, it’s ditzy” umbrella UKS revels in.

The opening credits are an outdated take on the modern internet world…

I don’t know what the intention was going the route of remixing the opening scenes of the Pilot episode. This is an instance where the eye-candy nature of the show is overbearing. Credits (in general) are tricky, they must be brief and subtle enough to capture the show’s aesthetic without shoving the its intention down your throat. Needless to say, I religiously skipped these credits after the pilot.

MUSIC

The music is great, this is one of the instances where they took what worked really well in 30 Rock and tweaked it accordingly to tonally elevate UKS. Subtle, colorful cues joyously mark transitions and whimsy horns heighten comedic stakes and compliment awkward scenarios. The chirpy tunes are very comforting and help flesh out Kimmy’s naive perspective of New York.

IN CLOSING

All things considered, I’m actually excited for season 2. Regardless of this show’s many flaws, glimmers of hope often shine past the mediocrity.

Despite the poor writing, Unbreakable Kimmy Schmidt showcases momentum halfway through its first season (particularly episode 7) in a way that brought back fond memories of what made shows like 30 Rock classic. At its best, Unbreakable Kimmy Schmidt magnifies its silly scenarios to help pace and accentuate its high-brow-parodied comedy. At its worst, Unbreakable Kimmy Schmidt is written with the middle-school IQ Kimmy obliviously frolics in. It’s never consistent enough to permanently fall under either description, these amazingly realized characters have nothing to offer in this equally defined, unexplored world.

And that’s the biggest disappointment.