Unbreakable Kimmy Schmidt Season 2: 6 Things You Need To Know
They alive, dammit!
In some ways, Unbreakable Kimmy Schmidt never should've worked. Trying to describe the show, about a woman who was trapped in a bunker for 15 years by the leader of a doomsday cult, before returning to civilisation and moving to New York, it doesn't sound like your typical successful sitcom, and it appeared to be heading that way when NBC decided to take a pass on the series.
Despite the doubts, Netflix took a chance on the Tina Fey-created comedy, and it's a great job that they did. Starring Ellie Kemper (The US Office) in the titular role, the show has been a roaring success, receiving 7 Emmy Nominations for its first season, including Outstanding Comedy Series (though Kemper herself was somehow overlooked).
It's not hard to see why the show is popular: it's absolutely hilarious, heartwarming, intelligent, so sugar-sweet it'll rot your teeth, and so effortlessly binge-watchable that Netflix seems like the natural home for it.
Season 1 dealt with Kimmy's return to normal life and putting the past behind her, complete with facing her tormentor in Rev. Richard Wayne Gary Wayne (Jon Hamm on top comedic form), and Season 2 sees her continuing to discover more about both the 21st Century and who she is as a person.
The full season drops on Netflix on April 15, but we've had a chance to see the first six episodes, and this is what you need to know (spoilers kept to a minimum).
6. Kimmy Was Made For Christmas
The plot of Unbreakable Kimmy Schmidt Season 2, as far as the title character is concerned anyway, sees Kimmy getting a job in a year-round Christmas shop.
Much like the rest of the series, it sounds a bit of a daft concept, but also like the rest of the series it manages to pull it off, thanks to its typical way of approaching things with a beaming smile and a 'can-do' attitude. And really, while this might not work on any other show, Kimmy is pretty much made for Christmas. Both are sweet and happy, brightly coloured and over the top, and bring a lot of joy to us - Kimmy Schmidt working in a Christmas shop just makes sense, and giving her a proper job outside of Jacqueline gives her a chance to really develop on her own.
Other key plots in the early goings include Jacqueline struggling to maintain her 'white privilege' image, now that she's divorced from Julian and *only* received $12m in the split. It manages to bring more depth to the character, and you can actually start to empathise with her character.
Titus, meanwhile, continues his quest to be a star, but also begins a new relationship, which is a promising development - again, it's a way of showing off more emotion for the character, a chance to understand him better and why he is this person.
The first season of Kimmy wasn't massively plot driven, at least not until the final few episodes, and I'd say this one isn't either - Tina Fey and Robert Carlock have massively changed things now they're actively writing the show for Netflix - but it does push along a bit more in Season 2, rather than the more standalone episodes of Season 1.