Since it became available to stream on Netflix in 2015, "Unbreakable Kimmy Schmidt" has gained a large following as well as seven prime-time Emmy nominations. The series follows 29-year-old Kimmy Schmidt (Ellie Kemper) through life in New York city after being rescued from an underground bunker where she was kept, along with several other women, for 15 years. Kimmy moves in with Titus Andromedon (Tittus Burgess) and begins her new life. Kimmy meets every adversity with pizazz, humor and a smile.
The show is laugh-out-loud funny, full of clever quips and fast-paced dialogue characteristic of the show's creator's, Tina Fey and Robert Carlock. As the show's seemingly light storyline progresses, you can't help but to fall in love with the quirky characters. At first glance, "Unbreakable Kimmy Schmidt" is nothing more than a funny show with a clever premise, but actually, it is so much more than that.
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This show follows the life and recovery of a survivor of extreme, long-term abuse. Kimmy's sexual abuse during her bunker years is implied more than once, though never directly described. The first season beautifully displays that there is life after abuse, and Kimmy's dark past does not define her.
Season 2 explores Kimmy's damaged psyche in a little more depth, as we see Kimmy struggle with symptoms of Post Traumatic Stress Disorder and begin to see a therapist. We see Kimmy learn that she is allowed to be angry about what happened to her and about the injustice she experiences throughout her life. We watch as she struggles to be intimate with a man, and see her slowly heal from years of psychological wounds.
What makes this show so special is that it explores a very dark subject through comedy. Normally, producers would shy away from this, for fear such a show would come off as insensitive. But what "Unbreakable Kimmy Schmidt" does is teach its audience that being a victim of abuse or hardship does not mean you are doomed to live out a life of dark drama. Life can still be a joyful comedy, even after great adversity. Kimmy never stops fighting for the life that was taken away from her for so long, making this show an inspiration not just for survivors of abuse, but everyone who watches it.
