TV Tuesday: Unbreakable Kimmy Schmidt

I am slowly coming back to life after a bout of both the flu and bronchitis. I would say that the Tamiflu and antibiotics both did their jobs since about one week later, I am starting to feel much better and my cough is clearing up. Even my thinking cleared up today (yay!) and my energy is returning, so I am trying to get back into my usual blogging routines. I have plenty of fodder for my weekly TV Tuesday feature because my son and I were both home sick last week, so we watched a LOT of TV together!

On my worst day last week, I couldn't even manage scrolling through Facebook or checking my e-mail. My son was still asleep, so I needed some seriously mindless TV (and something other than crime shows which I was overloaded on from watching with him!). I settled on Unbreakable Kimmy Schmidt, a comedy on Netflix, propped myself up on the couch, and binge-watched about 6 episodes in a row! It was just what I needed - light, fun, and fluffy to lift my spirits.

The very original premise of the show is that a group of girls is rescued from an underground bunker after being held for fifteen years by a crazy doomsday cultist. The girls travel to NYC to appear on the Today Show after their release, and one of them, Kimmy, played by Ellie Kemper of The Office fame, decides to stay in New York to start her new life. Kimmy was taken captive when she was just 13, so she is extremely naive and completely unfamiliar with the modern world. She was basically scooped up from middle school, held underground for 15 years, and is now loose in NYC.

Kimmy finds a job as a nanny for the wealthy Jacqueline Vorhees, played by Jane Krakowski, looking after her pre-teen son and teen daughter. She also finds a place to live, a basement apartment that she shares with a flamboyantly gay black man named Titus Andremedon, played by Tituss Burgess, with a very flaky landlord played by Carol Kane. It all sounds a little over-the-top described here...and it is! That's the fun of this show - subtle it is not. And did you see that cast? They are all excellent at playing crazy, funny characters.

Kimmy is, of course, the star of the show, and Ellie Kemper is perfect for the role of the innocent, perky young woman making her way through both adolescence and adulthood at the same time. Kimmy loves to dress in bright colors and has absolutely no pretense about her, which tends to bring out the best in those around her. Of course, there are plenty of funny misunderstandings from Kimmy's complete naivete about the modern world. Despite all its light-hearted fun, the show is also warm and endearing as Kimmy tackles all the obstacles thrown in her way and helps those around her, too.

Bottom line: this show is absolute cotton candy fun, a delight to watch, often very funny, and a great pick-me-up. It was the perfect show to binge-watch on a sick day, and after 10 episodes, I found myself really caring abut Kimmy and her ragtag group of friends.

This is a Netflix original show, so it is only available on the streaming service. Season 1 is currently available with 13 episodes, and season 2 starts on April 15, 2016.

What are your favorite shows to cheer you up on sick days?