Unbreakable Kimmy Schmidt

[EricMontreal22]

I was only a mild fan of 30 Rock--I found it funny when I'd watch an episode, but it never hooked me...like this has. Wow My twin sis flew over this week and we marathoned it over a few days. Brilliant and hysterical stuff--I look forward to seeing what is done next season when they have less restrictions, especially about length (from what I've read, Tina Fey has said the hardest thing has been keeping it in the 22 minute sitcom format.)

It sounds like NBC did the right thing by not pursuing this. The reasons given were that they didn't have a good block of scheduling to fit it into. That obviously hasn't been a problem before-and most of those shows failed by network ratings standards, so....

[Fantod]

I think the last few episodes were great. The surprise witness scene killed me.

[pugsandcoffee]

Only 4 episodes in and trying very, very hard not to succumb to the binge-watching. I did the same with Orange is the New Black and, while I did not take 13 weeks of watching one episode weekly, I did enjoy the anticipation and the gratification that came with finally finishing a season.
I plan to make Kimmy last me another week or so.

[HorseTears]

I tried 2 1/2 eps and just can't continue. I'm kind of shocked at how much I don't like it. 30 Rock is - easily - one of my favorite tv comedies of all time, I adore Tina Fey's sensibilities, I love Jane Krakowski and Carol Kane and really enjoyed Ellie Kemper's work on The Office, but with the exception of some very amusing one liners, the whole thing falls flat for me.

I mean, basically, this is Ellie Kemper's fish out of water character from The Office with Jane Krakowski's slightly softened Jenna Maroney of 30 Rock and (of course) a sassy gay, black sidekick. To steal a line from a certain post menopausal rebel heart, it feels reductive. I'm not surprised that NBC passed, but I am surprised that Netflix swooped in. It feels so conventional and obvious. It feels like something ABC Family would air, not Netflix.

[FindingNamo]

I loved the first half of the season but now I sort of hate myself for it.

[EricMontreal22]

The last few episodes were a let down for me (I wanted the robot back. Plus Randy has got to be the most annoying character in TV history--there's a problem when I want a tv character to OD on heroin.) But I loved the show overall.

[EricMontreal22]

And--going back to Growler's point on page two, I kinda hate the Netflix model. I like having to wait a week for new episodes, and when I know that a series of episodes are available of any show I have interest in, it makes me less likely to check it out.

[Phyllis Rogers Stone]

I kind of felt that way, too. All that trial stuff soured it a bit for me. And the Native American stuff. But Titus is wonderful. I wonder if the movie to Netflix will change the way the story is told next year.

[EricMontreal22]

At about the midway point episodes became 25+ minutes instead of 22 or whatever they were before. I wondered if that was when they realized this was not going to air on NBC.

[henrikegerman]

Just started this last night. Inspired lunacy and an adorable cast. What's not to love?

[Liza's Headband]

This was already picked up for a second season and Fey has stated they'll definitely approach it differently. But, you'll also notice a pretty measurable change about halfway through the first season (as Eric points out). The first six episodes were created explicitly for NBC primetime; the remaining were not. Hence the noticeable difference.

[pli1018]

The first six episodes were EDITED explicitly for NBC. The show had wrapped filming prior to the Netflix deal being finalized. There is a huge difference.

[Phyllis Rogers Stone]

They were clearly reedited for Netflix.

[Liza's Headband]

That's what I said, pli.

[EricMontreal22]

I think my disappointment with the trial stuff was partly due to the fact that it separated the characters. Titus' stuff was still extremely funny (you Americans really do have a hard to remember national anthem--I think it should be changed to the theme from America's Funniest Home Videos.) But I missed him interacting with the other characters (and I feel like he should have been in more of the actual court scenes.)

[Kad]

You said created for Netflix. That's very different than edited.

[Phyllis Rogers Stone]

I'd love to see what Tina Fey said about how it would be different, but like most everything LH expounds upon, there will be no source.

[ray-andallthatjazz86]

I actually loved the last batch of episodes with the trial. I thought it gave the show a narrative purpose that was missing from the first half of the season, it added some stakes to the season and I thought it was genuinely hilarious. I also was a sucker for all the Marcia jokes and thought Tina Fey nailed it. John Hamm was Emmy-worthy IMO (though he'll always be the bubble for me). And Jane Krakowski and Carol Kane as Thelma & Louise should be its own series. No, I have no idea what to make of the Native American politics involving Krakowski's role. It seems so outrageous to me and so thematically connected to Kimmy's story (and at its best a strong indictment of the casting of white people in ethnic roles) that I want to give it a pass, but I don't know that the show needed to go this route to do that. For example, they could have done something with Krakowski's own heritage (she has spoken many times about the difficulty of being cast early on in her career with that last name).

PRS, I saw an interview with Ellie Kemper (sorry, no source! But I swear it's true) where she said Netflix allowed them extra time so they were able to add back in a lot of the jokes that were left on the cutting floor when they cut the episodes for NBC. I do think the show will feel different (and probably truer to what the writers wanted it to be) in the second season when the episodes are not written to please the NBC suits or the Parents Council whatever their name is.

[gypsy101]

I'm rewatching the show for the third time. It's fantastic. My favorite scene is probably Tituss singing Gonna Be Famous...I hope they release a soundtrack to the show. 30 Rock's soundtrack is one of my favorites, and I'm pretty sure Jeff Richmond did the music for Unbreakable as well.

[HorseTears]

Okay, gonna give it one more shot because there does seem to be an overwhelming consensus that there's something here. I usually trust my gut on these things and quickly abandon something I'm not clicking with because of the abundance of great original programming available these days. I don't care about continuity. I thought the first two eps were dreadful. Which of the supposedly superior latter episodes is the guaranteed panties dropper that's gonna change my mind?

[Jungle Red]

I thought the first few episodes were great. Improvement upon improvement. And then the weird Tina Fey episode happened and I haven't watched it since.

[EricMontreal22]

One Tina co-wrote or the ones with her--because there's only like one episode left after the one she is in...

[Mister Matt]

I'm about halfway through and I like it, but I don't love it. Like Third Rock, it's style is getting a bit monotonous for me. What was once fresh becomes a repetitive pattern and fewer of the jokes actually land for me from episode to episode. It doesn't help that Ellie Kemper keeps reminding me of Renee Zellweger's first face.

That said...PINOOOOOOOOOOHHHH NEWARRRRRRRRRR!!!

[HorseTears]

Mmmmm.  My hat sure is tasty.  Well, you guys were right.  Decided to give it another shot and I'm kind of shocked at how dramatically this show improves from ep 3 on.  I couldn't stand eps 1-2, but I just happily binged eps 3-6.  I'm in.  Can't wait until I get to the Tina Fey episode(s).

[Huss417]

Its funny HorseTears the Tina Fey episode was probably my least favorite. Started off great with the set up and just went down from there. 

[pugsandcoffee]

Eric, I can't believe our conversations haven't turned to the Netflix model yet! I was discussing it with a few other friends. I kind of personally like it, although the real downside is (someone discussed it here; Nemo, I think) that people binge and then spend a year bitching about having to wait for the next season.

Maybe somewhere down there line, there's an upgraded model that doesn't revolve about network TV stretching you on for an entire year, filling the slate with reruns in between whatever sportsball championship needs prime time, etc...for now, though, I really like the Netflix model. I rarely binge watch new shows (It does happen on occasion; I destroyed all of Bob's Burgers so I could catch up on the current season), and I like being able to sit down and consume an entire story when I am ready.

The Netflix model also stops all that crap I almost universally hate on network tv: the filler episode. There are so many wonderful shows with an almost serial-like story each season and, when you watch it in one swoop, you see how the narrative is just tossed off the tracks by those one-off episodes clearly put in at the request of the studio execs to "give the new viewers something to draw them in."

MEH to all of that.

Oh, and as for Kimmy Schmidt, I quite liked it. It drags in places, but Kemper and company are just completely winning in these roles. I, for one, kind of like Jenna Maroney with a soul, and Titus deserves an Emmy nomination.