Unbreakable Kimmy Schmidt remains one of the biggest hit comedies to come from Netflix. Created by Tina Fey and Robert Carlock, the show centers on Kimmy’s (Ellie Kemper) escape from a doomsday cult and re-entrance into society. Despite its dark premise, the character’s rosy perspective kept things light. But some endings allowed Netflix subscribers to explore Kimmy’s dark side.
‘Unbreakable Kimmy Schmidt’ returned for a Netflix special in 2020
After four seasons and 52 episodes, Unbreakable Kimmy Schmidt called it quits. The series largely gave Kimmy and her friends (Tituss Burgess, Carol Kane, and Jane Krakowski) a happy ending. But if fans felt the story wasn’t quite finished, they got one last chance to revisit the characters. In 2020, Netflix released Unbreakable Kimmy Schmidt: Kimmy vs. the Reverend.
Using Netflix’s Branch Manager technology, the interactive special gives viewers the opportunity to control what happens. The story involves Kimmy’s discovery that her cult leader and captor Reverend Richard Wayne Gary Wayne (Jon Hamm) has another bunker full of kidnapped women. The story culminates in a heated confrontation between Kimmy and her abuser.
The story leads Ellie Kemper’s Kimmy to an intense confrontation
Since the beginning, the underlying conflict of Unbreakable Kimmy Schmidt has been the trauma Kimmy endured at the Reverend’s hands. So it makes sense the special would resolve this dynamic once and for all. At one point in the special, Kimmy gets the upper hand on the Reverend. And the viewer has to decide whether she gives in to anger or spares his life.
Several options are available to fans. One, for instance, sees Kimmy shoot the Reverend in cold blood. In another, Kimmy uses a bazooka to blow him up. And the darkest of Kimmy’s violent responses sees her literally stomp the Reverend to death. None of these, however, end well for Kimmy, according to Refinery29, as she either also dies or goes mad.
Is ‘Unbreakable Kimmy Schmidt’ really over now?
Inevitably, the Unbreakable Kimmy Schmidt special leads Kimmy (and viewers) down the path of mercy. Still, it’s a bold move for Netflix and the showrunners to give fans the chance to indulge in such a dark potential ending. But is the show really over this time? Certainly, Kimmy vs. the Reverend works well as a series finale. Perhaps better than the fourth season finale.
With such rich characters and an established fan base, it remains to be seen whether Netflix will stop there. It’s easy to see Kemper, Burgess, and company coming back for periodic specials or even a Netflix movie. But for now, Kimmy and her fans can rest assured that she finally has some sense of closure with regards to the experience that has defined the character’s life.
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