Unbreakable Kimmy Schmidt Review: Kimmy Goes to a Hotel! (Season 2 Episode 8)
“Kimmy Goes to a Hotel!” could also be called “Kimmy and the Series of Unfortunate Events!”
What starts off with the best intentions slowly spells trouble for these unlikely friends.
Unbreakable Kimmy Schmidt is good at delivering the laughs. No matter how stupid the situation, Kimmy’s approach always makes us smile. This episode is no different, but by the end we felt really bad for Kimmy.
It starts with Kimmy’s plan to celebrate the fifteen Christmases she’s missed. She’s decorated the apartment and greets the made-up holiday with jovial anticipation.
Kimmy is childlike in many ways and we can see how the idea of celebrating Christmas on days other than December 25th would be appealing. Sadly, Lillian and Titus are not amused pointing out that this is a holiday that Kimmy made up.
Fake Christmas isn’t that much different than several other holidays that occupy our calendar. While Christmas may be a day where most stores, restaurants, and other places of business close, the world doesn’t stop turned on Kimmy’s Fake Christmas.
As if to make a point, Jacqueline barges in proclaiming that her Mondrian is under siege by the Jews, and Sonia climbs in through the window saying “Ho, ho, ho.” Sonia is not there celebrating the holiday – she’s accusing Kimmy of sleeping with Dong.
Let’s be honest. If this was actually Christmas, none of this would be happening. Maybe a family would get into a squabble over a new fiance or someone would give their five-year-old cousin a really inappropriate gift, but nothing of this magnitude.
Okay, maybe Sonia’s accusation.
Kimmy leaves the celebration to go return Sonia to Dong, having concocted a story about her blue scrunchie being under his pillow.
Dong later shows up at her window and they go to the Poconos for the night. In a child-like dating fantasy, they raid the candy machine, play with the reception desk, dancing in the hall, and try to do that trick where you remove a tablecloth from a set table without breaking anything.
It’s hard not to see the beautiful childlike brilliance in this sequence. These two adults both have an entire playground to themselves. It’s like two kids who get left alone by their parents not knowing what ramifications may be in store when their parents arrive. It’s nostalgic and makes us smile a bit.
But soon, we wake up and find ourselves wanting to slap Kimmy over the head. Dong is married. We thought Kimmy realized this a few episodes ago.
Their date is going off without a hitch, except that Kimmy’s PTSD causes her to hit Dong over the head with a green phone when he kisses her. This leads them to the pharmacy to buy an ice pack for Dong… and condoms.
Good call being safe, but all doesn’t go so well. Dong goes to put on a condom and discovers that he is allergic to latex.
Kimmy calls 911 after remarking about how this was supposed to be more Dawson’s Creek and less My Girl.
Really? Can Kimmy catch a break, or is she doomed to hopeless relationships? Where is that Army Vet she met in the last episode? She should give him a call.
The arrival of the ambulance also brings the police. They arrest Dong for trespassing on a federal raccoon sanctuary and send him to Vietnam. Oh, but not before making love in the back of a disgusting police car.
Stray Thoughts:
- It’s time for Kimmy to start dealing with some of the psychological effects of being in the bunker. She greets each day with a smile and tries to endure everything for ten seconds, but I think she needs to let go and express some different emotions.
- Jacqueline and Lillian conspiring about the painting was a cute B-story. The voicemail from her parents was a nice touch to get her to do the right thing instead of calling Lillian’s “guy.”
- Titus having to be the manager was cute and probably the closest we get to a Christmas story this episode. His costume makes him look just like Scrooge in The Christmas Carol and his epiphany at the end just screams, “This is a literary allusion.” A shame no one videotaped it so he could put it on his reel.
- Unbreakable Kimmy Schmidt is the third show that has mentioned Dawson’s Creek lately. Maybe it’s time to revisit this early 2000’s nostalgia.
What did you think of this episode of Unbreakable Kimmy Schmidt? Share your thoughts in the comments below!
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Unbreakable Kimmy Schmidt Season 2 is currently available for streaming on Netflix.
Lauren Busser
Lauren Busser is an Associate Editor at Tell-Tale TV. She is a writer of fiction and nonfiction whose work has appeared in Bitch Media, Popshot Quarterly, Brain Mill Press Voices, and The Hartford Courant.