Entertainment

The 22 Best '90s References In 'Kimmy Schmidt'

by Caitlin Flynn

Let's be real — the 1990s will go down in history as one of the best decades ever and no one understands this quite as well as our beloved Kimmy Schmidt. Before 2016 brought us revivals of classics like Full House and The X-Files, the '90s references in Unbreakable Kimmy Schmidt Season 1 abounded and were one of the show's highlights. Even though she's had a bit more time to adjust to post-bunker life, Season 2 quickly made clear that Kimmy (and many of the people around her) just cannot quit the '90s.

While she was held captive underground by the creepy Reverend Richard Wayne Gary Wayne, Kimmy missed a whole lot of pop culture memos and you've gotta give a girl more than a few months to catch up with the times. For example, she's still hopeful that Nickelodeon will take over her school and she compares locating her mom to finding Waldo. And, even though characters like Titus and Andrea have been above ground all this time, they provide plenty of '90s references, too — proving that no one really wants to leave this amazing decade behind.

Don't lie — these 22 references gave you all the nostalgia feels.

1. Anastasia

Sonya from Kimmy's GED class has married Dong (womp womp) and she also casually mentions that the 1997 Disney cartoon Anastasia is about her.

2. Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles

Kimmy is super enthusiastic about the theme song to Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles and astutely observes that whoever wrote it deserves to be a billionaire.

3. Friends

Nothing says the '90s quite like Friends, so it's fitting that Unbreakable Kimmy Schmidt references the show multiple times. The Internet is blamed for ruining everything because "it's just a bunch of Chandlers" (harsh) and Titus thinks it's totally appropriate to act like a geisha because Aisha Tyler played a white woman on Friends. (Note to Titus — Tyler played a character of her own race on Friends.)

4. The Internet

Remember when people used lingo like "the worldwide web" and "electronic mail?" Me either, but Kimmy does.

5. Seinfeld

Jacqueline's brother asks her if she knows Jerry Seinfeld and she schools him by explaining that "not all New Yorkers know each other." Fair enough.

6. Nickelodeon

'90s kids know that Nickelodeon is where it's at, which is why Kimmy is still holding out hope that the network will take over her school. A girl can dream, right?

7. My Girl

Kimmy explains to Dong that she had "a weird childhood," like Anna Chlumsky in the '90s tearjerker My Girl. This is a somewhat strange comparison and she should probably discuss it with her kick-butt therapist.

8. Full House

Sue (Zosia Mamet) is super jazzed to see Chuck E. Cheese characters reenact an episode of Full House. And, really, who wouldn't be?

9. Space Jam

In Kimmy's world, there are only three types of jams — grape, Jock Jams (the 1990s compilation CD), and of course Michael Jordan's classic 1996 film Space Jam.

10. Fred Durst

Kimmy's amazing therapist incorrectly refers to Bobby Durst as Fred Durst, the lead singer of '90s band Limp Bizkit. It's okay, Andrea — we all get it wrong sometimes.

11. Salt-N-Pepa

Andrea also wisely tells Kimmy that, although a lot of her issues stem from the reverend, to quote Salt-N-Pepa: "That's not it." Someone give this woman a "World's Best Therapist" award STAT.

12. Dawson's Creek

Kimmy explains that she only saw Season 1 of Dawson's Creek for "totally weird, not normal reasons." Then Joshua Jackson appears as a store-clerk, Purvis, to recap the remaining seasons for her and impart some Pacey-style wisdom.

13. Kimmy's Childhood Crushes

Kimmy's mind is blown when she learns that her childhood crush, Lance Bass, is gay. She must have misheard. Who's next — Ricky Martin? Niles from Frasier?

14. Disney Princesses

In therapy, Kimmy explains that she is a Disney princess because, like Belle, she was held captive by a beast and, like Ariel, she had to keep her mouth shut. But she concludes that "they all had happy endings" and I love Kimmy even more for her eternal optimism.

15. Wayne's World

Andrea tells Kimmy that it's okay to get mad, to which she responds with a somewhat random Wayne's World reference: "Of course... not!"

16. Titanic

Everyone knows it's a fact that Rose could have totally made room for Jack on that door — but Titus is here to make sure we never forget it.

17. SpongeBob SquarePants

Kimmy thinks that SpongeBob is Cheese Businessman — an understandable mistake.

18. Where's Waldo?

Finding her mom should be a snap for Kimmy — after all, she's found every Waldo.

19. The Backstreet Boys

Cyndee is dying to go to a Backstreet Boys concert. Do you want to tell her or should I?

20. The Sixth Sense

In what is arguably the strangest Season 2 cameo, an upside down version of Reverend Richard Wayne Gary Wayne takes credit for a number of M. Night Shyamalan movie plots, including the creepy 1999 hit The Sixth Sense.

21. Life Before Cell Phones

Jacqueline temporarily can't reach Kimmy because she deleted her phone number when she was mad at her, prompting Kimmy to observe that, "before I went into the bunker, everyone knew everyone else's phone numbers. Thank you, cell phones!"

22. Frasier

Kimmy really loves this show and declares that brunch is "Frasier fancy!" High praise.

TV's recent 1990s revivals have been amazing and all, but Unbreakable Kimmy Schmidt is proof that new shows can give us a healthy, hilarious dose of nostalgia.

Images: Eric Liebowitz/Netflix; Giphy (22)