BoJack Horseman’s season five shows that there is no end to the grounded drama or absurd satire that the show can create. The newest season is a great — though imperfect — addition to what will hopefully continue to be one of Netflix’s mainstay shows.
The new season focuses on BoJack dealing with the challenges of starring in a TV show called Philbert for the website whattimeisitrightnow.com. Slowly, aspects of the show, such as the set, character relationships and eventually dialogue, reflect BoJack’s own life.
But BoJack isn’t the only one with a lot on his plate. Princess Caroline continues trying to become a mother while producing Philbert, Todd has a surprising new job and continues to learn more about his asexuality and Mr. Peanutbutter and Diane navigate their divorce while trying to remain in each other’s lives.
Stephanie Beatriz of Brooklyn Nine-Nine joins the cast as BoJack’s love interest onscreen and off. A working actress who’s had few shows make it past pilot season, Beatriz’s character is a welcome addition to the cast. Her long-awaited success with Philbert creates an intriguing character arc when BoJack inevitably causes trauma, and Beatriz captures the role perfectly.
As always, the show seamlessly shifts from zany to dramatic, but has significantly more of the latter for once. Season five tackles everything from toxic behavior in Hollywood being swept under the rug to the loss of a parent, from sex robots and drug use to physical abuse. This season showed that there is no topic that affects people or celebrities that the show can’t break apart in a simultaneously humorous and depressing manor.
Each season the show has added episodes that challenge its own format, the writers and the audience. In season five, one episode follows Diane as she absconds to Vietnam following her split from Mr. Peanutbutter, and another showcases her ex-husband at four different parties with four different women over the course of 25 years.
But the episode that truly showcases what makes BoJack special is episode six, “Free Churro.” Almost the entire episode focuses on BoJack delivering a eulogy. Will Arnett is the only performer in the whole episode and he carries it perfectly. His speech is not something that would make you laugh out loud, but has an improvisational feel as the audience watches him deal with his grief in real time. The episode ends on a joke — but leaves the viewer with the heartbreak that BoJack must be feeling.
Season five isn’t perfect; it under uses Hollyhock, BoJack’s sister discovered in season four. An incredible dramatic arc between the siblings is reduced to one episode, when it could certainly add to the story and take place over multiple episodes. Some story arcs feel unfinished or unsatisfying but have the potential to continue into future seasons.
The biggest takeaway of season five reflects a shift in modern celebrity: not letting people get away with inappropriate, unacceptable behavior. In this instance, Diane is the one holding BoJack responsible when he tries to hide behind his past to explain away his wrongdoings.
In the end, BoJack finally seems ready to make a change, but admits about his own show, Horsin’ Around that: “You never get a happy ending, because there’s always more show.”
3/4 shells.
