BoJack Horseman – A review

To some, the idea of watching an animated series where the main character, as well as other featured characters, has an animal head, but a human body, seems a bit odd and would be dumb to watch. However, to others, this seems like just the series that they will enjoy and tell their friends about. I was amongst the first group of people.

However, there was once a Saturday where I decided to be productive and clean my “I’m-an-adult-but-most-of-the-things-I-own-are-toys,” room. Which, of course, means, “put something on Netflix, and push things to the side.” Now, if you’re an active user of Netflix, such as I, you may have a show that you are currently watching and could just resume. Or you could be that user who is in the middle and must decide on a new show to partake in and are trying to narrow down your choices. This time, I was in the second group of people. I didn’t want to watch a movie and I didn’t want to watch live action. I also didn’t want a show that you had to actively focus on to understand what was going on. And so, I decided on Bojack Horseman and pressed play.

For those who don’t know, Bojack Horseman is about a human/horse, internet says these characters are “anthropomorphic/humanoids,” named Bojack who is a washed up has been who is living off the money he made from his hit 90s’ TV series, Horsin’ Around. Bojack is a self-loathing alcoholic who is trying to make a comeback, but is constantly failing due to his self destructive behavior. However, his saving grace is his unbeknownst compassion towards others that allows him to keep getting second chances and to keep others in his life. These others including, Todd Chavez, his bum of a roommate, and Princess Carolyn, his friend/girlfriend/manager, depends on the episode.

The main conflict of this series comes from Bojacks’ enemy, Mr. Peanutbutter, who everyone loves because, well, he’s a Golden Retriever. The icon dog of being kind, loyal, playful, and etc. Basically, all that is opposite of Bojack. However, they do have one thing in common, and that is Diane Nguyen. They both have feelings for her and she for them, but in different ways, since she is Mr. Peanutbutter’s girlfriend, and is just a colleague/friend of Bojack. Oh, the drama.

The episodes are 25 minutes long and there are currently 2 seasons with 12 episodes each. As with any show, the goal of the first episode is to introduce you to its main character(s) and present the shows’ main storyline. And Bojack does just that. We are introduced to Bojacks’ destructive behaviour and how it affects the people around him. For instance, his commitment issues causes the break up between him and Carolyn or his lack of motivation causes stress at the publishing company he is working with. However, despite his behaviour, people continue to work with him because of his previous charismatic and compassionate behavior. We also meet Mr. Peanutbutter, who is living the life Bojack wants, and Diane, who is going to help Bojack write his book.

Before watching, one may think that a plot point of the show was going to be the fact that there are humans and humanoids. However, it isn’t even addressed and it is just the kind of world they are living in. Which is one of the greatest things about animation, is that things are they way they are just because it is. (i.e. CatDog – Why are they together? They just are.) In fact, although my initial response to the show was not watch it because I found it odd, the concept of anthropomorphic humans, I forgot about it within the first 5 minutes of the episode. Granted, I was reminded when there was a brief scene of Bojack sleeping with a human, but I was able to forget about once it transitioned.

Focusing on the production aspect of this show, the thing that makes this show appealing to watch is the animation itself. The animation takes on the realistic approach instead of the cartoony one, which allows the viewers to enter this world and view it as something real – even though it clearly is not. And in the case of this show, it’s good to feel connected to the world of Bojack considering most would want to distant themselves from such a self-destructive character.

Another production point comes from the music of the show. The theme song more or less acts as an intro to the Bojack character as we see how his day plays out from start to finish, while we the audience, listen to some funky electronic sounds that sets the overall tone for the show. Also, the ending theme plays just as well to the tone as it is performed by indie rock band, Grouplove, which in its indie-esque sounds work well with this indie-esque series.

If the main thing from stopping you from watching this show is because the characters are half human and half animal, just stop and play the first episode. You will forget because the show gives complex characters and introduces interesting storylines. And although Bojacks’ destructive behaviour may be to an extreme, I bet you may find yourself sympathizing with him in multiple occasions.

And yes, for the record, I did watch all the episodes in a day. And no, I did not clean my room. But yes, I look forward the Season 3 of Bojack Horseman when it comes out July 22nd.