Cartoon Corner: Bojack Horseman
Our regular column on our favourite animation
Bojack Horseman is a show about an alcoholic horse who was the star of a Cosby-esque family sitcom in the 90s, now dealing with a life of loneliness and depression. Also, it is fantastic.
The Netflix original animated series stars Arrested Development’s Will Arnett, Breaking Bad’s Aaron Paul and Community’s Alison Brie in a world where anthropomorphised animals live alongside humans, and that’s hardly the most surreal thing about it.
Bojack, is certainly a show you need to give time to get your head around, the first episode gives the impression of a silly, Family Guy like animated show with throwaway jokes and unlikable characters but all of it is building to what has been called one of television’s most accurate portrayals of depression and a biting satire of Hollywood culture.
The show’s central character, Bojack is a deeply unhappy ex-celebrity, keen to return to the public eye by releasing an autobiography of his years on TV. Brie’s Diane Nguyen comes in to act as ghost writer for this and serves as the outside look into Bojack’s mind. The series shifts between wacky humour coming from the world’s animal inhabitants and long drawn out pieces of wordplay (“There is nothing funny about stealing a meal from Neal McBeal the navy Seal”) then hits the viewer with glimpses of Bojack self-loathing, Diane’s deep insecurity and the shallowness of Hollywood culture.
After some difficulty finding its footing in the first few episodes, the show begins to really shine in the latter half of the first season. It displays the fact that, with the possible exception of Paul’s Todd, no character in the show is without depth. Even the seemingly one-dimensional (if hilarious) Mr Peanutbutter displays some of his own demons that he’s battling.
The second season brings in some new players in the form of Lisa Kudrow’s Wanda Pierce (an owl) and Ben Schwartz’s Rutabaga Rabitowitz, each fantastic characters complementing the remaining cast. The second season also marks a shift from the satire of Hollywood and towards more personal stories, topping with a truly devastating scene involving someone from Bojack’s past.
Bojack is a show you need to be prepared for, a ride of ups and downs and testament to the success of Netflix’s release all at once method of showing TV.
Bojack Horseman is available on Netflix
