Bojack Horseman returns for a sixth and final season, with the first 8 episodes dealing with sometimes soul-crushing themes.
Bojack Horseman, a Netflix original series and hit by Raphael Bob-Waksberg, is a show about a washed-up 90’s sitcom star trying to regain his footing and return to celebrity relevance. Sounds like an uninspiring premise but it’s through this simplicity that the show really shines.
The core of the show is showing the pitfalls and hardships of the characters, who are fundamentally extremely flawed but that is what makes them human and relatable. Ranging from Bojack being a self-loathing alcoholic to Princess Carolyn Self adoring a destructive but helpful personality.
In the previous season, the emphasis was on the entire cast, from Bojack to Todd, Diane and even Princess Carolyn. That shift in focus didn’t hurt the show at all, instead it helped as audiences got to better understand and relate to each of the character and their hardships.
In the 6th season, the show takes a different route as compared to the ones before. Now, the focus on the first half of season 6 is the growth of our beloved characters as they slowly fight their issues and reform themselves. That’s not to say they are completely free from problems, the shows still clearly depicted life in the sense that problems always pop up and no matter what state you are in, its dealing with them that is important. However, the breath of fresh air is that no problem really lingers on for too long and no character deals with them as they would have in the earlier seasons, marking huge strides in their growth.
Bojack as a character also really grew and that is one of the biggest strengths this season. In the previous season, it ends on a cliff hanger as he checks himself into a Rehab centre. If you know Bojack, you would be right to assume as I was, that he will skip out on it, question the method or somehow charm his way with the people inside to destroy the place. But the show manages to subvert expectations as it jumps right into it this season. It shows Bojack reflecting, trying to grow and find himself. I was personally often wrong with how the story would go because what I know was the Bojack of before – the narcissistic and selfish horse which would not hesitant to mess everyone over for himself. However, now he has made decisions that challenges that old character and really brought about a deep character development. Of course, the show doesn’t hold back or lightens the seriousness of his old actions and they slowly start to creep up on him as he betters himself.
The other characters are also given the appropriate screen time, growth and development in this season. Princess Carolyn steps into motherhood and faces a new set of challenges that really brings about a whole new dynamic to her character. Diane as a character is absolutely wonderful this season, matching Bojack in her growth and complexity. Her problems are fleshed out and believable with issues she faced and avoided before. The show’s dive into her thoughts and makes you feel empathetic towards her.
The dynamic of Bojack and Diane has also been fleshed out, with both being each other’s rock and support, something that was always one sided. Though, the series itself harbours one minor weakness which is the weak backstory and development for certain characters such as Todd and Mr Peanutbutter. Their stories and screen time are enjoyable, don’t get me wrong and it was obvious that they were included to balance out the seriousness. But at times when they are on screen, I yearned for it to be over so that the series could get back to the heavy situations.
The best thing other than the characters of the show is the themes and pacing. When dealing with such heavy themes of Motherhood, Abuse, Redemption and Self Discovery, it would be easy for the show to take a rough turn and become a pretentious and tasteless series. But that’s when the wonderful pacing of Bojack comes into play. With it being an episodic series, each theme has the right amount of time dedicated to it without the viewers feeling that the plot or themes were rushed or glanced over. The outlandish humour also plays a big part in making each episode seamless and interrupts the sad and soul-searching thoughts with bits of laugher.
In all, the 6th season builds on the solid foundation of the past 5 seasons, with more exploration on the title character and leaves you thinking and relating at the end of each episodes. It will make you think not only of Bojack as a person but everyone in your life even yourself, whether there is such a thing as a good or bad person or is there more to it.
If it is up your ally, all 6 seasons are available on Netflix. My recommendation is to bear with the start as it can be a bit slow, but you will be greatly rewarded as the series goes on. BoJack may seem like another Family Guy, but the difference is that Family guy is a show about adult jokes while BoJack is a show with adult themes.
Rating For Season 6: 4.5/5