Luke Kalamar – BoJack Horseman
When BoJack Horseman first strode onto Netflix last year, it didn’t exactly blow me away. I was already a big fan of the entire cast, especially Will Arnett, Aaron Paul, and Alison Brie, and the idea of a washed out sitcom star who is a talking horse was very clever. Right off the bat this show was poised to be something I’d really enjoy. Yet after watching the first couple episodes, I found myself…not hooked. I certainly didn’t want to binge it which renders that big perk of Netflix pointless. It wasn’t the laugh riot I had expected it to be either. Through the fervent recommendation of friends I kept watching, expecting the show to get better. And wouldn’t you know it? It absolutely did.
Season 2, which premiered on July, didn’t have that issue. From “Brand New Couch” and onward BoJack Horseman was a much more assured show its second time around. The voice acting was top notch, as per usual, so that was nothing new. Sight gags and animal puns were much more prevalent however and I found myself actively seeking out hilarious gems. My personal favorite is when BoJack shops at Lowe’s (But Like An Animal Version) from “Higher Love”, with the close second being a marlin named Brando yelling “STELLA” as he delivers Stella Artois (“Yesterdayland”). Of course, there’s also the hilarious newsticker from “Hank After Dark,” and I’ll stop there or else this will become a post of BoJack Horseman’s spectacular subtle humor.
This season was also willing to go into some very heavy territory, which paid off in spades. BoJack is clearly an extremely broken individual and he goes through the wringer in Season 2. He comes to grips with his own acting insecurities, how messed up his relationship is with his mother, his own relentless distaste for Los Angeles, etc. Diane and Mr. Peanutbutter deal with major personal crises as well with the former especially taking her Cordovia journey very badly. “Escape from L.A.” is probably the singular episode that battles BoJack’s demons the hardest. It was shockingly low in humor but replaced it with some stellar drama that proves this show can “go there” when it needs to.
Of course, one can’t talk about BoJack Horseman without addressing the many names that are now attached to it. Season 2 especially had some big ones. Tatiana Maslany voiced Mia McKibbin, the mouse in “Let’s Find Out,” which also had Daniel Radcliffe playing himself. Amy Schumer had a few great lines in “Chickens” as Irving Jennings, Kelsey’s daughter. Henry Winkler dropped by as himself in “Still Broken” as well. However, despite these and many more, my favorite is unquestionably Sir Paul McCartney. I don’t know how these people got this music legend to play himself for literally one line on a throwaway joke, but I’m still blown away that they did.
BoJack Horseman is coming back for a third season in 2016. You absolutely must take this time to watch it all before the show returns. It’s only going to get better.
https://youtu.be/5sGsBoX6vUo
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