BoJack Horseman

BoJack Horseman
File:BoJack Horseman.jpg BoJack Horseman Promotional Poster
Genre	Animated sitcom Adult animation Comedy-drama
Created by	Raphael Bob-Waksberg
Voices of	Will Arnett Amy Sedaris Alison Brie Paul F. Tompkins Aaron Paul
Theme music composer	Patrick Carney featuring Ralph Carney
Opening theme	"BoJack Horseman Theme"
Ending theme	"BoJack Horseman End Theme" by Grouplove
Composer	Jesse Novak
Country of origin	United States
Original language	English
No. of seasons	1
No. of episodes	13 (list of episodes)
Production
Executive producers	Will Arnett Raphael Bob-Waksberg Aaron Paul Steven A. Cohen Noel Bright
Producer	Sampson
Running time	25 minutes
Production companies	The Tornante Company ShadowMachine Films
Original release
Network	Netflix
Release	August 22, 2014 (2014-08-22) – present

BoJack Horseman is an American animated sitcom created by Raphael Bob-Waksberg. The series stars Will Arnett as the title character BoJack Horseman. Supporting cast includes Amy Sedaris, Alison Brie, Paul F. Tompkins, and Aaron Paul. The series' first season premiered on August 22, 2014, on Netflix, with a surprise Christmas special premiering on December 19th. The show is designed by the cartoonist Lisa Hanawalt, who had previously worked with Bob-Waksberg on the webcomic Tip Me Over, Pour Me Out.

Despite mixed critical reviews, the show proved to be successful with viewers. Less than a week after its initial release, Netflix renewed the series for a second season set to commence production in 2015.

Premise

The series is set in a world where humans and anthropomorphic animals live side by side, specifically focusing on the life of BoJack Horseman, the washed-up star of the 1990s sitcom Horsin' Around, as he plans his big return to celebrity relevance with a tell-all biography that he dictates to his ghostwriter Diane Nguyen. BoJack also has to contend with the demands of his agent and on-again-off-again girlfriend Princess Carolyn, his freeloading roommate Todd Chavez, and his frenemy Mr. Peanutbutter, a dog from a '90s sitcom with a similar premise to Horsin' Around.

Characters

Main characters

• BoJack Horseman (voiced by Will Arnett) – An anthropomorphic horse who starred in the 1987–96 sitcom "Horsin' Around." Frequently overwhelmed by frustration and self-loathing, he's grown bitter and spiteful since the show ended and often hints at hating what he has become in his later years. Though usually petty and lacking self-control, BoJack has frequently shown himself to be intelligent and level-headed in certain situations, when not overwhelmed by self-loathing or alcoholism. For instance, he cites a number of intelligent and reasonable issues with widespread public praise of all uniformed military members during a televised apology to a soldier he had annoyed and has devised numerous machiavellian schemes to benefit him, such as his attempt to sabotage Diane's wedding. He believes that completing his memoir may be his last shot at getting the public to care about him again.

• Princess Carolyn (voiced by Amy Sedaris) – An anthropomorphic pink Persian cat who is BoJack's agent and his on-and-off girlfriend who works at the Vigor agency. She prides herself on being able to separate her personal life from her professional life when dealing with BoJack. She begins to question her loyalty when she realizes that she's sacrificed several dreams for BoJack's sake. She turns 40 in "Say Anything."

• Diane Nguyen (voiced by Alison Brie) – BoJack's Vietnamese-American ghostwriter, misunderstood intellectual, and third-wave feminist from Boston. She and BoJack initially develop a strong friendship that becomes strained after BoJack develops feelings for her.

• Mr. Peanutbutter (voiced by Paul F. Tompkins) – An anthropomorphic Labrador Retriever who is BoJack's former sitcom rival and also Diane's boyfriend (and later husband). Mr. Peanutbutter was the star of "Mr. Peanutbutter's House" which BoJack claimed to have "borrowed the premise" from "Horsin' Around." His demeanor is constantly energetic, cheerful, and neurotic. Despite their rivalry, Mr. Peanutbutter cares a great deal about BoJack's opinion and admires him for his work on "Horsin' Around." He has an especially good relationship with Todd, and his positive attitude and financial resources combined with Todd's outlandish schemes and plans often result in the two starting questionable business ventures, such as a Halloween store that exclusively opens in January.

• Todd Chavez (voiced by Aaron Paul) – An unemployed slacker who ended up at BoJack's house for a party five years before the beginning of the series and never left. Although BoJack constantly voices disdain for him, he secretly cares about Todd, continuing to financially support him and sabotage his attempts to gain independence out of a fear of being alone.

Recurring characters

• Pinky Penguin (voiced by Patton Oswalt) – An anthropomorphic penguin who works at a publishing house and depends on BoJack's book to save his job and company.

• Sarah Lynn (voiced by Kristen Schaal) – An actress who played BoJack's precocious youngest daughter on Horsin' Around, and who looked up to him as a father figure. After the show went off the air, she became a successful pop singer in the early 2000s before drug addiction and alcoholism ended her career. Flashbacks indicate that Sarah Lynn's self-destructive behavior is in part the result of BoJack (who she idolized) having neglected her as a child. Around the end of "Later," she was seen visiting Andrew Garfield (with whom she was mentioned as having an on-again, off-again relationship) at the hospital.

• Herb Kazzaz (voiced by Stanley Tucci) – BoJack's former mentor, an experienced comedian who created and wrote Horsin' Around. The pair had a falling out at the apex of the show's success, when Herb was blackballed by the network for being gay and Bojack didn't stand up for Herb for fear of losing his job. At the beginning of BoJack Horseman, they haven't spoken for nearly eighteen years. BoJack attempts to reconnect with him after learning that Herb has been diagnosed with terminal rectal cancer and is being watched over by a bear nurse. Though Herb reveals he lived a full life in spite of losing "Horsin' Around," he hasn't forgiven Bojack for not being there when he needed a supportive friend.

• Beatrice and Butterscotch Horseman (voiced by Wendie Malick and Will Arnett) – Two anthropomorphic horses who are BoJack's neglectful, verbally abusive parents. Both are apparently dead at the outset of the series, but appear in flashbacks to BoJack's childhood. Beatrice was an heiress to a sugar cube company. Butterscotch, who hailed from a working class background, was a failed novelist and alcoholic, resented his wife's financial independence and took out his insecurities on BoJack. In flashbacks, Butterscotch is often seen yelling nonsensical conservative hyperbole such as claiming that the Panama Canal is for "Democrats".

• Lennie Turtletaub (voiced by J.K. Simmons) – An anthropomorphic turtle and big-shot Hollywood producer. He was known to have worked with Ed Begley Sr., Lionel Barrymore, Buster Keaton, and Edwin S. Porter during their youth.

• A Ryan Seacrest Type (voiced by Adam Conover of CollegeHumor) – This is the name of a human character that hosts "Excess Hollywood" and interviews celebrities.

• Tom Jumbo-Grumbo (voiced by Keith Olbermann) – A blue whale and pundit on MSNBSea who reports on BoJack's misdeeds and other happenings in Hollywood.

• Character Actress Margo Martindale (voiced by Herself) – An exaggerated version of actress Margo Martindale who willingly goes along with BoJack's schemes no matter how convoluted or dangerous. BoJack and others consistently refer to her as "Character Actress Margo Martindale" rather than simply address her by her forename.

• Wayne (voiced by Wyatt Cenac) – Diane's ex-boyfriend who is a hipster and a BuzzFeed writer.

• "Vincent Adultman" (voiced by Fielding Edlow in "Horse Majeure," Maria Bamford in "Later") – Princess Carolyn's boyfriend in the latter part of the first season. Everyone except for Bojack is oblivious to the fact that he appears to be three children standing on top of each other underneath a trench coat, obviously echoing a similar scheme devised in "The Little Rascals." Though he speaks in a child's voice and has awkward syntax, he also occasionally exhibits strangely keen insight, prompting others to ignore BoJack's observations.

• Dr. Allen Hu (voiced by Ken Jeong) – A physician who sells drugs to Sarah Lynn. An unseen character throughout most of the first season, he is the subject of a recurring joke based on the phonetic similarity of his name to "who," with BoJack and others believing that Sarah's drug connection is a man who simply calls himself "Doctor Who" rather than an actual physician.

Minor characters

• Laura (voiced by Rachel Bloom) – Princess Carolyn's secretary.

• Neal McBeal (voiced by Patton Oswalt) – A seal who is also a Navy Seal. BoJack gets into a tiff with him because McBeal called "dibs" on a box of muffins at a grocery store which BoJack later bought and ate out of spite.

• Angela Diaz (voiced by Anjelica Huston) – A human woman who's in a position of authority at the studio that produces "Horsin' Around." She gives BoJack a speech about how the entertainment business works, persuading him to leave Herb behind to preserve BoJack's own career.

• Charlotte (voiced by Olivia Wilde) – A deer who was Herb Kazzaz's old girlfriend with whom BoJack was once in love. During a drug and alcohol induced stupor in "Downer Ending", Bojack imagines an alternate life where instead of becoming a television star he moves to Maine with Charlotte. In this fantasy, the couple get married, have a daughter named Harper, and lead a quiet rustic lifestyle.

• Bradley Hitler-Smith (voiced by Adam Conover)– An actor who played BoJack's adopted son Ethan on Horsin' Around.

• Joelle Clarke (voiced by Alison Brie) - An actress who played Bojack's eldest adopted daughter Olivia on Horsin' Around.

• Mr. Libertore (voiced by Stanley Tucci) - The Horse's (played by Bojack) boss in Horsin' Around.

• Tracy (voiced by Nicole Sullivan) - A character in Horsin' Around, the secretary of Mr. Libertore

Guest characters

• Naomi Watts (voiced by Herself) – Naomi Watts is an extreme version of herself and plays Diane in Mr. Peanutbutter's film. While in character as Diane she engages in a fast-paced sexual relationship with Bojack, only to lose interest in him when her character is ultimately written out of the movie and replaced with a ball on a stick.

• Wallace Shawn (voiced by Himself) – Wallace Shawn is an extreme version of himself and plays BoJack in Mr. Peanutbutter's film.

• Vanessa Gekko (voiced by Kristin Chenoweth) – Vanessa Gekko is a Hollywood agent at FME who is Princess Carolyn's rival. She temporarily shares her office when their agencies merge.

• Mr. Witherspoon (voiced by Stephen Colbert) – Mr. Witherspoon is a bullfrog that works at the Vigor agency and is Princess Carolyn's boss.

• Secretariat (voiced by John Krasinski) – A racehorse and BoJack's hero. He was banned for life from racing where there were allegations that he had been betting on his own races. After being disgraced, Secretariat committed suicide.

Music

The main title theme was composed by Patrick Carney, one half of the blues-rock duo The Black Keys, while the ending credits theme, "Back in the 90's (Bojack's Theme)", was performed by the indie-pop act Grouplove. Jesse Novak composed the incidental music.

Episodes

Season 1 (2014)

No. in series	No. in season	Title	Directed by	Written by	Release Date
1	1	"BoJack Horseman: The BoJack Horseman Story, Chapter One"	Joel Moser	Raphael Bob-Waksberg	August 22, 2014
BoJack and his girlfriend break up but meanwhile BoJack hires a ghostwriter to help with the memoir that he is writing. BoJack's lodger throws a party.
2	2	"BoJack Hates the Troops"	JC Gonzalez	Raphael Bob-Waksberg	August 29, 2014
BoJack finds himself the subject of national media attention after an altercation with a Navy SEAL at a supermarket.
3	3	"Prickly-Muffin"	Martin Cendreda	Raphael Bob-Waksberg	September 5, 2014
BoJack reconnects with his troubled former co-star Sarah-Lynn, who moves into his house and creates pandemonium.
4	4	"Zoës and Zeldas"	Amy Winfrey	Peter A. Knight	September 12, 2014
BoJack decides to mentor Todd when he makes plans for a rock opera. Diane's ex-boyfriend Wayne writes an article about Mr. Peanutbutter.
5	5	"Live Fast, Diane Nguyen"	Joel Moser	Caroline Williams	September 19, 2014
BoJack accompanies Diane to Boston when she returns home for her father's funeral and befriends Diane's mom, her three brothers, and the adoptive brother who is the "black sheep of the family." Todd runs a scam about David Boreanaz living at BoJack's house that gets out of hand.
6	6	"Our A-Story is a "D" Story"	JC Gonzalez	Scott Marder	September 26, 2014
Upon returning from Boston, a drunken BoJack steals the "D" from the Hollywood sign in an attempt to impress Diane. Now BoJack and Mr. Peanutbutter must find a way to get the D back to the Hollywood sign. Following the David Boreanaz scam, Todd is in prison where he is invited to join two prison gangs: the Aryans and the Latin Kings.
7	7	"Say Anything"	Martin Cendreda	Joe Lawson	October 3, 2014
BoJack sabotages himself with an epic bender. Meanwhile, Princess Carolyn experiences a day of personal and professional failure after the agency Vigor merges with the agency FME which is led by her former rival Vanessa Gekko.
8	8	"The Telescope"	Amy Winfrey	Mehar Sethi	October 10, 2014
When he learns that Herb Kazzaz is dying from terminal rectal cancer, BoJack tries to mend fences.
9	9	"Horse Majeure"	Joel Moser	Peter A. Knight	October 17, 2014
A lovestruck BoJack tries to sabotage the wedding of Diane and Mr. Peanutbutter in Nantucket. Meanwhile, Todd accepts a surprising new professional role as a driver for Mr. Peanutbutter after he loses his driver's license following an incident with the mailman.
10	10	"One Trick Pony"	JC Gonzalez	Laura Gutin Peterson	October 24, 2014
BoJack shoots a movie at Mr. Peanutbutter's house called "Mr. Peanutbutter's Hollywoo Heist" (which is a movie adaption of the incident in "Our A-Story is a "D" Story") which is directed by Quentin Tarantulino as Todd comes up with ideas to improve the movie. Diane finishes her book and sends the prototype copy to Pinky Pinkerton.
11	11	"Downer Ending"	Amy Winfrey	Kate Purdy	October 31, 2014
BoJack attempts to rewrite Diane's book while on a drug binge leading to a revelatory experience where he envisions an alternate life where he is engaged to Charlotte.
12	12	"Later"	Martin Cendreda	Raphael Bob-Waksberg	November 7, 2014
Three months after his memoir is released, BoJack is being considered for a role that is his lifelong dream. BoJack discovers that while the book may have resurrected his career, it also might have ended all of his personal relationships. Meanwhile, Todd and Mr. Peanutbutter make plans for different businesses.
13	13	"BoJack Horseman Christmas Special: Sabrina's Christmas Wish"	Joel Moser	Raphael Bob-Waksberg	December 19, 2014
BoJack and Todd watch a very special Christmas episode of "Horsin' Around" to celebrate the holidays.

Reception

Critical

The series received a rating of 63 out of 100 on the review aggregator Metacritic based on 12 reviews, indicating "mixed or average reviews". Another review aggregator, Rotten Tomatoes, gives the series 53% based on 15 reviews, with the consensus stating: "It's intermittently funny, but in most respects, BoJack Horseman pales in comparison to similar comedies."

Erik Adams' review of the first six episodes gave the series a C+ grade; in the review, Adams wrote that the show "spoofs the emptiness of celebrity, but does so without any novelty or true insight." At Slate, Willa Paskin was more enthused. "[It] is perhaps a little more clever than it is uproariously funny, but it is often very clever, and, moreover, well-tuned to the ludicrousness of the sort of low-level fame that surrounds BoJack." She likened it to 30 Rock in its ability to "[present] big ideas without having to commit to them." Chris Mitchell from Popzara was equally optimistic about the show's future, saying that "Fans of FX's Archer or Fox's Bob's Burgers will definitely want to check this one out, as its rapid-fire delivery is always consciously spot-on." The New York Times described the show as "hilarious and ribald".

External links

• BoJack Horseman at Netflix
• BoJack Horseman at IMDb
• BoJack Horseman