【1989 Archives】

For six seasons989 Archives Bojack Horsemanhas put in a tremendous amount of work to earn its place as one of the best comedies on television. It's been hilarious, with mile-a-minute visual and verbal gags that require multiple watches to catch in their entirety, but it's also been heartbreaking, with revelations that punch its viewer directly in the gut and an unflinching focus on the emotional horrors of trauma and addiction. Bojackhas leaned on the tropes of traditional comedy and turned on a dime to deliver breathtakingly original episodes like "Fish Out Of Water," "Time's Arrow," and "Free Churro." It fits perfectly into the 21st century cliche of a Good Show about a Bad Man (or Horse) while excoriating the very idea of an antihero — put simply, Bojack Horsemanhas been sublime TV. And now it's over.

When Netflix released the first half of Season 6 in late 2019, Bojackended on a cliffhanger that could have spelled the beginning of the end for Mr. Horseman. Reporters were closing in on the story of his greatest shame, his beloved half-sister Hollyhock was about to discover one of the (other) worst things he'd ever done, and the sprawling web of harm he'd caused was clearer than ever for those who still cared about him. Part 2 of Season 6 picks up in the uneasy silence between a pulled grenade pin and the inevitable explosion, and spends the rest of the season watching the shrapnel land where it will.

The question of what to do with Bojack the character looms large over its final eight episodes. After being so harmfullyhimself for as long as he's lived in Hollywoo, is he to be absolved, redeemed, punished, or some combinations of all three? His self-centered coping mechanisms and privilege have previously shielded him from all three potential consequences, but his time in rehab and attempt to start fresh as an acting teacher at Hollyhock's school have finally given Bojack something to lose.

Bojack begins the season there, musing over how to teach his students what acting is. "Acting" he says in voiceover, "is about leaving everything behind and becoming something completely new." It's a charming and perhaps true sentiment from an artistic standpoint, but leaving his past behind isn't what the new and improved Professor Horseman deserves. At the end of the scene, he closes his voiceover by writing his name on the classroom whiteboard and discovers too late that he's accidentally used a Sharpie marker. There's no erasing it, or anything else.

Bojack's past comes for him in a series of strikes that feel both natural and devastating, but Netflix's Bojack Horsemandoesn't revel in watching its protagonist finally feel the pain he's caused others. There is no voyeuristic "that's what you get" when Bojack gets got; every blow is earned. By the time the season is down to its final three episodes, watching him deal with the consequences feels like watching a cocky, amateur wrestler get his ass handed to him by the Undertaker. It hurts, but it's 100% what he signed up for.

Season 6 also closes out the stories of the rest of the cast, thoughtfully interrogating and delivering what they deserve in stories that also feel earned. Diane in particular has a standout episode in Episode 10 "Good Damage," which uses the scribbly drawings last seen in Season 4's "Stupid Piece of Sh*t"to demonstrate her ongoing battle with depression and her own creativity. Princess Carolyn finds her own way to move past Bojack's interference in her life and career and Mr. Peanutbutter has at least one important revelation about his personal and romantic failings.

Bojack Horsemanends as it ran: extremely well and respect towards the unavoidable reality of cause and effect. What happens to its characters is not surprising to anyone who has been paying attention, but the beauty in how the story is told and the knowledge that their choices and actions mattered is more than enough to cement its final episodes as a worthy finale to a truly excellent show. It's not too much, man. It's precisely enough. What more could anyone ask for?

Bojack Horseman's final season is now streaming on Netflix.