The fifth season of the American animated television series BoJack Horseman was released on Netflix on September 14, 2018, and consisted of 12 episodes. It premiered with the episode "The Light Bulb Scene", and concluded with "The Stopped Show". BoJack Horseman takes place in a universe where humans and anthropomorphic animals co-exist. The series continues to focus on horse BoJack Horseman (Will Arnett), a washed-up 1990s sitcom star who plans a return to relevance with an autobiography ghostwritten by Diane Nguyen (Alison Brie). The season's overall narrative is mainly set around Philbert, the detective series that BoJack stars in. Other on-going plots include the struggling relationship between BoJack's roommate, Todd Chavez (Aaron Paul), and Yolanda Buenaventura (Natalie Morales), his girlfriend, and continued romantic struggles between BoJack's actor friend, Mr. Peanutbutter (Paul F. Tompkins) and Diane.
Season five contains many guest stars, including Wanda Sykes, Issa Rae, and Jessica Biel. The production crew was looking to diversify the series' cast, as to not only cast predominantly white people. The season's writers had the ultimate goal for BoJack to become sober and receive therapy, in order to move his character further. Prior to the season's release, Netflix sent a letter out to critics informing them of plot points not to mention in their reviews for fear of spoiling the audience; the letter was written from the perspective of Flip McVicker, a character from the season.
Season five was met with near universal acclaim upon release. One of the most acclaimed episodes of the season was "Free Churro", which received an Emmy Award nomination and an Annie Award nomination. Actress Issa Rae received a nomination at the 50th NAACP Image Awards for Outstanding Character Voice-Over Performance for her work on the show. The season received much analysis from critics and scholars, with heavy emphasis placed on its response to the #MeToo movement; other analyzed parts of the season include Philbert, Gina's musical number, and BoJack's strangulation of Gina.
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Thirteen days after the fourth season's release, Netflix renewed BoJack Horseman for a fifth season in September 2017. Series creator Raphael Bob-Waksberg, Steven A. Cohen, and Noel Bright continued to serve as executive producers. Cast members Will Arnett and Aaron Paul also returned as executive producers alongside production company The Tornante Company. Early planning for season five started in 2017. In an interview regarding the season, Bob-Waksberg noted that they attempt to take more creative risks with each subsequent season, and he enjoyed creating episodes during the season that were unique both narratively and presentation-wise.
Bob-Waksberg also mentioned that they "" every season, and that for season five, they decided to "[burn the bridge] of" Beatrice, the estranged mother of BoJack. The storyline revolving around BoJack's television series, Philbert, satirized the genre of "male anti-hero" television series like True Detective. The plot was introduced to aid commentary on how BoJack views himself and how the audience views him; the mocking of television writers through Flip McVicker was added to balance out the show's constant bashing of television executives and actors. It was also used as a way to offer commentary on the tropes of the character of BoJack and on the series itself. The final table reads for the season took place around early 2018. All episode scripts and voice acting was completed by July, and animation was underway. Diane's design was slightly tweaked by giving her a new haircut, which Bob-Waksberg later joked was a significant part of season five's production. Shortly following the season's release, Netflix renewed the series for a sixth and final season.
According to Bob-Waksberg, partial inspiration for the season came from his agency, Creative Artists Agency, who had signed Mel Gibson on as a client around the season's production. Bob-Waksberg took offense to this, due to Gibson's prior controversies and used it as inspiration for the season's theme of forgiveness and how long it takes before a person deserves such forgiveness. According to Bob-Waksberg, the season's parallels to the Harvey Weinstein scandals were not planned originally but were somewhat incorporated into the season once they became public; the scandals did not affect much about the overarching narrative of the season. The majority of season five was written before the scandals against Weinstein came out, and Bob-Waksberg claimed it worked in the season's favor, allowing it to mimic real world issues, without being explicitly about a certain issue. However, a co-worker of Arnett had met Weinstein at a party beforehand, and he commended the show's staff for their work on the episode "Fish Out of Water"; this made Bob-Waksberg worry that people like Weinstein were going to get the wrong impression from the series, and so he used that concern to influence part of the season and to end BoJack's continuous chances at redemption.
To create the season's storylines, the writers decided to formulate plots more organically, rather than taking from real-life. While creating the season, they ultimately decided that the season should contain BoJack getting sober and beginning therapy. The writers felt that they had to further change his character and so incorporated BoJack's attempts at sobering up. Many viewers took offense to BoJack's characterization in season three, finding him "irredeemable", but felt he was much more pleasant in season four; the writers wanted to emphasize to the audience during season five that it was still the same character, and so they made him much more complex and even worse at times. Bob-Waksberg made note of the #MeToo movement, which "fed into the plot" of the season. The movement forced him to reconsider the show's own culpability, and so they made the season hoping to show the audience that "this kind of behavior isn't cool, don't emulate this." The writer's room made sure to not portray BoJack in a strictly positive light in the season, as they didn't want to "glamorize him" and mislead the audience into believing he was someone they should aspire to be like. Gina was written to be "as fleshed out [as she could be] in one season", as to have her actions and characteristics towards BoJack be understandable for the audience.
Will Arnett and Aaron Paul continued to appear as the series' titular protagonist BoJack Horseman and Todd, respectively. Amy Sedaris, Alison Brie, and Paul F. Tompkins also returned for the season. Season five also includes multiple guest stars, such as Wanda Sykes, Issa Rae, and Jessica Biel. Rami Malek stars as the reoccurring Flip McVicker, a character that was introduced in the previous season. After last being seen in the third season finale, Margo Martindale returned as Character Actress Margo MartindaleâÂÂa fictionalized version of herselfâÂÂduring the fifth season, in a smaller cameo role. According to Bob-Waksberg, the casting crew wanted to hire more people of color to guest star on the show, as they didn't want to "[give] all the juicy parts to the white people". The crew started to keep track on the amount of minority groups they had given roles to, in order to "[get] better every year as a function of both actors hired and lines of dialogue".
To promote the series' renewal, Netflix posted a video announcement on social media, showcasing a text exchange between BoJack and an executive from Netflix, who informs him of the renewal. Prior to its release, it was reported the season would premiere on the subscription-based streaming video on demand platform Netflix, like all previous seasons of the show, and a set release date was announced in June 2018. The official trailer for the season was released by Netflix on September 4, 2018, ten days before its premiere. The season was released on September 14, 2018, consisting of twelve episodes.
Prior to the season's release, screeners were given to critics. In most cases, Netflix gives a bullet-pointed list of spoilers to not mention in their reviews, but they decided to instead send them a letter posing as Flip McVicker. The letter had a "demanding, condescending, and contemptuous" tone, whilst also satirizing the idea of a "spoiler letter". It included the statement: "All you have to do is stand there and reflect... TV is a mirror. But that's not all TV is. TV is also a bitch. TV is a lover. TV is a child. TV is a mother."
The character of BoJack has been called an embodiment of the #MeToo movement, particularly with his traits of toxic masculinity and misogynistic attitudes. Jen Chaney of Vulture noted that the season devoted much of its runtime to the #MeToo movement, calling Gina an example of this; she claims that Gina's decision to keep BoJack's assault against her quiet shows that she does not want to challenge a system that is constantly rigged. Chaney insinuates that the series of Philbert, particularly its misogynistic protagonist, is meant to parallel BoJack Horseman, both containing similar themes and starring a male character who is "fixated on his psychological issues". Writing for her book The Limit of #MeToo in Hollywood, author Margaret Tally suggests that the season was written to emphasize the dysfunctional nature of BoJack, using this as a way to also show that his behavior is not unusual amongst other men in Hollywood. Tally also says that the season uses BoJack's characterization to show that he has changed, pointing out how, despite his hesitation, he agrees to do a nude scene for Philbert without arguing with Flip over it, but stands up for other women on the set when put in similar situations.
Essayist Arya Rani points out that the season openly mocks Hollywood figures who do the bare minimum yet are hailed as trailblazers. She discusses this in the context of Vance Waggoner, a character from "BoJack the Feminist", who parodies individuals in the entertainment industry granted second chances they donâÂÂt deserve. Waggoner is awarded a "Lifetime Achievement Award in Forgiveness" after publicly admitting to attempted sexual assault of a police officer, racist remarks toward Jews, and the rape of women on movie sets. Vance originally starts out on the series as a caricature of Mel Gibson, but grows into a more general parody of the misbehavior many men in Hollywood commit.
The Philbert storyline is a satirization of shows that perpetuate toxic masculinity and other misogynistic traits, and acts as a parody of auteur filmmakers like Flip McVicker. Diane's unwillingness to accept the sexist Philbert script in "BoJack the Feminist" is described as an example of her role on set as the "feminist kill-joy"; she fights for feminist values but is often viewed by other characters as caring too much. BoJack is unable to distinguish what is happening in reality and what is happening in Philbert, an example of how he is unable to see that the series is a satirization of people who live like him, instead taking it as coincidentally mirroring his own reality. Professor Slava Greenberg takes Philbert as an "ironic" parallel to BoJack Horseman, both being released on streaming services and both containing misogynistic male protagonists. Flip's treatment of women has been likened to the treatment of The Comeback's character of Gigi; Flip ignores and demeans the women writers on Philbert, even telling one to simply "collect [her] paycheck" and not bother him, treatment that Gigi often endures for simply suggesting story ideas. In his review of the season, Greg Cwik of Slant suggests that Philbert serves to reinforce the theme that life imitates artâÂÂparticularly BoJackâÂÂs lifeâÂÂa motif explored frequently throughout the season.
In "The Showstopper", BoJack, while high on painkillers, hallucinates his girlfriend Gina singing an elaborate musical number entitled "Don't Stop Dancing 'Til the Curtains Fall". The song takes inspiration from other musicalsâÂÂnotably CabaretâÂÂand deconstructs the assertion that "the show must go on". The sequence includes multiple actors dressed as different people in BoJack's life, particularly the people he's previously hurt. The song perpetuates the belief that movie stars like BoJack should continue to entertain and merchandise themselves until their death, even if it causes them pain and suffering. BoJack uses the song to reassure himself that he can push through his pain by continuing to perform, reiterating similar advice he previously told to his past co-star Sarah Lynn. He wishes to leave show business, but his worries of emasculation and fears of losing out on profit force him to continue. The scene shows that BoJack has lost control of his subjectivity, and is more concerned with not being good enough than his mental well-being.
Near the end of the same episode, BoJack strangles Gina while filming Philbert after taking an excess amount of painkillers in a single day. The act ironically calls back to a previous episode in the seasonâÂÂ"BoJack the Feminist"âÂÂwhere BoJack preaches not to choke women, the only feminist value he exhibits in the episode. In the book Psychology and Pop Culture: An Empirical Adventure, the strangulation is likened to the Harvey Weinstein scandals as an example of BoJack's blatant disrespect towards women. Critic Hannah Giorgis notes that Gina remains professional during subsequent interview appearances alongside BoJack, refusing to accept BoJack's apology and wanting to keep him out of her life; despite being an irregular way to approach the situation, Gina is still happy with it, and it doesn't make her suffering any less validated. She has finally made it in Hollywood, and doesn't want such an event to define her in the eyes of the public.
On the review aggregator Rotten Tomatoes, the season has an approval rating of 98% based on 48 reviews, with an average score of 9.3. The site's consensus reads "BoJack Horseman continues confidently down the thematic rabbit hole with a fresh and poignant season that's as devastating as it is hilarious." On Metacritic, which uses a weighted average, the season holds a score of 92 out of 100 based on 6 reviews, indicating "universal acclaim".
Ben Travers of IndieWire, who writes that the series seemed incapable of stopping its growth in quality, notes the season's effort to look inward and address controversy, even its own. Entertainment Weeklys Darren Franich gave the season a positive review, praising Rami Malek's addition to the cast and the season's commentary on Hollywood. Franich also called the season "a precision-missile focus on contemporary TV", giving it an AâÂÂ. Les Chappell, writing for The A.V. Club, viewed the season as "painfully funny and also one of the most incisive looks at the [human condition] there is". The review notes "The Light Bulb Scene" as a highlight of the season. In a review from IGN, Alicia Lutes praised the season, saying that it continues the streak of storytelling and emotional risks the series often takes.
The experimentation and building of its characters earned the season a highly positive review from Liz Shannon Miller, another IndieWire writer. Miller also commended the season for bringing a focus back onto the humor, even if she felt that certain jokes could be "overplayed" at times. It received praise from Samantha Nelson of The Verge, noting its ability to have a surplus of ideas in each episode, as well as its witty dialogue, as highlights. However, he found Todd's sub-plots to be noticeably lower quality than others; despite finding his plot in episode 3 to be both humorous and sentimental, Nelson describes Todd as being a "relic" of the season's early seasons. For Vox, Emily VanDerWerff commended the show's response to the #MeToo movement, suggesting that the series uses BoJack as a stand-in character to comment on it and other relevant issues.
Caroline Framke of Variety branded "Free Churro" as one of her favorite television episodes of 2018, praising Will Arnett's performance as BoJack and ultimately noting the episode as a triumph of the season. Moreover, Lester Fabian Brathwaite, writing for Observer, called "Free Churro" a "tour-de-force performance", saying the episode is evidence that the series is one of Netflix's best, adding that it "soars because of its eloquence". Alan Sepinwall of Rolling Stone praised the episode for its theatrical structure, drawing comparisons between its final gag and the ending of "Fish Out of Water".
At the 46th Annie Awards the season won two awards, Best General Audience Animated TV/Broadcast Production and Outstanding Achievement for Voice Acting in an Animated Television/Broadcast Production for "The Dog Days are Over" and "Free Churro", respectively. The season was also nominated at the 71st Primetime Creative Arts Emmy Awards for Outstanding Animated Program, also for "Free Churro", but ultimately lost to an episode of The Simpsons. The season won the Critics' Choice Television Award for Best Animated Series in 2019. Issa Rae received a nomination at the 50th NAACP Image Awards for Outstanding Character Voice-Over Performance, but she lost to Samuel L. Jackson for Incredibles 2.