Netflix recently released the first two seasons of this show on DVD. In Canada, they are not widely available. Recently purchased them to see why people were talking about this show.
It’s very, very funny. Not surprising with such a talented cast, I guess. But so many animated shows seem to try to mix sarcasm, intellectual humour, whimsy and ennui — and somehow come up short.
I’m sure some fans (I searched the SDMB) have been on board for a while. Rotten Tomatoes gives it something like 97%. But for those of us who don’t watch much TV…
I still haven’t really figured out what makes the show so funny? Anyone able to put this into words better than I can?
I like the show, but I dont really find it all that funny beyond a couple heh’s here and there. Which is head and shoulders above most of television which actively enrages me with its awful and insultingly stupid writing.
One thing they do very well, I think, is to not overplay the animals-as-people theme so once you get used to a whale as a TV talk show host or a turtle movie producer, then its fine and you get to enjoy some really thoughtful and often acerbic writing. And then when its all normal, they hit you with some completely-logical-within-universe bit of behaviour that would follow with a particular animal-person doing their own thing.
I’d not call it funny, maybe darkly comic or mordant humour might fit better. Regardless, stick with it, its worth the effort.
While I absolutely love the show, I’ve gotta say the humor, to me, is mostly secondary. It’s such great character study and exploration of depression, alcoholism, life-work balance, etc. I don’t think it’s unfunny, it’s just the drama of it overshadows the humor.
I think if you really love puns though, the humor probably is great.
I held off on watching it for several years after it first appeared on Netflix, just because I thought it looked a bit ridiculous, and I wasn’t that interested in a show nominally about celebrities. I’m now on Season 5, and think it’s absolutely brilliant. It’s a combination of multiple character studies, a biting satire of culture and politics, and both black and absurdist humor. There’s just so much going on in every episode.
Of course as a biologist I love the animal jokes. They’re often a bit of business in the background thought, and I’m always having to rewind to catch them. I particularly like the fact that when Mr. Peanutbutter drives, he sticks his head out of the side window, and that Princess Carolyn screen saver is a moving ball of yarn.
It’s not funny in the sense of laughing every minute. But it’s clearly not meant to be; and some of the themes are ridiculously dark.
But a lot of the ideas are insane. Just the idea of bit characters like Vincent Adultman, Character Actress Margo Martindale (whom I recognize from nothing), A Ryan Seacrest Type or Hollywoo in any context (they couldn’t replace the D?) are enough to make me smile. There are many easy-to-miss little jokes and bags of biting satire.
This rather sums up my opinion nicely. I’d go a bit further and say that it’s probably some of the best television currently out there. I can’t believe I gave it a pass all those years ago.
Very popular among critics, but I only know two people IRL that watch it. Given that it just was cancelled, I would guess it’s not that popular in general.
Yeah, I missed that one myself. That’s pretty obscure, but great.
I just watched the fifth season episode where Diane goes to Vietnam. I was laughing out loud because some of the characters in the background, including a Black-and-red Broadbill, were critters actually found in Vietnam. They really did their homework on this one.
One of my favorite animal jokes is when BoJack goes to New Mexico, and a couple of joggers go past the house where he’s staying: first a roadrunner, followed closely by a coyote.
Six seasons is a pretty good run for such a niche (and completely original) show. It sounds like Waksberg was kind of surprised to even get a second season, and isn’t really upset it’s winding up. It did a lot better than Arrested Development.
Margo Martindale really is a very good and kinda universally respected actress. She’s also quite the journeyman, her IMDB list is extensive. In fact she won an Emmy for her role in Justified - well deserved IMHO. She’s also been nominated for a Tony. So the show is absolutely on point with the satire on this one :).
One of my absolutely favorite shows ever. I thought it ended well too - didn’t overstay its welcome. Probably one of the best treatments of mental illness on television and could be amazingly hilarious. Best thing Netflix has ever done.
This is sort of a running gag. The Kentucky Derby is treated like a running race at a track/athletics meet, and there’s one episode later in the run where Bojack comes across a pack of wild horses running pretty much as if they’re a group of joggers.
