Summary: BoJack goes with Diane to New York to meet with Pinky. BoJack gets a deadline on his book and Diane learns her father has died. BoJack goes with Diane to see her family and Diane gets aggravated by them after organizing a funeral which they don't go to. Diane rages and leaves, so BoJack goes to find her and they bond a little bit. BoJack decides to leave a voicemail for Herb. After BoJack leaves, Todd turns his house into "Boreanaz House", a new business venture. Princess Carolyn helps him out, but when they attract unwanted attention, Todd is arrested.
The Good: I appreciate that this episode focused on Diane and expanded on the character. She was bland and lacking in personality in the first four episodes, but now I have a far better idea of who she is and how she operates. I could sympathize with her family troubles, and it was surprising to see a more unhinged and angry side of her after being presented with her calm and composed side for so long. It was a surprise for me as it was for BoJack, and I grew more attached to her as a person. The final scene between her and BoJack was especially strong. BoJack had been his usual silly self throughout the episode, but it's evident that he saw a bit of himself in Diane's struggles, so he chose to put in some effort to help her break away from her clearly emotionally abusive family. It's a sweet thing for him to do, and it helps form a bond between these two characters. It's always important to have likeable characters and deep character relationships, so getting a scene that develops a connection between these two is an encouraging sign. I really like that the show was willing to tackle a thematically difficult idea like addressing when it may be better to leave behind your family. It's a much darker and more realistic idea to consider that family might not always be a good thing. There are some good moments of comedy throughout. BoJack being entitled at the airport is amusing, and I got a good laugh out of how fascinated he was by Diane's kaleidoscope. I also laughed at the sorry state of Pinky's publishing company, with little things like Diane sitting on a pile of books adding to the amusement (he can't even afford a third chair). I like how this show is handling the birds attempting to blackmail BoJack. This feels like it's an important detail, but they are struggling because they can't get in touch with him to do the blackmail. That's a creative idea. The Boreanaz House is decently funny when it starts up. The Bad: Otherwise, Todd's storyline is a total bust for me. Again, this is because I feel like I have such little clarity about who Todd is supposed to be. His morals, beliefs, and desires seem to shift with every passing scene to service the plot. I struggled to understand how he even got Boreanaz House to happen and why it became such an illegal operation. I'm not sure what to make of him going to jail. With the level of unrealistic stupidity in this storyline, I find it hard to buy into Todd going to jail as a serious event. I imagine it will just lead to more nonsensical comedy. A storyline like this also hurts the show's world and tone. This show likes to parody society and offer up some more serious themes. But this story is just cartoonish, nonsensical slapstick, and that clashes with everything that the show is trying to be. Diane's family is okay, but they aren't funny and are uninteresting to watch. I didn't find them to be realistic enough for me to fully understand Diane's pain, nor did I find them funny enough to enjoy their presence. Diane's big moment of snapping was awkwardly voice acted, which made it difficult to take seriously. For such a major moment in the episode, it fell flat. Despite a few decent jokes, this story still was not funny enough for me to enjoy it. Even the ending joke with the chum barrel did not get a laugh out of me. It was underwhelming and unfunny. The Unknown: BoJack definitely identified with Diane through their shared childhood traumas. This does bring up the question, where is BoJack's family? Are his parents still alive? Has he cut himself off from them like Diane has from her family? What happens to Todd now? It looks like he's going to end up in jail. Best Moment: BoJack and Diane's moment in the dump was surprisingly effective. Though this show is struggling for comedy, it offers up some genuinely meaningful messages, especially for an animated comedy. Character of the Episode: Diane. Conclusion: This was another episode that had its heart in the right place, but couldn't overcome this show's biggest problems. Score: 56
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Aaron DhillonJust a university student who loves to watch TV. And analyze it way too much. Archives
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