Summary: BoJack calls Sarah Lynn and they go on a long bender. After crashing Sarah Lynn's AA meeting, BoJack decides he wants to do "amends" and completely fails at amends with Diane, Todd, Princess Carolyn, and Ana. He then drives to Ohio to check on Penny and accidentally scars her again. He continues the bender with Sarah Lynn who has a crisis over who she has become. BoJack takes her to the planetarium to help her feel better but she overdoses and dies.
The Good: This is BoJack at his absolute worst. The point of this episode is to paint an image of BoJack in the most negative light possible as he gives into every one of his weaknesses, makes everything worse, and proves to be entirely incapable of introspection and change. BoJack lost everything last episode so naturally his first move is to return into Sarah Lynn's life like a torrent, selfishly destroying her sobriety and dragging her into a bender all because he wants to feel better. He shows no regard for her or her life at all, constantly doing his own selfish desires and dragging Sarah Lynn into it. Following this, BoJack decides he has to make amends and does it in the worst way possible. He feels bad and so he goes to everyone he has to "make amends" with and does the most selfish things. He breaks into Diane's house and ends up breaking her arm as he pretends to apologize to her. He goes to Ana demanding answers and doesn't care enough to listen to her or even understand what she's talking about. He goes to a random kid and makes the most self-absorbed, shitty apology ever that was meant for Todd. He makes a scenes outside Princess Carolyn's house as he always does. And finally he drives all the way to Ohio to scar Penny once again, successfully completing his adventure of making each and every one of his relationships worse. Poor Sarah Lynn gets dragged into this mess and she pays the price. She seemed happy and genuine at the start of the episode, and once more it's the horrible influence of irresponsible, immature BoJack that drags her into this bender. As the episode goes on, Sarah Lynn's tragedy becomes clearer than ever. She didn't even want this life, and it's clear that the decisions of her parents forcing her into acting are the only reasons why she is here. She didn't want this life, she wanted to be a simple architect, living a quieter life. Her sad monologue near the end of the episode finally makes this clear, and it is tragic. Even sadder is how it took this long for BoJack to finally listen to her and consider what she has to say. All this time BoJack had been talking at her, leading to a horrifically disgusting moment where he "confesses his love" for Sarah Lynn, a scene that made me audibly groan in disappointment. Luckily Sarah Lynn did not hear, and BoJack finally got the chance to listen to her. He takes her to the planetarium finally, and he finally gives her a genuinely good piece of advice about how to cope with the struggles of life. But it was too little and too late from the father figure that let down Sarah Lynn at every turn. She tragically passes away in that planetarium, a death that is clearly BoJack's fault (the show even goes the extra mile to have the "BoJack" brand heroin kill her). This tragedy creates a moment where BoJack's awfulness results in irreparable consequences that will haunt him forever, a massive moment that is perfect to build the climax of a season around. I thoroughly enjoyed how this episode told its story. The blackouts allowed time to pass organically, making it clear that this is an extreme drug trip without copying the approach that was taken in "Downer Ending". It also helped create a feeling of disconnect throughout the episode, which worked very well to acclimate us to how lost and adrift BoJack is after all that just happened to him. Even in a dark episode like this there are still several little jokes that I enjoyed. The slow speaking slug that BoJack tried to salt, as well as the bird that got stuck drinking were amusing gags. I got a chuckle out of the parody of the rock opera incident that the bird discussed. The episode's best callback moment had to be Mr. Peanutbutter's poor accountant getting his family time ruined by BoJack destroying the playhouse he was building with his son. The poor guy can't seem to catch a break. The constant blackouts at Ana's place were amusing as BoJack kept coming back over and over again. Lastly, I got a chuckle out of the horrific parents who tried to use their kid to get fame by giving him to BoJack, which was darkly hilarious, a perfect fit for this episode. The Bad: Nothing I would call bad. The Unknown: Is Sarah Lynn dead? I'm quite sure that she is. How will BoJack react in the wake of her death? Was Penny actually okay before BoJack reappeared? How will his reappearance change her life now? Will we ever get to know? Best Moment: Sarah Lynn's tragic death at the end was devastating. Finally BoJack took the time to listen to her wishes, took her to the planetarium, and even gave her some genuinely thoughtful advice on life as a whole. But it was too little, too late as Sarah Lynn dies without us even realizing it. Sad stuff that gives some real consequences to BoJack's actions. Character of the Episode: Sarah Lynn. Conclusion: Perhaps the most bleak and depressing episode yet. This sees BoJack fall to a new low as he drives Sarah Lynn to her death through their unhealthy, irresponsible relationship while simultaneously utterly failing to see his own faults. It's painful to watch, but undeniably effective and masterfully executed. Score: 81
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Aaron DhillonJust a university student who loves to watch TV. And analyze it way too much. Archives
March 2024
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