Season Analysis

BoJack Horseman

Season 2 Analysis

Season Woke Score

out of 10

Season Overview

With his memoir a bestseller and the movie role of his dreams, BoJack's ready to jump-start his career and his life. Unless he messes it all up.

Season Review

Season 2 continues the dark, comedic deconstruction of the Hollywood celebrity's conscience, focusing heavily on whether the protagonist can fundamentally change. The narrative strongly features intellectual and professional female characters who drive the moral critique of the male-dominated entertainment industry. One main character leaves Western society to seek altruistic fulfillment abroad, framing the home country as morally vacant. The season is permeated by a philosophy of moral relativism, suggesting that there are no good or bad people, only the consequences of actions. The central conflicts revolve around career ambition, the search for authentic meaning outside of conventional structures, and the toxicity of the male lead's self-obsession.

Categorical Breakdown

Identity Politics7/10

The character Diane Nguyen, a Vietnamese-American woman, serves as the primary moral conscience who consistently champions social causes and critiques systemic hypocrisy in Hollywood. One storyline centers on her aggressively attempting to expose an untouchable male celebrity (Hank Hippopopalous) for past abuses against women, framing the power structure as protecting the privileged white male.

Oikophobia9/10

The central intellectual character, Diane, views her American life and marriage as lacking in true meaning, leading her to abandon her home for the foreign country of Cordovia to pursue altruistic 'meaningful work.' This narrative choice frames Western civilization and its comforts as spiritually bankrupt compared to the perceived moral purity of a distressed foreign land.

Feminism8/10

Female characters like Princess Carolyn and Diane are strongly positioned as competent, career-driven individuals who are successful in a cutthroat, male-dominated world. Princess Carolyn achieves 'Girl Boss' status by leaving her firm to start her own agency, prioritizing professional ambition and self-fulfillment. The male lead, BoJack, is portrayed as a toxic, narcissistic, and broken figure whose self-sabotaging behavior mostly results in harm to the women in his life.

LGBTQ+3/10

The primary LGBTQ+ representation in the series, the asexuality of Todd Chavez, is only subtly hinted at in this season and is not explicitly centered until later. One main character, Herb Kazzaz, is openly gay, but his main role in this season is related to his historical conflict with the protagonist, not his sexual identity. The core narratives focus on normative romantic and sexual relationships.

Anti-Theism8/10

The show's core philosophical argument is a consistent examination of nihilism and moral relativism. Characters frequently discuss and operate under the idea that objective moral truth is absent, stating there are no 'good people' or 'bad people,' only the actions they perform. This constant deconstruction of transcendent morality forms the psychological bedrock of the entire season.