‘Bojack Horseman’ Season six Part two ends an equestrian era of excellence

Netflix’s acclaimed animated series, “Bojack Horseman,” has finally come to an end with the second part of season six. In this final season, we return to where part one left off with Bojack attempting to pick up the pieces of his life by taking a job as an acting professor at a university. But when the dark details of his past start coming to public light, Bojack will be put to the ultimate test and see if its too late to change himself.

Ending a show as brilliant as “Bojack Horseman” was going to be a tall order to say the least. With its layered cast of characters and heavy universal themes, wrapping up this beloved series could have been a complete mess if in the wrong hands. However, outside of a few hiccups, this season brought it all the way home and ended on a note that felt in line with the show’s introspective nature.

A lot of what makes this season works is in how it brings the show’s numerous themes to the forefront in order to give payoff. Bojack’s past events with Sarah Lynn are especially focused on here, letting the show’s ideals regarding facing your past to come to the forefront, but with even more intensity since he must now also deal with the public discovering. This allows for a more meditative experience, giving the characters time to question their past and present selves. Similarly, many of the other characters are put in places where, in an attempt to turn their lives around, find themselves facing down their demons yet again. Whether it’s Mr. Peanutbutter trying to open a restaurant but finding relationship trouble, Todd trying to start a new life for himself but wanting to impress his parents or Diane moving to a new town but still finding reasons to be depressed, no stone is left unturned when it comes to giving these characters their appropriate payoffs.

The reactions and digestion of these arcs is what keeps your interest, ultimately. Probably the best example of this within this season is the penultimate episode, “The View from Halfway Down.” It’s become standard for the last few seasons to see “Bojack” take an episode or two and give them a visually unforgettable way of portraying a character’s dilemmas and with “Halfway Down,” this season takes that standard to hauntingly bleak new heights. Plenty of painful details from Bojack’s past appear in this episode that result in one of the most high octane and emotionally intense episodes of the entire series, which is saying quite a bit.

The decision to split this season up into two parts, however, is where things get muddled. With the numerous character arcs and events to be wrapped up, the brief eight episode format means that a good chunk of these arcs are not as fleshed out as others. In some instances, it works in favor of the season. Leaving some of the characters in places of ambiguity made the experience more believable and lets the audience fill in the gaps, with the final moments between Bojack and Diane being especially tender. However, in other cases, its clear that the show simply doesn’t have the time to dive in any further with some, leaving some of the plot points to feel somewhat hollow and without satisfying resolution. The final episode, while good in most of its execution, does have its structure exists solely to check off as many remaining plot points as it can.

Despite these faults, it does little to harm the overall excellent quality of this season as a whole. By the end, “Bojack Horseman” proves that it has had something beyond important to say. Whether we want to admit it or not, this show about an anthropomorphic talking horse has more to say about the raw, unflinching human condition than any show with people could ever achieve and has done so in an unapologetically original and brave way that will continue to stick with us for years after its run. If you have any doubt that this is one of the best television shows to ever exist, then this season will do more to prove you wrong. “Bojack Horseman,” thank you for letting us see ourselves like never before, your legacy will never be forgotten.