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Top Ten BoJack Horseman Episodes

BoJack Horseman had a lot of terrific episodes throughout its six seasons, ranging from comedic to highly dramatic to even truly tragic ones. For my list, I tried to include that versatility, so I chose the best episodes throughout the whole emotional spectrum. Without further ado, here are its ten best episodes with a couple of honorable mentions.

10. Ruthie

We start with the heartbreaking one. Yes, Ruthie truly manages to pull the rug beneath your feet, and utterly destroy you in the process like the best BoJack Horseman episodes do. they fool you into thinking that Princess Carolyn is going to have a happy future and a child of her own in this “future”, but it all turns out to be just her imagination. Some tough stuff right there.

9. The View from Halfway Down

This one also deals with a dark issue – death itself. This penultimate episode is ingenious not just in incorporating every single diseased character from the show into its narrative and giving them all a proper due and dialogue, but by utilizing on such powerful, outstanding visuals that really make for an appropriately otherworldly viewing experience.

8. Escape from L.A.

This is one of the earlier episodes on this list in a show that mostly became much better later on, but this episode hinted on its greatness quite early with a powerful, again very difficult to watch scenario. BoJack here screwed up really badly, and the consequences of his actions here would be felt many seasons from this point on, only further cementing this episode’s importance status.

7. Nice While It Lasted

I loved the finale. It’s everything I wanted from this show, and I was glad that they delivered such a perfect conclusion. They did not kill the protagonist off which was a great choice, but they did portray the sadness in the fleeting friendships, and thus it was incredibly realistic and very poignant. The entire structure worked out flawlessly with BoJack getting to have a talk with each of the four main characters, and every conversation, especially the last two, was immensely emotional, offering truly amazing closure for everyone involved, including us the audience.

6. Best Thing That Ever Happened

This episode almost entirely revolves around this restaurant where BoJack and Princess Carolyn have to duke it out. The result is a nobody is spared, everyone is hurt scenario which proved to be a difficult, but essential watch. I have always considered these two’s relationship to be probably the quintessential one of the entire show, and this story made use of it perfectly.

5. Xerox of a Xerox

This was the season 6 episode which was built up throughout this entire season, and gloriously so. It was all worth it as this first interview that the horse has is so perfect that it again fools you into thinking that he will be okay after all. But then, the second interview happens, and he gets entirely destroyed, every single of his mistakes being highlighted on national television. It was devastating to see his spectacular doom, but the episode also truly gets how these interviews and the media work, which made for a very sophisticated storyline.

4. Free Churro

In a show that almost never shuts up, this is a perfect representation of that. Yes, Free Churro is the most talkative BoJack Horseman episode of them all, and its most brilliantly confined. Beatrice has died, and it is up for BoJack to give his mother an eulogy in an episode that mostly focuses on his face alone, leading to a tremendous emotional intensity. It potently explores just how complicated his feelings toward his mother are.

3. The Old Sugarman Place

This is one of the most beautiful, perfect episodes of this show as it works on multiple fronts. It secludes BoJack to a different area and accentuates his loneliness and depression and hopelessness. It gives him a wonderful companion in this widower dragonfly who also has his emotional issues. It explores Beatrice’s heartbreaking history, and finally gives her story and character nuance. Plus, it features an unforgettable, thrilling underwater sequence.

2. Let’s Find Out

The comedy episode of the list, the only one literally, just had to be Let’s Find Out. The titular program hosted by Mr. Peanutbutter is hilarious in its long title, and so fun in its format and execution. It portrays BoJack’s vanity and stubbornness perfectly, but Daniel Radcliffe’s guest starring role is just amazing and absolutely hysterical. The ending is shocking, but also instantly memorable.

1. Fish Out of Water

This is it, not just the best BoJack Horseman episode, but one of the greatest episodes of all television of all time. Yes, words cannot describe my love for this brilliant story. Unlike Free Churro and most episodes of the show really, Fish Out of Water is a silent half hour of television that takes BoJack’s voice away from him, and we are left in silence just to awe at the gorgeous underwater environments at display. This is the episode which utilized the show’s animated format at the greatest capacity, and the animation is brilliant, colorful, artistic and just stunning. The adventurous elements worked, the character development is splendid and the emotional engagement is unprecedented, especially in that touching sea horse subplot.

Honorable Mentions:

That’s Too Much, Man! – This honorable mention sees Sarah Lynn die in BoJack’s company. It’s an episode that is not only so tragic, but it proved to be crucial for the whole rest of the show.

Downer Ending – This rare great season one installment sees the first big fight between BoJack and Diane. It was important and so well done.

The Amelia Earhart Story – This is another terrific episode starring Princess Carolyn as it focused on her quest for adoption. It’s so moving and rich as most of her episodes are.

You can get the first two seasons of BoJack Horseman on Amazon.