Bojack Horseman

Why you need to show BoJack Horseman some love.

Fans of this animated tragicomedy would have been very pleased with the news that a 6th season was picked up last month. Now after 5 very strong seasons there should never have been in question about a new season but I get why it's not everyone's cup of tea. BoJack Horseman is one of Netflix's outstanding original series but it deals with very difficult subject matter.

On the face of it, it is a satire on Hollywood/ show business but the meat of the episodes deal with self destructive tendencies. These self destructive tendencies are a consequence of various factors from trauma, anxiety/depression and addiction but what I've really come to like about this show is how it does not treat these conditions in isolation. A person could be going through these many conditions at varying degrees. I believe that the art style fits in perfectly with this tone and it has been known to turn people of from the show but I think there is an intention behind it. It's what you'd maybe see if you were handing a kid a few crayons. A kid with a talent for art of course. Kids see things like it's a blur and the same applies to people who suffering from the conditions I mentioned earlier.

Now, I'd like to highlight an episode in particular that is probably my favourite in the series so far. Season 3 as a whole in my opinion was probably the strongest so far but  Season 3 Epiosde 4 : Fish out of Water really stood out for me. It was BoJack's version of 'Lost in Translation', maybe throwing it back to old 'Buster Keaton' a little as well. While you could watch this episode in isolation even if you haven't watched any of the episodes before, I
believe it's important to know the context. It's a silent episode, which naturally shifts the viewers attention to the sound ( or lack of it in this case ) and visuals ; and for large parts it is absolutely mesmerising. It also deals with one of BoJack's most important themes of childhood trauma due to an upbringing in a dysfunctional family.

BoJack is at his worst when he's depending on
others to fill the void of a family and surprisingly at his best when he takes responsibility. This is a theme we see in later seasons but I believe this episode showcased the first signs of this void and his efforts to fill it. It also has a very poignant moment at the end of episode but just when you think BoJack has redeemed himself to an extent with his little adventure under water, the viewer is reminded that BoJack is his own worst enemy ( in line with the self destructive theme. mentioned earlier ).

The bits that really carry this show are the conversations between BoJack and Diane, the ghost writer of his autobiography. It's interesting that she's the only main character who's actually human. She is a Vietnamese-American intellectual and feminist. She holds this show together a bit like she does BoJack ( well there's only so much anyone can do with Bojack). I think it's a little unfair to call her the Asian Daria, but even Creator : Raphael Bob-Waksberg hasn't hidden the fact that Daria was one of his many influences when developing the show. I've failed to mention the bits of comedy in tragicomedy but the visual animal puns always get me ( penguin publsihers/the birth of venus portrait at the restaurant etc). They're just so so clever.


I find it quite interesting that Dan Harmon's 'Rick and Morty' has become extremely popular while BoJack hasn't received the same love from the masses. I'll be the first one to state how much I adore Rick and Morty but that series deals difficult subject matter. Everyone episode leaves you wondering about the futility of your existence yet there would've been riots had the rumours about it's cancellation been true. Anyway, I hope I've made a case for this gem of a series hiding in plain sight.

Red Dead Redemption 2

Believe the hype. 

When you look at the history of video games you have to rewind back to 2001, when Rockstar Games brought the open world genre into the mainstream with Grand Theft Auto III. Liberty City, a fictional city based on New York City gave players the opportunity to roam and navigate the city in a manner which was unprecedented at the time. You could move from linear story driven missions to side activities that had nothing to do with the main story line. 

3 years prior to this Hideo Kojima and Konami gave us Metal Gear Solid. Another game that was revolutionary for the medium. Those who played it at the time felt like they were in a playable movie. Kojima himself a movie buff saw potential for video games to be a medium for story telling with cinematic cut scenes and incredible voice acting. People often tend to forget how good the music was in this game. It rivals some of the games that are out even now.

This leads me to the last video game generation and the current one. We now have games like Rockstar's very own Grand Theft Auto 5, Bethesda's Elder Scrolls 5 : Skyrim and Polish developer CD PROJECT RED's Witcher 3 that have set the standard for open world games (Fuck off Ubisoft, you don't belong here anymore).They are massive in length  with loads of  great side activities and those who have had the pleasure of experiencing them feel like they are living breathing worlds. The Witcher 3 until a few days back was in my opinion the best game of this generation, it's a game very popular within the gaming community but doesn't get the attention that a new Rockstar Game or Naughty Dog game will get by those outside it ( maybe a fromsoftware game).  That sounds like a stupid thing to say  of course those outside the gaming community won't care about your stupid Witch game. But what I mean is that the occasional gamer might buy a Last of Us 2 or Grand Theft Auto VI when they eventually release and even a non gamer will probably have heard of those games. Maybe the Netflix series scheduled in the coming years will change that a little but we've seen how games have crashed on the big screen before and that might actually do games a disservice. So let games be games ?

I believe that Red Dead Redemption 2 is a landmark title for video games not because it's one the best games of all time, which it definitely is in my opinion but because it's the most important video game of this generation. It is a realisation of the potential of games like Grant Theft Auto III and Metal Gear Solid that came  some 15- 20 years before it. Rockstar is currently dealing with allegations of poor working conditions for its employees and I can see why. This game is Rockstar's magnum opus. A story script that is 2,000 pages long tells you everything. Bloodborne, God of War and The Witcher 3 are still fresh in my memory but Red Dead Redemption 2 maybe just trumps these other exceptional games because it excels in so many departments that we rate a video game by. And no, I don't think any game is perfect or without flaws but they've made the most ambitious game to date and been successful at it. It's a western simulator cum epic western television show/movie trilogy cum actual shooting game. It's important that Rockstar were the guys who developed this cause no other studio has the power to market it quite like they do. They only just have the highest selling entertainment product of all time in Grand Theft Auto V.

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Now, I know that it came out not too long ago and not many have completed the game but I heard that the original game was only completed by 10% of the audience that bought it and I can see why. I think it's widely accepted among the television community that The Wire and Breaking Bad are two of the greatest television shows that we have had the pleasure of viewing but I've met so many people who couldn't get past the initial seasons. It was just far too slow for some but for those who actually went ahead haven't stopped eulogising about them even after all these years and rightly so and don't just appreciate them but believe it to be their very favourite. The Wire even had the HBO label backing it but that wasn't enough. It didn't even get the recognition by the awarding community like Breaking Bad did and The Americans has today. Reminds me that I have to watch The Americans. The narratives with slower story lines are  often like a qualifying tournament to check if you're worthy. If you're not patient, they weed you out and everyone else who stays gets to enjoy the actual tournament. And the best part is once you're in the tournament, you're already a winner ( prize money and everything and no stupid consolation prize ). My counter argument to the intentionally slow build up would be that smash hits like HBO'S Game of Thrones and Sony Santa Monica's God of War are instantly gratifying no doubt but they are slow for large parts later. They have a an immediate impact somewhere in the first act and earn your trust for the foreseeable future. Walking Dead fans look away now, your trust like mine was misplaced.

Anyway, Red Dead Redemption is a bit like that.You might have to grind a little in the beginning but what you get later is one of the best stories in any medium ever. I'd go as far as saying in this Golden Age of Television, the writing is  far better than most Television shows and movies today. I'll argue on another day why a lot of content doesn't necessarily mean a lot of good content. I watch Riverdale and CW shows as well.  The voice acting I think is better than most as well and maybe deserves  recognition in awards shows but you don't need to take me seriously. I believe Andy Serkis (motion capture) as Caesar should have got a nomination at the very least for the Planet of the Apes series sooo, ( he absolutely does) specially the final instalment which is criminally under rated.

With games like the Uncharted Series, Last of Us, God of War and Red Dead Redemption 2; I believe video games are probably the best medium of story telling now,  besides books. Go read. Video games aren't as accessible as watching a movie and that's always going to cast them in the shadows but they're the only one of these mediums that are interactive.  Also, every game isn't FIFA/Fortnite ( the eventual cause of many break ups in meme culture) . It's crazy that over the course of 80-100 hours I had myself tearing up over pixelated fictional characters. Arthur Morgan and Dutch Van Der Linde will go down as two of the most iconic characters in video game history. Games today also look better than ever with 4K TV's while simultaneously running at 60 frames per second. I'll write something bout Indie games another time and how that's a great start for your video game 'JOURNEY' ( see what I did there) . I think video games as a story telling medium will be the future and I love it. About time I hunted that Bullgator now. Just really grateful to Rockstar for believing in games with a narrative and creating an exceptional one at that. Happy gaming. I don't celebrate thanksgiving in this part of the world but I have something to be very thankful for here and I hope you do to.