BoJack Horseman Season 4 Episode 1 Episode 1

BoJack Horseman season 4 episode 1, titled "Episode 1," begins with a series recap from the perspective of Diane, BoJack’s biographer and ghostwriter. The show picks up where season 3 left off - BoJack's Oscar campaign. As we see a glimpse of his success at receiving the award, his continuous poor communication with people leads to him feeling lonely and isolated, he can't seem to find any meaningful connections with people. The episode then shifts gears to introduce us to Princess Carolyn's new life as a talent agent, although it's left unclear whether her professional and personal relationships are better off as she hoped.

The meat of the episode focuses on Mr. Peanutbutter, BoJack’s former best friend who is now running for office as the governor of California. BoJack begrudgingly joins Mr. Peanutbutter’s campaign team but quickly finds himself in over his head. He feels used and unappreciated by Mr. Peanutbutter’s team and starts to lose his faith in the political process. Meanwhile, Mr. Peanutbutter is struggling to keep up with the demands of the campaign.

Throughout the episode, we see BoJack wrestle with his own demons as he bumps into old colleagues and tries to make sense of his past. He has a lot of guilt about the way he treated people, especially his former girlfriend Charlotte. BoJack is very self-destructive, and this is evident through his constant drinking and use of substances to try to numb his emotional pain.

At the same time, we see Princess Carolyn continue to face new challenges in her personal and professional lives, with her personal assistant Judah taking on more and more responsibility in her life. Her biggest challenge is to choose between her work and starting a family, but it’s still unclear which direction she’ll take as the season progresses.

All in all, the episode introduces us to the new status quo of the characters’ lives and sets up the themes for the season. We see the characters struggling with their own shortcomings, but also providing support to one another when needed. The humor is still there, but it feels more introspective and mature this time around, with the show tackling heavy themes like mental health and past traumas. Ultimately, "Episode 1" is a strong start to a season that promises to be just as emotionally charged and thought-provoking as its predecessors.