In its second season, released on Netflix on July 17, BoJack Horseman continues its look at the life of its titular character, a self-destructive has-been actor who is trying to get his shit together — and is also a horse (voiced by Will Arnett).
The series also touches on subjects that have plagued Hollywood — or, as the show calls it, "Hollywoo" — for years. In Episode 7, BoJack and writer Diane Nguyen (Alison Brie) embark on a book tour for their BoJack biography, and his sordid past comes up.
After being asked if she's worried her book will harm BoJack's reputation, Diane gets into hot water when she replies that plenty of public figures have been accused of worse and their careers are doing just fine — she even names several real-life celebrities: Mike Tyson, Sean Penn, Josh Brolin, Christian Slater, Woody Allen, and Bill Murray.
The public is horrified that she mentions beloved late-night TV host Hank Hippopopalous (Philip Baker Hall), who has been accused of sexual misconduct by eight of his assistants.
Hmm, that sounds pretty similar to the David Letterman allegations in 2009. ANYWAY, pretty soon, Diane is getting attacked left and right by Hippopopalous' fans for bringing up those details — even though they have been public for years. Which also sounds quite similar to the situation when allegations against Bill Cosby reemerged in 2014, a decade after they began.
A website called Tit Puncher publishes a story calling Diane a "feminutcase" and a "feminist slag," while talk show pundits use her Asian heritage against her.
The more Diane defends her actions, the more the female accusers are vilified for daring to speak ill of "Uncle Hanky."
Eventually, Hank confronts Diane in a parking garage and tells her how it works in Hollywoo.
And unfortunately, he's right. After receiving death threats, Diane leaves to report on a genocide in a war-torn country called Cordovia.
And everyone moves on to the next big story.
