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Home , Animated sitcom

Tommaso Genovesi - MAF07 Screenwriting 4/11/'16 Analytical Essay 4. Choose 1-2 films or TV shows and analyse how they work within the narrative and stylistic conventions of a specific genre (e.g. , the , horror, film noir, situation comedy, soap opera, comedy, drama, sketch show, reality show, etc.). BoJack Horseman, Rick & Morty and the new philosophy of Adult . BoJack Horseman, the protagonist of the homonymous award-winning animated TV Show that premiered on in 2014, is a washed-up actor living in Hollywood, who used to be famous during the as the star of the hit- Horsin' Around. He leaves in a world where humans and anthropomorphic animals coexist and, as his name suggests, he is a horse. BoJack spends his days watching re-runs of his own show, drinking himself unconscious with his roommate Todd and avoiding any kind of stress or responsibility. This unorthodox, rummy premise does not prevent the show from dealing with deep and complex ideas, satirizing the film industry and the culture surrounding celebrities. Despite the (purposeful) randomness of its own set up, BoJack Horseman almost immediately reveals itself as a clever satire of the world we live in, a sad and surprisingly human take on society that manages to be as mature and profound as many dramas that explore similar themes. BoJack Horseman is just one of many new that delve into broad themes and ask intricate philosophical questions, and it does all that while still relying on shock value jokes and toilet humour to make audiences laugh. Travelling on the path paved by trailblazing shows like The Simpson, and even , these new productions use a conventional structure to create something very different. This is true for all kinds of animation. Shows like and Steven's Universe are fantasy series for kids that present a complex narrative with layered metaphors and thought provoking commentary that adults can also enjoy. does the same, creating worlds and characters that captivate audiences of all ages and walks of life. , though, is probably the genre that is experiencing change in the most visible way. The recent propagation of platforms like Netflix and the success of programming blocks like facilitated the development of animations characterised by outlandish matters and never seen before frameworks. Shows like BoJack Horseman and Rick & Morty illustrate this change perfectly. These shows work with the stylistic conventions of the genre they belong to (that is the animated sitcom), giving their own spin to the tropes and the overarching narrative. They abide by the canonical structure of this type of , with a duration per episode that never exceeds 25 minutes, the same, familiar environments in each instalment and an unchanging cast of characters dealing with a new problem every time. However, both shows take advantage of these familiar settings to deconstruct regular TV programming, to tackle subjects never touched before, at least not this way. Despite being decidedly different, BoJack Horseman and Rick & Morty can both be labelled as animated black comedies and they both build their stories on the same philosophical concepts. Rick & Morty is a weird mixture between the sitcom-like setting of the aforementioned Family Guy, the over-the-top science fiction of and a twisted version of the mentor-protégée type of relationship that Doc and Marty share in Back to the Future. The story of the show is equally distributed in three main sub-plots: Morty's family dynamics, his school life and the crazy multi-dimensional adventures he goes on with his alcoholic grandfather Rick, a brilliant scientist, a troubled man burdened by his own genius that may or may not be aware of being the product of someone else's imagination. Every episode tells its own story, often inspired by the works of H.P. Lovecraft and Philip K. Dick, introducing crazy concepts like dimensional travel and dozens of different alien species. In addition to the ubiquitous references to pop culture (Jurassic Park, The Purge and Inception among others), the show frequently refers to theories like Rationalism and Cosmic Pessimism, demystifying the purposefulness of life and embracing Albert Camus’ notion of Absurdism. These themes are showcased by Rick’s behaviour towards the people around him and life itself: his breaking of the fourth wall could be read as a signal of his awareness of being a character in a cartoon and explain why he doesn’t seem to care about anything or anyone. This undertone, rich of connections to western philosophy, is one of the many contact points between Rick & Morty and BoJack Horseman. On the surface, BoJack is just another animated sitcom with a slightly atypical setting, but after a few episodes dedicated to world building and character introductions, the show reveals its true colours. The beginning is almost mockingly silly but the comedy immediately gives way to the dramatic side of the show. The deconstruction starts with the removal of the concept of Status Quo: the characters must suffer the fallout of their own wrongdoing, unlike the protagonists of , where everything is cleanly resolved at the end of each episode. The series makes fun of this trope directly, through the sitcom BoJack used to star in, a parody modelled on shows like Full House. In one of the first episodes, BoJack steals the “D” from the Hollywood Sign, and not only the D will be forever absent from that moment onward, but people will start calling it Holliwoo. Every time BoJack expects life to finally give him closure, to suddenly turn into a sitcom finale, reality comes to, as he would phrase it, "kick him in the urethra". An example of this would be episode 8, where BoJack goes visiting a dying friend he betrayed in the past, looking for forgiveness: he does not obtain it, and the friend dies still resenting him. In BoJack, the silly punch lines are soon replaced by harsh, unapologetic realities and crippling subject matters, such as the contemplation of one's life experience, and the subsequent realisation that everything we do is meaningless. This is a motif that both BoJack and Rick & Morty scrutinize in different ways: the existential nihilism, a critical aspect of Friedrich Nietzsche and Jean-Paul Sartre's body of work, is at the core of these two shows' plot. In his Existentialism and Humanism, Sartre explains the meaning behind the proposition “Existence precedes essence”. He writes "[…] Man first of all exists, encounters himself, surges up in the world – and defines himself afterwards. If man [...] sees him as not definable, it is because to begin with he is nothing. He will not be anything until later, and then he will be what he makes of himself." Existential nihilism asserts that the entire human species is insignificant, without purpose and unlikely to change in the totality of existence. Rick embraces this reality and acts accordingly, abusing drugs, killing without feeling remorse and refusing to establish any meaningful, lasting relationship, not even with Morty. His view on life is conveyed through hilarious gags, such as the one where he builds a little robot over breakfast (out of plain boredom) that quickly develops self-conscience. Being questioned by the newly born machine about its purpose, Rick responds “You pass butter”, to its excruciating disappointment. Rick Sanchez is a man that has seen everything, and does not believe in anything anymore. BoJack, on the other hand, is longing for meaning, a purpose; he is looking for everlasting happiness but ends up burning bridges with everyone around him, therefore preventing himself from ever obtaining it. He is a damaged man that wants to consider himself good but, deep inside, knows that that is not true. This conforms to Sartre’s concept of Radical Freedom, that originates from his view of Existentialism: BoJack has total control over the choices he makes, and despite this awareness he keeps making the wrong ones. In every episode, we get to see the inhuman side of each character on the show, but also their frailty and heartaches. We see these men and women living inside the Hollywoo illusion, dealing with alcoholism, drug abuse and the consequences of their actions. This makes an unlikable protagonist like BoJack sympathetic, and the viewer ends up relating to him even when he is afraid of doing so. The dark tone of these shows, always counterbalanced by crass humour, gore and silly sex puns, reflects the world we live in, a chaotic mess where no one feels completely satisfied or happy. These series are more cynical interpretations of what came before them, more in tune with the society they are produced in. While we, the viewers, can expect Homer and Marge to get back together after every big crisis, we know that there’s no happy ending for BoJack; we are aware that, next week, Jerry and Beth will still despise each other; Rick will keep on hating his life and going on absurd adventures just to kill time. This approach to the depiction of relationships suggest that the authors behind these shows see our search for existential meaning as pointless. At the same time, though, these characters are entertaining us, making us laugh and cry, often at the same time. We create a bond with them. What these shows are really asking is if this time-consuming search for purpose is a path worth pursuing. A meaningful life can be found through friends, family and experiences. Even if all those things are insignificant if compared to the vastness of the Universe (or Universes), they are significant to us. We do not want to think that we are inconsequential. We do not want our way of living to be demystified by cartoon characters. But the truth is that these shows captivate us; they ask us deep questions that we cannot answer, they leave us wandering about our own lives and what is going to happen in them. We fear those questions. Our sole desire is to be entertained, while waiting for the moment when life, or rather its conclusion, will give us the answers. As Morty himself would say: “Nobody exists on purpose. No one belongs anywhere. Everybody is going to die. Come watch TV.”

References

- Admirable Animation #49: "The Telescope" [BoJack Horseman], at https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Lh-7GssaBIM&ab_channel=TheMysterious MrEnter. Web. 3 Nov. 2016; - Baggini, Julian. "Jean-Paul Sartre: Existentialism and Humanism (1947)." Philosophy: Key Texts (2002): 115-33. Web. 3 Nov. 2016; - BoJack Horseman, at https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/BoJack_Horseman. Web. 3 Nov. 2016; - Rick & Morty, at https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Rick_and_Morty. Web. 3 Nov. 2016; - - Finding Meaning in Life, at https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ez1rWBPznEc&ab_channel=WillSchoder. Web. 3 Nov. 2016; - Maglio, Tony. ‘,’ ‘Bob’s Burgers’ Kick Off New Wave of Animated TV Comedies for Grown-Ups, at http://www.thewrap.com/f-is-for-family-bill-burr- bobs-burgers-netflix-animated-comedies-loren-bouchard/. Web. 3 Nov. 2016; - Silentio, Johannes de, “Fear and Trembling”, Penguin Classics (1985): p. 17. Web. 3 Nov. 2016; - The Philosophy of BoJack Horseman – Wisecrack Edition at https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=rORIDYHOFTQ&ab_channel=Wisecrack. Web. 3 Nov. 2016; - The Philosophy of Rick and Morty – Wisecrack Edition, at https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=hWFDHynfl1E&ab_channel=Wisecrack. Web. 3 Nov 2016;