A field guide to BoJack Horseman's Hollywoo

January 30, 2020

Springfield. South Park. Arlen. Quahog. Most cartoons are set in fictional cities, or real cities’ highly fictionalized equivalents. But as "BoJack Horseman" creator Raphael Bob-Waksberg says on the eve of its conclusion — the series’ final eight episodes are now streaming on Netflix — the animated series’ anthropomorphized “Hollywoo” is “not Toontown from ‘[Who Framed] Roger Rabbit.’ It’s Los Angeles.”

We agree: Los Angeles is all over our Field Guide to BoJack Horseman’s Hollywoo. So read on.

BoJack Horseman

“I'm responsible for my own happiness? I can't even be responsible for my own breakfast!”

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Live

No one can call you washed up if you live far above the maddening crowd in Laurel Canyon.

Eat

Impress that up-and-coming indie director with Old Hollywoo elegance — then hit your favorite dive to drown your sorrows when you put your foot in your mouth.

Work

Nothing says “comeback” like a trailer on the Warbler Bros. lot.

Play

Stop by a Sunset Strip comedy club to pay your respects.

Diane Nguyen

“This is all part of my writing process.”

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Live

The backbone of the entertainment industry is also near the bottom of the income ladder: Writers take what they can when it comes to Hollywoo's exorbitant cost of living.

Eat

Grab-and-go subs are a tried-and-true favorite for hunching in front of your keyboard all day.

Work

It might not be Ibsen, but Hollywoo is reading what you write — even if they don’t know it’s you.

Play

Keep your writerly blues at bay with the plethora of cultural pursuits Hollywoo has to offer.

Creator's note: “I always loved ‘The Critic’ and how specifically ‘New York’ it was,” Bob-Waksberg says of his inspiration, referring to the animated program about a film critic voiced by Jon Lovitz. “I wanted to capture something similar about L.A.”

Princess Carolyn

“Put the corpse on ice, I'm on my way.”

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Live

Ah, Silver Lake. The commute to work is murder, but there’s nothing more relaxing than adding a brisk walk around the reservoir to your day planner!

Eat

Follow your favorite chef to his new venture, a hole-in-the-wall Italian joint.

Work

You’re a career gal through and through. A robot even. Beep bop boop blurp bleep!

Play

Wait, you get time off?

Creator's note: As Bob-Waksberg recalls, “BoJack Horseman” originated with a strong sense of place. He first developed the title character, a washed-up actor voiced by Will Arnett, after crashing at a friend of a friend’s “isolating” Laurel Canyon home: “Who would live in this house?” Similarly, he says BoJack’s agent, a high-strung cat named Princess Carolyn (voiced by Amy Sedaris), can be explained by her monster commute from Silver Lake to Santa Monica in the early seasons: “That would drive any person to madness.”

Mr. Peanutbutter

"I've finally realized: I'm good at people liking me."

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Live

Spanish-style villa in Beverly Hills? Ultra-modern manse in Los Feliz? Who cares? As long as it’s filled with people, you’re happy.

Eat

Rub elbows with other A-listers at a swanky Hollywoo hideaway.

Work

Do what you love, and you’ll never work a day in your life.

Play

The ultimate hobby of California screen idols: running for governor.

Creator's note: Bob-Waksberg credits supervising director Mike Hollingsworth with setting the tone for the series’ sharp, loving satire of the city in his animation of the pilot presentation, in which BoJack goes to a grocery store called J’Vons — a very L.A. mash-up of JONS and Vons. As Bob-Waksberg explains, it showed that “you can be silly and goofy and still have it feel like the real Los Angeles.”