{"id":902,"date":"2026-06-18T15:06:59","date_gmt":"2026-06-18T15:06:59","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/wp.lancs.ac.uk\/glare\/?p=902"},"modified":"2026-06-18T15:06:59","modified_gmt":"2026-06-18T15:06:59","slug":"bojackthefeminist","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/wp.lancs.ac.uk\/glare\/bojackthefeminist\/","title":{"rendered":"You Can Lead A Horse To Feminism But You Can\u2019t Make It Think: ‘BoJack the Feminist’ and Nuanced Understandings of Gender in Adult Animation"},"content":{"rendered":"
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Bojack the feminist \u2013 Cr: Getyarn.io<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n

Animation often brings with it associations of fairytale tropes, cutesy characters, and family-friendly storylines (with the exception of a few innuendos for the parents). But the foul-mouthed animal-human hybrids of BoJack Horseman<\/em> (Bob-Waksberg, 2014-2020) exemplify the ever expanding, highly whacky world of adult animation. Although it is massively under-researched in comparison to children\u2019s animation (Mitkus, 2023), animation aimed at adults has the ability to more explicitly foreground complex ideas around gender, in contrast to the often subtler messages in child-focussed texts. This may be through tackling more mature aspects of gender politics, such as in various episodes of The Boondocks <\/em>(McGruder, 2005-2014) which feature discussions and portrayals of sex work. On the other hand, it could be through conversations between characters concerning concepts which may be seen as too complicated for younger audiences. Indeed, the episode of BoJack Horseman<\/em> at the centre of the following analysis includes overt mentions of heteronormativity; toxic masculinity; patriarchy; and how the media normalises problematic ideologies and behaviours – none of which you\u2019re likely to catch Charlie and Lola debating over pink milk.<\/p>\n

In the fourth episode of series five, BoJack the Feminist<\/em>, the audience are presented with a parodic representation of sexist men in Hollywood through the characters of BoJack<\/a> and Vance Waggoner<\/a>. Despite being clearly and (literally) cartoonishly misogynistic, the man and horse end up competing for the social recognition which comes with being seen as a male feminist icon. This, alongside the subplot which sees universally adored yellow labrador Mr. Peanutbutter<\/a> attempting to fabricate a tougher image for himself, allows for the construction of several masculine archetypes.<\/p>\n

It should be noted that the problematic ideologies communicated in the episode are done so for comedic effect, often through hyperbole. BoJack is framed throughout the series as a morally grey protagonist, and the audience is not necessarily supposed to like or agree with him, or any other character for that matter. In fact, this episode was made following the creator of BoJack<\/em>\u2019s discovery that Harvey Weinstein \u2013 the previously powerful Hollywood mogul and convicted sex offender \u2013 had watched the show. He felt a responsibility to more blatantly criticise men in showbiz due to fears his satirical portrayals of them may be misinterpreted (Harriet, 2023). With that being said, let\u2019s start by looking into the first aspect of masculinity depicted in the episode.<\/p>\n

The Woman-Hating Bigot<\/strong> and hegemonic masculinity <\/strong><\/p>\n

Hegemonic masculinity refers to the dominant type of masculinity in society, which seeks to uphold unequal gendered power dynamics. It is important to note that this is by no means the only type of masculinity, as is illustrated by distinctions between different men and male-coded characters. If you\u2019re after a more detailed breakdown of this, check out my post on different masculinities and femininities<\/a>.<\/p>\n

The relevance of this construct for this case study comes from the misogynistic language and behaviour displayed by both BoJack Horseman and Vance Waggoner throughout the episode, which coalesce to form the archetype of The Woman-Hating Bigot. Notably, as in the clip below, Vance in particular repeatedly sprinkles xenophobic, racist, and\/or antisemitic rhetoric through his anti-women rants, highlighting the coexistence of multiple prejudices within white hegemonic masculinity (Jewkes et al., 2015).<\/p>\n