In the midst of the latest PR crisis, Princess Carolyn gets a life-changing opportunity. With Diane's help, BoJack finally faces the music.
Tropes:
- All for Nothing: The Philbert cast manages to cover up drugged-up BoJack strangling Gina as just the two of them acting out a scene that got leaked via illegal recording on the internet, but the show gets cancelled anyway due to Henry Fondle's unrelated sex scandal forcing whattimeisitrightnow.com to leave the video streaming industry.
- Because You Were Nice to Me: This is the stated reason why Sadie ultimately decides to let Princess Carolyn have her baby. Unlike the other prospective adopters, when Sadie first told PC she wouldn't choose her, PC took it well and wasn't mean to Sadie.
- Belligerent Sexual Tension: Quite literally, in that an argument between Diane and Mr. Peanutbutter escalates until they have actual sex. However, Diane insists that she's not getting back together with him and that they can't do this ever again.
- Bittersweet Ending: BoJack has ruined yet another friendship, Philbert is canceled despite all efforts to keep it afloat after the scandal due to a completely unrelated scandal, and Todd loses his job in the fallout and is forced to destroy Henry Fondle so he can't hurt anyone else again as a result. Meanwhile, Mr. Peanutbutter can't own up to his infidelity and ropes Pickles into what will most likely be yet another failed marriage and Diane is forced to come to terms with her own pride after she becomes his "other woman". However, this newfound humility convinces her not to write an expose about BoJack and Penny, despite him remorsefully begging her to, and instead convinces him to go to rehab, which will ultimately help him more. And Princess Carolyn finally becomes the mother she's always dreamed of being when she adopts Sadie's porcupine baby.
- Character Development:
- BoJack accepting that Gina has washed her hands of him with dignity further shows how much Herb's Rejected Apology was the only lesson that stuck with him.
- Back in Int. Sub, BoJack mocks the idea of therapy in order to make himself a better person. After he watches the video of him strangling Gina while strung out on painkillers, BoJack is so shaken up by it and the fact that he was too high to even remember doing it that he finally realizes he does need professional help and checks himself into a rehab center.
- Princess Carolyn has finally managed to curb her Workaholic tendencies, and she takes advantage of Philbert's cancellation to adopt Sadie's porcupine baby and finally become a mother.
- Comically Missing the Point: Twenty-something Deadpan Snarkers Stewart and Tracy, neither of whom are among the sharpest tools in the shed, don't realize that because they each wear one-half of what looks like the same broken medallion, are very much likely each other's long-lost twin.
- Cross-Referenced Titles: This episode's title, the "The Stopped Show", references the previous episode's title "The Showstopper". Both of these episodes are about Philbert's decline and eventual cancellation.
- Earn Your Happy Ending: In Princess Carolyn's case, at least. After years of trying and failing to start a family and struggling with her Workaholic tendencies, she decides to drop the Philbert project entirely and successfully adopts Sadie's baby, a porcupine girl, and becomes the mother she always wanted to be.
- Everyone Has Standards: When Todd hears what Bojack did to Gina, he yells at Princess Carolyn for not telling him. It doesn't matter if the horse is their friend; he endangered someone's life and that is not cool. He moves to shut down production immediately. Princess Carolyn convinces Todd to give them time to see if that's what Gina even wants.
- From Bad to Worse: Because Mr. Peanutbutter in unable to bring himself to confess he cheated on Pickles (twice), he ends up proposing to her instead. Between his infidelity and already poor history with failed marriages, it's made pretty clear this will not end well for him.
- Grey-and-Gray Morality: As Diane says, everybody does good stuff and bad stuff, we just have to try to do less of the bad stuff and more of the good stuff.
- Hard Truth Aesop:
- Sometimes there's no simple way to deal with abuse that will work out best for the victim because, even if their abuser is brought to justice, their place in the victim's life will inevitably become part of the victim's identity, allowing them to still hold agency over their victims and making the victims' trauma even worse than if they'd simply kept quiet about it. And there is nothing anyone can do about that.
- When BoJack begs Diane to write a new book listing every wrongdoing he has done, she puts her foot down, no longer interested in writing about him, for him, or with him. Just because you want to be held accountable for your actions doesn't mean simply putting them on display will make things better.
- Hypocrisy Nod: Diane is forced to acknowledge she has less of a moral high ground than she thought, and destroying BoJack would do no good, even if he wants that. She instead convinces BoJack that they both need to look inward.
- Interspecies Adoption: Princess Carolyn adopts Sadie's baby, a porcupine girl who is currently known as Untitled Princess Carolyn Project, at the end of the episode.
- Jerkass Has a Point: Stefani tells Diane upfront that the human holds everyone, including herself, at an impossible standard. Perfect for blogging purposes, but toxic for her own personal life.
- Karma Houdini: Deconstructed. The Philbert team manage to successfully cover up BoJack's drug-induced assault, with even Gina herself going along with it to prevent being known as "The Girl Who Got Choked By BoJack Horseman," though BoJack himself wallows in guilt and wants desperately to be held accountable for his actions. This leads BoJack to visit Diane and beg her to expose what happened between him and Penny in New Mexico. When she refuses to do so, partially because she's done writing anything for or about him and partially because it won't do anything to help him, BoJack decides to enter rehab to get help for fighting his addictions.
- Laser-Guided Karma: For the crew at least, they suffer this by virtue of being Apathetic Citizens. Due to some being stupid enough to film BoJack strangling Gina, the footage gets leaked online. They spend so much time trying to cover it up that they completely fail to stop the Henry Fondle scandal, which cancels the show anyway. Gina's the only one who gets anything positive out of the traumatic experience: a revived career.
- Mercy Kill: Todd puts an end to Henry Fondle after the scandal.
- Moral Event Horizon: In-Universe, BoJack considers his drug-induced assault on Gina as his ultimate low point.
- My God, What Have I Done?: A sobered up BoJack is blindly led through the plans to cover up his "accident". He finally convinces Princess Carolyn to show him the footage, and is horrified to see himself strangling Gina in his drug-induced state.
- Need a Hand, or a Handjob?: Henry Fondle's entire "career" is this, with people mistaking its pre-programmed innuendos and dirty-talking to be legitimate conversation and bold business tactics. The trope becomes inverted in this episode where it gets accused of sexual harassment over the harmless things it says when it's running low on power.
- Omnicidal Maniac: Apparently, the United States military, according to a headline on MSNBSEA, which decided to end a refugee crisis by bombing all of them.
- Once Done, Never Forgotten: Defied. Gina willingly goes along with the cover-up of BoJack's drug-induced assault, even when a remorseful BoJack offers to willing publicly confess about what happened, because Philbert finally kicked off her acting career. If word of the incident was confirmed, she knows that it will not only cancel the show, but she will become known as "The Girl Who Got Choked By BoJack Horseman".Gina: I don't want you to be the most notable thing that ever happened to me. I don't want you to be the question I get asked in interviews for the rest of my life.
- One-Person Birthday Party: Implied by Mr. Peanutbutter saying that Rob Schneider's surprise party "involves way less people" than him cheating on Pickles with Diane.
- Only Sane Man: Once again, Todd. When he hears about the strangling incident, he immediately moves to halt the show's production because someone actually getting hurt onset isn't acceptable. And he also seems to be the only person aware of how ridiculous the Henry Fondle scandal is.Todd: Uh, Henry Fondle is a sex robot, and he should not be a CEO of any company.Interviewer: When you say "sex robot", you're speaking metaphorically, right?Todd: ... No.
- Pride: Diane accepts that this is a problem of her's once she realizes that, while she doesn't have the same flaws as BoJack, she can't tell herself that she's better than him after sleeping with her ex-husband again.
- Sex with the Ex: Diane and Mr. Peanutbutter sleep together in what is revealed to be the second time since their breakup (with the first time having taken place offscreen, hinted two episodes ago, and confirmed in the previous episode), though Diane tells a disappointed Mr. Peanutbutter that she regrets both times and has no intention of getting back together with him.
- Sequel Hook:
- BoJack finally admits he needs professional help, and ends the season checking into rehab to get past his drug addiction. We don't find out the results of that decision until the next season.
- Princess Carolyn successfully adopts Sadie's baby and is last seen cradling the "Untitled Princess Carolyn Project" in her arms. The next season deals with her choosing a name for her daughter and her newfound struggles as a mother.
- Mr. Peanutbutter proposes to Pickles rather than admitting that he cheated on her, setting the stage for yet another failed marriage as well as the truth inevitably being revealed.
- "Shaggy Dog" Story: The efforts by the cast to bury any leaks of BoJack strangling Gina is ultimately all for nothing since the company ends up leaving the streaming video business due to an entirely unrelated sex scandal involving Henry Fondle.
- Status Quo Is God: In-Universe. Following the "Henry Fondle scandal", whattimeisitrightnow.com leaves the streaming business and returns to its original purpose: telling time.
- Surprisingly Realistic Outcome: Both BoJack and Diane note that rehab won't be a cure-all for solving all of his problems. However, as Diane points out, BoJack finally admitting he needs help is a good first step.
- Take That!:
- Mr. Peanutbutter compares cheating on Pickles with Diane to Rob Schneider's surprise party, only to backtrack and decide his situation is "way less sad and involves way more people".
- After whattimeisitrightnow.com decides to leave streaming, Flip proposes pitching Philbert to "that site where you pay your parking tickets. Or if we're really desperate, TNT."
- This Is Reality: Gina cites this as why she doesn't want to go public with BoJack strangling her: she points out that everyone would be more focused on the sensationalism of it rather than her trauma, career or desires. She would be forever labeled as "the woman that BoJack Horseman choked". Thus, there would be no way for her to move on and it would shape her image forever.
- This Is Unforgivable!: While Gina is willing to cover up BoJack strangling her for the sake of the show and her own career, she no longer wants anything to do with BoJack off the set. He doesn't blame her.
- We Used to Be Friends:
- Played straight with Gina and BoJack, whose relationship is destroyed after the latter's drug-induced assault.
- Played With between BoJack and Diane. After their altercation a couple of episodes back, BoJack and Diane are on thin ice, even if they clearly talk to each other with the same honesty and concern, and BJ will have to work hard to ever repair that relationship, if it happens at all. However, BJ's clear desperation and care for Diane's opinion as well as Diane's speech implies not all is lost: BoJack wants to get better, even if he's miles from admitting it and Diane wants to believe he can, even if right now she wants to see to believe.
- Working Title: In-Universe, when Sadie asks what Princess Carolyn is going to name the porcupine baby girl, she states "Untitled Princess Carolyn Project" as she can't think of a baby name at the moment.
