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Introduction

The Light Bulb Scene is the first episode of Season 5 of the Netflix original series BoJack Horseman, and the 49th episode overall. It premiered with the rest of Season 5 on September 14, 2018.

Synopsis[]

BoJack has misgivings about his new show. Princess Carolyn visits an adoption agency. Todd interviews for a job at WhatTimeIsItRightNow.com.

Plot[]

BoJack is on set with Princess Carolyn for his first day of shooting Philbert for WhatTimeIsItRightNow.com. Flip yells cut after a red dye pack in BoJack's coat doesn't fire after Philbert gets shot.

During this time, BoJack begins to question Princess Carolyn about his character and the show, and why a website called WhatTimeIsItRightNow would even exist when people have clocks on their computers. Princess Carolyn assures him that his questions will be answered, but also asks him if it would kill him to smile. BoJack sarcastically smiles, and the red dye pack explodes in his coat.

BoJack finishes the scene from earlier, but afterward, he tries to express concern to Flip about his character. Just then, Mr. Peanutbutter interrupts them. BoJack then asks why the set looks like his house. Flip tells him he's never been to his house—it's supposed to represent how John Philbert feels: spare and lonely.

Mr. Peanutbutter remarks that it looks like David Boreanaz's house, and Flip reveals their set designer went on a tour there once. Mr. Peanutbutter then tells BoJack he's playing Julius Caesar on the stage next door for a short film. Flip leaves before BoJack can talk to him, but tells him they can talk tomorrow.

Later, BoJack has sex with his costar, Gina, although he finishes early because he's too distracted by his show. As Gina is about to leave, BoJack asks if she thinks Philbert is written poorly, if Flip needs to fix the writing, and also if she likes working on these types of TV shows. She replies that she gets hired because she does her job right, and she doesn't particularly love her character, internal affairs director Sassy Malone, it feels "gratuitous and male-gazey," but it pays her mortgage. BoJack offers her to stay and hang out, but Gina leaves because she enjoys being alone.

BoJack goes to his fridge and drinks his allotted amount of alcohol for the night. He likes one of Hollyhock's pictures on Instagram and calls her to make sure she knows that one of the hearts was from him. He tells her that he misses her, as she is away at college at Wesleyan University, and she tells him that she misses him too and she'll talk to him Sunday afternoon like they always do.

At her apartment, Princess Carolyn leaves as Yolanda and Todd prepare for the day. Yolanda is concerned Todd isn't doing anything particularly useful with his day.

Princess Carolyn goes to an adoption agency. After a heartfelt pep talk from the lady she meets with, she pays the adoption agency $60,000 in order to adopt a child but gets duped and stuck with a lazy, rude caseworker named Tracy.

BoJack goes to talk to Flip about the script; he has some concerns about the writing and his character. Flip assures him that it's all necessary and gets the idea from BoJack to cut the stripper scene and to only draw Gina naked, as it'll be more motivated by character.

Emily and her buff firefighter boyfriend, Steve, are out to dinner with Yolanda and Todd. Todd thinks up the idea to create a dating app for asexuals. Yolanda says asexuals who aren’t also aromantic are a small user base, but Todd says it's a great idea. He states that otherwise, asexuals would just settle for other asexuals that they meet, even if they have nothing else in common. Yolanda defensively says that could be a good thing.

BoJack and Gina film the nude painting scene, however, they have to cut when Mr. Peanutbutter starts shouting "Oohs" and "Aahs" for support. BoJack tried to protest the scene to Flip, saying if he's trying to get back at him for criticizing the script he shouldn't also punish Gina in the process. Flip tells BoJack that wasn't his intention, he just wants to make a great show, and he's the only one with a problem.

Gina even denies having a problem with the scene. However, while they argue Flip comes up with the idea to have BoJack star in his own nude scene where he gets on a stool and does a full body rotation while screwing in a light bulb. Flip says that he'll go back to how things were before if BoJack admits that he's only giving suggestions to hear himself talk. BoJack doesn't say anything so Flip tells him that they'll shoot the scene tomorrow.

Yolanda and Todd are driving home. Yolanda tells Todd that she feels weird that Todd doesn't have a job, ambition, or any direction in life as an adult.

Todd arrives home to find BoJack waiting for Princess Carolyn. He asks BoJack to help him find a job. BoJack tells him to interview for a job at What Time Is It Right Now.com as a janitor so that he can sneak into one of the Executive's office so that he can send an e-mail to Flip banning him from filming any more nude scenes.

Todd goes for the janitor interview but is told that he is overqualified for the job. He's taken straight to the top of the company.

BoJack is in his trailer when he gets a call from Todd, who is now President of Ad Sales. He tells BoJack that he can't help him because he has to focus on more important stuff, frustrating BoJack. Todd tells BoJack to talk to the showrunner.

BoJack goes to see Flip again and tells him that he's not doing the nude scene. Flip questions BoJack as to why he's making things so difficult when all he wants is to create a good show. He then forcefully tries to take off BoJack's robe, and BoJack admits he thinks the show is "dumb and boring and has nothing to say." Flip tells BoJack that if he doesn't see BoJack on set then he will see him in court.

Princess Carolyn returns to the adoption agency, but she's had no luck finding a birth mother and Tracy is still acting rude. She gets a call from Flip who tells her about the fight and how BoJack never showed up on set. It turns out he's waiting outside for Princess Carolyn.

BoJack tells Princess Carolyn that he never wanted to do this show, and he doesn't like his character, Philbert because he's "a drunk asshole." Princess Carolyn explains to him that it's just a character and that he can take off the character at the end and just be BoJack. She asks him if he can go to set for the next ten weeks for her. BoJack returns to set and removes his robe as he prepares for the nude scene.

Mr. Peanutbutter picks up Diane from the airport. The two are still friendly with one another, but when they arrive back to her apartment Mr. Peanutbutter gives Diane the signed divorce papers. They awkwardly shake hands before she gets out of the car.

BoJack is on the stool trying to screw in a light bulb, naked. After the scene he finished, he decides to throw a party at his house later that night.

At BoJack's party, Flip tells BoJack that he's sorry about their fight and that it's his first show. BoJack tells him that he's just trying to help him fulfill his vision. Flip tells him to not take things so personally and that "it's going to be a sensational season of television."

The last scene of the episode has BoJack staring melancholy at a fish dancer.

Cast[]

Actor Character
Will Arnett .... BoJack Horseman
Amy Sedaris .... Princess Carolyn
Aaron Paul .... Todd Chavez
Alison Brie .... Diane Nguyen
Paul F. Tompkins .... Mr. Peanutbutter

Trivia[]

  • Diane has a new haircut, a short bob with a shaved undercut.
  • Diane and Mr. Peanutbutter officially get divorced.
  • This is the first appearance of Gina Cazador.
  • The song featured in the beginning and ending of this episode is Los Ageless by St. Vincent.
  • When BoJack asks Princess Carolyn "why [they're] making a TV show for WhatTimeIsItRightNow.com, which is a website for people who don't know their computers already have built-in clocks at the corner of the screen?" he gestures towards the corner of the screen where the clock is located on a Mac computer.
  • BoJack drinks vodka "important from Russia."
  • The girl in the glasses, who at first doesn't look haunted for the stripper scene in Philbert, plays the double bass in Hooray! Todd Episode! and also appears in That Went Well. She speaks with a French accent.
  • Todd puts on a suit for his job interview and keeps it after getting hired as President of Ad Sales. He continues to wear this suit instead of (or, as the season finale shows, over) his usual attire for the rest of Season 5.

Intro Differences[]

  • In the living room, Beatrice and Hollyhock's belongings are gone. The bits of sticky tape on the deck window have been removed as well.
  • On the TV, a tribute to the theme's composer Ralph Carney, who died December 16, 2017, can be seen.
  • The kaleidoscope scene is replaced with BoJack moving through the set of Philbert dressed as the character. Not only does the set look almost exactly identical to BoJack's house, the camera also pans across the set in the exact same way, including a short skip between the living room and the kitchen.
  • During the party scene, an Excess Hollywoo segment about Philbert can be seen on the TV, and Pickles is standing next to the TV instead of Katrina.
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