Keeping up with the performance of previous seasons, the fifth season received widespread acclaim. Based on 48 reviews, the season has an approval rating of 98% with average rating of 9.3/10 on Rotten Tomatoes. The website's critics consensus is, "BoJack Horseman continues confidently down the thematic rabbit hole with a fresh and poignant season that's as devastating as it is hilarious." On Metacritic, it holds a score of 92 out of 100 based on 6 reviews. Indiewire gave the season an "A" calling it another brilliant season and saying the series has become so great that it is "beyond reproach". Multiple critical reviews have praised the episode "Free Churro", calling it one of the series' best episodes and giving it Emmy buzz for both the writing and Will Arnett's monologue. Les Chappell of The A.V. Club observed that the episode "The Dog Days Are Over", in which Diane Nguyen takes an impromptu trip to Hanoi, can be seen as a commentary on the "identity crisis elements" of having the Vietnamese-American character Diane voiced by a white actress.
There aren't any new, notable characters for the season.