The Good Place Series Finale Review

WARNING: This review contains multiple spoilers for the series finale of The Good Place. If you haven't watched it yet and intend to, do not continue any further.

NBC's The Good Place came into the world four years ago, seemingly as a show about a woman who ended up in heaven when she didn't belong there. After a season full of twists and turns, the show threw one hell of a twist at its viewers in the first season finale, and the show was never the same since. Though at the time I wasn't a fan of that twist, I now see it as one of the all-time great TV twists. One that most shows wouldn't have been able to pull off so well. If done unsuccessfully, the show could have been absolutely ruined. Instead, though, it made this show into so much more than it otherwise would've been.

It's hard to say goodbye, but let's get to discussing the finale now. The episode immediately preceding it saw the show's beloved quartet of "cockroaches" finally making it to The Good Place, along with everyone's favorite good demon/fire squid and Not a Girl. The finale takes place many Jeremy Bearimys later and sees Jason become the first member of the group to decide to walk through the door they had established in the prior episode, ending his existence. It's all extremely bittersweet, but in the end, it's for the best. Tahani is the next to decide to go through, though she ultimately decides against it and becomes an architect. After Eleanor ultimately decides it's for the best, Chidi decides to go through the door and becomes the first to go through, since Jason was waiting to see Janet one last time before going through. Eleanor then helps Mindy St. Claire get out of the Medium Place and decides to finally walk through the door herself. Before that happens, she has to help Michael, talking to the judge and getting her to agree to let him become a human. Thanks to their contributions to the universe, the judge allows this and Eleanor's final mission is complete. Michael heads to earth as a human and begins to get acquainted as Eleanor walks through the door and ends her existence.

Going into this finale, there were a few ways that I definitely did not want to see the show end. At the top of that list was having the characters all walk through the door and ceasing to exist. Even as the episode made it clear that that was indeed how the show would end, I was against it and ready to be very upset with the way the show ended. Instead, though, the show was able to use the small amount of time it had left to make me feel that that was the only way it could truly end. It's extremely unusual for me to truly love a show's series finale. It's even more unusual for a show to actually challenge my previous perception of how the show should end and make me accept and even be extremely glad that the show wasn't ending it that way. Though it's sad to see the characters go through the door, that's just life. That a show known for throwing twists at the viewers week after week would end in a way that most of its viewers could've seen coming a mile away is so, so fitting. While life itself throws curveballs at you all the time, we all know how it will end. The Good Place was, at its core, a show about life and the human condition. This ending helped it continue to be that.

The Good Place was never a show that was going to have a very long run. It set out to tell a very specific story and that story reached its natural end. It could have gone on a bit longer, but it would've just been delaying the inevitable and making everything less enjoyable than it should be (just as Eleanor had done in trying to convince Chidi not to walk through the door). This was the time to bow out, and I'm grateful that they took the high road. I'll dearly miss the show and especially its cast of zany and wonderful characters (and the actors that portray them). I tried my best not to, but I cried from the moment that Jason said his farewell to everyone until the moment the episode came to a close. Even writing this review I'm still occasionally welling up with tears at the thought of this great show being over. Ultimately though, that just shows what a deeply special show this has been. I'll miss it, but I'm glad it went out with a bang. This was the best episode of television I've seen in 2020, and the best series finale I've seen since Veep.

I could wax poetic about how fantastic this show is and how wonderful the finale was, but I'm going to wrap things up here. This finale was truly perfection, and everything a finale should be. It provided closure to every major character the show has had, and even some very minor ones. It was so apparently crafted with love and care. It remained true to what the show was always about and served as the perfect sendoff for one of the best comedies on broadcast television.

Thank you to the cast and crew of The Good Place for sharing this show with us for four seasons. There were bumps along the road, but in the end, it stuck the landing in a forking extraordinary way. In the words of the great poet Michael Realman, take it sleazy.

Score: 10/10
Grade: A+

What did you think of the finale of The Good Place? Let me know in the comments below!

The Good Place S3E10 Review

In a one-off December episode, The Good Place picks up where it left off after its big twist three weeks ago. This episode explores interesting new territory, and gives D'Arcy Carden a big platform to stand out. Plus, it's looking forward to the end of the season, as only three episodes remain in the season after this one.


S3E10 "Janet(s)"

The episode begins with the group's arrival in Janet's void, and it brings with it a wonderful twist, the humans all appear as Janet. D'Arcy Carden has always been a standout performer in this series, and this episode gives her a wonderful opportunity to show us even more of her talents, as she acts like all of Eleanor, Chidi, Tahani, and Jason. Not only this, but she is also "neutral Janet" later in the episode.

Michael and Janet take a visit to the accounting office, where they discover how the system works. The episode makes good use of a running joke about how most new things that humans do are weird sex things. While they are there, they discover that no one has gotten into the good place in hundreds of years. This doesn't come as a very big surprise to us (I've seen many similar predictions across the Internet), but it does to Michael.

In the void, Eleanor confronts Chidi about their past relationship, and Chidi puts philosophy in the way of confronting his feelings. This shows a smart understanding of Chidi's character. D'Arcy Carden is enjoyable as the bickering Eleanor and Chidi, but her best impression here is Jason, who also discovers here that he and Janet were once married. That's a lot of developments packed into this episode.

As the episode ends, once again we head in a new direction. The humans are brought into the accounting office (where an alarm goes off, as, like Michael reminds them early in the episode, "Literally the entire universe is against you") and they run. There's a hilarious line where Jason volunteers to test an idea Michael has, which ends up taking the group to the good place. Eleanor's realization that this is, in fact, the good place is a wonderful way to end the episode, with the callback to her discovery in the season 1 finale.


This episode served as a brilliant bridge between the Earth-set part of the season and what comes next in these final 3 episodes of the season. It was also absolutely hilarious, with stellar performances by D'Arcy Carden and a wonderful visit to the accounting office. This episode entertained, and set the show in a clear direction going forward this season. Who knows what will happen when the show returns in January.

Score: 10/10

What did you think of "Janet(s)"? Leave your thoughts in the comments!

The Good Place S3E9 Review

The Good Place is a show that has constantly been changing things up as it goes, especially in this third season. The season started out with Michael pushing the humans together so that they would become better, then it changed to the humans learning about what happened and deciding to help others get into the good place, and the end of last week's episode hinted at change coming. This week's episode sees the group try to come up with a good-person blueprint while a threat approaches.


S3E9 "Don't Let the Good Life Pass You By"

The Good Place has been compared to Lost since early on, as it dumped strangers together in an unfamiliar territory, made game-changing twists, and early episodes had flashbacks to the characters' lives before. I've often talked about the show as Lost meets Parks and Recreation, for the reasons above and the comedy style. The episode begins in a way that most Lost viewers likely noted as inspired by the earlier series, with it showing us a character we don't know in a place we don't know living everyday life before we are shown the connection to the story we are following. In this case, Doug Forcett is going about his Canadian life until Michael and Janet knock on his door, pretending to be reporters.

Michael and Janet intend to observe how Doug lives his life, and there is some really good comedy here about Michael's excitement upon meeting Doug. However, the two discover how horribly Doug forces himself to live, as he does everything to help others and doesn't think about himself at all. Additional sadness hangs over all of this, as Doug has said that he is doing it all to end up in the good place, and we know that this motivation would actually cause him to get sent to the bad place.

While Michael and Janet are off visiting Doug, Eleanor contemplates whether or not she should tell Chidi about how they fell in love. Tahani gives some surprisingly good advice on the matter, prompting Eleanor to decide she should tell him. On a more comedic side, Chidi defeats Jason in a game of Jason's own making, because really all that needs to be done to defeat Jason in this game is to outsmart him. Before Eleanor is able to talk to Chidi, the demons arrive. Janet using her immense knowledge to fight off all of the demons is entertaining, but the brawl goes on much too long, leaving the ending to be rushed, as a bunch of information is dropped all at once. About 5 seconds before the episode ends, Janet deduces that the group needs to go to her void, and that means that they will die.


While this episode had its comedic moments, presented interesting philosophical problems, and moved the plot along, its pacing felt very off. Much of the episode was spent with Michael and Janet at Doug's, where they end up coming to a conclusion that was evident early on, and during this, the others literally wasted time. Then, a more time than necessary was spent on the fight, and very little was spent on what will matter going forward. I think that The Good Place is an excellent show, so even though this episode is quite weak by the show's standards, it is still a good episode.

Score: 7.5/10

What did you think of "Don't Let the Good Life Pass You By"? Leave your thoughts in the comments!

The Good Place S3E8 Review

The Good Place departs from the structure of its last two episodes this week, with a flashback-centric episode, where Eleanor deals with a bombshell that Michael dropped on her at the end of last week's episode.


S3E8 "The Worst Possible Use of Free Will"

Now that Eleanor knows that she fell in love with Chidi, she understandably really wants to know how that happened. They go to an Arizona public library (making a few good Arizona jokes all throughout the episode), and Michael shows Eleanor some memories from the afterlife.

Eleanor views memories of the reboot where her and Chidi fell in love. Jameela Jamil is a great source of humor in the flashback scenes, as the residents of the good place get magical pets, and Tahani's choice is a horse with her head that is very judgmental. Eleanor and Chidi falling in love has some really sweet moments, especially the tragic moment where Eleanor insists that her and Chidi's love will endure.

After seeing these, Eleanor manages to convince herself that this couldn't be the result of her own choices. She takes a hard deterministic stance, leaving Michael in a position to force her to realize how she is making her own choices. He shows her more memories to show her how her choices couldn't be determined, she is unpredictable. Michael trying so hard to make her realize this shows how far he has really come from his initial demon days.

The episode's ending sets up the future of this series. Michael decides on a grander plan, planning to make someone into a model good person. This will apparently send the group to rural Canada. Then, the bigger twist comes when it is revealed that Sean's team has made another portal to Earth. This episode also has the return of Vicki, who the group uses to test the portal. Tiya Sircar is great in the few moments the episode gives her, and this sets up some real excitement for next week.


This was a wonderful episode. From the lighter comedic moments to the more meaningful one, the episode nailed it. It traveled between the tones with great ease, and had great performances from the always wonderful Kristen Bell and Ted Danson. It also provided great excitement for what's coming up on the show.

Score: 10/10

What did you think of "The Worst Possible Use of Free Will"? Leave your thoughts in the comments!

The Good Place S3E7 Review

This week's Good Place takes the characters on two different familial adventures. The relationships this week are very strained, they are those between Eleanor and her mom, and between Tahani and her sister. Yet, the group has committed to help people get into the good place.


S3E7 "A Fractured Inheritance"

After the news that Eleanor's mother faked her death, Eleanor and Michael go to Nevada to visit her. They see that she seems to be living an honest, suburban life, but Eleanor refuses to believe it. The story has an obvious trajectory, Eleanor searches for proof that her mother is conning this family, she ends up admitting that she is refusing to believe it because she's upset that her mother had the capability to be a good mother, but never was to her, and then she talks to her mother. When Eleanor talks to her mother, she ends up discovering that she is hiding money, but this is just as a backup plan in case things go wrong, so Eleanor needs to make her realize that she needs to fully commit to this life.

While this story arc isn't very original, Kristen Bell plays Eleanor's emotional arc wonderfully. The emotion that she puts into her jealousy with her mother now really being a mother is really felt, and we can see how hard it is for her to do the right thing and tell her mother to commit to her life and that she likes it. Other highlights of this story is Michael finding his architect buddy, and Eleanor and her mother telling each other "ya basic." The episode ends with the show starting to fall into a pattern of Michael revealing something to Eleanor, this time how in one reboot she fell in love with Chidi.

The rest of the group travels to Hungary to visit Tahani's sister. Tahani attempts to reconcile with her sister, but her sister makes this challenging for her, by continuing to make the public dislike her, and by refusing to forgive her. Some reflecting causes Tahani to realize that her sister feels the same way that she does about their parents pitting them against each other. The moment of reconciliation between them is very sweet, because The Good Place has put a lot into illustrating Tahani's challenged family life. Also, this story has a really nice moment between Jason and Janet when she tells him how much all of the art is worth.


While this episode was a bit typical in some ways, strong performances really made it work. The two relationships from the main characters' lives that the show had illustrated the most was Eleanor's with her parents and Tahani's with her sister, so these were important stories to be told with The Good Place's current path of having the characters help people become good. This was a strong episode.

Score: 9/10

What did you think of "A Fractured Inheritance"? Leave your thoughts in the comments!

The Good Place S3E6 Review

After changing a lot of things up, The Good Place goes in a new direction in this week's episode, one that may be more episodic, but still entertaining and important. In this episode, Jason sets out to save his father's soul, which could prove to be quite the task.


S3E6 "The Ballad of Donkey Doug"

After freaking out last week, now Chidi needs to face everything in his life, particularly his relationship with Simone. Janet is here to help with that (hilariously doing her own "bing"s because she doesn't have any powers), creating a simulation to help Chidi figure out the best way to break up with her. This simulator fuels a lot of great comedy, such as the scenarios that Eleanor wants to try and when Eleanor takes Simone's place in a simulation.

After a lot of simulated attempts, it's finally time for Chidi to break up with Simone for real. There are some funny moments where things don't go as Chidi expects, such as them sitting at a different table than in the simulation. Though this goes really poorly, he gets the chance to talk with Simone one more time, giving a proper conclusion to their story (though I'm sad to see Simone go). Also, there is a very funny moment when Chidi freaks out about Simone saying "see you in another life."

Meanwhile, Jason, Tahani, and Michael visit Jason's father, who happens to be the person that Jason refers to as Donkey Doug. This reveal is very funny, and while the dumbness of Jason and everyone he grew up around risks going over-the-top, the jokes here land. The funniest part of all is when Jason, Tahani, and Michael are presented a product that combines body spray and energy drinks Shark Tank-style, and Jason's comment that they need to bid on it quickly.

After all the goofiness of this all, some good is done. The group convinces Pillboy to do good by pretending to be from NASA, and Donkey Doug (or as he tells Jason to call him, Donkey Dad) faces the police so Jason can escape, just as apparently fathers have been doing for their sons in this family. The episodic nature of this quest resolves quite nicely, and this episode sets up another such quest, with the reveal that Eleanor's mother faked her own death. Presumably, Eleanor will need to deal with that in the next episode.


This was a very solid episode of The Good Place. After weeks of game-changers changing the season's direction, it appears to be settling in to a path that it seems like much of the season will follow, with the group attempting to help people. I'm glad that the show didn't feel the need to keep changing things up on us, yet still managed to have some sort of reveal at the end of the episode, with the one about Eleanor's mom. Also, this episode tied up a loose end, Chidi and Simone's relationship, and rather than resolving that quickly, the show dedicated a good amount of time to it, recognizing that Simone wasn't some insignificant character.

Score: 9/10

What did you think of "The Ballad of Donkey Doug"? Leave your thoughts in the comments!

The Good Place S3E5 Review

In another big twist at the end of the last episode, The Good Place once again left us in a place where the future is incredibly uncertain. The last episode's ending left Michael and Janet in a really difficult place.


S3E5 "Jeremy Bearimy"

After the humans see the door, Michael's instinct is to lie, which he tries and tries to do. His FBI agent cover is hilarious. Eventually, he has to tell them the truth, and so he does. He tells them everything that happened so far. Because they know about the afterlife, their motivations to do good are now all corrupted. The most entertaining part of this definitely involved the explanation of the timeline in the afterlife, in particular Chidi's question about the dot of the i in Jeremy Bearimy, and when Janet points out her birthday.

This leads to different courses of action for the humans. Eleanor decides to revert back to her old ways, until she realizes, she can't. She feels a need to do the right thing, and goes to great lengths to do so. Chidi sees everything as meaningless, and acts in such a way, spending a huge amount at the grocery store and not actually teaching his class. Tahani recruits Jason to help her be charitable, making anonymous donations and then giving away money to people.

As the humans react to this existential news, Michael and Janet decide to write down reflections of what they have learned, which results in one decent joke about the difference in typing skills between the two, but not much else. At the end of the episode, Eleanor rounds up the group and suggests that since they are all doomed, why don't they at least try to help everyone else. Also, this scene reveals that Tahani and Jason got married (Janet's reaction to which is great), and that sets up a great joke at the end where the forgotten Hemsworth that Tahani got engaged to shows up.


While this was a very enjoyable episode, in some ways it also felt fairly typical. Eleanor's learning was great, but it felt like something we've seen before (as a result of the rebooting of the humans). Also, it didn't seem like that much happened in this episode, it was like it had just started and then it ended.

Score: 8/10

What did you think of "Jeremy Bearimy"? Leave your thoughts in the comments!

The Good Place S3E4 Review

The Good Place has frequently left things in a place where viewers wonder "where in the world does this show go from here?" The last episode ended in such a way. With Michael and Janet now on the run from the judge, it doesn't seem like there are too many places the show can go.

S3E4 "The Snowplow"

The episode begins with a call from the judge to Michael and Janet. Every scene in this show that Maya Rudolph has been in has proved what a talent she is. She's especially great as this character, who I hope the show can somehow incorporate as much as possible. This call also has a hilarious moment where Michael pretends the call is breaking up.

A year passes, and over the course of the year Michael and Janet interfere with thing after thing in attempts to push the group in the right direction, like a snowplow. The humor here with Janet's love for Jason is great, especially the jean shorts monologue. However, their snowplowing creates another problem, as their setting Tahani up with an ex-boyfriend to keep her and Jason from having sex leads to the two getting engaged, and Tahani announcing she will be leaving the study.

The engagement party for Tahani leads to a wonderfully done character moment for Eleanor. With the group breaking up, she ends up lashing out at everyone, taking the part of the cake with her face on it. This feels very familiar, as it a moment that is very true to who Eleanor is. The conversation that Eleanor has after this with Simone is even better, as Eleanor's progress is shown in how she tries to figure out why she did what she did and realizes she needs to apologize to the rest (and actually does it!)

Eleanor isn't the only character that this episode does a great job of delving into. As Janet tries to convince Michael that they need to stop meddling, she unintentionally gives him an idea. He decides he should sneak back into the judge's quarters and reset the timeline on Earth. He is incredibly desperate. He doesn't even know how to do what he plans on doing. It's a great acting moment from Ted Danson. But the show throws in a big twist, when the four see the door to and from Earth that Michael causes to appear.

I was very concerned coming into this episode, but it turned out great. Kristen Bell and Ted Danson really got a chance to shine in this episode, and they really did. It was a very character-driven episode, and it did very well with the character's motivations and decisions, as well as with its humor. The Good Place, why did I doubt you?

Score: 10/10

What did you think of "The Snowplow"? Leave your thoughts in the comments!

The Good Place S3E3 Review

The Good Place delved into its new normal in last week's one-hour season premiere. That episode with an interesting twist that provides a complication to Michael's plan, as Adam Scott's Trevor has returned, working for Shawn. The group of humans have been brought together to better themselves, but Trevor has the ability to tear them apart.

S3E3 "The Brainy Bunch"

Trevor joins the group as an over-the-top participant in the study. This personality is very entertaining, and it's obvious how quickly this gets on Eleanor's nerves. He takes the group to an American-themed restaurant, and the jokes about America there are absolutely hilarious. Luckily, Janet shows up as a waitress as the restaurant. Not only does that combat Trevor's scheming, but it provides increased entertainment for us, because D'Arcy Carden is wonderful.

As the battle of influence over the group of humans continues, the episode does what The Good Place knows how to do well. It starts out progressing in the type of way you would expect: Eleanor plans on leaving the group, but then Chidi goes after her to convince her to stay. But it then provides a twist, something you wouldn't expect to happen so soon. The judge found out! The doorman shows up on Earth to bring Michael, Janet, and Trevor back.

Michael, Janet, and Trevor return from Earth, where the judge scolds them. Her knocking Trevor off the bridge was pretty entertaining. The judge tells Michael and Janet that the meddling caused a ripple effect, which is a genius and very funny way for the show to explain strange and unexpected things that have happened in the last couple years. In a brilliant ending to the episode, the things Janet tried to summon on Earth appear, and with it separating them from the judge, they try to run.

The Good Place was once again brilliant with both its plotting and humor, proving why it's one of the best shows currently on TV. As often happens with this show, I have no idea where it's going coming up. How long can Michael and Janet run? Also, Adam Scott's guest appearance this week was great, and I'm glad that Maya Rudolph is making regular appearances on this show.

Score: 10/10

What did you think of "The Brainy Bunch"? Leave your thoughts in the comments!

The Good Place Season 3 Premiere Review

Two years ago, The Good Place premiered with the premise that Eleanor was in the good place, but was not supposed to be there. The show has gone a long ways from there, with many reveals, obstacles, and changes. Season 3 begins by giving us Michael's perspective on what happened in the previous season finale.


S3E1-2 "Everything is Bonzer!"

The premiere begins with Michael going to Earth to save Eleanor, Chidi, Tahani, and Jason. The opening scene is a hilarious one, where Michael talks to the doorman for the door to Earth. Michael's enthusiasm about Earth is very entertaining, as Ted Danson is absolutely wonderful. After this, he intervenes in the lives of the humans to get them connected. His Australian accent isn't that great, and Janet gets a funny moment reacting to that. Later in the episode, he visits Tahani and Jason, playing entertaining eccentric characters. The wonderful Maya Rudolph makes an appearance as the judge near the end of the episode. She almost catches Michael for the tampering, but doesn't. She is hilariously too focused on her crush on Mark Harmon from watching 300 episodes of NCIS.

Following his near-death experience, Chidi decides to work on his indecision. This doesn't last forever, but it does lead him to psychology Simone, an entertaining character who he ends up connecting with. The most entertaining moment here is when Eleanor gets involved and begins asking questions to get Chidi and Simone together. The wonderful entertainment of that scene continues when Eleanor finds out that Chidi didn't kiss Simone on their date, which he regrets, so they go to her office to make it happen.

After Chidi decides to do his thesis on people with near-death experiences, we get to see what happened with Tahani and Jason since their near-death experiences. The most entertaining moment here is definitely when Michael visits Jason. Sometimes the dumb Jason jokes get a little old, but here they were great. I wish we had gotten a little more of these two characters, but there was a lot of story to tell in this hour.

In a part of the episode that I really didn't expect, the show's wonderful villain of Shawn has a team attempting to hack into the judge's system to find out what's going on with our humans. I find it odd that he would attempt to undermine the judge, but these are demons here. This leads to the episode's big twist ending, a complication to Michael's plan. Adam Scott returns to the show as demon Trevor, and in the final moments of the show he joins the group in the study.


While I wish that we had gotten more of Tahani and Jason, and how the episode would go was for the most part obvious from early on, everything else about this premiere was great. The season is heading in an exciting direction, and in this hour, the comedy in the show was just as good as ever. Once again, The Good Place really delivered in a premiere.

Score: 9.5/10 (part 1)
Score: 10/10 (part 2)

What did you think of "Everything is Bonzer!"? Leave your thoughts in the comments!

The Good Place Season 2 Finale Review

Last year, The Good Place shocked us. In the season finale, the series pulled a wonderful, shocking twist, accompanied by a now-iconic laugh from Ted Danson that no one new he had in him. This time around, again we have no clue what is going to happen going into the season finale of The Good Place. NBC released no footage, no photos in advance, only giving fans a vague episode description to wonder how in the world season two is going to end.


S2E13 "Somewhere Else"

The first few minutes of the season finale provides some twists. First, Janet professes her love for Jason. Then, Chidi makes a sudden decision and kisses Eleanor. Both of these developments are sure to provide interesting story material, but at the moment another twist completely changes the episode. Michael convinces the judge to do something huge, the four humans are sent back to their lives on Earth, to see if they would improve.

When Eleanor is saved from being hit by the line of shopping carts by a mysterious stranger, she decides to live her life differently. She's going to be good. But, she discovers that being good isn't as easy as it seems at first. Kristen Bell gives a wonderful performance as things get worse for Eleanor, and she tries to continue to be good. Eventually, Eleanor abandons her do-good mission, going back to her old ways.

Michael watches Eleanor's progress, and then regression, and decides to intervene. In a clever move on the show's part, Michael plays a bartender, who talks about philosophy to Eleanor. The combination of this and a Facebook memory prompts Eleanor to look up a phrase that Michael mentions, leading her to Chidi.

I didn't really focus on the comedic aspect of the episode, as it really wasn't the focus this week. But, the episode still was funny. Maya Rudolph was excellent again. There were some great jokes at the beginning as well, such as Jason commenting on his childhood and Eleanor commenting on the voice inside Tahani's head.


Kristen Bell really got a chance to shine in this episode, with the episode focusing on Eleanor. I do wish that we had gotten a little bit from the other humans on Earth though (not counting Chidi at the very end). The new direction for this show, which will likely be what season three focuses on, is really interesting, but I have two concerns. The first is what Janet will get to do. D'Arcy Carden is incredibly talented, and it would be a shame to get very little of her. The second is what the show does next. If the humans succeed, they go to the good place, if they fail, they go to the bad place, and there doesn't seem to be any way of preventing that anymore.

Score: 9.5/10

What did you think of "Somewhere Else"? Leave your thoughts in the comments!

The Good Place S2E12 Review

Last season, the last two episodes of The Good Place built to a surprising twist and an amazing conclusion to the season. After last week's episode ended with a surprise, and sent the four humans into new uncharted territory, my excitement for this episode has been high. What is the penultimate episode of The Good Place's second season leading up to?


S2E12 "The Burrito"

At the beginning of the episode, the humans have made it through the portal, and they are expecting to meet the judge. All they see is a burrito on a desk, and there is a hilarious bit where the four theorize what the meaning of the burrito is. In a delightful surprise, Maya Rudolph shows up as the judge. The four humans decide that all four of them will go to the same place in the end; if one of them is unable to go to the good place, they all go to the bad place.

Jason and Tahani are each given tests, and then Eleanor and Chidi are told that they have improved enough to go to the good place, but the others can't go. This is a wonderful dilemma to put them in, because it is extremely unclear whether this is a test, or whether this is a real choice. It turns out that this was a test, but just for Eleanor. The fact that she now knows Chidi so well that she figures out that it wasn't him was great, and shows how much Eleanor has grown from the beginning of the series. Remember when she didn't listen to Chidi at all? She couldn't answer simple questions about him.

The other tests, however don't go well. Jason's is really bizarre, Chidi takes an insanely long amount of time to decide between two hats, and Tahani fails at her mission of going down an entire hallway not opening a door behind which people are talking honestly about her. Tahani's is the most interesting, and incredibly challenging. I really enjoyed Tahani standing up to her parents. It's a shame that she wasn't able to do this in her life, because as a result she could have actually been a good person.

As all of this is going on, Michael has been captured by Sean. Rather than being retired, he is taken to a room where he will spend the rest of eternity. It turns out, however, that the Bad Janet that's there is actually their Janet. Janet was having a hard time pretending to be bad, so I am surprised that she was able to accomplish this. They then arrive in the judge's chambers just as the four humans are prepared to leave for the bad place.


This was a really strong episode. It was enjoyable the whole way through, being very funny, having high stakes, and showing Eleanor's progress and a big moment for Tahani. Michael's parts of the episode were not very interesting, but luckily it wasn't much of the episode, and it got the whole group reunited.

Score: 9.5/10

What did you think of "The Burrito"? Leave your thoughts in the comments!

The Good Place S2E11 Review

This week, The Good Place heads to the bad place. The show is going into really new territory, and that is very exciting, as the group attempts to pull off their near-impossible plan. What the characters get into this week was sure to be interesting.


S2E11 "Rhonda, Diana, Jake, and Trent"

The beginning of the episode has the group on the train, heading to the bad place. The four humans prepare to pretend to be someone else. Tahani is the highlight here, as an American named Rhonda. She hilariously portrays American stereotypes, and does a great job of that. Janet struggles to be a Bad Janet, and there is a hilarious bit about this where she can't stop giving Tahani the glasses of water she asks for, reminiscent of last season when she was rebooted and could only get people cacti.

In the bad place, the four humans and Janet stay in a museum while Michael gets what they need to get to the judge. There ends up being a party hosted at the museum. Chidi doesn't want to lie about who he is, so he says nothing, but a demon (played by Dax Shepard) mistakes Chidi for someone he knew. Eleanor talks to Chidi, convincing him it isn't unethical to lie in this situation because of moral particularism. It feels like a bit of a stretch that Eleanor would know about that, and that Chidi would be obsessed with one way of philosophical thought. The humans survive the party, until things go poorly when the demonstration turns out to be of their neighborhood.

Meanwhile, Michael meets with Sean, who reveals that he has a plan for how to get the humans from the medium place. Sean uses Bad Janet as a walkie-talkie, which is enjoyable, and reminds us of how Derek and his wind-chime testicles are in the medium place. Sean discovers that the humans aren't in the medium place, and this starts the part of the episode where everyone is on the run. Michael grabs the humans, and they rush to the portal. However, at the very end, they aren't able to make it, and Michael sacrifices himself. This ending shows why the show has put so much work into improving Michael, and Ted Danson is wonderful in this final scene.


It felt like there was quite a bit of time wasted, as they were just waiting for the end of the episode. Still, The Good Place made it entertaining, and the only real issue was believably in the Chidi part of the episode. The end of the episode was a great moment, and it showcased a great performance from Ted Danson.

Score: 9/10

What did you think of "Rhonda, Diana, Jake, and Trent"? Leave your thoughts in the comments!

The Good Place S2E10 Review

Last week's episode of The Good Place left me asking "what now?" The show did not make it clear what was next for the series by not presenting any immediate dangers for the main characters. So, I went into this episode having no idea where it would go.

S2E10 "Best Self"

The first half of the episode deals with the four humans trying to be the best versions of themselves so they can enter a balloon that will take them to the real good place. This creates potential for some great exploration of the characters' feelings, and we get a little bit of that with Chidi and Eleanor, as they both worry that a previous version of themselves in rebooted versions. However, it is revealed that there is no real point to this, as Michael has been lying to them. He has no idea how they can get into the good place.

Because of this revelation, the group feels hopeless. There doesn't seem to be any direction for them to go in. So, at Eleanor's suggestion, they spend the night getting drunk. While for the most part this seems to be the series wasting some time, there are some enjoyable moments here. Jason has some funny lines as he reflects on some things from his life, while Tahani reflects on how she would normally go to a manager when things weren't going her way. I also really enjoyed when Janet butted in with her "not a robot" and "not a girl" and when she didn't give a speech. D'Arcy Carden's delivery is always delightful.

As the group sits around at the end of the night in defeat, Tahani comes up with an idea. She asks Michael if they can go to a "manager" in the form of a judge that Michael had mentioned. It turns out that this is possible, but extremely risky and unlikely to succeed. They of course decide to go for it. Everyone says goodbye to the neighborhood. I wonder if we will ever see it again, it doesn't seem like it based on where the story is headed. This is interesting, since it has been such a big part of the show so far. Now The Good Place is heading into very new territory, and I'm really excited to see how this goes and what this season is leading to.

I had issues with the first half of the episode being so focused on a test to get to the good place that turned out to be meaningless, but otherwise the episode was great. It was funny, did a little bit with Eleanor and Chidi's relationship, and sent the show in a direction that's exciting.

Score: 9/10

What did you think of "Best Self"? Leave your thoughts in the comments!

The Good Place S2E9 Review

If you're reading this, you've survived the mid-season hiatus that Thursday Night Football forced The Good Place on! I have been really excited for the show's return, because I have absolutely no idea where the show goes from here. The fall finale put the main characters, especially Michael, in an especially tricky situation, and now it's time for Team Cockroach to survive.


S2E9 "Leap Into Faith"

The episode begins right where the last episode left off, with Sean in Michael's office. However, it turns out that he is there because he is happy with Michael's work. This feels cheap, it created worry for something that wasn't really there. While I am really not happy about that, there are two positives about this. The first is that the situation The Good Place had lead us to believe it was putting its characters in was impossible, and working its way out of it would most likely have lead to situations that seem unrealistic. The second is what situation the real meaning of Sean's visit puts the four humans in. Michael could very well have turned his back on them, it would fit his nature. However, Eleanor observed that Michael was really growing, so perhaps he is really becoming an ethical person.

The four humans debate whether or not they can still trust Michael. Jason and Tahani provide most of the humor throughout all of this. Jason is his dumb self, and there are some really funny moments there. I also really loved when Tahani didn't want to hear Jason's opinion, until she discovered that he agreed with her. It's surprising that Eleanor is the one that trusts Michael, but given the way that the episode ends, and that Eleanor had a sincere moment with Michael, it works. The roast that Michael puts on also has some good jokes, I really enjoyed it. Also, drunk Janet throughout the episode was a real delight.

The final act of the episode basically just recaps how Eleanor figured out the clues that Michael dropped them, and how the humans put the plan into action. It's fairly cliche, but still enjoyable. It also leads to another Derek appearance, which is entertaining, and I also really liked the very end where he shows up at Mindy St. Clair's house. Also, I really enjoyed the reveal that Michael literally whispered "something something Vicki something something" in Janet's ear. However, the episode doesn't indicate that the characters are in any more danger after it ends. They obviously must be, as this isn't the series finale, but the show should have explicitly showed us that in some way.


The episode was funny, and the story worked, but it had its flaws. Revealing that the cliffhanger that ended the last episode wasn't really what we thought it was felt really cheap, even if it had its reasons. Additionally, the lack of revealing any hints about what Team Cockroach will have to deal with next was problematic, and the last act of the episode wasn't all that strong.

Score: 8/10

What did you think of "Leap to Faith"? Leave your thoughts in the comments!

The Good Place Season 2 Fall Finale Review

In the fall finale of The Good Place, Janet's boyfriend Derek is causing problems for Michael and our humans.


S2E8 "Derek"

Michael goes to Eleanor and Chidi to figure out how to get rid of Derek but remain ethical. They struggle with this, and Michael struggles in particular with his motivation, which Chidi reminds him is key. Throughout this, Janet and Derek are hilarious. They had many great lines, such as "You were the one that gave me windchimes instead of a penis."

Jason and Tahani are spending time together, which means many funny Jason moments. When Tahani expresses how she likes that she can be herself around him, he asks her to marry him. Michael, Eleanor, and Chidi come to stop the wedding, revealing to Tahani and Jason that Jason and Janet got married before the reboots.

Eleanor talks to Janet, telling her that she needs to talk about her feelings, and that she can always come to her. Kristen Bell subtly gives a great performance this week, though Eleanor doesn't have many lies that are that funny, aside from when she tells everyone to look away from Janet making out with Derek while she is going to watch.

At the end of the episode, Eleanor tells Chidi about how they fell in love with each other before and she asks him to discuss his feelings. He says that he doesn't feel anything for her, and Kristen Bell is perfect as Eleanor says that she doesn't feel anything. The very end of the episode provides a big plot development: Sean has showed up.


Derek was entertaining, but as a plot point it just lead to a lot of freaking out and then an easy solution. Story-wise, it certainly wasn't the show's strongest step. The two couples in this episode though were very funny, and the ending of the episode was great.

Score: 8/10

What did you think of "Derek"? Leave your thoughts in the comments!

The Good Place S2E7 Review

Pobody's nerfect, and that includes Janet, even though the non-robot is also not a person, as she is glitching.


S2E7 "Janet and Michael"

A flashback at the start of the episode shows when Michael got Janet. D'Arcy Carden is hilarious here, even more than she usually is, as a yet-to-be activated Janet and as a Bad Janet attempting to pretend being a Good Janet. Another flashback shows how Janet gave Michael the idea of filling the "Good Place" with frozen yogurt places.

Michael works on figuring out what's wrong with Janet, and after Tahani and Jason come looking for Janet, the room they are in momentarily disappears. Janet discovers that she has gained the ability to lie, which she hilariously experiments with. Michael informs Janet of her marriage to Jason after her first reboot, and it's really nice that this plot point has come back.

Janet says that, as a result, she has to self-destruct, and Michael will have to get a new Janet. Michael insists that she can't destroy Janet, highlighting his complicated relationship with Janet. She's not a person or anything, but she is still Michael's friend, and they have been through things together.

Since this is a human problem, Michael decides to turn to their "most problematic human," Eleanor. After talking with Eleanor, Janet decides to create a person to be her rebound boyfriend. This is a hilarious solution to Janet's problems, which is also likely to create additional problems in the future.


This was a hilarious episode, and I loved how it focused on Michael and Janet, a different focus than usual. It also was the show's greatest use of its flashbacks, showing the unique and entertaining relationship between the architect and the non-robot. This episode also gave D'Arcy Carden a chance to shine, and did anyone ever doubt that she would?

Score: 10/10

What did you think of "Janet and Michael"? Leave your thoughts in the comments!

The Good Place S2E6 Review

This episode takes on a similar story as last week, where Chidi struggles to teach Michael ethics, as well as building off of what happened last week between Tahani and Jason.


S2E6 "The Trolley Problem"

Michael is struggling in Chidi's ethics class. Chidi works with him to try to help him get it, and as a result Michael puts Chidi into ethical dilemmas. This creates some very funny moments as Chidi is horrified by the things that he ends up doing. Eleanor realizes that Michael is torturing Chidi again, and as a result Chidi kicks Michael out of his class.

Chidi vents his frustration to Eleanor, and Eleanor sees Michael behaving like she did, so she talks to Michael. Michael decides to get everyone presents, and the presents are very entertaining. However, Chidi interprets these presents as bribes. This actually leads to a sincere apology from Michael, which is a nice resolution.

Tahani struggles with the fact that she is attracted to and had sex with Jason. It's very funny when she turns Janet into her therapist, and when she summarizes Jason's views without asking him, and that those views are that she is controlling. There is also a very funny moment here when Janet experiences a glitch and her thumb comes off.

While much of the episode didn't cause much story progression, it turns out at the end that Janet's glitches weren't just for comedy. The end of the episode takes place one month later, where Janet's glitches are potentially causing the neighborhood to be destroyed. I'm interested in seeing where this goes, and I hope it isn't resolved in just one episode.


While this episode had funny moments, it wasn't quite as funny as The Good Place has shown it can be, and the main story this week was a bit too similar to last week.

Score: 8/10

What did you think of "The Trolley Problem"? Leave your thoughts in the comments!

The Good Place S2E5 Review

Deception while learning to be a good person is what's going on this week on The Good Place, as Team Cockroach's plan is in action.


S2E5 "Existential Crisis"

Chidi tries to teach Eleanor and Michael ethics this week, but Michael struggles with it, because he doesn't ever really think about death, like humans do. Chidi gets Michael to contemplate retirement and not existing anymore, which leads to Michael having an existential crisis, and then a mid-life crisis. Both the existential crisis and the mid-life crisis give Ted Danson a chance to shine, and he definitely does great. I especially loved his arrival at the party. This show has many great aspects to it, and one of the more overlooked ones I believe is the opportunities it gives Ted Danson to play quite a variety of personas, and this episode is a great example of that.

Eleanor is the focus of the flashbacks this week, and with Michael having to contemplate death, the flashbacks deal with death as well. A flashback to Eleanor's childhood shows when she learned about death. Her mom makes up a fake story about what happened to her dog, but then quickly gives up, and admits it's all fake. The line "There's no such place as Guam" was hilarious. A second flashback is at Eleanor's dad's funeral, and her mom is hilarious here as well, as she hits on Eleanor's boyfriend. It also drives home the point that Eleanor's mother was awful. The third flashback, instead of focusing on death, deals with Eleanor's family issues more directly. It does go a bit overboard, as I would expect Eleanor to hide her feelings rather than crying in the middle of a store.

Vicky's torture in this episode is having Tahani plan a party that no one attends because there's a better party. There are some funny Tahani moments as she plans for the party, but nothing at all extraordinary. This story gets better though when Tahani contemplates how something like this made her so sad. Jason comforts her, which leads to funny moments, but is also sweet. Jason's ranking out of 13 where 8 is the highest is hilarious. I started laughing so hard because of it. The two end up sleeping together, which is surprising, since I thought Jason was going to end up falling for Janet again, like he has multiple times. Also, I got a good laugh out of Jason saying: "I know how to make cereal."


Once again, The Good Place delivers a strong episode. Ted Danson was the highlight, but the Eleanor flashbacks provided great insight and laughs, and it was nice to see Jason comfort Tahani.

Score: 9.5/10

What did you think of "Existential Crisis"? Leave your thoughts in the comments!

The Good Place S2E4 Review

Clues have been left and plans have repeatedly gone wrong, and now a clear direction can be seen for The Good Place's second season, a direction I would never have expected at the beginning of last week's episode. Where exactly it will go from here is a mystery, and it's a journey I am excited to embark on.

S2E4 "Team Cockroach"

The group of four is unsure if they can trust Michael. They talk about what to do, and it's funny when Jason has stupid things to say, and when Eleanor gets frustrated with Tahani. Eleanor doesn't trust Michael, and why would she? This is Eleanor, she didn't trust anyone in life. Eleanor refuses to go along with Michael's plan, but then he offers the group something: a chance to go to the real Good Place.

While Eleanor and Chidi work on a decision, Tahani acts stubbornly and arrogantly, which leads to Michael deciding to let her remember how she died. This is one of the things I wanted to learn in season two, so I'm glad we're learning it now. It highlights why she ended up in the Bad Place: most things she did were due to being jealous of her sister. This also makes sense as to why it was revealed now and not in season one, because that would have given away the twist.

Everyone but Eleanor is ready to side with Michael, and she plans to run away to the Medium Place. But, after a discussion with Chidi, Eleanor decides to ask Michael about how often Chidi refused to help her, which was never. This causes Eleanor to finally agree, with one condition: Michael has to partake in the ethics lessons. I'm really interested in seeing how that goes.

I didn't focus as much on the funny above, because there was a lot going on story-wise, but this was still a funny episode. Janet demonstrating how she could pat her head and rub her stomach was hilarious. Jason was really dumb this week. It's entertaining, though is it getting to be a bit much now? And we can't forget your weekly reminder that Janet is not a robot.

The story didn't progress as much as I would have liked this week, but it made sense that Eleanor would be suspicious of Michael and the deal he is offering them. The weakest point of the episode was the last couple of minutes, which weren't especially interesting, and didn't do anything to make me excited about the next episode, like the show usually does. Still, it was a funny and interesting episode.

Score: 9/10

What did you think of "Team Cockroach"? Leave your thoughts in the comments!