You’ve died. The good news is, you’ve made it to “the good place.” The bad news is, well, you don’t exactly belong there. Or do you? NBC’s The Good Place (available on Netflix in New Zealand) follows the afterlife of Eleanor Shellstrop (Kristen Bell, Veronica Mars) as she finds herself in a utopian heaven.
Heaven, or “the good place,” turns out to be a neighbourhood filled with the perfect number of residents who have been carefully selected based on all their positive actions and decisions throughout their lifetimes, and compatible personalities. Each resident is gifted the home of their dreams and introduced to their actual soulmate. The good place allows each inhabitant to continue doing the things they love, or do new and exciting things like learning how to fly, and an abundance of whatever you would ever want, including hundreds of flavours of frozen yogurt.
The catch being, Eleanor isn’t the activist lawyer who dedicated her life to helping others. She isn’t a lover of architecture that looks like a grown-up version of a child’s playhouse. And, she doesn’t like clowns. While her name is right, everything else about her isn’t.
Back on Earth, Eleanor spent her life selfishly. She would get drunk with workmates, refuse to be the sober driver, con the elderly into buying drugs that are essentially chalk, mimicked environmental advocates, and while she had never killed anyone or committed any major crimes, she was just overall, not a pleasant person.
After playing a classic Eleanor move at neighbour Tahani’s (Jameela Jamil) welcoming party, by selfishly taking all the cocktail shrimps and getting drunk, she’s woken the next morning to loud Ariana Grande beats, flying shrimp, and giraffes creating chaos all throughout the good place. The chaos sends a clear message: if she’s not careful, she’ll be caught and sent to “the bad place”.
Turning to her ‘soulmate’ Chidi (William Jackson Harper), who had devoted his life to the study of ethics, Eleanor decides to earn her place, just as everyone else has. This ends up being easier said than done as her moments of selfishness are highlighted as she is surrounded by the best of the best, i.e. the most selfless people.
As things worsen, Eleanor realises she’s not alone, but that doesn’t necessarily make things better. Telling secrets to the so-called silent monk Jianyu Li (Manny Jacinto), doesn’t ensure confidentiality. And whilst she’s on the good side of the good place architect, Michael (Ted Danson, Cheers, CSI), this doesn’t ensure her safety either.
The Good Place is an engaging and entertaining light-hearted comedy with a racially diverse cast. The characters are well played, allowing us to sympathise and identify with Eleanor as she navigates the afterlife. Not everyone is as perfect as they seem, and not everyone’s intentions are straightforward either. The idea of heaven isn’t all it’s made out to be. Except for Janet, a hilarious artificial being created to help the inhabitants of the good place, played by D’Arcy Carden. Let’s just all hope the afterlife includes a Janet.
| Show The Good Place: Season 1 |
| Network Netflix (NZ), NBC (US) |
| Release Date 19 September 2016 – 19 January 2017 |
| Binge Time 4 hrs 45 mins |