Top quality show for me.
- relatable and interesting characters
- original setting
- good humor
- 4 seasons with a satisfying ending
Definitely recommend
Overall I like the show, but the character of Jason is too much. He started out as the most intensely Flanderized character ever written and he just continuously got worse.
I almost wonder if the character was written with Dax Shephard in mind. It’s just such a 2004 type of idiot character.
Jason figured it out? Oh, oh… this is a low point. Yeah this one stings.
🤣
The ending was fantastic but I cried for probably an hour. It hit me really hard with where I was/am with my life and loved ones. I absolutely recommend it to everyone.
Same, I cried so hard. Not sure I’m ready for a rewatch given what’s going on irl right now, but it was so cathartic that it actually helped me process a lot of anxiety and despair surrounding death.
If you thoroughly enjoyed the show, you will be tickled by The Good Place: The Podcast. Mark Evan Jackson (Shawn) hosts it, and it’s truly excellent. Lots of behind-the-scenes info from people who are truly dedicated to their craft. If you thought the characters were great, the people and writers behind them are even cooler, and you get to hear so much neat stuff about the show from them.
Michael Schur also wrote (an often hilarious) book called How to Be Perfect, about what he learned about philosophy from the research he did in order to write the show. If you get the audiobook version, parts are narrated by some of the actors from the show, and it’s just a delight as a fan. I don’t think anyone would become a philosophy expert from the book, but it’s an introduction to it, and amusing to boot. A good book IMO.
I’ve always enjoyed philosophy (and taken a few courses) so The Good Place was something I really enjoyed. I think it’s got just enough philosophy in it to not scare casual viewers but trick then into learning some of the basics without realizing it. I honestly think we should be teaching a basic introduction to philosophy to high-schoolers. It’s such an important basis for understanding the world and yourself. It makes you consider why and what you think that you may have taken for granted before.
oh the podcast looks interesting. I really do enjoy the podcast form where they go over each episode like an unofficial-official commentary bonus, Always Sunny had a good one but I eventually fizzled out from it and need to check back into that. At first I saw the guests and thought it was just a talk show but the descriptions have the episodes they’re going over.
Everything Michael Schur makes is gold I swear. You should check out his new show A Man On The Inside. It’s excellent.
Are the first few episodes a bit slow? Watched the first episode and it didn’t click at all for us.
A Man on the Inside is much more of a character and story based comedy then Shure’s previous work. It’s a lot less joke dense then The Good Place which was in turn less dense Parks and Rec. I mean I’d expect a comedy about grief, loss, and regaining a purpose to go at a slower pace and I found it lovely and clever, but it definitely not a “Joke Factory”. Your Mileage and all that but I got through the whole series in a day because each episode was sweet and cute, not because I couldn’t stop laughing.
I have to agree. I’ve tried 2 episodes and don’t get it. Seems like a hallow, generic soap opera and devoid of any of the clever comedy of Schur’s other projects.
This is going to be a super weird request for a handful of reasons, the first being that you already abandoned watching it, but for some reason I am just super curious what your review in particular would be if you watched the whole thing, just for the sake of it now that you’ve said that, and came back to tell us. Other reviews be damned, something about your reaction to it is interesting for some reason, which makes your opinion of it in full compelling, if you’d consider humoring us. I’m serious.
Definitely on my watch list!
I absolutely loved it! My dad recommended it to me. When I finished it, I knew it would be something my wife would like. So I’m rewatching it again with her and with my 10 year old daughter. They are loving it too. I wouldn’t change a thing about the ending.
The show is also almost like an intro to philosophy.
Well…Who died and left Aristotle in charge of ethics?
Plato.
I didn’t have high hopes for this show going in but I was extremely pleased. The jokes were clever and the story telling was clean.
I agree, I didn’t think I’d enjoy it as much as I did
Michael Schur wrote a book called “How to be Perfect”, which is literally an intro philosophy book and explains how (and why) he incorporated different philosophical perspectives into the show.
Would you recommend it as an intro, or is it more focused on his work/the good place?
It’s definitely a real philosophy primer - the usual suspects (Aristotle, Kant, the utilitarianists, etc) are covered in an accessible way and couched in pop culture. But there are some spoilers if you haven’t watched the show.
I couldn’t get past the first episode, it was that bad.
you are incorrect.
Bro’s mad at the tonal inconsistency of a heaven that seems like hell.
Or they’re a conservative and thus can’t handle the idea that getting into heaven means treating other people well. I’ve watched conservative relatives of mine get visibly uncomfortable with that “Welcome to The Good Place” presentation where they explain the points system.
maybe they just dont like the show lol(i say this as a huge tgp fan!!!)
IDK, my conservative relatives didn’t like it either. I think they’re on to something. The Catholics at least know at some level they’ll be burning…
Hanrahan figured it out??? Oh this is a low point.
Even godthrilla figured it out? This is just embarrassing
Is this the bad place?
The bad place is just like here except that everyone is an asshole.
spoiler
Yep, and not even pretending to be a “good place”
This literally Michael’s “Retirement” Room
The good place is the friends we made along the way
It should’ve ended an episode earlier though. That last image on the hot air balloon was a good ending but the whole final episode felt like an afterthought. It seemed more like a one-off Christmas special that pops up a few years after the show finished.
Strong disagree
I see what you mean, but it still felt nice to have full closure
Michael Schur published a companion book called How to Be Perfect: The Correct Answer to Every Moral Question that covers the philosophy side in more detail. The audiobook has the full cast reading asides, examples and scenarios.
One of my favorites.
