The Good Place - Season 1 Review
This review of Season 1 of The Good Place is spoiler-free!
Since I started doing all of this writing, it's been tough for me to keep up with network television on the regular outside select shows that I force myself to watch on a weekly basis. NBC is one of those networks that even before I started writing was a network I found myself rarely checking into because their programming never really interested me (outside of the occasional checking into of SNL). Outside of the usual shows such as the Chicago franchise, Law & Order, The Blacklist, and This Is Us; NBC has really struggled to find a strong footing outside of its usual selling points. But, with the introduction of a show like The Good Place into the NBC show list, it finally opened up a chance for me to be reintroduced to the network in one way or another. Enough chatter about NBC, I wanna talk about The Good Place!
This is the story of Eleanor Shellstrop, who finds herself to be dead! Talk about an already crazy premise for something claiming to be a sitcom. Regardless, she quickly comes to realize that somewhere along the way she is not meant to be in the Good Place, but the Bad Place. Soon after she meets her supposed soul-mate Chidi, and her neighbors Jianyu and Tahani. After a short period of time where she tries to live the same way she did in life, she decides that she needs to make a change and enlists their help to turn her "life" around. The story of The Good Place is surprisingly serious and deep, tackling a lot of challenging themes that you don't often see in sitcoms. Sure it's in a comedic setting, but this show could really have made it into a drama if done correctly. I loved this story because it's just so much more than you expect from your generic sitcom.
If I had the time I would talk about so many different people in this show but since there is a second season, I feel that it's most important to talk about the relationship between Eleanor (Kristen Bell) and Chidi (William Jackson Harper). Kristen Bell is an absolute rock all around for The Good Place. She has a charm that few other actresses have that just make her likable in every possible way and she brings that likeability to a character that is rather despicable in the beginning. I started off not really liking Eleanor's motive but enjoying her as a person, which is a testament to Bell. Along with this, Chidi could be seen as a sort of polar opposite to Eleanor, willing to help her become better and trying to better himself along the way. This passing dynamic between the two of them grows throughout the season immensely and I never really felt like there was a dull moment between these two. Simply stellar work from an all-around fantastic cast.
There are two other small things that I really wanted to discuss about The Good Place and its overall narrative. There are some very serious themes in this show revolving around living a good life and being a good person, and for being a half-hour sitcom I have to really applaud those who worked on this show for being able to work in these types of discussions into a show that could have just gone by as just another sitcom. Finally, this show ends in a fantastic place, doing something that I never expected as it came to a close. You'll be flabbergasted and shocked and left wondering what's the come as the season wraps and you'll be ready to jump into more. Thankfully for us, there is a season 2 out now!
Coming back around to the topic at hand, The Good Place is a stellar addition to a lineup at NBC that was beginning to feel a bit stale and unoriginal. Tackling a serious subject such as life after death was a bold but brave move for the network. Casting a fantastic lead in Kristen Bell and an all-around awesome supporting cast helped to elevate the show even further from the great heights it had already set for itself. Sure there were a few moments of what felt like narrative laziness, but they were very few and far between. With that in mind, I think The Good Place is an absolute must-watch for any TV fan trying to keep up with this ever-changing world. After all, it's a quick watch too! Check out The Good Place's first season on Netflix!
