Looking for something different to watch we thought we look at some of the classic series in the past. All shows we enjoy with the aim to bring them back to the forefront. Expect some regular shows to pop up multiple times and please tweet us any suggestions as to your favourites – @eriseamag.
About
The Good Place is an American fantasy comedy TV series originally airing in 2016, concluding after 4 seasons in 2020. 4 Seasons and 53 episodes were made with this cult classic series hitting good acclaim with its original premise.
The Good Place follows Eleanor Shellstrop (Kristen Bell) and her journey into the afterlife. She is welcomed after her death to “The Good Place”, a highly selective utopia designed and run by an afterlife architect Michael (Ted Danson). As a reward for her good life, she is in the Good Place but she knows they are wrong.
The series follows her adventures, alongside Chidi Anagonye (William Jackson Harper), Tahani Al-Jamil (Jameela Jamil) and Jason Mendoza (Manny Jacinto) who also have their own difficulties in The Good Place.
The series takes some spoiler worthy twists and turns to push the series in fun different directions. However we will not be talking about that – just the pilot.
Scene by Scene – “Everything is Fine”
Freeflowing thoughts on the episode – as we watch it. Minor Spoilers ahead.
We open to Eleanor is in a office meeting Michael. Michael looks to be an angel and helps Eleanor transit into the afterlife. It pushes the season arc and lets the viewer learn the basics of the show first.
The show’s setting might feel a little off but that is for a reason. That reason, we will not say as that is a spoiler. The Good Place setting (i.e. Heaven) continues to feel weirdly out of place as the episode goes, with Michael’s mannerisms and smiles especially.
Eleanor finds her new home, meets her soul mate and begins her journey into the afterlife. Part way, Eleanor reveals the first mind blower of show thinking she did not belong in Heaven.
Eleanor is the focus of the pilot but you meet Chidi, Tahani and Jason (Jianyu). Their budding afterlife friendship will be a key thing for staying to watch the show. Also Eleanor meeting Janet (the AI like character) and learning about how they cannot swear in The Good Place, is a pilot episode highlight.
We learn more about the other characters and Eleanor still seems like the only one out of place. Eleanor wakes up after a terrible party to The Good Place going mad. Shrimp in the sky, song playing in the sky, everyone wearing yellow and black but her and other things.
Eleanor is the only one not feeling the effects of the madness. Eleanor and Chidi, setup the arc of the first season. Chidi will Eleanor be good enough to stay in the good place.
Overall
We loved the show’s concept and the way it continues to make the viewer go “WTF”. It feels off putting with our minds not quite adding everything up that we saw, then in the later half of the episode it clicks. Eleanor does not belong and the system that put her there has made mistakes.
The show brings more character development in later episodes but in 23 minutes, it does what it can.
Rating for the pilot is a 3/5. It was a grower on us, enough to originally keep watching but on second watch it lost a few marks.
For More Info
The show at the time of writing was available on UK Netflix.
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