The Good Place is a forking amazing show for a number of reasons. For one, its premise is extremely creative and fun. It also offers a variety of philosophical references that allow binge-watchers of the show to question their own sense of morality. Many people claim how watching The Good Place has helped them strive to be a better person. Any show that is able to provide something for the viewer that goes beyond entertainment is worth looking into, and Michael Schur’s masterpiece does this best. So, without further ado, let’s dive into the world of Fro-yo, Janet(s), and jalapeno poppers and take a look at the 10 best episodes of The Good Place.
Janet(s)
D’Arcy Carden is the actress who brilliantly plays Janet, who is perhaps the most beloved character on the show. This is really saying something considering how one of the best attractions to Mike Schur’s comedy series is its whimsical cast of characters. Janet truly manages to stand out as the robotic assistant with the squeaky clean smile, as she delivers morbid information about the state of their surroundings.
In the season 3 mid-season finale episode titled Janet(s), we get to see Carden at her best as she delivers a leading performance that manages to be both moving and hilarious all at once. In the episode, Janet transforms into the main cast of characters, including Eleanor, Chidi, Tahani, and Jason. We get to see Carden fully immerse herself into these other roles, nailing everything from their mannerisms to their tone of voice. It’s a truly creative episode, and it’s unlike anything else we’ve ever seen before on television.
The Trolley Problem
In this episode, Chidi poses a famous philosophical thought experiment known as The Trolley Problem. The Trolley Problem offers a scenario of a runaway trolley that could either run over five people on one side of the track, or one person on the other side of the track. In this situation, you control the lever so you can make the choice of either running over five people or running over one person. Which do you choose, and is there any other potential alternative?
The brilliance of this episode is not only how hilarious it is, but how it manages to entertain and enlighten viewers all at once. It makes fans of The Good Place question their own views on this thought experiment and decide for themselves what they think the best potential option is. In this way, it is almost an interactive episode where fans are able to weigh all of the possibilities and outcomes along with the characters.
Chidi’s Choice
There’s nothing more romantic than a “professional amateur DJ” from Jacksonville Florida finding love with a “magical slave robot” from the realm. It’s a classic love story… kinda. Regardless of how different these two characters are, (or perhaps because of it), Janet and Jason are pretty much the perfect couple. Fans have been rooting for these two since their first interaction, which is why we were so pleased to witness the two getting married in “Chidi’s Choice”. The episode even features a hilarious poem Jason wrote for Janet that he reads during their wedding vows. “Janet, my digital queen. Janet, we can dare to dream. Send nude pics of your heart to me… Jacksonville Jaguars rule!”
Michael’s Gambit
WARNING! This episode description contains major spoilers for season 1.
Game of Thrones isn’t the only show on TV to offer epic plot twists and turns that no one could say they saw coming. Perhaps one of the best big twists on television comes from the season finale episode of season one on The Good Place, titled “Michael’s Gambit”. In the episode, Eleanor and the gang discover that they’re not in “The Good Place”, they’ve actually been spending their time in “The Bad Place” this whole time. That one epic shot where we see Michael’s burst of evil laughter is so unexpected that we can’t help but appreciate the show even more for managing to wow us with such suspenseful surprises.
Team Cockroach
“Team Cockroach” is an incredible episode of The Good Place because we get to dive into the background of Tahani’s character and discover that she is so much more than a cartoonishly perfect socialite who spends her time cruising on James Franco’s “ironic trolley” or getting spoiled by her Hemsworth lover (albeit the least popular of the Hemsworth’s).
In Team Cockroach, we learn the reason behind Tahani’s saint-like persona. The reason Tahani is constantly participating in honorable acts of charity is not for the sake of genuinely wanting to help others, but instead to one-up her sister. We learn in this episode how saving a million adorable puppies from a burning building doesn’t automatically make you a good person if your intentions are skewed. A good person isn’t looking for worldwide recognition for their heroism, they are simply looking out for the best interest of those who aren’t doing so well. We see a whole lot of character development with Tahani in this episode, where she has to come to this realization herself and learn from her mistakes.
Someone Like Me As A Member
“Someone Like Me As A Member” has made it to this list due to how many laugh out loud moments it has in just a 22-minute episode. There are so many hilarious moments to pinpoint in this episode, it’s forking incredible. One of the funniest moments is when we get to see a flashback into Eleanor’s time on earth as a high school student as she bluntly announces to the entire cafeteria that she wants nothing to do with anyone at school. No one. Not the popular girls, not the nice girls, not the indie-movie outcasts who are allergic to “the system”. It pretty much makes fun of every movie/TV trope in one little scene, and it’s impossible not to crack up here while praising Kristen Bell’s comedic talent like never before.
Mindy St. Claire
“Mindy St. Claire” makes it on to this list due to how creative of an episode it is. What happens when you spend your time on earth as the most lukewarm person who neither deserves to be in The Good Place with cotton candy skies or The Bad Place with pits of fire as punishment? You end up like Mindy St. Claire! Mindy St. Claire was a lawyer who was addicted to cocaine during her time on earth. She was considered to be a bad person, yet before she died, she did one incredible act of kindness. This resulted in her ending up in The Medium Place, which is basically purgatory. The Medium Place consists of Mindy’s favorite beer (which is always warm), a jukebox which plays every song ever sung (but only by The Eagles, and it’s only their live concert performances).
Jason Mendoza
“Jason Mendoza” is the episode where we discover that “Jianyu” is not the person we thought him to be. He is not the honorable silent Munk who is all-knowing and wise. In fact, he is pretty much the complete opposite. The reason he stays silent is so he doesn’t blow his cover as a fraud who is not meant to be in The Good Place (just like Eleanor). In actuality, he is a Phillipino “professional amateur DJ” from Jacksonville, Florida, who is pretty much a naive puppy dog in human form.
It is one of the first big twists we learn in the series, and it is extremely satisfying indeed. Jason is easily one of the most loveable characters on The Good Place, and this is the episode where his character development fully begins.
Flying
“Flying” is the second episode in the series, and it defines how quirky and creative The Good Place is as a whole. In this episode, Chidi tries to help Eleanor become a better person in order for her to fit in at The Good Place. In the episode, Tahani sets up a “clean up day” which happens to land on the same day of Michael posing the opportunity for members of the realm to fly. Of course, Eleanor would much rather fly than clean up, but in order to become a good person, she begrudgingly agrees to clean the town. Annoyed that she can’t participate in the amazing opportunity to soar through the sky, Eleanor secretly quits her cleaning duty to go off and fly. The results lead to a trash storm throughout the realm, which truly heightens the drama for the rest of the series.
Everything Is Fine
“Everything is Fine” is the pilot episode of The Good Place, and it perfectly sets up the world that viewers of the show will be settling into during their binge-watch of the series. This episode displays how brilliantly witty and imaginative Michael Schur’s masterpiece will turn out to be, and it sets off the journey audiences will experience along with Eleanor and the rest of the gang. We find out in the pilot that Eleanor is not supposed to be in The Good Place, and because of this, it causes a number of hilarious glitches to occur inside the realm. These glitches are complete with “Break Free” by Ariana Grande blasting throughout The Good Place, while giant shrimps and ladybugs fly in the sky. You know, your average Tuesday in The Good Place.
