Starring: Kristen Bell, Ted Danson, William Jackson Harper, Jameela Jamil, D’Arcy Cardon, Manny Jacinto
The Good Place launched this week with two episodes on Monday and a third on Thursday. I saw all three, and I think The Good Place is probably going to be the best new sitcom of the season. I know that’s a bold prediction, but sometimes a show is so original and finds its voice so quickly, it establishes itself way ahead of the pack. I feel like within three episodes, The Good Life already plays like a well-oiled machine, knowing its strengths and weaknesses, and setting itself up as a future anchor for NBC’s lineup.
Kristen Bell is delightful as Eleanor, a girl who is mistakenly given a spot in The Good Place after her death. She’s worried about being discovered, so she works with her new friend Chidi (Harper) to help her learn how to be a good person so she can stay in the good place. Danson plays the guy who runs this “neighborhood”.
My problems with The Good Place lie in some of the choices they’ve made to joke about who is in “the bad place”. First off, Danson’s character explains that everything we do is given either a plus or a minus to our score. However, only people with really high scores make The Good Place. Which means, you could live a good life, have a positive score, and end up in the bad place? What the fuck?
Also, I’m tired of the jokes about who ended up in The Bad Place, because it’s making me not like The Good Place. Mozart? Beethoven? All the Presidents except Lincoln? Every deceased member of the Portland Trailblazers? Come on now.
Otherwise, I like the show. I just am tired of the bullshit surrounding getting in.
FINAL GRADE: A
