THE GOOD PLACE Roundtable: Patty

The Good Place continues its final season with a brand new episode this week. Check out our thoughts below. Here’s a synopsis:

The group makes some new friends.

We’re going to divide our thoughts on this episode into three self-explanatory categories – The Good Place, The Medium Place, and The Bad Place, plus a final category for favorite quotes or overall thoughts.

THE GOOD PLACE — “Patty” Episode 412 — Pictured: (l-r) Jameela Jamil as Tahani, Manny Jacinto as Jason, D’Arcy Carden as Janet, Kristen Bell as Eleanor, William Jackson Harper as Chidi — (Photo by: Colleen Hayes/NBC)

The Good Place

Roz: The Getty! It’s the Good Place! I love that they made it to the Good Place and found it to be a place that they figured it was from the beginning.

Christie: In a way, I love how Michael is now chief architect for the Good Place. It’s seems like the right thing for him. And I’m happy that the team gets to have their homes and Chidi and Eleanor have the little house again.

Cay:  The best part of this episode for me was the end when they were all excited about their new homes and Chidi and Eleanor were enjoying the view. I guess we had to expect that it wouldn’t all be unicorns and roses, it had to be fat, fluffy multihorned beasts and a bunch of mushy brained zombies.

Bad Place

Roz: What’s with all those Good Place architects leaving? I’m so confused by their choices all alone, especially since putting so much work on Michael is so much after everything else he’s been through.

Cay: It’s frustrating, but not entirely unexpected, that The Good Place turned out to not be what they were expecting. I also don’t understand why the architects left and what that all means. They seemed like the type that would never be unhappy – were they faking that all along?

THE GOOD PLACE — “Patty” Episode 412 — Pictured: Ted Danson as Michael — (Photo by: Colleen Hayes/NBC)

Christie: The Good Place architects were always my least favorite thing about the show. Is this really how Heaven is run? These know-nothing, imaginationless middle manager types? It’s such a disappointment.

The Medium Place

Cay: Michael’s robes – WTH? I did enjoy Eleanor’s Harry Potter joke. Chidi was super annoying in this episode! I know that he was excited, but it was over the top, even for old Chidi.

Christie: I don’t know how I feel about the team’s solution for The Good Place. I was generally underwhelmed by the episode until this moment, which was, as Marty McFly would say, heavy.

One, what an interesting commentary on humanity that we would get tired of having anything and everything we could want. That we need to be constantly entertained and in need of more.  Two,what does it say about the Good Place architects that they couldn’t keep these people occupied. They hadn’t had anyone new in 500 years, and all they had to do in that time was look to Earth for new ideas.

On the other hand, was the solution of “the door” really the only thing that could work? In a universe of new things to see and do and learn, new people to meet… I just can’t believe that all the knowledge in the universe is that finite. I would expect to be studying and debating and arguing for thousands of years with someone like Chidi!

Maybe that’s part of the problem — by only allowing so few people, there was no one there to make the afterlife interesting, to inject it with new ideas. Maybe we need those less-than-perfect humans to make the Good Place interesting. I certainly hope so. I hope few people use the door.

Roz: Patty! I love that it took someone who was so important to Chidi to help them see what is wrong with another place that they’ve ended up in.

THE GOOD PLACE — “Patty” Episode 412 — Pictured: (l-r) William Jackson Harper as Chidi, Kristen Bell as Eleanor, Jameela Jamil as Tahani — (Photo by: Colleen Hayes/NBC)

Final Thoughts & Quotes We Loved

Cay: It’s an interesting thought that having something new in the future, a goal or even an option, even if it is the unknown is necessary for happiness. I’ve kind of noticed this myself in that I expect I’ll be thrilled when I meet a long term goal, but without a new goal it can feel kind of anti-climatic and then I’m wondering “what now?”. I’m guessing that if your goal is to live a good life and go to The Good Place, once you get there, it could feel like you’re trapped. I think I like this concept better than I liked how they portrayed it.

Christie: To think this is the penultimate episode of the show is astonishing. I hope we get another show someday as fun and thought-provoking.

Roz: I find it funny that all the Good Place needed was something else to look forward to in order to make it less dull and boring.

Check out our other The Good Place coverage!

The Good Place airs Thursdays 9/8c on NBC. Next week is the two part series finale.