Beware: spoilers galore ahead

The Good Place ended not with a bang, but with a touching, pitch-perfect final question left unanswered.

Michael Schur’s fantastical comedy, crafted as an exploration of ethics, morals, and philosophy, came full circle on the questions surrounding morality and goodness the show has been pondering from the very beginning: What does it mean to be a good person? Where do we derive meaning in our lives? What happens after we die—to us, and to those we leave behind? What do people owe one another? At the end of the day, The Good Place posits that people can change and become better, if given the chance and the resources. An Arizona dirtbag, a self-absorbed socialite, a failed DJ from Florida, and an anxious professor can, with each other’s help, learn how to take care of each other and themselves. 

Though the finale found humans Eleanor (Kristen Bell), Chidi (William Jackson Harper), Tahani (Jameela Jamil), and Jason (Manny Jacinto), along with demon architect Michael (Ted Danson) and magical Siri Janet (D’Arcy Carden) finally spending their days blissfully in the actual Good Place, like all good things—like the show The Good Place—each character’s time there must come to an end.

Schur’s show challenged its viewers from the start. Season one concluded by flipping the entire premise on its head—Eleanor and her three fellow humans are actually in the Bad Place. He asks us to think back and consider how this too-perfect, static neighborhood could actually be the opposite of what we had been told. Then, the four return to their human lives on Earth, for the Judge (Maya Rudolph) to see whether they can become better people. Schur explores the philosophical question of whether or not, given a second chance at life on Earth, people will do better. 

It turns out that the entire system is flawed. As much as Schur’s show was boundary-pushing, the basics of the afterlife system in The Good Place are grounded in concepts that many people are familiar with—supposedly a theology that draws from all religions, but very much grounded in the Christian concepts of heaven and hell. However, instead of sticking to a simple delineation between good and bad, in season three, Michael and Janet discover that it’s impossible for anyone to earn enough points for a spot in the Good Place due to how morally complicated life in the modern world is. And in the second to last episode, the Soul Squad finds that the Good Place is broken too. Bliss becomes meaningless when it lasts for a monotonous eternity. 

The Judge tasks the Soul Squad with designing a new afterlife system to fix this issue. Chidi, former moral philosophy professor, leads the way. As Michael, Janet, Tahani, Chidi, and Eleanor discussed how to fix the points system, the show gives its viewers the ethical jargon to have that debate along with them. Schur asks not just can people change, but why should everyone be given the chance to? He argues that the original four humans were not just some fluke. But just because the gang settles on one certain solution, Schur doesn’t necessarily suggest they have found the one correct answer. 

That leaves the problem of fixing the Good Place. Eleanor realizes that the Good Place becomes meaningful again if it has an end, because, she posits, death is what makes life itself meaningful. Michael creates a door that lets people leave the Good Place when they are ready, with the final destination unknown (even to Janet, who knows everything in the universe). And in the final episode, the characters each reach the end of their time in the Good Place in different ways—some by walking through that door, others by seeking new ways to create meaning for themselves.

The Good Place is a risky premise for an NBC Thursday-night comedy—a coveted niche historically occupied by highly popular traditional sitcoms such as 30 Rock, The Office, Parks & Recreation, and Superstore. It’s a risky premise for a comedy, period: an absurdist sitcom that doubles as an Ethics & Philosophy 101 class, set in a fantasy afterlife filled with magical technology? The Good Place is the very definition of a swing for the bleachers. It’s different from everything else. Its comedic format and zany, fun characters make an otherwise daunting and pedantic topic, one usually seen as the sole property of academia, approachable. It opens up the philosophical conversation to its viewers and enables many to engage with it who otherwise might not, regardless of their background in the study. It refused to shy away from big questions, heavy topics, and emotional moments; it refused to condescend its audience. The Good Place’s ability to juggle the nuances of humor and seriousness—as well as the nuances of the conversations it opened up—is exactly what makes it such a compelling show. 

With its widespread acclaim and success, The Good Place is a show that could have lasted ten or fifteen seasons, but Schur elected to end The Good Place on his own terms after just four. His choice kept the story neat and clean and consistently good all the way through, and (with a premise as wild and ever-changing as it has) helped it avoid jumping over any sharks. Viewers watching this season knew it was the last, and knowing that the show was ending made the conversations about designing a new afterlife—about the knowledge of an ending creating meaning in the present—far more poignant. The finale couldn’t have been as easy as the four humans, Michael, and Janet going to the real Good Place and being happy there forever. 

What is the real Good Place, then? Chidi tells Eleanor that it’s having enough time to spend with people you love. For Michael, it’s the chance to live a human life on Earth and do the simple human things like learn to play music or talk to his neighbors. The Good Place itself is a chance for viewers to laugh at the gang’s ridiculous antics, cry at the emotional moments, and consider a question or two about moral and ethical philosophy. We’ll miss it, but it felt right to say farewell.

The Good Place is available for streaming on Hulu, Netflix, and NBC’s website. 

Olivia Funderburg studied English and Education Studies at Wellesley College, and now works in children’s publishing in New York City. In her free time, she can be found talking about educational inequality, keeping tabs on Lebron James, and searching bookstore shelves for the next great teen romcom.

Allyson Larcom is a Boston-based writer whose work has appeared in The Satirist and Wellesley College's Counterpoint Magazine. Follow her on twitter @allysonlarcom, or visit her website allysonlarcom.wordpress.com to find more of her writing.