Like most people during this lockdown, I’ve been looking for things to fill my time with since my spring break has essentially stretched into the summer, and one of those things turns out to be television series that I would never otherwise watch. For the last three days, I have been watching The Good Place, a comedy television series set in a universe where when humans die, they end up in either the Good Place or the Bad Place depending on their point totals, which record their deeds on Earth. Eleanor ends up in the Good Place on accident, but knowing she doesn’t belong there, she strives to become a better person and earn her place before anyone figures out her true identity. I actually tried this series a few months ago and didn’t want any more of it, but now I have nothing better to do. First off, building an afterlife system that resembles real world beliefs enough to be understandable and appealing to viewers yet unique enough to not seem like it’s endorsing or mocking any one religion while remaining a comedic setting for humorous adventures is no small feat. My only disappointment with this side of things is the lack of information that we get about non-human related things, like where do demons come from? Why is there an afterlife system in the first place? How was the point system first invented? I genuinely liked the plot for the most part. It contains about seven different twists, all of them fulfilling. Due to how wacky the worldbuilding is set up in the first place, even the wilder twists don’t seem too unexpected. As for the overarching theme of the story, the message that The Good Place attempts to send is essentially that people can change to become better versions of themselves given the opportunity. People might have developed into bad people from growing up in a bad environment but when pushed to do good rather than bad, they can change. I don’t disagree with this message, but it does bring up the question, “Is even the worst of the worst capable of change?” In the series, we don’t meet any serial killers or child molesters, only selfish jerks at worst. What about the people who are wired to violence due to brain damage limiting their impulse control? Do they automatically heal in the afterlife? The Comedy Part of "Fantasy Comedy Television Series" With no major issues with the plot or the theme, one might wonder why it took a lockdown for me to watch more than two episodes, and the answer to that is: literally everything else. Though I really wanted to know the ending, I spent about a quarter of each episode on my phone because about a quarter of each episode is filler that is spread out all throughout in the form of bad jokes that do nothing but interrupt the plot. This continues literally through the climax all the way until the ending. Judging purely based on its humor, The Good Place might actually be the worst big-budget comedy series that I have ever watched. There are occasionally outlandish moments that spark a laugh out of me, but most of the “comedy” is just random mentions of sex or drugs or occasionally actual onscreen depictions of drugs, including alcohol, marijuana, and cocaine. Most other shows at least try to weave their jokes into the flow of the story or make them vague enough so that younger teenagers won’t understand them, but this series doesn’t bother with either of those. For example, this is an actual quote from a flashback to Earth in Episode 12. Checkout girl: "So, big plans this weekend?" Eleanor: "Yep. I'm gonna sit alone in my house watching wedding fails on YouTube, drinking margaritas through a Twizzlers straw until I pass out on top of my vibrator." Checkout girl: ... That’s what we’re supposed to laugh at. Even if I were trash and liked dirty jokes, it’s not funny. The simple mention of sex toys or weed isn’t funny. It’s lazy writing. Only thirteen-year-old boys would even crack a smile at these jokes, but no decent parent would want their thirteen-year-old child watching this (even though it actually is rated TV-14 because the system is currently broken) unless they for some reason enjoy explaining to their children what sex toys are or how to snort cocaine, something that a few characters actually do onscreen. The jokes are so badly interwoven with the actual events that progress the plot that they’re distracting and downright immersion breaking. It literally feels like someone who was about to be fired sneaked into the script room and added in these jokes at random. The other sorts of humor that stain this series is one character randomly mentioning stupid stunts that they did on Earth in the most flat voice and a different character randomly name-dropping celebrities when other characters are trying to figure things out. Even if I knew and cared who any celebrities are, again, simply mentioning random stuff isn’t funny, especially when it’s not relevant to what’s happening onscreen. At certain points, the characters themselves tell each other to shut up, but it never lasts for long. Five minutes later, the same or a different character delivers another boring line. It would be something if the characters start out spouting random nonsense but stop once they progress in their character development and become better people, but this isn't what happens. I genuinely don’t understand the motivation because some of the comedic moments are actually funny. Even if all the delivered jokes were cut out, this series can stand on its own with just its plot and the actual funny stuff. Conclusion The final kick in the teeth is that despite all the unnecessary mentions of sex and drugs, and despite some pretty dark themes for a TV-14 comedy, like the meaning of mortality, the darker and more realistic side of these jokes never get explored. A side character has a literal addiction to cocaine, and it’s never explored how drug addictions ruin lives every day on Earth. It's never even brought up that cocaine is dangerous and illegal in most places. With all the mentions of pornography, it would've been cool if a character popped up in the Bad Place because they shot pornography of children. Starting off with bad inappropriate jokes then including some of these ideas would've sent a pretty strong message to comedians everywhere. Instead, these terrible things that ruin people’s lives all day every day in real life are just reduced to the most unfunny jokes I’ve ever heard for literally no reason. I can’t imagine actually being a recovering addict and being made to sit through all of them. I might not be as harsh with the moral messaging if The Good Place was rated TV-MA, but it's rated TV-14, and everyone knows kids these days don't watch every series with their parents, who now have to explain to their 8th and 9th grade children why they shouldn't do cocaine even if a character on their favorite television show is doing it. The lazy jokes almost make it seem like the creators don’t believe in themselves much, but they should’ve had a bit more confidence. I would’ve rated The Good Place with a decent 8 stars out of 10 for its original plot and unique worldbuilding, but the highest I can actually go right now is a head-shaking, disappointing 5 out of 10. Originally written 2020 April 2
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