10 Reasons We Really Forking Miss The Good Place

The Good Place—starring Kristen Bell, Ted Danson, Jameela Jamil and more—may be gone, but it is not forgotten. Take a look back at some of our favorite moments.

By Lauren Piester Dec 29, 2020 3:41 PMTags
Watch: What Would Be in "Good Place" Stars' Own Good Place?

It's been nearly a year since the end of The Good Place, but it still lives on in our hearts.

And in honor Ted Danson's birthday—but do we really need a reason?—we're taking a look back at all the reasons we really, really miss that show. 

We really could have listed most of the episodes and most of the characters and most of the jokes, but we don't have the time for that (and you could just go rewatch the whole series on Netflix). Instead, we've narrowed it down to just 10 glorious examples of why The Good Place was one of the most inventive comedies on TV and why it may never be matched, no matter how much incredible TV creator Mike Schur continues to gift us with.

The Good Place ran for four seasons on NBC and followed a group of strangers in the afterlife as they wrestled with ethics, morality and what makes someone a truly good person. Somehow that premise was forking hilarious, even if it doesn't sound like it.  

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Danson, William Jackson HarperD'Arcy Carden and Maya Rudolph all scored acting nominations at the 2020 Emmys. And, the show itself—also starring Kristen Bell, Manny Jacinto and Jameela Jamil—also scored recognition in the Outstanding Comedy Series and Outstanding Writing for a Comedy Series category.

Scroll down for joy!

Janet's Murder

Janet is not human and she cannot die, but there is a button that will reset her and she will do her best to convince you not to murder her even though you cannot murder her. That's not a picture of her kids, it's a stock photo of the crowd at the Nickelodeon Kids Choice Awards! It's truly a wonder that D'Arcy Carden didn't get nominated for an Emmy in season one.

THIS Is the Bad Place!

The moment The Good Place finally showed us what it really was. The season one finale flipped the entire show on its head, revealing that the entire season one morality crisis over whether or not Eleanor, Chidi, Tahani and Jason should really have been in the Bad Place was all for naught, since they already were. Michael's evil laugh still lives in our nightmares, even if Michael himself eventually grew to be the most lovable demon (and eventual human).

"Janet(s)"

D'Arcy Carden also didn't get nominated for an Emmy in season three, despite absolutely killing it in an episode in which she played all of the other characters inside her void. She even made out with herself in a romantic and emotional scene between herself as Eleanor and herself as Chidi, and we'll never forget it to be quite honest with you.

Jason Mandoza

The Florida man himself. From crashing his jet ski into a manatee to DJing his own afterlife funeral, Jason (Manny Jacinto) was perfect in every way and we miss him constantly. Bortles!

Chidi's Many Breakdowns

Chidi (William Jackson Harper) couldn't make a decision to save his life. It actually ended up killing him, and he continued to suffer from indecision and ethical conundrums in the afterlife. Each and every time he lost it over the perplexities of existence, we found joy. Never forget when he gave a lecture on putting Peeps in chili while wearing a shirt that said "Who What When Where Wine." 

Food in the Afterlife

The Good Place really had a thing for so many foods, like frozen yogurt and shrimp, and had a real knack for the food-related pun. This was best showcased by the restaurant names: Knish From a Rose, Beignets and the Jets, The Pesto's Yet to Come, Biscotti Pippen, From Schmear to Eternity, Cake Canaveral, Lasagne Come Out Tomorrow, Ponzu Scheme, Cruller Intentions and of course, The Good Plates.

Tahani's Name-Dropping

Tahani Al-Jamil knew everyone: Johnny Depp, Taylor Swift, Ben Affleck, Stephen Hawking, Kevin Costner, Nicole Kidman, Barbra Streisand, Adele, Mark Zuckerberg, Ryan Gosling and the entire royal family. Just to name a few. It was annoying at first, but soon became endearing. Strange how none of her very close friends ever made an appearance on the show, though...

Chidi and Eleanor

Never has a couple felt so wrong and so right at the same time, in so many iterations, over so many hundreds of years. We are still waiting on our copy of the sexy Chidi calendar that he left for Eleanor when he crossed over in the series finale. 

Michael, the 6,000-Foot-Tall Fire Squid

Michael's transformation from creative and determined demon architect tasked with torturing humans in the Bad Place to lovable reformed demon doing his best to actual real life human man was a treat to watch from start to finish, especially when you remember that underneath it all, he was actually a 6,000-foot-tall fire squid. 

Jeremy Bearimy

Jeremy Bearimy is the shape of time in the afterlife. The dot above the "I" contains Tuesdays and July and occasionally the time moment where nothing ever occurs, and it's explanations like this that we just really miss trying to understand on a weekly basis. 

(E! and NBC are both part of the NBCUniversal family.)

This story originally published on Thursday, Sept. 17, 2020 at 12:11 p.m. PT.