Morality and philosophy have always been heavy subjects, influential and integral yes, but also intense and often strayed away from. The Good Place established itself, circa 2016, as a funny, colorful TV show with one premise in mind: tackling the afterlife. That’s all it was at the start, but as the show progressed, so too did the characters.

Viewers watched, I ravenously so, as the four main humans connected and grew. The Good Place had somehow cracked the code, interweaving each episode with a quirky premise and a philosophical quote to wrap it all up. That show did something; people connected to those characters, no matter how flawed they were very apparently portrayed to be. 

Among my starving attempts to fill the Good Place shaped hole in my heart after the show had wrapped after its final season in 2020, I found myself watching countless video essays and rewatching the show over and over again. Something had captured me, but what? Then through one video essay in particular, I had found it, the explanation to what made Eleanor and Chidi, Tahani and Jason so lovable, so real. Each represented what it took to be “good.” That good can be found in anyone, everyone can find a Good Place character that resonates, and all we need is each other to find the goodness within ourselves. For will, for action cannot exist without a purpose, and choices without kindness can become cruel. Intelligence can become crippling without the motivation to act. 

That is what The Good Place has taught me, in every moment of my life, to examine and find what makes someone good, and what they need to be better. Being good isn’t just about doing good things, it’s about wanting to improve and actively choosing a life of good every day. My life has truly changed because of this show, my world view has always been that people are neither good nor evil, but self-serving. We make choices that benefit ourselves, including doing good things for the people we care about. So why not extend that circle, why not pour intent, knowledge, generosity, and kindness into every day?

I will always recommend The Good Place to those who have yet to watch it. It is a show that never fails to make me laugh, cry, and confront my very stance on the world around me. Politics, entertainment, and life as a whole mean nothing if we aren’t true to ourselves, and help others find their truth. We all inherently have some form of goodness, it is simply a matter of finding the other forms that fulfill, bind, and lead us.