2x12 Somewhere Else

[7.9/10] A superb end to a superb season. So much Season 2 of this show has been about showing change and growth for the better in our heroes at the same time the world was constantly changing around them, whether that meant teaming up with Michael, leaving The (Fake) Good Place behind, or sneaking their way into The Judge's chambers.

And in the finale, the show tries to test out whether that change was real. There's complex moral theories at play here, but the most basic are a few ideas: that a person can become good with just "the right push" like the one Michael tries to give Eleanor in saving her from that row of shopping carts; that good is not something you do because you expect a reward but because of who you are; and that morality, and by extension being good, is something inextricably tied to others, to "what we owe each other," an idea that brings Eleanor and Chidi together in the mortal realm at the end of this season just like it brought them together in The (Fake) Good Place in the beginning.

All the while, there's a lot of strong writing and character work. Using the eye-opening shot for Eleanor to montage her rise and fall during the course of a year back on Earth is a smart tack. The idea of old-timey stock tickers, with Michael and Janet reviewing, to indicate how our heroes are doing back in the moral realm is amusing. And there's plenty of great laughs like Eleanor using the term "diagonal word belt" to mean "sash" or the bar (tended by Ted Danson, who was experience from Cheers) being called "Sting's Desert Rose."

It's a testament to the creativity the show has shown all season, one where it's been constantly willing to smash the status quo and dive headlong into some new adventure. Now that adventure is seeing whether our four favorite humans can take what they've internalized from their time in the afterlife, the potential they've shown, and turn it into real change back where they started. It's another exciting turn, one that promises to continue to follow the moral trajectory of these four individuals, and their unlikely guardian angels helping them navigate what it is, and what it means, to be good.

I totally lost it when I saw Michael doing Ted Danson's Cheers routine! Such a lovely (and obvious) Easter egg.

I felt this episode dragged things a little bit, it most certainly shifted the tone of the series, putting comedy in the back seat and letting moral consequences of actions lead the way. Like this episode's plot, the episode itself felt a bit experimental. I am not at all happy with the results, but it's still a good episode, nonetheless, despite it being my least favourite of the season. After last week's superb episode, this one seemed like a filler for season 3 to kick in. Or maybe I just miss the whole gang together. Regardless, the ending surely was interesting enough to keep us wanting to know where they're taking us, now. They're all alive, no more "Good Place" or "Bad Place" for a while, so has this now become a regular sitcom with ethical elements thrown into it? Ah! I'm certain that will not be the case, because this show knows how to sweep the rug from under our feet every time we're standing firmly on it. Yeah, I'm probably not good with metaphors. Anyway, I can barely wait to get reunited with these poor afterlife test subjects for season 3!