Parents' Guide to

The Good Place

By Joyce Slaton, Common Sense Media Reviewer

age 12+

Incredibly original afterlife sitcom has charm, diversity.

TV NBC Comedy 2016
The Good Place Poster Image

A Lot or a Little?

What you will—and won't—find in this TV show.

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age 13+

Based on 71 parent reviews

saramomof3
saramomof3 Adult
January 6, 2022
age 10+

What is too mature, they don't understand

My 8, 10 and 12 year old loved this so much that I have had to make sure they are not binging too much. Much better than most of what is on YouTube or TickTok. At least they are learning a first year philosophy course despite some vulgarities that they don't understand. No swearing though because you can't curse in the afterlife.

This title has:

Great messages
4 people found this helpful.
GraceEW
GraceEW Parent of 11-year-old
April 6, 2022
age 11+

The Good Place is a creative sitcom/drama with great diverse role models and philosophy thrown in!

We watched The Good Place with our 11 year old and we all love it. It is so funny, and the characters are very diverse and inspiring. The part I love the most is the changes that occur in the characters over the years. Cursing is not present as you cannot curse in the Good Place (you saw "fork", "shirt" etc. The one difficult episode involved Mindy in the Medium Place; I think a parent can just skip that episode with their child (and summarize it for them to avoid questions about cocaine and masturbation), or fast forward through part of that episode as I think there is something very important plot-wise in that episode. Overall, we loved this show. We have two episodes left and don't want it to end! PS. Ted Danson is still one of the top sitcom comedians around. He is great in this, as is the rest of the excellent cast.

This title has:

Educational value
Great messages
Great role models
2 people found this helpful.
See all 71 parent reviews

What's the Story?

Somebody's made a mistake. Snarky con artist Eleanor Shellstrop (Kristen Bell) has died, and instead of receiving her just rewards she winds up in THE GOOD PLACE, with heavenly coordinator Michael (Ted Danson) ushering her into a new life with a cute and tiny house, a group of morally upright neighbors, and her supposed soul mate, Chidi (William Jackson Harper). Saintly Chidi, a former ethics professor, is the only one who knows Eleanor's not where she's supposed to be, a fact that causes strange shock waves to radiate out through the afterlife. But Eleanor is hoping that she can make herself a better person, worthy of the place in which she hopes to stay.

Is It Any Good?

Our review:
Parents say (71):
Kids say (248):

This bright charmer is a delightful and surprisingly deep exploration of the complexities of being, well, good. The Good Place, it turns out, is a series of sprawling suburbs, each one designed to meet all the needs of its (un-?) dead population and stocked with neighbors selected to harmonize with one another. Eleanor's heavenly neighborhood is one of green lawns and yogurt shops (but then, those are everywhere: "People love frozen yogurt," shrugs Michael), with shops such as the Small Adorable Animal Depot and a house that's supposedly specially made for Eleanor, with a primary color scheme and many pictures of clowns.

Of course, Eleanor doesn't fit -- not into the house, not into the neighborhood, not into this heaven cognate, and soon her snark and selfishness cause unforeseen consequences. She doesn't want to go to the Bad Place that people talk darkly but vaguely about, so her only choice is to try to improve herself enough to keep her spot in the neighborhood. It's hardly an original setup, but the jokes are fun (a list of everyone in the Bad Place includes Elvis, Mozart, and every American president but Lincoln), and Bell retains the flip, mouthy attitude that made her a breakout star on Veronica Mars, while Danson radiates a Willy Wonka-esque appeal. It all comes together in a show that's mild but fun and good for whole-family watching with tweens on up.

Talk to Your Kids About ...

  • Families can talk about the way women are portrayed on television and why main female characters tend to be such a rarity. Are women on TV more often shown working together or working against each other? What about on The Good Place? How do TV stereotypes match up to the behavior of the women you know in real life?

  • Many shows begin with a character new to a setting or situation being shown around. Why? Name some examples you've seen.

  • Life-after-death scenarios are a staple of fantasy movies and TV shows. Why? Why are shows that tell viewers what might happen after death appealing?

TV Details

Did we miss something on diversity?

Research shows a connection between kids' healthy self-esteem and positive portrayals in media. That's why we've added a new "Diverse Representations" section to our reviews that will be rolling out on an ongoing basis. You can help us help kids by suggesting a diversity update.

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