Warning: SPOILERS ahead for The Good Place. The Good Place cemented itself as one of the most thoughtful, hilarious, and creative shows to ever air on television. By deciding to conclude in season 4 when the story still felt fresh, the series ended on a high note and in a way that felt fitting.
Developments in not only the series finale but also throughout the final season allowed the show to end with a great deal of closure. While it was nearly perfect, it did miss the mark in a couple of areas, though. Welcome to The Good Place: 8 Things That Brought Us Closure (& 2 That Didn't).
Brought Closure: Chidi's Memories Are Restored
The season 3 finale devastated fans as Chidi's memories were wiped in order to maintain the integrity of the experiment. It was brutal to watch him and Eleanor interacting throughout much of season 4, with Eleanor ing everything from their past relationship and Chidi ing nothing.
It was a relief when his memories were finally restored. Not only was he able to rekindle his most important relationships with memories of everything that happened, but he also came out more confident than ever before. Bringing all those memories back made him realize new and essential truths that led to the best version of himself.
Brought Closure: A New Afterlife System
After everything the Soul Squad went through to build a better system for the afterlife, it was immensely satisfying to see such a system finally implemented. The Good Place always embodied the idea that people are flawed, but what matters is that people work toward becoming better versions of themselves.
The new system honors that idea and emulates how the of the Soul Squad made progress in the first place. They even got the Judge and their fiercest adversary, Shawn, to get on board and make the new system a reality.
Brought Closure: Vicky Finds Her Calling
After being a key character in seasons 1 and 2, the demon Vicky was absent for much of seasons 3 and 4. She was brought back for the final episodes in the perfect way, though. In the past, Vicky's artistic talents and dedication were never fully recognized or appreciated by Michael.
That changed when Vicky successfully trained other demons in creating scenarios for humans in the new afterlife system. Her talents were finally recognized and appreciated as she did the job better than Michael could and found her calling as a teacher and leader of her craft.
Didn't: No Jason And Tahani Farewell
Jason and Tahani developed a fun and unique dynamic over the course of the show. They were as different as two characters could be, yet something clicked between them as they formed an understanding of one another and engaged in some serious shenanigans.
Yet, Jason and Tahani didn't get to share any sort of farewell scene in the series finale. These two characters went through too much together. Not including this is a disservice to their relationship and how much both of them have grown.
Brought Closure: The Soul Squad Gets Into The Good Place
After fixing the broken afterlife system, it was only fitting that the Soul Squad were the first ones to get into the Good Place. This is what they'd been working toward for so long and it was gratifying to know they'd made their dream come true and would now be able to enjoy the fruit of their labors.
The hot air balloon was a great callback to season 2 when Michael didn't want to it to his friends that he didn't know how to get them to the Good Place. Now they got to take the hot air balloon to the Good Place for real.
Brought Closure: Creating The Door
Too much of a good thing becomes a bad thing. This became apparent as the people in the Good Place had turned into essentially mindless zombies because they had no choice but to spend eternity there, regardless of when they felt fulfilled or ready to move on. The Soul Squad found a simple, elegant solution by creating a door that denizens of the Good Place could walk through once they felt like they'd done everything they wanted to in the afterlife.
This gave people a reason to take advantage of what the Good Place had to offer and a next, final step to take if they ever felt ready to move on. It's a beautiful concept as it gave people a choice and a feeling of control over their afterlife existence. There's also something comforting about the idea that even the afterlife won't go on forever and everything eventually ends.
Brought Closure: Tahani Reconciled With Her Parents
So much of Tahani's character was formed in the problematic way she was raised by her parents and the way they treated her. Tahani had the meaningful opportunity to reconcile with her sister Kamilah in season 3, yet the relationship with their parents seemed like it would remain forever unresolved.
The series finale proved otherwise as Tahani's parents got into the Good Place after finally becoming better versions of themselves. The regret, warmth, and love that their parents bring is heartwarming and provides closure in the family's problematic history. It also serves as one of the final steps in Tahani feeling fulfilled as a denizen of the Good Place.
Didn't: Janet's Ending Isn't About Her
While the rest of the Soul Squad received endings that felt tailored to them and their development, Janet doesn't receive an ending that is tailored to her. All her scenes in the series finale are about helping her friends to find closure and move on, but none are truly about her or her growth.
Eleanor, Chidi, Jason, Tahani, and Michael all have scenes that feel like proper goodbyes, yet there's no such scene for Janet. As touching as her final scenes were with characters like Jason and Eleanor, those scenes were more about Jason and Eleanor than about Janet.
Brought Closure: Simone And John Get Into The Good Place, But Brent Never Will
After the experiment concluded, a number of episodes ed with the fates of Simone, John, and Brent still a mystery. The series finale tied this up by showing that both Simone and John got into the Good Place because of all the progress they made in the experiment. Their progress was proof that the experiment worked, serving as the blueprint for all of humanity moving forward.
Meanwhile, it's also shown that many Jeremy Bearimys later, Brent still hasn't gotten into the Good Place. This feels right as no matter how many chances some people like Brent are given, they will never improve due to their prejudices and self-absorption. Fortunately, there are many more Simones and Johns than Brents in the universe, though.
Brought Closure: Eleanor, Chidi, Tahani, Jason, and Michael Get Perfect Endings
All five of these characters received peaceful and fitting endings in the series finale. Chidi spent countless Jeremy Bearimys with his love Eleanor, provided a metaphor about waves that allowed everyone to feel at peace, and then confidently strode through the door without hesitation. Tahani met all her goals, reconciled with her parents, and then found a new calling as a Good Place architect. The ever-bold Jason was the first to embrace the idea of going through the door, but his unique love and dedication for Janet made him stick around much longer than anyone realized.
Michael got to become a human, the very creature he'd always been fascinated by and who he risked everything to save. The person who helped him realize this was what he needed was Eleanor, who always understood Michael. True to her character development, she stuck around until she made things right for everyone, and only then walked through the door.