The 4 Best Quotes from ‘The Good Place’ to Live Your Life By
If you have caught any episodes of NBC’s The Good Place, you know that “somebody forked up.” Eleanor Shellstrop, played by Kristen Bell, was not a good person on Earth. However, in this show about the afterlife, she ends up in a neighborhood called ‘the good place’ instead of ‘the bad place.’
The show is a comedy about becoming a better person. It has just the right combination of hilarious one-liners combined with incredibly deep ethics and philosophy to keep you coming back for more.
It actually makes you want to evaluate your own life, or at least grab a pen to jot down that last inspirational quote Chidi came out with (as well as Eleanor’s classic devil’s advocate response). Let’s take a look at the four most inspirational quotes we have heard on the show in the last 3 seasons, while we wait not-so-patiently for season 4 to return.
William Jackson Harper’s character, Chidi, teaches ethics to the gang
From the very beginning, in every episode of The Good Place, Chidi tries incredibly hard to instill values and ethics into Eleanor’s life. His attempts are often met with knee-jerk, oppositional (and always funny) responses from Eleanor. Nonetheless, he keeps working on her and she keeps trying to understand him.
One of the best quotes from Chidi comes when Eleanor insists that they lie to their tormentors, “So you can’t even lie to demons? They’re trying to torture us, man! We’re behind enemy lines!”
Chidi’s response is simple:
“Principles aren’t principles when you pick and choose when you are going to follow them.”
He continually tells Eleanor that she simply can’t be a good person just to get something in return, but she has to internally want to do good in the world.
Kristen Bell’s character, Eleanor Shellstrop, tries to improve herself
Chidi’s main problem on the show is that he has a very difficult time making decisions. He tends to overthink every single thing in his life.
Bell’s character is quite the opposite. Eleanor has no problem making decisions, but often does not think about the consequences. The pair make for a very hilarious duo.
One of the best Eleanor quotes comes when she is trying to talk Chidi into making yet another decision:
“I know it sounds crazy, but if it weren’t crazy, they wouldn’t call it a leap of faith. They’d call it a sit of doubting.”
Eleanor in turn helps to make Chidi a better person. He overthinks everything so much that he never actually lives his life.
Janet, the friendly neighborhood robot played by D’Arcy Carden, learns self-confidence
Fairly early on in the first season, Michael (Ted Danson), the creator of the neighborhood, gives Janet a self-help book because she is having trouble figuring out who to be.
Our favorite quote comes after she has read the book:
“It turns out the best Janet was the Janet that was inside Janet all along.”
Her response is cute and funny, but also honest. Every episode of The Good Place keeps us laughing while simultaneously slipping in life lessons. This one from Janet is simple: Find your self confidence to believe in yourself!
The best quote of the ‘The Good Place’ comes from the executive producer, Michael Schur
Although this quote was not actually in the show, it speaks to what the show is really about.
Michael Schur told the final season panel at the Television Critics Association summer press tour:
“At the beginning, I pitched it as ‘what it means to be a good person,’ and at the end, I think I would describe this as a show that makes the argument that we all ought to try harder than we are, and as long as you’re trying, you’re on the right path.”
Schur explains that instead of being ‘good,’ you really just need to be trying. It is still unclear whether Eleanor, Chidi, Tahani and Jason will end up in the good place or not when the series concludes in season 4, but one thing is clear: They have certainly learned to try.
By watching The Good Place, I think it is clear that the viewers have also come away with not only many great quotes to remember, but that same life encouragement as well; you simply have to try to be a better person.
The Good Place Season 4 premieres Thursday, September 26, 2019 on NBC.
