The Good Peach and Undead Mischief.
Week 31
Welcome to Watch TV. Drink BEER.
Week 31 Vibe: Twists, Fro-yo, and Soulmates
The TV.
The Good Place. Season 1. Episode 13.
WATCH IF YOU LIKE: Parks & Rec, Brooklyn Nine-Nine, Crazy Ex Girlfriend
Stream on: Netflix
EPISODIC or Stand Alone
Episode Description
This is Season 1 finale of Michael Schur’s hit The Good Place. The episode opens with a flash back to the Neighborhood Architect, Michael, receiving his assignment to make a Good Place neighborhood solo for the first time. Thats when we re-join our lead characters in the middle of confrontation with Shawn-the all-knowing ruler of both the good and bad place realms. He tells Chidi, Jason, Eleanor, and Tahani that he is owed two people for the Bad Place, so they must decide who to send. Michael is devastated at the suffering his failed neighborhood has caused them all. Eleanor works to convince Jason that they have to leave for the Bad Place, and Chidi is torn by his burgeoning feelings for Eleanor. Just as Eleanor and Jason prepare to depart, Real Eleanor offers to sacrifice herself because she has no soulmate in The Good Place. As they argue about who leaves, Eleanor realizes the truth… they’ve been in The Bad Place the whole time. His diabolical plan is foiled, so Michael resets their memories and we are back to square one.
Why This Episode
Call me dense, but I really didn’t see the twist coming when I first watched The Good Place. The mid-season reveal of Jason’s true character got me, and the finale twist—that they’ve actually been in the Bad Place the whole time—was wild! Michael Schur’s vision for this show was calculated and wholistic, having the structure for all four-season of the show mapped out before diving in. It was a big moment for network sitcom, allowing Schur to keep a show’s structure more aligned with steaming-services (13 episode seasons, ending definitively after 4 seasons), a structure which kept the show engaging, fresh, and well-written for the entire run.
The BEER.
Undead Flame Smoked Lager
Brewed by: Wayfiner | 5.2% ABV
DRINK IF YOU LIKE: Raunchbier, Blue Moon, Pyramid Apricot Ale
Beer Description
The Undead Flame is an oak smoked peach lager that is wickedly easy to drink, perfectly paired with a day in the Bad Place. As the hellish liquid hits your tongue, it starts of tasting like a standard American lager, but the unique flavor really comes through as the beer washes across your palette. Starting with the sweet peachy taste, reminiscent of a Del Monte special, the fruity taste is cut by just a whiff of smoke. Unlike a lot of smoked beers, this brew keeps its balance, making it quite quaffable. You almost don’t realize you’re not in the Good Place afterall…
Why this Beer
I’ve been wary to put a smoked beer on the blog. Rauchbiers (as they’re known) are extremely divisive beers with few diehard fans, created by drying the malt barley over open flames giving the beer a smokey taste and smell. But when I was trying to pair something with The Good Place, I wanted something that hinted at the show’s hellish twist, and when it comes to the macabre, Portland’s Wayfinder brewery came top of mind. Huge plus - this beer was brewed in collaboration with The Beermongers, a local bottle shop that I often patronize for this blog. So, the pairing felt right and I was so thrilled to find that the Undead Flame isn’t overly smoked by the aged oak.
Tasting Notes
Hints of the test emerge through Michael’s flashback—his desire to see “the fun” play out for himself, his frustration with the usual protocol’s lack of creativity, and his eagerness to experiment with a new version of the afterlife. The Good Place that led the season isn’t truly an innovative version of heaven—it’s simply a place where everyone gets everything they want. This is an early clue that something is amiss! Much like the tantalizing hints of smoke in our lager, what you see (and taste) isn’t always what it seems.
When the gang becomes entangled in deciding who must go to the Bad Place—slowly tearing themselves apart—it finally clicks for Eleanor: they’re already in the Bad Place. As an audience, we realize we’ve been watching a different show than we thought. This isn’t a flawed Good Place; it’s a perfectly curated Bad Place. As a reformed bad girl, Eleanor sees through the facade when Shawn, Real Eleanor, and the others reject her offer to take her rightful place in the Bad Place. Show creator Michael Schur cites Lost as an inspiration, providing a dramatic twist to cap off the first season.
Jason references consequentialism—a moral philosophy that judges actions solely by their outcomes. Using this framework, he argues that he was better than the others because he stayed out of everyone’s way. But in reality, his inaction was the least harmful thing about him, and his passivity led to others suffering as they tried to connect with and protect him. Sorry, Jason—your ethical approach doesn’t hold up.
Eleanor’s realization reminds us that humanity always finds a way and that people can change. Chidi’s loyalty and dedication to Eleanor provide her with something she’s never experienced before: unwavering support. That support encourages her to be a better person. It took someone believing in her goodness for her to believe in it herself. For Chidi, while he struggles with decision-making throughout the season, he is able to quickly and decisively agree to help Eleanor—a firm choice that ultimately makes him a better person through helping others. Eleanor’s kindness toward Tahani breaks through her egotistical exterior, allowing her to develop a real friendship with another woman—something she lacked on Earth.
Michael realizes that in order for his plan to succeed, he must keep everyone separate. He decides to reset them and start over. But before he can, Eleanor rips a page from What We Owe to Each Other and stuffs it into Janet’s mouth. What We Owe to Each Other is a real book discussing and defending a moral philosophy called contractualism, developed by ethicist Tim Scanlon. In short, contractualism argues that to act morally is to abide by principles that no one could reasonably reject. This reference foreshadows the direction the show will take, shaping the next three seasons. Our four heroes must work together to create an afterlife they can all abide by. Michael’s maniacal demon laugh is swiftly cut short by a sip of the Undead Flame.
Fun Fact: Only Kristen Bell and Ted Danson knew the twist ending when they started the show. The other actors were not told.
Thanks for reading! See you next Tuesday. Cheers!