The Good Place has become one of TV's most necessary shows

Vanity Fair

"Plenty of TV comedies have tried to confront the horrors of modern life in America, especially in the past few years," says Laura Bradley. "Too often, their attempts hinge on punching at public figures with jokes that don’t land—even if a studio audience is there to whoop and cheer as if they did," she adds, referring to shows like the Will & Grace revival. Bradley says the Michael Schur-created NBC comedy's "genius is in running in the complete opposite direction. Where other shows choose flagrant defiance, The Good Place chooses mirth." She adds that The Good Place "is a candy-coated exploration of human behavior, morality, and redemption—one that, more than anything else right now, feels like an essential reminder of the capacity for goodness within us all...At a time when we’re drowning in deep existential dread, we need television like The Good Place. It’s hard to imagine anything more comforting right now than a beautifully crafted story about a universe overseen with purpose and order—by beings who genuinely care about us, despite our deepest flaws."

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